To compare how the two services work, we called the same number using both Skype and Vonage. Signing up with Vonage is a multi-step process involving: But rather than downloading a program, you fill out forms online to establish your account. You sign up for the service at the Vonage Web page. While opening a Skype account is a lot like starting an IM account, opening a Vonage account is more like getting set up with a new ISP. This process is significantly different from what you need to do to get started with Vonage. To receive incoming calls from traditional phones, you must purchase Skype Credit and use the add-on SkypeIn service. As of January 1, 2007, using Skype to call land lines and cell phones will cost $29.95 per year (Skype-to-Skype calls will still be free). In order to use these functions and to make calls, your computer has to be on and connected to the Internet, and your Skype application has to be running.Ĭalls to other Skype users are free, as are outbound calls to traditional numbers until the end of 2006. As with an IM client, you can change your online status, look at your contact list and decide who you want to talk to. The Skype application looks and works a lot like an instant messaging(IM) client. But the two services have more differences than similarities, starting with the steps you need to take to open an account. Depending on how you use it, Skype can even be completely free. This is especially true if you make a lot of long-distance calls. Skype and Vonage are also similar in that they can be significantly less expensive than traditional phone service. Voice over IP uses a technique called packet switching to send a call over the Internet. Check out How Voice over IP Works to learn about this process and how it's different from plain old telephone service (POTS). Once it reaches its destination, the telephone or computer that answers the call translates it back into analog sound. The digital signal travels over the Internet. This equipment and your computer translate the analog signal of your voice into a digital signal. When you make a VoIP call, you use your computer's built-in microphone and speakers, a headset, an IP phone or a phone plugged into an analog telephone adapter in place of an ordinary phone. Skype and Vonage are similar in that they're both VoIP services.

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