Tuesday, June 17, 2008

VoIP Ratings - What They Can Tell You

You can learn a lot just by looking at VoIP ratings. The quality of provider's service is reflected in a rating. Ratings are typically given from one to five with a full five being the highest. The best VoIP providers would naturally be those that fall within the 3.5-5 ratings.

VoIP ratings however should rarely ever stand alone. If you are a careful subscriber, you would normally base your decision on more than just the numerical rating. VoIP rating sites should contain a couple of other pieces of information. Here are some things that you should look for in a VoIP rating site:

- Ratings should come with reviews. Some people may not be comfortable about reading lots of text. Sometimes, it's tempting to just take a rating for what is. Then again, you should want to know why particular providers have such a rating. You can get the reasons from the review text.

- Raters and reviewers should also be publicized by these rating sites. This is important because you do not want to read reviews and ratings from ghost writers. Some sites could publish bogus reviews with the hidden intent of actually getting customers for a particular provider. Legitimate raters and reviewers may be real technology experts or actual VoIP users.

- There should be some basis for the VoIP ratings. This is especially so if the ratings are provided by technology experts. How exactly do they rate providers? Are the providers actually tested or used? Do raters only base ratings based on what they read too about these providers. First hand information should always be preferred when referring to ratings and reviews.

- An honest reviews should contain disadvantages of a particular provider. You would want a fair and balanced view about providers. One that only praises a provider is of no practical use to you. You would want to know the pitfalls of signing up with a particular provider and what you should watch out for.

- Good rating sites are those that contain a list of provider services. Of course, you can always go to the provider's web page to check what they have to offer. It would be very convenient for you however if you happened upon a review site that has all the necessary details. This will make side by side provider comparison much easier for you.

- The price list is another thing you should look for in a ratings site. It is true that the price should never be your sole basis for deciding. The price still really matters though. It would help if expert raters and reviewers considered the price alongside the features in determining whether a provider can give a good deal.

Unbiased and Independent Ratings - You may not always be able to come across independent VoIP ratings. The ones that really are independent however can really offer you great help when deciding on a VoIP provider. Take some time to research on good independent raters before you sign up with a provider.

VoIP Ratings - What They Can Tell You
By Torrie Cantor

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