“Can you hear me now?”

Bookofjoe discussed Skype and VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) a few days ago here.

I (and about 1000 of my closest friends) got this about SIP directly from Michael Robertson, former MP3.com guru, now Lindows maven:

SIP is to telecom, what MP3 is to music biz. Hold on tight boys and girls!

Make Free Worldwide Calls With World’s First Affordable SIPadapter and Any Cordless or Standard Phone

SAN DIEGO, Oct. 23 SIPphone, Inc., announces the release of SIPadapter, a new, easy to use, device that makes free worldwide calling possible on any standard phone. Available immediately for $79.99 from SIPphone.com/order via their retail partner Lindows.com, the SIPadapter is the first plug-and-dial device to allow high quality SIP calls over any phone, even a cordless unit common in many households.

Telephone users can save hundreds of dollars on their phone bill by using the latest SIP technology which is now easier and more powerful then ever. A single SIPadapter can be purchased for $79.99 and a 2-pack is available for $149.99.

Each SIPadapter comes immediately ready to use with no monthly fees or activation fees. There is also no per minute fees, so callers can avoid large long distance charges which means a SIPadapter can pay for itself in a very short time.

SIPadapters include plug-and-dial technology from SIPphone.com making it easy to install and begin using. To install a SIPadapter, users simply plug the deck-of-cards-sized-unit into any broadband Internet connection such as a cable modem or DSL connection with a DHCP configuration. Then they plug a standard phone into the SIPadapter. After a short startup time, the phone will ring and when answered play a “welcome ring” announcing that the phone is available for use. A SIPadapter comes with a unique phone number beginning with (747). Users can hear their number echoed to them by dialing “**”. More information including images are available at Once installed, users can place high quality calls to the worldwide SIPphone community now spanning 47 countries. In addition, toll free 800 and 8xx numbers can be accessed, even from SIPphones based outside the US. It is also possible to dial any telephone number using a common calling card while avoiding any monthly fees. By sharing their own SIP number with others, they can receive calls from other SIP users as well. Unlike a landline phone, a SIPphone is fully portable so a SIPphone can be moved to any broadband location and all calls to that SIP number will ring at this new location.

“This SIPadapter is an industry first — an affordable, plug-and-dial device which enables worldwide free calling using any household phone even a cordless unit,” says SIPphone chief executive officer, Michael Robertson. “We expect it to be especially popular with international callers and businesses with geographically disperse business locations looking to lower their telecommunication bills.”

Bundled with every SIPadapter, is a free account on my.SIPphone.com, where a user can customize their phone, manage their numbers and view their call history. An online address book and popular features such as call-waiting,
caller ID, and the logging of missed calls are all available as part of the free service.

SIPadapters are available in limited quantities for immediate shipping both domestically and internationally and come with universal power adapters making them suitable for worldwide deployment. Interested resellers may also place priority orders by visiting .

Sign up for the SIPphone mailing list at , to stay abreast of the latest developments from the leader in plug n dial SIP products.

About SIPphone, Inc.
SIPphone’s goal is to bring the benefit of SIP and free phone calls to a worldwide audience. By offering affordable, plug n dial phones, devices, software and an easy-to-use directory, SIPphone hopes to revolutionize how consumers do voice communications and the cost of those communications.

The founder and CEO of SIPphone is Michael Robertson who is the founder and former CEO of MP3.com (digital music) and the founder and current CEO of Lindows.com (digital delivery of software). SIPphone is based in San Diego,
California.

The whole Internet phone movement seems very promising in terms of cost to the consumer. My main issue at this point is that there is no way I am going to trust something as important as phone service to my Internet connection, which could go at any moment, and sometimes does.