Which is better: SIP or VoIP?
Do you ever get that feeling that you are one acronym away from losing it when trying to navigate IP telephony? Well, let’s just confirm the obvious – you are very much not alone!
Not that we’ve identified that we do however recommend that you befriend terms like SIP and VoIP as soon as possible as these are the backbone of IP telephony. The quicker you get on board with their purpose, the closer you are to engaging the world of future-proof business communications.
"We often hear the question 'Which one is better: SIP or VoIP? but lets start by saying that these aren't actually mutually exclusive"
Recognising that SIP and VoIP aren’t exclusive technologies is why it’s not entirely correct to put one against the other. While the umbrella term VoIP describes the type of communication system you are using (think PSTN, POTS, etc.), SIP defines the script of how this technology is deployed and activated.
The main purpose of SIP is to establish, maintain and terminate upon request calls conducted over the internet. The question here is always whether or not you wish to use it for your system and never about replacing VoIP entirely.
By implementing SIP, users gain an outstanding advantage of having a direct connection between private and public telecommunication. Using SIP trunks, the protocol is also capable of navigating hybrid connections. This means that you can still conduct the calls whether the caller on the other line is also using VoIP or PSTN. As a result, the need for a traditional telephone line can be scrapped entirely.
Is SIP essential for VoIP?
The short answer is no. Even though it’s one of the most popular protocols, VoIP installations don’t require SIP and can be implemented as a standalone. However your options will be, to say the least, limited.
SIP’s purpose is to bring out the colors from an otherwise plain VoIP system with advantages such as:
- Auto attendant
- Voicemail
- Call routing
- Videoconferencing
