Vonage V-Phone Enhances Global PC-To-Phone Calling

Vonage, a broadband phone service provider, on Thursday introduced its new Vonage V-Phone, a portable USB device that enables its users to place PC-to-phone calls from any computer with high-speed Web access to anyplace in the world, according to a June 29 company release posted on Yahoo Finance.

“Vonage is pleased to offer our customers the convenience of making phone calls wherever they are, simply by plugging into any laptop or PC with a high speed broadband Internet connection,” said Vonage’s vice president of engineering, Daniel Smires, in the release. “One of the best features of the V-Phone is that customers are not limited to PC-to-PC calling and they still get a variety of choices with Vonage’s inexpensive flat-rate and full-featured calling plans.”

The V-Phone comes fully assembled and does not require any setup preparations, and it’s sold fully loaded with Vonage software that automatically updates itself on its 256MB flash drive, according to the release.

The V-Phone also works with PCs that access the Web via wireless networks, and Vonage says it caters particularly well to business users or college students who move around frequently and use different computers. V-Phone users can access voice mail via the device, and related attachments can be directed to their e-mail accounts or BlackBerry handhelds.

The device also saves users’ call history and contact lists so they’re accessible via any computer with high-speed Web access, and calls received while users are away from their PCs can be forwarded along, according to the release.

Vonage also claims the V-Phone can cut down on high landline and cell phone bills.

The company is currently selling the V-Phone for $39.99 plus a $9.99 activation fee, and it’s offering three monthly service plans: The first gives users 500 minutes for $14.99, the second gives them unlimited residential calling for $24.99, and finally, users can purchase unlimited business calling for $34.99, according to the release. Vonage considers Canada and Puerto Rico local calls, and the company recently cut international call rates with no connections fees.

Check out our CIO News Alerts and Tech Informer pages for more updated news coverage.