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Voice over IP (VoIP) is just a method of making a call, like a telephone, except using your PC and broadband Internet connection (DSL, cable, etc.) It basically uses a phone-like analog device to convert your call to digital packets which are sent over the Internet to either another VoIP phone, or can also call regular numbers in countries where that is supported.

VoIP provides local and long-distance service, and some out-of-country / overseas service (primarily to Canada, Europe & India, some to Mexico.) Please note that not all countries can be called, contrary to what some articles claim, unless you are calling VoIP-to-VoIP directly. International calls are still very limited at this time.

To try to use this with a cell phone is possible but currently very difficult at this time. There are several cell/mobile phone applications you can purchase and run but more phones do not have the computing power to run the software. They also require the cell phone to have Wi-Fi capabilities, which few phones do (most use Bluetooth, a different type of wireless connection.) The phones that will work, like the Nokia 6136 and Motorala A910, the only two I've been able to use, are very expensive.

As of March 2007, a press release on Reuters announced:

"Several big names in the communications sector, including Microsoft, Nokia, and Skype, announced mobile phone-based VoIP (voice over Internet Protocol) products and services that could radically change how cellular customers use their handsets in the future."

The downside of this latest development is that it requires all new phones and service plans from the major VoIP provider, Skype, who is part of this. The other major provider is Vonage, and then a number of other, smaller and
less-reliable ones.

As of April 2007, after a shakeup at Vonage and the removal of their CEO, they have announced they are also developing a "WiFi"-based cell phone version that will work with their home system as well as at any Wi-Fi "hot spot". No date for the release of this new product has been announce.

At some point, cell phones will start using their wireless Bluetooth support to allow you to connect to your personal or local wireless network and use that instead of transmitting to a cell phone tower. This would be a great feature for a cell phone to have, in case you aren't near a cell tower, as many places offer free Wi-Fi connections, but as of April 2007 I don't know of any cell phone that offers this feature, which would make great sense if they did.

But for now, until the Nokia/Skype product is available or unless you can afford the high-end mobile/cell phones and the application to support VOIP, this is really something that's too new to be affordable and reliable, so I would say that it's at least a year or two before it will be worthwhile to look into.

My advice would be that this is an emerging technology and unless you're an "early adaptor" (read: geek gadget) then it's best to wait awhile to see how this all works out. I predict that by 2008 there will be one or more VOIP phones that will work with WiFi and act in many ways like a cell phone.

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