Michael Reviews It!
NOTE: These reviews are based on my personal experience or knowledge of the products and services, no compensation is being received for these reviews.

dialpad.com Internet Phone
(Reviewed 6/2/00)

NOTE: DialPad has since gone fee-based and is no longer free as mentioned below.

I decided to try dialpad.com after seeing it mentioned on a television program recently. What interested me was that fact that it doesn't require installing any software (this is a *good* thing). Although there are other internet based phone calling applications available, this seems to be unique in the fact that it is all Java based, requiring nothing more than a modern web browser and a microphone for your sound card.

Sign up is quick and simple, requiring only your basic name/address info and the completion of a short survey of interests. Once you're signed up you can begin making calls immediately. In my tests over a 56k connection, the quality was comparable to a digital cell phone, with only a few breaks in the audio. Calls are made using a small browser window that contains the easy to use number pad, microphone/speaker adjustments, and a status display.

The Cost? Like so many things on the internet these days, it's FREE! It's paid for by the banner ads that are displayed in the dialing window. The ads aren't too distracting, plus it gives you something to look at while you're talking. The only negative I noticed was the audio would occasionally break up while a new ad was being downloaded. This probably wouldn't be a problem for broadband users. Overall, I say the service is worth watching the ads for. For more information, visit the dialpad.com site or click on the link in the column to the left.