VoIP: Voice over Internet Protocol

According to researchers at Cambridge University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, VoIP software like Skype may be the ideal disguise for hackers to infiltrate people’s computers.

The Communications Research Network believes that it is only a matter of time before the technique becomes mainstream and becomes the same problem that instant messaging has where hackers trigger DoS attacks using the protocol.

The researches believe that if VoIP publishers were to publish their routing specifications or switch over to open standards then the problem could be resolved.

The NETGEAR WiFi phone will make mobile Internet telephony a reality for Skype users. Unlike other devices that must connect with a PC, NETGEAR’s Skype WiFi phone will work wherever a consumer is connected to a wireless Internet access point — be that in a home, office, cafe, open public hotspot, or any open municipal wireless access point being deployed worldwide. The Skype experience remains the same, in that users can make free domestic and international calls, as well as host conference calls and chat, with other Skype users anywhere in the world, and to non-Skype users for a small fee.

With this device, headphones or USB phones plugged into a laptop or PC are not required.

The NETGEAR device will combine the best of Internet calling and wireless. The NETGEAR phone is pre-loaded with Skype’s software, ready out-of-the-box to use with a wireless network. All a user needs to do after turning on the phone is enter a Skype username and password. The Skype software pulls up the user’s full contact list, displays the connection status on the phone screen, and allows the consumer to connect to any other Skype user for free. The phone will also allow users to connect to non-Skype users with the SkypeOut(TM) feature. More information on NETGEAR’s Skype WiFi phone, including pricing and availability, is planned for the first quarter of 2006.

Uniden America Corporation, a leading manufacturer of wireless consumer electronics, and Microsoft Corp. today announced an alliance in North America to deliver a digital cordless phone that serves as a traditional landline phone and takes calling to the next level by also enabling customers to make and receive Internet calls via the upcoming Windows Live(TM) Messenger phone. The WIN 1200, a 5.8GHz digital cordless phone, integrates Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephony with a landline, enabling consumers to experience next-generation technology throughout the home while providing an easy-to-use and convenient way to stay connected. With the WIN 1200, customers will have three calling choices with the solution: Windows Live Messenger free PC-to-PC calling allowing users to place and receive voice calls; MCI Web Calling offering Windows Live Messenger users a low-cost PC-to-phone outbound calling option; and traditional landline phone service(a).

As a hardware extension to the Windows Live Messenger service, the WIN 1200 displays the Messenger contact list allowing customers to see their friends’ online status and Messenger icon when logged into the service from virtually anywhere in the house and place calls to those contacts. This ability to notify a Windows Live Messenger user when another user is connected to the network and capable of receiving communication through the Messenger interface is known as presence technology. The WIN 1200 now extends the reach of presence technology by delivering notification options on the cordless handset, which can be used throughout the home or office, and eliminates the need for consumers to remain attached to their computer for communication.

“Together with Microsoft, Uniden is paving the way to deliver a cutting-edge communications product with presence technology,” said Rich Tosi, president of Uniden America Corporation. “The integrated WIN 1200 will continue to raise the bar in voice communications by allowing VoIP and a traditional landline to co-exist, expanding a variety of telephony options to consumers in a single unit.”

“This alliance will unlock the world of VoIP communications to a broader demographic of users,” said Blake Irving, corporate vice president of the MSN Communication Services and Member Platform group at Microsoft. “Rounding out software and services with great devices is a key pillar of Windows Live, and the Uniden WIN 1200 and Windows Live Messenger makes advanced voice technology feel familiar.”

Using the Uniden WIN 1200 (MSRP: $99.99), Windows Live Messenger users will also be able to place 3-way Internet conference calls. The WIN 1200 easily connects to the PC via a USB cord and includes integri.sound(TM) for life-like audio, a handset speakerphone, a full color LCD screen, the ability to download the Messenger contact list to the handset phonebook, and a user-friendly interface with soft key menu options and joystick navigation. Windows Live Messenger, the upcoming successor to MSN(R) Messenger, which has more than 200 million active accounts around the world, is currently in limited beta and expected to be more broadly available later this year. Interested parties can learn more about Windows Live Messenger at http://ideas.live.com.

Uniden and 8×8, today announced the extension of their strategic partnership and introduced a new co-branded VoIP product. The Packet8-enabled UIP165P is a 5.8GHz DSS cordless, service-ready whole house VoIP phone system.

