« Return to: Net Phones: Dialing Without Dollars
| Internet phone service | Free PC-to-phone calls in U.S. | Free PC-to-PC calls | Voice mail/personal address book | Comments |
| Best Bet Deltathree | Yes | Yes | Yes/Yes | PRO: Consistently good voice quality, clean interface, handy address book, free calls to directory assistance. CON: Limited speed dial, flashing ad. |
| Dialpad | Yes | Yes | Yes/Yes | PRO: Simple, easy-to-use interface; voice quality often good. CON: Company ad takes up lots of space; two separate windows--one for dialing, one for address book. |
| Firetalk | No1 | Yes | Yes/Yes | PRO: Instant messaging; easy to use once you learn to navigate. CON: Small Web-based window crammed with information; PC-to-PC calls only. |
| HotTelephone.com | Yes | No1 | No/Yes | PRO: Free overseas calls. CON: No PC-to-PC calls; separate windows for dialing and address book; irritating flashing ads. |
| MediaRing | Yes | Yes | Yes/Yes | PRO: Cool-looking interface; free calls to China; lets you send e-mail messages with streaming technology. CON: Flashing ad; separate field for country code. |
| Net2Phone | Yes | Yes | Yes/Yes | PRO: Voice mail and faxing; free headset after you purchase call time. CON: Ad hogs screen; field where you enter number is somewhat awkward, can't use number keypad. |
| Pagoo Internet Phone | Yes | No1 | Yes/Yes | PRO: No ads; enables you to receive calls when you're online, Caller ID, address book, free calls to directory assistance. CON: No PC-to-PC calls. |
| PhoneFree.com | Yes | Yes | Yes/Yes | PRO: Voice mail and videoconferencing; video mail; buddy lists; free calls to directory assistance. CON: You can't minimize the program window when making a call. |
| TalkFree | Yes | No1 | No/No | PRO: No headset, sound card, or other PC devices required; excellent voice quality; uses standard phones. CON: Still in beta phase, overloaded service, few extras, no PC-to-PC calls. |
| ZeroPlus | No | Yes | Yes/Yes | PRO: Call forwarding, call waiting, Caller ID, buddy lists, speed-dial, online billing, white pages, handy text-chat feature. CON: Ungainly interface. |
1 Option unavailable.