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Originally, there was only one kind of phone operating on one kind of phone line. Those days are long gone. What we find today are the traditional, analog home lines, digital multi-line phone systems in offices and hotels, and, most recently, voice over IP (VOIP) phones lines that operate through the internet. VOIP systems are showing up everywhere. For the purposes of accommodating a hearing loss, the difference between analog and digital technologies boils down to the amount of electricity flowing through the phone line. Digital phones are able to regulate the amount of power they draw from the phone system to run all their extra features. Analog phones do not have this ability and are not able to protect themselves when plugged into a digital phone system. Amplified telephones, ring signalers, TTYs and the new CapTel phones are predominantly analog technologies. DSL is also an analog phone technology. It is safe to use analog phone equipment with DSL service. In some cases, the amplified phone brings up the background noise caused by the computer modem signal running on the phone line. A DSL filter was attached to the phone line when the service was installed. A second filter may need to be attached to the original filter to remove any remaining modem noise. The recent introduction of Voice Over IP phone service in the residential environment is raising some interesting challenges. VOIP phone systems are a digital technology, but there are some options for using assistive equipment on a VOIP system that don’t exist for most office settings. Often, a VOIP system is purchased as part of a high-speed internet package or bundle. In some cases, the old analog phone lines are preserved, but in others, the old lines are cut and all phone service comes through the computer’s modem router. The drawback here is that the assistive phone equipment has to be set up in the same room where the router is. In a large home, this can be a big headache. Some new residential construction, including assisted living centers, have VOIP phone lines wired directly into each unit. In these cases, there is no analog phone jack available. Some of these systems claim to adjust themselves to function with both digital and analog phones. However, there is no guarantee that an amplified phone or signaling device can survive on these all VOIP systems. Luckily, a new line of VOIP-friendly amplified phones is available. They provide all the features of the leading amplified, analog phones. These phones have a built-in power regulator that allows them to protect themselves when plugged into a residential VOIP phone system. They will also perform well on DSL or other analog phone lines. Unfortunately for people who require a text phone such as a TTY or CapTel, there are no VOIP-friendly alternatives. TTY users can disconnect the phone line and use the handset of a digital landline phone in the acoustic couplers of the TTY. This is a bit old-fashioned, but it does work safely. Also, it is possible to make TTY calls directly through the computer by logging onto TTY relay websites. CapTel offers a similar service that uses the web browser and the existing digital phone. Both of these services are available for free. However, a degree of tech savvy is required to get the most out of these web-based alternatives. RESOURCES:
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In such cases, there is usually only one analog phone jack built into the back of the router. This phone jack can be used safely with an amplified, analog phone device.