Expandable up to 10 handsets, the Uniden UIP165P (MSRP: $129.99) system is capable of deploying VoIP telephony throughout the home. The phone system, which includes a base station, as well as an extra caller ID handset with a charger, offers full router functionality. The UIP165P features a keypad and speakerphone at the base, handset speakerphone and the ability to transfer calls between handsets. This new product also offers 20 distinctive ringer options, caller ID, call waiting, handset paging and a new message waiting indicator with an alert tone option.

Packet8 Internet Phone Service offers unlimited residential calling in the U.S. and Canada for $19.99 per month along with calling features such as unlimited worldwide in-network calling, voicemail, E911, caller ID, call waiting, call forwarding, 3-way conferencing, area code selection, directory assistance, Local Number Porting, online account management & billing, phone-based management and Virtual Phone Numbers. Additionally, 8×8 offers a thirty (30) day trial period to new subscribers for their first Packet8 account.

The UIP165P is the second co-branded VoIP product delivered by Uniden and 8×8. Announced in April 2005, the Uniden UIP1868P is available to consumers at retailers nationwide, including CompUSA, Fry’s, OfficeMax, Costco.com and Amazon.com.

The UIP165P is also compatible with Uniden accessory handsets including the TCX805 (MSRP: $69.99), TCX400 (MSRP: $99.99), TCX905 (MSRP: $49.99) and the ELX500 (MSRP: $99.99). All of these accessory handsets offer handset speakerphones and feature DirectLink(TM) two-way radio communication. The ELX500 features full color LCD displays.

With the Jawbone PC Edition, VoIP users have a portable solution, allowing them to talk uninterrupted anywhere they make calls. For you, it means your caller’s voice has maximum intelligibility. For your caller, noises in your environment are either dramatically reduced or removed entirely. For everyone, it means clearer communications. (Photo: Business Wire)

The Jawbone PC Edition headset is Skype Certified and eliminates all background noise for crystal-clear voice quality at both ends of a VoIP conversation. Jawbone’s adaptive technology senses your speech and surroundings to continuously adjust at a rate of 868 times per second and achieve flawless sound quality. (Photo: Business Wire)

The Jawbone PC Edition integrates the latest innovations in acoustics, Aliph’s exclusive military-grade audio processing, and product design. It is the only such device that virtually eliminates all background noise for crystal-clear voice quality at both ends of the conversation — whether you’re in an airport terminal, an Internet cafe, or simply in a busy office atmosphere. All of this is accomplished in a form that is small enough to go everywhere.

Based on the same award-winning and celebrated design recognized by BusinessWeek and the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA), the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA), and currently on exhibit at the New York Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), the Jawbone PC Edition is discrete, lightweight, and comfortable. It has a metal outer edge that protects the internal electronics, while the inside surface is made of medical-grade plastic to provide a comfortable, soft, and smooth feel on the skin. Jawbone’s unique docking and storage mechanism allows it to fit in a user’s pocket enabling easy portability.

“You can’t control your environment, but with the Jawbone PC Edition’s adaptive technology, you can outsmart it,” said Hosain Rahman, Aliph’s president and co-founder. “Jawbone’s adaptive technology senses your speech and surroundings to continuously adjust — at a rate of 868 times per second — and achieve flawless sound quality.”

“For you, that means your caller’s voice has maximum intelligibility. For your caller, that means noises in your environment are either dramatically reduced or removed entirely. For everyone, it means clearer communications,” Rahman continued. “We are quite excited about the new Jawbone PC Edition because for the first time ever, VoIP users have a portable solution allowing them to talk uninterrupted anywhere that they make calls.”

“Voice over IP is mainstream, yet headset technology that takes best advantage of VoIP applications, such as Skype, has lagged behind user adoption. What’s needed is a compact headset with proven audio-processing technology — a product like the new Jawbone PC Edition — so that we won’t have to trade off sound quality for convenience,” said Chris Shipley, co-founder and editorial director of Guidewire Group LLC.

This week at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, ZyXEL will showcase its line of converged technologies for consumers and small and medium businesses. For consumers, ZyXEL products help digitally converge the home and streamline the efficiency of everyday activities. This begins with the XtremeMIMO Wireless Broadband Router, which intelligently prioritizes network traffic for online gaming, VoIP, and other Internet applications transmitting simultaneously. The router’s Smart Antenna Technology also provides the ultimate in speed and coverage. This allows the optimum use of ZyXEL’s VoIP WiFi Phone. With this phone, users no longer have to pay expensive communication fees and can enjoy the convenience of wireless mobility. Then, while one member of the household is upstairs on the computer, the other can access the network wirelessly downstairs on their laptop with their WiFi Finder, which combines a USB 2.0 adapter with a fully functional wireless hotspot detector.