There are both local companies and foreign companies that provide VoIP solutions in Malaysia.

Prepaid Cards

Popular with foreign workers, students and foreign immigrants . Calling cards are usually provided with toll-free numbers like TM iTalk for instance. Newer calling cards also operate on the IVR-callback model.

Post-paid Accounts

Targeted towards businesses, these are offered using auto-diallers by companies such as Nextel, NasionComm and RedTone. However, you can’t get the full benefit of VoIP using these type of services, especially inter-branch free calling and foreign telephone numbers.

Wartel (Warung Telefon) or Call Shops

Another service targeted to foreign workers who want to call back home.

Skype / PC to Phone

Of course, you can use Skype here in Malaysia. Download Skype for free and use it to call your friend anywhere in the world. There are also other PC to Phone type of services such as E-Voice by TMNet.

Skype and other forms of PC to Phone are great for individual users, but not necessarily for a business.

There are generally 3 typs of Voip headsets you can get, which are:

1. Analog Voip headsets
2. USB Voip Headsets
3. Wireless / BlueTooth Voip headsets

Analog VoIP Headsets Analog VoIP headsets are any regular headset that connects directly to the sound card input of your PC or notebook. These are usually much cheaper, but of of course there are the irritating wires and they also usually last a shorter time.

A good entry-level analog VoIP headset is the one offered by Logitech, the Logitech 980158-0403 Internet Chat Headset (yeah, the guys that make the mouse and keyboards) at it’ll cost under 30 bucks. Just click on the image on the left for more details.

USB VoIP Headsets USB VoIP headsets connect directly to any USB port on your PC or laptop. The advanteg of using USB Voip headsets is the faster data transfer rate, meaning you can get better quality sounds.

The picture here is of the Sennheiser PC155 Traditional Binaural PC Headset with USB and Noise canceling from Amazon.com. You can also try Headsets.com where they have a 60 day money back guarantee, over 85 models, and free live advice.

If you’re travelling overseas a lot, you may want to consider the i2 Telecom VoiceStick which is a portable USB phone with headsets.

It looks just like any other ‘thumb drive’ or ‘USB disk’ but it also has a built-in Voip service that you can use to connect with any other i2 Telecom user. Of course, this means you’ll have to pay 12 Telecom about $4 a month for their VoIP service as well and you can’t use it with Skype, Google Talk or other services.

Wireless Headsets

Wireless or Bluetooth headsets are definately going to cost you more, but if you’re a heavy Skype, Google Talk or other PC based Internet telephony user it just might be worth it to go wireless.

Wireless headsets give you the freedom to move around your office or home so you’re not just sitting in front of the PC all the time. Perhaps the coolest looking wireless VoIP headset is the Plantronics CS50 Wireless Convertible Headset

The Plantronics CS50 Wireless Office Headset System brings the ultimate in mobility and sound quality for hands-free conversations to your phone. Totally wireless, the CS50 gives you up to eight hours talk time and the wireless convenience to roam up to 300 feet while having secure conversations.

You can check out a whole range of wireless VoIP headsets at Headsets.com where they have a 60 day money back guarantee, over 85 models, and free live advice. They also have a promotion for Plantronics right now, so click the banner below to try it out.

Although almost everyone you’ll meet in the next year or so will be singing praises about the wonders of using Voice over ip and Internet telephony, in truth there are both advantages and disadvantages of using VoIP.

Yes, there IS an ugly side.

Although most experts agree that the minus points of VoIP is just a “temporary” problem that will be eliminated as the technology goes from strength to strenth, let have a look at it anyway.

Here’s a simple explanation, and it’s not recommended for techno geeks :)…

Advantage of VoIP

1) Cost Savings & FREE Calls

This is perhaps the most obvious. True enough, the very nature of VoIP technology means that everyone can make significant cost savings for their business, especially if you have mutiple branches nationwide or overseas.

Cheap calls and free calls may be the attraction for VoIP right now, but the future will be about value-added voip services, and cost will take the backseat.

2) Portability - One Global Number

One important concept to understand about VoIP is that unlike it’s forefathers (let’s calll them PSTN for now), it is not distance or location dependent.

As far as VoIP is concerned, you could be calling your supplier 1,000 miles away in Indonesia or calling your business partner on the other end of town, and it doesn’t make any difference at all, in terms of connectivity and cost. Many of our recommended Voip service providers have this feature.

