subject: What Effect Has The Internet Had On The Traditional Landline? [print this page] As digital technology continues to progress it seems that many aspects of our daily lives are destined to change, and communications are no exception to this. Already there are a variety of different options presented for anyone wishing to communicate online, and some may even argue that all this new technology is leaving the traditional landline telephone obsolete. Although modern communications are certainly presenting a number of benefits over traditional ones, to say that they have completely removed the need for them would not be entirely true. Communications technology such as the landline telephone still does hold some advantages other their modern equivalents.
As mentioned previously there are a number of different options for communication for anyone using the Internet today; social networking websites, email, and skype are just a few. One innovative product that phone companies are now providing presents a balance between the economical features of the Internet for communication and the user-friendly aspects of the home phone. VoIP phones function in the same way that a regular household phone would, but they operate via the Internet.
There a number of benefits to having a phone that runs through the Internet, but the driving factor behind VoIP phones rise in popularity is likely to be the low cost of long-distance and international calls. For anyone who has friends or family in foreign countries the VoIP phone certainly presents an economical alternative to the traditional landline. These phones also come with a range of features making them quite versatile machines; they can access emails, send instant messages, and even make video calls. Another attractive feature is their portability; VoIP phones can be easily moved from one location to another and simply plugged into another Internet connection.
Although there are quite a few good reasons to have a VoIP phone there are also some advantages to keeping your traditional landline phone too. Firstly they are secure, unlike an Internet connection that can vulnerable to interference or hackers, a landline telephone is a safe place to disclose any personal details. Furthermore, placing all of your communication needs on the Internet can also be a bad idea. Also consider this little known fact; the traditional landline telephone is the only modern communications technology that does not require electricity to operate, meaning it can prove very useful in the even of a power cut. So to conclude, although there are many new features and advantages associated with online communication it is still true that there are advantages to keeping a landline telephone too.
