Time to dump your cell phone for Wi-Fi?

Vonage, the VoIP phone service provider, has launched a Wi-Fi phone that allows subscribers to make unlimited local and long distance phone calls like they would from a traditional cellular phone. The UTStarcom F1000 is one of the first of many Wi-Fi phones to hit the market. Competing companies such as Verizon and AT&T plan on releasing Wi-Fi phones in the near future.

The good news is that Vonage subscribers are not required to pay anything additional beyond the usual $24.99 monthly charge. The bad news is that this phone will only work if you have access to an open Wi-Fi network. For those of you that aren't too tech savvy, Wi-Fi (short for wireless fidelity) is a wireless area network that allows users access to the internet without hooking up cables to any type of modem or router.

However, besides using the Wi-Fi phone in your home or office, other areas that are Wi-FI accessible such as the airport, libraries, universities, cafes and bars also are places where you might use it. Soon, there will be wireless networks aboard the airlines. This is where the phone will really be handy since cellular phones are banned from aircraft. I can just see the flight attendent now asking someone to stop using their cell phone only to hear a reply that this is not a cell phone it is a Wi-Fi phone.

The bottomline is that this phone will be great for those who have access to Wi-Fi networks, including home users, office users, students and travellers. I suspect that, given the current conditions with Wi-Fi networks and this model phone, it will be a good entry into this type of communications. While the world of Wi-Fi phones is new, the future looks very bright, and you may want to wait a little while before jumping into it.

Now, is it time to dump your cell phone for a Wi-Fi phone? No, but it may be a good additional communication tool to have access to.