I think that modem is only available in europe and not supported here, at least not on the consumer abd bottom tier buisness class solutions available to individuals.
Here is what I routinely send out to my customers that ask about VOIP over satellite:
Lower consumer class services do not adequately support VOIP over satellite on a consistent basis.
Any dealer that tells you VoIP works well over a shared bandwidth satellite connection like Starband or HughesNet is pulling the wool over your eyes. It works at times but there is a delay, sometimes the conversation is garbled and if it works well one week it may not work well at all the following week due to an ever changing Network loading pattern.
At times it’s marginal and maybe better than nothing but it's a stretch to rely on it consistently for business or calling anyone other than friends and relatives occasionally when the network is lightly loaded. Even then you often have to talk as if you are on a CB and it helps to say OVER when you are done talking to give the other person a chance to talk. I just don't want you to think it's going to be anything like talking on a VoIP connected to a land based cable or DSL connection. Remember, just because it may work OK one week or one month is no guarantee that it will work well the next.
Also, VOIP over satellite has virtually nothing to do with the speed of the connection. It has a lot more to do with consistent and predictable ping times (latency). When ping times are all over the place and ranging from 600 Milliseconds to as high as 3 seconds the connection is referred to as having a lot of jitter. VoIP compression algorithms that try to compensate for high ping times have a very difficult time dealing with highly variable and unpredictable jitter in a consumer class VSAT connection.
Starband and HN are a consumer class VSAT service. They are not designed, nor technically capable of delivering consistent business quality VoIP services. It doesn't matter who the VoIP gateway and termination provider is.
To have good VoIP quality over satellite the service must support:
a) Consistent latency. High latency isn't a problem. Users quickly get used to the delay which really isn't all that much more than when two cell phones communicate with each other. The problem is consistent latency and in this, consumer class VSAT services such as Starband do not hit the mark. Inconsistent latency is responsible for noise, static, etc. Consumer class satellite services often have latency that varies as much as 700ms to 3000ms. (That's 3 seconds).
b) Guaranteed bandwidth, referred to as CIR or Committed Information Rate. When VoIP is initiated, satellite bandwidth has to be allocated and guaranteed for the duration of the call. This is only going to happen if there is a billing mechanism to make customers pay for it. If bandwidth is not available, you get noise, distortions, and disconnections. Quality is terrible or it won't work at all. Starbands consumer class services do not offer a way to provide CIR.
c) QoS or Quality of Service is required to prioritize VoIP traffic over web traffic, email, peer to peer and all the other active traffic. VoIP packets have to be delivered smoothly and evenly and cannot be held up by other traffic.
d) SAR or Segmentation and Reassembly is indispensable for good quality. VoIP packets are itty bitty small packets that have to be delivered smoothly and evenly. If a small VoIP packet gets stuck behind a large web download or file transfer packet, it gets held up (creating jitter). SAR breaks the big packets into little pieces, intersperses the small VoIP packets smoothly and evenly between them, and then reassembles the big packet at the other end of the connection.
Without these features, you are wasting your time and money trying to get VoIP to work reliably and consistently over a consumer class satellite service. It might work OK late at night when network load is light or well one month and not the next.
There are commercial enterprise class satellite services available that will do a very good job of supporting VoIP, but as with most things in life, you tend to get what you pay for, and you will pay more for a VSAT system that supports good VoIP quality.
If you want consistent, quality, guaranteed VOIP service over a satellite connection, be prepared to purchase a commercial grade enterprise system with equipment pricing starting at around $1,599 and monthly fees of $299 to $399.99 minimum. Only those systems come with guaranteed VOIP service level agreements (QOS), consistent predictable ping times between 600 - 800 milliseconds and SAR.
In terms of who is out there providing this service thate are quite a few companies. I am biased because I am a Spacenet/Starband dealer.
Spacenet does sell a 1024Kbps X 512 Kbps service that includes dedicated VOIP bandwidth and packet prioritization. The call class is superb carrier grade quality and both parties would never know they were talking over a satellite connection.
They use Gilat VSAT equipment exclusively because they are the leader in VoIP over satellite with over 90% of the VoIP VSAT world market share.
Rather than Use CIR like others do as a work around to VOIP Over satellite Gilat modems have committed channels that we can program to provide either random access or dedicated access. On a dedicated channel you get VOIP prioritization and built in SAR. They don’t take a slice of your existing bandwidth. In addition, the call terminates at Spacenets soft-switch at their HUB and then goes out over the Public Switched Telephone Network. No part of the call goes out over the internet where they cannot control QoS and SAR. You are provided with a USA Telephone # in the Area code of your choice. Calls are as low as 5 cents per min if purchased in 1000 min bundles or 12 cents per min a la cart.
Spacenets VoIP solution is also already 9-1-1 certified as per US law. Your site is identified in the system and if you dial 911 it goes to a special call center that will instantly dispatch the proper authorities. If your VSAT is mobile it is flagged in the system as Mobile so the 911 call center can help you get help wherever you are. Including dispatching the Coast Guard if you are on an oil rig in the middle of the Gulf or the proper authorities if you are in another country.