No extra cables, no extra cost.

A VoIP phone number, unlike your regular phone number, is completely portable. Most commonly referred to as a virtual number, you can take it with you anywhere you go.

Even if you change your office address to another state, you phone number can go with you. Heck, you can even take your whole business with you wherever you travel…

4) Integrated Communications

This is where the advantages of VoIP become VERY clear. My friends, how would you like to have all these excellent communications tools in one package:

• Making cheap local and international phone calls
• Audio conferencing & Video conferencing
• Have Voice messages sent to your email
• Call forwarding, call waiting
• Fax thru e-mail
• Send and receive multimedia files
• Sharing photos while talking

.. and much, much more.

If you look at our recommended voip solutions it won’t take you long to find the type of packages and services that will change the way you communicate forever.

Disadvantages of Voip

All good things have a bad side, and so does Voice over IP. While the pros may be overwhelmingly attractive, as a small business owner, you should know the disadvantages as well.

Here are some of the main disadvantages of voip:

1) Power Supply Dependency

Yes, your VoIP service will be dependent on your power supply. No power, no phone calls.

This is mainly because the equipment is hosted on your side, and not in some telecommunications exchange like the usual PSTN networks.

However, in the future when most countries make a complete shift to IP based networks, and most telcos go 100% VoIP, this problems should by all means cease to exist.

Most PSTN lines are power-independent simply because they have back-up power in the exchanges, and even during blackouts you’ll be able to make calls. This is one thing that VoIP does not have at the moment.

This disadvantage would mean that you will need a back-up PSTN line in case of emergencies, and for calling 911. In fact, most businesses we have consulted do indeed have at least one backup PSTN phone line.

2) Security Issues

Charles Cabre mentioned this in his September 2004 report, “Advantages and Disadvantages of the Voice Over Internet Protocol Business” (get pdf) and many other voip experts agree that security is a major concern when choosing a voip solution.

One of the major concerns is “packet sniffing” where bad, bad people with nothing better to do in their lives can actually “spy” on your conversation without effecting the call at all.

Sort of like eavesdropping on your conversation with a friend. Surely, we all hate eavesdroppers.

Security concerns, in my experience and opinion, will always be a concern, no matter how technology evolves. There will always be somone who finds a loophole and manipulates it. Those are things beyond your control.

However, there ARE things in your control, and you can take simple steps to make sure you’re getting the best protection that money can buy.

3) Quality Control

The basics of VoIP is very different from regular PSTN, which uses “C7 signalling” for controlling quality of service.

Due to the nature of VoIP, your calls are streamed by packets to the destination, and any inconsistency would mean issues like jitter, packet loss and echo.

These problems, while posing some considerable inconvenience a few years back, are being eliminated even as you’re reading this.

4) Bandwidth Dependent

In any small bsuienss or home office setting, you’ll typically have one broadband line which is shared by multiple users, for downloading data, sending emails, and viewing web sites andmultimedia applications.

Add a VoIP system to that, and your bandwidth will soon be sucked dry.

The only way to solve this problem is to have a dedicated E1 (larger user base) or at least a dedicated broadband connection.

Home offices may not face this problem if there are less than 3 similtaneous users.

Recommendations

Please read our VoIP solutions guide to understand your business network settings, and make an intelligent business decision on where, what and how to invest in VoIP systems.

One of the most most obvious myth about VoIP is that it runs only on the Internet. What can we expect? The term Internet is built into VoIP. However, VoIP services, like Verizon VoIP requires and runs on the Internet protocol, but not necessarily on the Internet itself. Internet protocol is not synonymous with the Internet.

The Internet can be accessed from all types of networks. The Internet is not a network type unto itself; it is a network that is accessed by other networks and provides access to other networks.

That’s why the above mentioned Verizon VoIP runs on any network that can run the Internet protocol. This includes every network type known to man. But just because VoIP can run the same protocols over any network type, this does not mean VoIP runs the same way on all network types. The protocols take care of packetizing the telephony voice signals, but the network type takes care of transporting those packets.

If you rack up a lot of minutes outside your local calling area, VoIP saves you a bundle of cash. You can use your VoIP service to make all your far, far away calls, for example, to the UK, and pay nothing for carrier charges. If you make lots of international calls (You can make, because VoIP technology is now used all over the world. For example, the above mentioned UK VoIP system is almost as popular as the US systems.), VoIP is a way to greatly reduce the perminute charges.

