Variation among VoIP, PBX and IP- PBX Phone System

PBX

PBX is an acronym for Private Branch Exchange. A PBX system may be defined as a private telephone switch that is installed inside your business premises to facilitate communication between employees within the organization while also allowing access to external telephone lines.

Internal telephones on a PBX system enters a code, usually 0 or 1, to access an outside line. Once the private line is connected to an outside line, the caller dials the outgoing number normally. The fundamental benefit of a PBX for business houses is to save the cost of requiring a line for each employee to the telephone company's central office.

Present-day PBXs are automated substitutes for earlier systems that needed manual operators working with plug boards. Instead of manually connecting a call using a patch cable, a PBX uses a micro switch to route the analog signal. Though traditional PBX systems started out with analog technology, they were somehow restricted in the number of telephone lines they could support. Over time, analog PBX switches were replaced with digital switches to support higher densities of both internal telephone lines as well as connections to external lines and trunks.

VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol)

The other terms commonly used with VoIP are IP telephony or Internet telephony. Internet telephony refers to communications services voice, fax, SMS, and/or voice-messaging these are transmitted via the Internet, rather than the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN).

The interesting aspect about VoIP is that there are three different versions of VoIP service in common use today - The simplest and most common way is through the use of a device called an ATA (analog telephone adaptor). The second method is to use specialized IP phones look just like normal phones with a handset, cradle and buttons. The third is the most sophisticated method where communication takes place between two computers. For this type, all you need is the software, a microphone, speakers, a sound card and an Internet connection, preferably a rapid one.

If you have a reliable quality Internet connection you can get phone service delivered through your Internet connection instead of from your local phone company. The biggest single advantage VoIP has over conventional telephone systems is cost savings. International calls using VoIP are terribly inexpensive. When the use VoIP becomes more commonplace, calls between VoIP users will become free.

IP-PBX

The exciting advent of the internet has resulted in completely digital PBX systems that use digital technology and Internet protocol (IP) to route phone conversations to the right telephone handset. A PBX that is specifically made for VoIP is called an IP PBX, which stands for Internet Protocol Private Branch Exchange.

Interestingly, IP-PBX systems are less costly than traditional PBX systems and are lot easier to configure. An IP-based PBX is a system can support traditional telephone handsets as also software-based telephones. With a software-based telephone, a user plugs a headset into a computer and uses a virtual telephone to dial and receive telephone calls. An IP-based PBX has the ability to transmit calls internationally over the Internet, thereby drastically minimizing the long-distance call charges.

Till lately, PBXs have been a luxury that only large corporation could afford. Now, with the introduction of IP-PBXs, medium-sized and even some small companies can avail the features and functionalities of a PBX using VoIP.