VoIP Phone Terms

• VoIP refers to a way to carry phone calls over an IP data network, whether on the Internet or your own internal network. A primary benefit of a VoIP phone is its ability to help reduce expenses, because telephone calls travel over the data network rather than the phone company's network.
• IP telephony encompasses the full suite of VoIP services, including:
  • The interconnection of VoIP phones for communications
  • Related services such as billing and dialing plans
  • Basic features, such as conferencing, transfer, forward, and hold
• IP communications includes business applications that enhance communications on a VoIP phone, providing features such as:
  • Unified messaging
  • Integrated contact centers
  • Multimedia conferencing with voice, data, and video
• Unified communications takes IP communications further by using such technologies as Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) and presence, along with mobility solutions, to unify and simplify all forms of communications on a VoIP phone, independent of location, time, or device.

VoIP Phone Service Quality

Most businesses are using a VoIP phone throughout their own managed private networks, rather than the public Internet, because a private network helps ensure security and service quality. A VoIP phone system on a private network also gives better control over voice quality, so that it is as good as, if not better than, the quality provided by a traditional phone system.

Information taken from VoIP Phone - Cisco Systems

Cisco IP Phone