The per-minute rates are reduced by a factor of ten or more compared to traditional carrier charges, depending on the country that you are calling (not the same in the UK and in the US, for example). And you can call Canada for free with most VoIP plans.

And here is another advantage of VoIP. If you are using a dialup modem to gain Internet access, you have one or more traditional POTS lines for telephony service. (You need a POTS line to hook up your modem.) The speed you get is excruciatingly slow compared to broadband. The bandwidth with broadband service is many times greater than with a dialup modem over a POTS line.

VoIP allows you to put all your telephony services on a single broadband account. You can keep one POTS line (your broadband carrier may provide one in your service bundle) for local calls and emergency purposes. You simply plug your POTS phone into the adapter box the carrier provides.
Sure you get more bandwidth with broadband, but you also gain access to the entire Web. Everything from shopping on the Net and e-commerce to research and e-mail are now at your fingertips. Stay connected with your friends, your family, and your co-workers. Start a Web page; broadband providers often give customers Web site space for free. (Perhaps you can start a sideline business.)

Using VoIP, you can call people up wheter they are int he UK or in New Zealand and talk as long as you want. You can even have a conference call and do instant messaging over the computer while the conference is going on. Broadband opens a whole new world for you; take advantage of it. Save money, gain services and features, and enjoy the good life.

A VoIP Service provider based in Idaho, TelExtreme has been marketing their services aggressively not only in the US, but in many developed countries and third-wrold countries as well.

For those who live outside the US, TelExtreme’s Dial Zone 1 (Residential) plan actually gives you unlimited calling for just $59 a month, and is readily available for use in many countries. This package can save you loads of money.

The ATA (Analog Phone Adapter) has to be bought individually for $199.

[+] More Info on Telextreme Voip

With Skype In and Skype Out, you can easily extend your Skype from just PC-to-PC calling to a whole new world of connectivity.

Early 2005, Skype introduced 3 new features that would bring this nifty little software to a whole new playing ground. With SkypeIn, SkypeOut and Skype Voice Mail, the world’s first working model of true Internet telephony took the next big step.

What is SkypeOut?

SkypeOut is a service by Skype that allows you to use Skype to call out to any regular mobile phone or fixed phone anywhere in the world. On the website itself, the company describes it as “…a low cost way to make calls from Skype to friends who still use those traditional landlines or mobile phones. That means calling anyone, anywhere in the world at local rates.”

To use Skype Out you’ll of course need an active Skype account, and a credit card. You can buy Skype Out in denominations of €10.00 (equivalent to $13.3) and top it up whenever necessary. Your purchase would give you credits which you can use to make phone calls to fixed phones and mobile phones at the rates mentioned on the website.

What is SkypeIn?

A reverse of SkypeOut, this feature will assign your Skype account with a real phone number that anyone can call. When someone calls this number, the call will be forwarded to your Skype account and you’ll hear your Skpe ringing. The number of the person calling, instead of a Skype account, will appear.

According to the website, “SkypeIn makes it much easier and less expensive for those of your friends, family and business contacts who are not necessarily connected to the Internet to call you”

This is a great tool for any business to use especially since you can instantly expand your business horizon to new countries like the United States, United Kingdom, Denmark, Finland, France, Hong Kong, Poland and Sweden. The cost for a 12 month subscription is € 30 and 3 months is € 10.

What is Skype Voicemail?

Another feature you definately need to get for your Skype is the Skype Voicemail feature, which allows people to leave messages for you when you’re offline, or already talking to another user in Skype. Currently this feature is free when you get SkypeIn, or you can just pay € 15 for 12 months and € 5 for 3 months if you don’t want SkypeIn.

Full Info On Skype VoIP

Guide to Marketing with Skype
Learn how you can turn Skype and VoIP into killer marketing tools for your small business or home based business.

Skype Voip Overview and Technology
General information on Skype.

Skype VoIP Headsets and Headphones
Recommendation on headsets, microphones and headphones you can use with Skype.

Alternatives to Skype
Some great replacements for Skype. Covers PC to Phone and Phone to Phone recommendations.

Skype Phone Adapters
Use a phone adapter meant for Skype VoIP to use a real phone while making Skype calls.

