Telecommunications companies do not want you to know that alarm equipment manufactures do not support Voice over IP (VoIP). VoIP is not the same as a standard phone line, known as a POTS line. The problem stems from the inconsistent voltage and dial-tone that VoIP produces. A POTS line is regulated by the government and is mandated to meet certain consistent specifications; however VoIP has no such requirements. VoIP sends data in packets and we have experienced signals getting “clipped” and not arriving to the monitoring station. Some alarm equipment may work on VoIP one day and not the next. A consideration often overlooked is VoIP requires electrical power to power the “gateway”. A POTS line will work even without power.

We are not saying VoIP is bad but it has more security risks than a POTS line. We strongly recommend a wireless GSM radio to communicate to the monitoring station in case you lose power or the phone line gets damaged. If you do not truly need a POTS or VoIP phone line, you can save quite a bit of money even with the slight increase for monitoring the GSM radio. We have had record numbers of customers switch over to GSM radios for the added security they provide and the savings they get by getting rid of their phone lines. A GSM radio is a small price to pay for the added security you gain. Please contact our office today to schedule the installation of a GSM radio today.