The presence of modern phones is one of the most important essentials that have to be present in different places whether it is companies, factories, commercial establishments or any other place. This makes knowing the different types of phones a necessary and indispensable matter to be aware of the appropriate phone for every place. In this article we will help you to answer one of the most important questions regarding phone types which is what is the difference between analog phone and IP phone.
What is the difference between analog phones and IP phones?
When we talk about the difference between analog phones and IP phones, we need to know the definition of each one of them. Analog phones are the traditional phones that depend on analog signals that transmit through landlines between sender and recipient to make phone calls.
An IP phone is a modern phone that makes phone calls through internet protocol instead of landline signals as it transmits voice in the shape of digital data, either through world wide network or local network.
The difference between analogue phones in IP phones can be summarized into the following points:
- Method of voice transmission: as in analog phones Voice will be transmitted through analog signals, as Voice will be transmitted is the form of analog electrical waves, while in the IP phones Voice will be transmitted via the internet, as it will be transmitted in the form of digital signals as IP phones uses the technique of voice over IP to make calls via the internet.
- How to connect the phone: The analog phone is connected via landline phone lines, using PSTN ground copper cables, while the IP phone is connected via Ethernet or via Wi-Fi networks.
- Voice quality: as voice quality in analogue forms it's not constant, as it can be changed with long distances or interference. While in IP phones you can have a high quality voice with HD techniques that permits high quality voice.
- How it can be used: Analog phones do not require advanced skills to be used, while IP phones require advanced skills.
- Support for multiple features: The analog phone does not have the ability to support many features, as it can make calls only, shows the caller’s number, or adds numbers to the phone book, while IP phones can support many advanced features, such as audio or video conferences, call forwarding, and voicemail. It can integrate with a number of systems as well.
What are the uses of analog phones and IP phones?
After knowing the difference between analog phones and IP phones you can guess the uses of each type of the generally analog phones can be used as follows:
- In homes, as it can be easily used and doesn't require advanced settings to be used, so it can be easily used in homes.
- In emergency cases, where you can use it in cases of electricity cut off or in cases of losing the internet connection.
- In places where there is no budget for expensive phones, so the use of analogue phones can do this job.
- Installation and backup work, as analog phones can be installed as backup in case of failure of other modern phones.
- The lack of infrastructure that supports modern phones, as modern phones need an infrastructure that supports the Internet and modern networks, but in the event that this infrastructure is not supported, the best solution is communication via traditional analog phones.
While IP phones can be used in the following uses:
- Places where the presence of high quality voice calls is necessary. On the top of these places are commercial places, hospitals, companies and many other places.
- Places that need integration between different management systems, as modern IP phones can easily integrate with different systems like Microsoft teams, etc.
- In case of high need for the presence of Advanced calling techniques like video conference and voice conference in case of companies, schools, factories, etc.
- In places where safety and security of data transfer and calls is a top priority as IP phones can have different security features.
- In case there is a need to reduce the cost of communications, as modern IP phones that use the internet for communications do not require a high cost of operation.
The main difference between analog phones and IP phones is in their functionality and the technologies they rely on. An analog phone requires traditional phone lines to operate and is connected through conventional telephone cables, while an IP phone works via an internet connection. Therefore, the difference between them also extends to their uses: analog phones are suited for traditional applications, while IP phones are used in settings that require advanced operational technologies.