Other Info Related to Skype VoIP

Broadband Search Tool
No broadband or unhappy with your current one? Use our tool to find the perfect broadband solution.

Internet Telephony Basics
Learn about internet telephony in general.

VoIP Service Providers List
If you don’t want to use a PC to make internet phone calls, then see this list of great Phone-to-Phone services.

Skype (pronounced either “skaip“, “skyp” or “skypee“) set a whole new standard for pc-to-pc VoIP when it was launched in 2003. Many times referred to as a “disruptive technology” it would soon become an industry standard, weaving tons of opportunities for other providers and related services.

PC-to-PC internet calls are nothing new. In fact before Skype VoIP came along with a really successfull version of it, many have tried and failed.

Skype VoIP was born out an idea by Janus Friis and Niklas Zennström, the same people behind the success of Kazaa. From the success of KaZaA’s P2P (Peer-to-Peer) technology came the idea of using the same file-sharing platform to instead, run voice chat applications via the Internet. The idea of being able to make calls across the web, at no cost, from wherever you are, is undeniably attractive.

How Does Skype Work?

The Skype VoIP phone is based on a software application that you can download and install on any Windows or Mac based PC. Other than a micro- phone and headphones, it has no need for any other hardware. Skype itself looks like any other instant messaging (IM) service like AOL Messenger or Yahoo Messenger, exept that it has a softphone, which looks like the image here.

As a matter of fact, most instant messengers also have PC-to-PC applications nowadays, but these are merely ‘also-rans’ for Skype which is far superior in both voice quality and stability.

Skype VoIP is a form of PC-to-PC VoIP which means that you’ll use your PC or laptop (notebook) which has an Internet connection to call another person who is also running a Skype softphone application for free. With recent additions such as SkypeIn and SkypeOut it can also make PC-to-Phone calls, which means that you can call regular fixed or mobile phone anywhere in the world for a small fee.

To use Skype optimally you’ll need:

1. A PC or laptop running Windows, Mac OS X or Linux.
2. Broadband internet connection
3. Headsets or a pair of headphone and microphone

(If you’re using Skype VoIP in the corporate environment you’ll definately need a headset)

To download and use Skype VoIP you can just click on the image below and you’ll be taken to their download page.

Full Info On Skype VoIP

Research on Marketing with Skype and VoIP
Learn how you can turn Skype and VoIP into killer marketing tools for your small business or home based business.

Skype In and Skype Out Services
Learn more on these brilliant additional features you can get for Skype.

Skype Headsets and Headphones
Get a new headset and enjoy better experience in Internet telephony.

Skype Phone Adapters
Use a phone adapter meant for Skype VoIP to use a real phone while making Skype calls.

Other Info Related to Skype VoIP

Broadband Search Tool
No broadband or unhappy with your current one? Use our tool to find the perfect broadband solution.

Internet Telephony Basics
Learn about internet telephony in general.

VoIP Service Providers List
If you don’t want to use a PC to make internet phone calls, then see this list of great Phone-to-Phone services.

A list of USB Skype Phone Adapters you can use for Skype, Google Talk and other PC based VoIP service.

If you’re using a microphone to talk on Skype, Google Talk or other PC based VoIP service, you may notice a slight echo as the result of sound leaving your speakers and entering your microphone.

Using a Skype phone adapter would solve this problem, and give you a more ‘regular phone’ type of experience. Here are some of our recommendations:-

Skype Smart Phone Box The Skype Phone Box is easy to use and works with any standard PC. You simply connect it between your phone and PC, and Phone Box is ready to use.

As you probably know, VoIP was firstly used in the business area but you don’t have to worry about using it at home: nowadays the residential voip is a very simple thing.

Most carriers no longer apply service charges to residential accounts for local calls, beyond the monthly recurring costs of the access line. All other rate categories are billed on a per-minute basis. If you convert to VoIP for your home phone, you typically have no recurring service charges for any of the other services categories for calls outside your local area. This, in itself, is a tremendous savings for anybody who does even a moderate amount of nonlocal calling.

Because you must use broadband to get VoIP in your home, I suggest that you pay the additional fee to keep your POTS phone connected to your broadband service. Use the POTS phone for local calls and 911. When the older PSTN catches up with the newer VoIP technology and can support E911 (enhanced 911) calling, you can drop the POTS connection. (With E911, your contact and address information is transmitted along with your call to the 911 emergency center.)