October 27, 2006
KISS VoIP
Luca riffs off of something Andy Abramson and the New York Times have said: some VoIP phones are difficult to configure. Now I haven't picked up a Wi-Fi phone yet, but judging from my experiences with various desktop and mobile VoIP apps this year, it appears that as I age, my tolerance level lowers for technology and applications that aren't a cinch to setup. Maybe its tech overload from all the research and writing I do, but there it is. I want my VoIP + VoIM simple, and no doubt those less technical than me do as well. KISS = keep it simple, stupid.
As Andy says, if VoIP Wi-Fi phones are not easy to configure, it'll only be early adopters and techies who use them, even if others purchase them. I'm thinking that if the term "VoIP" continues to be used, it might also discourage people. In fact, the NY Times piece is called "Phones for that other system." Some people/ companies are afraid to call it VoIP, preferring terms such digital phone, e-phone, internet phone, net2phone. Jane Hoskyn of Skype even goes as far as saying "Forgive me for rolling out that ugly word 'VoIP'..." I wouldn't go that far, seeing as 'VoIP' is a play on the word 'voice'. But nevertheless, simplicity and consumer-friendly terminology will aid IP telephony adoption.
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