Free VoIP services are becoming very popular with today’s web users. These services offer the opportunity to voice chat with others from around the world. Free VoIP clients can be very useful, but those looking for more than just a brief conversation may feel a bit under whelmed by what they have to offer. Here is a list of some of the most popular voice chat clients and an evaluation of their features.

• Skype – For many people, Skype has become almost synonymous with Voice over IP. The service has 443,000,000 users, about 10% of whom use it daily. Users have the option of free voice communication with other people on Skype or paid connections with regular telephones.

As the most popular, free VoIP client, Skype has the most complaints lodged against it. The service’s customer service is sub-par, and has been criticized by many of its users. There is no direct way to contact customer service, meaning that users must seek assistance through Skype’s online help pages. There are also many complaints regarding call quality. At times, Skype’s quality rivals that of regular telephone calls, but it can quickly degrade and become “barely usable.” Many people have also been disappointed to learn they cannot connect with users of other free VoIP users while on Skype.

Perhaps the most troubling aspect of Skype is security. Because it is a proprietary service that claims to be “totally secure,” many experts believe it will become a major target for hacker attacks. Because calls are routed through “unknown” Internet machines (called supernodes) the data encryption is said to be unbreakable. Some fear that this will not always be the case, and because Skype is a closed client, users will not be able to tell if the encryption is broken.

• Google Talk – Google introduced the beta version of it’s VoIP client in late 2005. The service has a wide variety of useful features, including file sharing, offline messaging and mobile device compatibility. It is also possible to connect with users on other Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP) services, such as iChat, Pidgin and Gajim. Google Talk cannot be used to call telephones.

Users fear that Google has not done a good job protecting their personal information. For example, many are not comfortable with the fact that Google Talk allows others to monitor their online status by watching the idle icons on their friends lists. There have also been major concerns with the service when it comes to Malware. Hackers have found it easy to infect other’s computers with spyware, viruses, Trojans and worms through Google Talk.

• AdCalls – AdCalls is one of the lesser known VoIP clients on the market, however it is quickly gaining a devoted following. The service allows its users to make free long distance calls anywhere in the United States or Canada. It currently has many positive reviews from its users, and is likely to challenge bigger services like Skype as it gains its footing in the market.

On the downside, AdCalls’ interfece is plastered with advertisements to cover the “free” cost of making calls. This is both unpleasant to look at and raises questions about whether or not a user’s personal information is being sold to businesses. Calls are also limited to 10 minutes in length, meaning that a conversation may be rushed and incomplete.

• Yahoo! Messenger – This is one of the oldest, most trusted chat clients available, and many have found it’s free PC-to-PC voice calling feature extremely useful. Yahoo! Messenger also offers a wide variety of other features, such as games and webcam support.

Much like Google Talk, Yahoo! Messenger has become a major vector for malicious file transmission. Countless users’ computers have been infected when they accidentally open infected files or click through links to harmful websites. Many of these problems result from Yahoo’s inability to prevent unsolicited messages (SPiM) sent by automated user accounts known as bots. It is believed that 60% of all users in the service’s chat rooms are bots. These accounts are intended solely to sell products or infect other users.

Free VoIP services can be very useful, but they still have a long way to go before they can replace regular telephone lines. There are still far too many issues and inconveniences to be sorted out. Malware, privacy problems, call quality and the inability to connect with everyone limits the industries ability to grow and reach as many people as possible.

Luckily, there is a VoIP option that surpasses all of these clients in almost every way. Subscription VoIP on a hosted PBX system is an affordable way to make crystal clear calls through your Internet connection. These services often offer unlimited local and long distance calls, fantastic customer service, and dozens of VoIP call features you won’t find with the free services. Take a look through our free Voice over IP articles to find out more about these products.