Trying to make phone calls over the internet used to be messy and fairly impractical. Instant Messaging software and webcams worked OK, but the person you wanted to call had to have the right hardware and software. They were no alternative to the real telephone. What was lacking was the ability to phone someone who just had an ordinary landline or mobile. Skype, a computer program, came along and let you make calls through the computer to ordinary phone numbers, but there's something that doesn't feel quite right about making phone calls through a computer.

But internet phone calls have finally come of age. I made my first real internet phone call yesterday. It wasn't through software but through a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone that plugs into an ordinary broadband internet connection. The phone looks, feels and works like an ordinary telephone. I called the USA (1.5p a minute) and the call quality was as good as calling on a British Telecom phone. I have to pay a line rental (£7 a month) but I do get an incoming London phone number, which is nice. If I spend a week overseas, I can unplug the phone, plug it into an internet connection there and still get my calls. (Or divert them to my mobile.)

There are downsides. Internet connections aren't always reliable. Due to government regulations, you can't currently phone 999 from a VoIP phone. And, unless you're on cable, you have to have a BT phone line in order to get broadband. So a VoIP phone can't replace your existing phone. But it is useful if you want a second line.

It's great to see technology helping to increase competition and reduce prices.