Free BT device could produce faster VoIP solutions

A device being offered for free to customers of major internet service provider BT could help people use VoIP hardware more efficiently, reports ISPreview.co.uk. The BT Broadband Accelerator - formerly known as the I-Plate - is a simple device that can be plugged in to domestic and business phone lines and reduces local electronic interference to produce faster broadband connection speeds.

Existing BT customers will only have to pay a small postage fee to get hold of the device, while non-BT broadband users will be charged around £8 for the product itself.

Broadband connection speeds can be affected by electronic interference generated by nearby devices such as stereos, televisions or other computers, but BT claims its new product can boost speeds by as much as 1.5 megabits per second.

The company recently announced a £1.5 billion investment in developing next-generation fibre optic networks across the UK and is currently testing the technology in nearly 70 towns and cities.

By Telappliant.

Could VoIP solutions be the future of emergency calls

VoIP solutions could be used by emergency service teams in the future, according to experts. During many natural disasters, standard call networks are often destroyed or damaged to such an extent they can not handle user demand.

IP telephony solutions are capable of providing continued service during such events through satellites, as was the case earlier this year in the aftermath of the Haiti earthquake.

Jack Deasy, civil programs director at satellite communications provider Inmarsat, claimed that VoIP solutions provide immediate contact between the victim and the emergency services.

He told US IT website gcn.com: "Voice is the primary communications channel people want in a disaster."

Mr Deasy added that trapped residents used static communication, such as e-mail and text messages, to alert the emergency teams to their location.

Around 30 per cent of Haiti's terrestrial phone network was wiped out by the tragedy, with much of the gap filled by IP satellite communications.