Compatibility of Caller ID.com Products

Depending on the type of phone line and the particular unit installed, it may be compatible with Caller ID and outbound call monitoring, or only outbound call monitoring. Most CallerID.com products sense On/Off Hook by detecting the telephone line voltage levels. If the voltage levels are not in the standard ranges, CallerID.com can supply units that detect On/Off Hook by means of current flow through the device.

In order to capture Caller ID, an analog Caller ID signal must present on the phone line. This signal can be sent directly from the phone company or certain types of ISDN interface units can regenerate digital Caller ID data as analog Caller ID signals to its analog ports. Analog Caller ID will not pass through telephone switches to extension lines. Even Caller ID compatible telephone switches do not pass or regenerate analog Caller ID signals to extensions lines. Units will not operate if directly connected to digital phone lines.

Contact us on your specific application and we can advise you of compatibility.

VoIP and Caller ID

Today, the buzz word in computer telephony is VoIP. Actually, it is an acronym standing for "voice over internet protocol". It is basically the transmittal of voice using Ethernet packets that can be sent over the local area network and the internet.

We are regularly asked if our Caller ID equipment works on VoIP lines. This actually depends on what VoIP system is in place. But in most every case, the VoIP system that a small to medium operation uses is compatible with CallerID.com hardware.

There are many flavors of VoIP. But, most VoIP installations incorporate a conversion box. This unit converts the VoIP signal to standard analog phone lines so that the customer can continue to use their existing telephone equipment. A good example of this type of VoIP system is offered by Vonage. They provide a small VoIP-to-analog conversion unit in which the user connects their standard phones, fax, and credit card machine. For larger installations for up to 24 lines, a similar conversion unit is usually installed by the telephone company offering the VoIP service. Again, this unit is the key, because it provides analog telephone lines and analog Caller ID so any CallerID.com hardware will operate correctly.

Another flavor of VoIP has to do with extensions on a telephone system switch. VoIP extensions on Key Switches and PBXs provide additional functionality over digital extensions. Regardless of how the phone switch extensions operate, the phone service is normally provided on standard analog lines and therefore, CallerID.com equipment will function properly.

The only VoIP systems in which CallerID.com units are not compatible is when there is no analog phone line presence on the customer premise. For instance, the VoIP supplier may sell the customer special SIP/VoIP phones for each desk. Or, the VoIP connection is terminated into a phone system switch and the switch does not provide auxiliary analog trunk ports. Presently, these types of installation are expensive and rarely encountered in businesses where CallerID.com equipment usually resides.

Today many telephone companies are now touting VoIP phone service. Although, there are very few advantages for most small business (and some disadvantages), it continues to attract new clients, perhaps because it is simply a new technology. The bottom line is that most varieties of VoIP still rely on analog phone lines rendering CallerID.com hardware 100% compatible.