Free VoIP calls are never completely free of cost. Often, the goal is not to achieve completely free calls to all destinations, but to use the VoIP operator that suits your needs best. Keeping that in mind, you will learn that most VoIP companies will let you talk for free in their own network, but will charge you for making calls outside their proprietary network.
Companies offering free VoIP calls usually offer free calls inside their own network and towards other specially selected destinations. Using this tactic users are drawn to make calls to free destinations and later purchase credits to make calls towards paid destinations.There are several options to choose from, when it comes to selecting the right VoIP service for you.
1. The first category of VoIP services involves direct PC to PC connections, or PC to landline/mobile phone connections.
This is by far the most common way of using VoIP. It requires the use of VoIP software. Skype is one of the most popular VoIP services on the market in this category. You can initiate conversations with other Skype users free of charge. However, if you want to make calls to regular landlines or mobile phones, you will need to pay. The subscription fee for calls in North America is $30 a year. It is not a great deal of money, but it still isn't free.
Raketu, another player in the VoIP market, offers free phone calls to landlines in 42 countries and besides that, it also offers live video television. The only downside to Raketu's service is that they ask you to pay $9.95 up front in order to use their services.
It you are still looking for a cost-free VoIP service, you can use something like voipCheap that allows you to make free calls to PCs and regular phone lines. However, this service is available up to the maximum limit of 300 minutes per week, per IP address, after which you will have to pay. It includes many destinations outside USA and Canada that can be called without paying a cent, but if you want to call places not on their free calls list, you will be charged.
Google has recently come up with a new VoIP service called Google Voice, which is now being tried by many users in the US. At present, users can sign up by invitation only. Free calls and messages can be sent anywhere in the mainland US, and international calls can be made for less than half a dollar per minute.
2. The second category of VoIP services involves getting landline or mobile phone connections to be routed over the Internet.
Jajah is a good example from this category. Users of this service can make free calls to landlines and mobiles in select countries. For other select countries in Europe, Asia and South America, you can apply for landline calls.
The YouFon service routes cellular phone calls from Nokia E-Series handsets through the Internet. It lets you make free calls to other registered YouFon users for costs just around 5 dollars a month.
3. A third category of VoIP technology services involves the use of VoIP phones directly using an Internet Protocol (IP) network by connecting to it via a Wi-Fi or Ethernet network.
The ooma service is a good example from this category for users within the US. It uses peer-to-peer VoIP technology for users to make free calls within the US. The service is available for residents and up to a limit of 3000 minutes of outgoing calls. The only cost that is involved is in purchasing the device. Certain premium services are available for an extra charge.
If you manage to use services that offer good deals for what you require, you can save up to 98% from your phone bills. This means that you will need to put some time and research into it, but in the end you can achieve nearly free calls via the VoIP technology.
