Review: Vovox Cloud Phone

Overview and setup

Generally, a cloud phone system is hosted in the cloud. Data is stored in a server that is available over an Internet connection. A cloud phone system can supplement or even replace traditional land lines.

Vovox's Cloud Phone is only available in the US and Canada. Prices start at $19.95 per month for the most basic plan, which includes one local phone number, supports two users and 500 minutes of inbound calls. Each additional minute costs 4.9 cents. The five-person "Plus Plan" costs $39.95 per month and comes with 1,000 minutes with an additional 3.9 cents per extra minute. The largest plan is the 10-person "Pro Plan" with 5,000 minutes at $49.95 per month. Additional time on the Pro Plan runs at 2.9 cents per minute. Subscriptions can be purchased directly on the Voxox website or through the Voxox Channel Partner Program. All potential new users are eligible for a free 30-day trial.

The sign-up and set-up process is relatively basic and takes just a few minutes. A user's profile can be very basic and updated at a later date. The hosted private branch exchange (PBX) service automatically begins to transfer incoming phone calls to the designated mobile phone. The service also does not take up data on the mobile device as no app is required for use.

All Cloud Phone users designated phone numbers also support call-routing policies to avoid business calls at inappropriate times like late night and holidays. Potential customers include small law firms, medical offices, a mobile company such as a catering business and real estate and insurance agents. Individual users can also sign up for a Cloud Phone account of any size.

In July, Vovox released an updated version of Cloud Phone. The new features include the ability to add extensions for international employees, purchase toll free and local phone numbers, change caller ID, and access new capabilities, such as voicemail transcription, call screening and call back.

Out of the box

Vovox's Cloud Phone requires a simple sign-up and profile registration that takes just a few minutes. After a quick download, the user is good to go. The interface is simple and user-friendly which makes it appealing to a wide variety of users. While some PBX solutions can sometimes cause confusion, Cloud Phone offers a user-centric experience in a familiar mobile-first platform.

But don't fret too much, techies. More advanced users can customize Cloud Phone to fit their specific business needs. Every feature and graphic can be modified to include a logo or other professional image.

Experience and final verdict

Simplicity is the name of the game not only with set-up, but also user experience. The no-nonsense, no-frills design is easy to use and doesn't lend itself to confusion for first-time users. On the flipside, there really isn't any "wow" factor when using Cloud Phone. Sure, it's consistent and does what it says. The simplistic design may prove somewhat boring for more advanced users.

A business would use Cloud Phone, and other similar systems, for a variety of reasons. First, instead of an answering a native office device, maintaining an answering machine tape and managing the dreaded phone bills, a cloud phone system is stored digitally which, depending on the business, may save costs in the long haul.

The Cloud Phone makes it easy for business users to remotely use an office line without physically being in the office. Due to the simple interface of Vovox's product, quickly accessing a remote line is quite quick and intuitive.

After about a week of using Cloud Phone, there were no crashes, freezes or other mishaps. It's simple to make a call and save contacts, similar to the process of making a call from a mobile device. However, unlike using a personal mobile device, the same designated office phone appears for caller identification systems. This is perhaps one of the greatest advantages of the Cloud Phone: Despite making calls in locations other than the physical office, there is a centralized number and the user has the ability to take advantage of a number of features such as message management, call forwarding and voicemail. The quality of the calls also proved to be consistently crisp indoors and outdoors in a variety of geographic locations (and perhaps even better than sometimes finicky traditional phone connections).

It is important to note, however, that although convenient, Vovox's Cloud Phone isn't really a new concept or unique in today's marketplace. Several larger phone providers have started to offer this service to its customers as discounted prices. Other hosted PBX services are also quickly populating the marketplace, such as Grasshopper RingCentral and Shoretel Sky, which may test the longevity of the Cloud Phone or at least encourage Vovox to continue to update the service. Plus, since packages are designed for teams of 10 or less users, Cloud Phone may miss out on larger enterprises looking to implement a consistent BYOD program.

We liked

Cloud Phone is incredibly easy to use. It offers workers the ability to export their office lines to their mobile devices so that don't have to give out their personal numbers to receive work calls.

We disliked

It's pretty expensive for a service that is a luxury. It also doesn't offer a splash of any kind. You'll make and receive calls, but you won't feel that there's any sort of telephonic revolution happening.

Final verdict

Business owners looking for a comprehensive cloud-based mobile communication solution will without a doubt benefit from Vovox's Cloud Phone. It is easy to set up and convenient to deploy. However, with Cloud Phone only designed for teams of 10 employees or fewer, its target enterprise customer base is somewhat limited. Additionally, with several other PBX solutions on the market, the basic interface may suffer in the sea of competition. As an overall PBX criticism, despite being advertised as a solution to replace a traditional phone system, business owners may not see the value in making a drastic switch just yet.

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