VoIP over Satellite Internet
VoIP
,(Voice over Internet Protocol) allows you to make a telephone call over the Internet. VoIP is widely accepted as a reliable and affordable means of voice communication. Using VoIP on our satellite network lets you enjoy the benefits of VoIP no matter where you’re located in North America, Central America or the Caribbean.
How it works?
With VoIP, you can make and receive calls over an Internet connection as you would over a landline or cell phone. VoIP works by sending voice as data packets organized and decoded by VoIP software. You could use a dedicated VoIP phone, an ATA adapter to convert your fixed phone in to a VoIP phone, or simply use a microphone and speakers connected to your computer.
Can I buy VoIP directly from Skycasters?
Skycasters does not sell VoIP, per se. We sell TCP/IP- Internet connections. You can use a Skycasters connection for many things: Surf the web, sending emails, and making VoIP calls. The voice is sent as data packets through the satellite Internet connection provided by us. Our networks are specially optimized for VoIP performance.
You will need to select your own VoIP vendor. We have some recommendations (see below) based on our testing of the equipment and customer feedback.
How do we make it work?
VoIP traffic over the Skycasters satellite link is treated differently than other IP traffic. This is primarily because VoIP traffic cannot tolerate delays, a common problem for most satellite links. VoIP on a Skycasters connection is of a technically superior quality. Reason: We provide business grade hardware, guaranteed bandwidth and maintain managed networks having voice priority.
In fact, voice calls over the Skycasters network have the same digital clarity you would expect from a cell phone or a terrestrial VoIP phone.
Latency under 700 ms
The physics involved in a round trip transmission to a satellite in space accounts for approximately 500 milliseconds of latency. This is a limitation shared by all satellite providers. What distinguishes one provider from another is how much additional overhead they add. Although we cannot change the laws of physics, we can control the way we run our network, and that can have a great deal of impact on total network latency.
We don’t oversubscribe our network, so packets don’t pile up, waiting their turn. We’ve incorporated core switching technology into our all-Cisco backbone, reducing latency in our NOC. Our dual upstream fiber connections average less than 15% loading.
All to keep total network latency under 700 ms (and often under 600 ms). Why? What’s so special about 700 ms? That’s the point where a VoIP call stops sounding like a conversation and starts reminding you of a walkie-talkie. Over 800ms – forget it. You may as well send a letter!
Network induced latency is what really sets one network operator apart from another. Compare our 700 ms with the 1200-1700ms of latency of oversubscribed satellite ISPs and you will realize why VoIP works better on our networks.
Low latency is the foundation of our success with VoIP.
Jitter free networks
Jitter, is latency that fluctuates significantly over a relatively short period of time. Jitter can often be more detrimental than high latency. Our customers enjoy a jitter-free experience for all IP applications primarily because our networks are not overloaded. Our networks employ TDMA methods which ensure that packets in our networks are evenly placed in timeslots across a frame. This reduces jitter to a great extent. We also employ static and dynamic Jitter Buffer techniques as we believe in not taking any chances with your connection.
Making sure the packets arrive in the correct order is our second key to VoIP success.
CIR-Dedicated bandwidth
All service plans we offer include Committed Information Rates (CIRs), ensuring sufficient bandwidth availability to make a VoIP call.
QoS priority for VoIP
We can optimize our networks and configure modem equipment for voice priority. Voice traffic is identified and dynamically assigned highest priority. This feature when coupled with CIRs guarantees consistent clarity and reliable connections.
With a Skycasters connection, you can browse, send/receive email, download files and make a VoIP call, all at the same time.
QoS prioritization (along with CIR), is our 3rd key to providing good VoIP.
Packet retention
Data transfers like general web surfing, email and file sharing is TCP. If there is a data loss, the packets are automatically resent. VoIP traffic unlike other web traffic is UDP. In UDP, lost packets are not retransmitted automatically. So what does this mean for a person using VoIP? Distorted voice and incomprehensible calls. Remember the analog cell phones in the 90s?
The packets on Skycasters networks are transmitted with extremely low Bit Error Rates (10-9). This minimizes packet loss to a great extent, insuring a good VoIP experience.
Low bit error rates are our final key to quality VoIP over satellite.
Result: Satisfied Customers
“Satellite VoIP call? It’s great! It sounds just like a cell phone call.”
Tested VoIP phone solutions
Many VoIP phones work well on Skycasters’ satellite Internet connections. Some are more bandwidth efficient than others; some require adjustments to your connection for optimal performance.
Our Tech Support team has tested a variety of VoIP phones to find out and recommend which ones work best with the Skycasters network. Here’s what our techies have found out regarding some popular VoIP phones (listed in no particular order).
Vonage“Call quality is excellent! Much better than a cell phone actually. We got it up and running on the Skycasters connection within 10 minutes. Very bandwidth efficient. On an average we saw less than 20 kbps up/down of bandwidth use.”
In short: Amazing call quality. Can easily replace your existing phone line. Great savings potential for frequent usage! www.vonage.com
"Call quality is great, comparable to a cell phone. The product is one of the cheapest in the market. Configuration is simple; one end is plugged into a USB port and the other end to a phone cable. It is not very bandwidth efficient and used up 80 kbps up/down on an average.”
Conclusion: Good call quality. Great product if you’re using it as a secondary VoIP connection. www.magicjack.com
“This service is optimized for satellite... Call sounds great, bandwidth efficiency is good and network latency is hard to notice."
There are many service levels to choose from, starting from $9.99/mth with a phone number in the US or one of many countries around the world.www.kusat.com/voip
Getting the most out of your VoIP.
If you have a VoIP phone, please call tech support at 800-268-8653 to let us know. We can help optimize your connection for best performance and most efficient use of bandwidth, which could save you money with every call.
Questions about other VoIP Phones?
Prefer a particular VoIP phone? Let us know, and we’ll check it out. Do you work for a VoIP phone company? Send us one, we’ll test it.
Have more questions about VoIP? Contact us by phone at 800-268-8653, and you’ll be on your way to satellite VoIP solution that actually works as it’s supposed to!