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How Landline Phones Work: The Science Behind Telephones

How Landline Phones Work

Right now we are witnessing a major shift in technology everywhere in the world. With the new smartphones, our reliance on landline phones amounts to nothing. The new apps for communication have taken over the industry and more users are getting on them. Secondly, we all follow the social media trends and cord-cutting is a common one circulating the internet. People are getting rid of cable TV and landline phones.

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The Current Phase Of Landline Phones

It is fair to say that landline phones have changed over time. Phone providers have tried to cope with the technological advancements and have made a strong case for phones to stay relevant even today. For example, if you choose Charter Spectrum, the Spectrum phone features are hard to let go of. You get a crystal-clear voice quality, voicemail service, caller ID, E911 access, and unlimited local or long-distance calling. Therefore, making it worthy of every praise.

Yet, it is interesting to know how landline phones work and the basic science behind it. Therefore, we created a comprehensive guide on landline phones, how they work, and what is the new landline phone technology in the market.

A Small History of Telephones

In the past, phones were quite simple. They consisted of a copper coil, a magnet, and an iron membrane. They were not sold separately as they are today. You had to buy a pair and manage everything yourself. Landline phones took over the telegraph service. Both of them were invented on the same principles.

How Landline Phones Work

They used electrical systems and Graham Bell tried to improve the existing telegraph technology as it could only receive one message at a particular time. Conversely, the phones could send several messages at one time through an electrical wire. They became popular in the world because of their convenience.

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Basic Science

The science behind the landline phone is quite simple. There are different parts of the landline. The first part is the microphone to which you speak. The second part is the speaker through which you can hear the voice. There is a receiver or an amplifier. The landline phone is connected to a wire outlet that runs the phone wires. These phone wires are interconnected.

How Landline Phones Work

Once you call someone, the signal goes through the wire to the receiver. It amplifies the electrical signal into a sound that you hear through the speaker. Whenever you speak in the microphone, the sound is converted into electrical signals and it travels through the wires to reach the destination. This is how the landline phone works.

Modern Landline Phones

Landline technology has evolved with time. The modern landline phone uses the same principle as the previous ones. However, instead of the traditional phone lines, the technology uses internet lines to transfer the signal.

How Landline Phones Work

The internet lines are coaxial or fiber. They deliver the message faster than the traditional phone lines. The voice quality is brilliant and it is a permanent fix to dropped calls. The modern landline phones have no dropped call whatsoever. Landline phones that require the internet are called Voice over IP (VoIP) phones.

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How is the Cell Phone Technology Different from the Landline?

The modern cell phones are different from the landline. When you speak, the microphone in your handsets converts the sound in an electrical signal. The microchip present in your phone converts these electrical signals into strings of numbers.

How Landline Phones Work

These numbers are then packed up into a radio wave. These radio waves leave your device with the help of an antenna that beams them. In the landline technology, these signals travel through physical wires whereas the radio waves travel in the air with the speed of light. They reach a cellphone mast.

How Landline Phones Work

After receiving the signals, the mast passes them to a base station. This base station coordinates directly with your cellphone network and routes them towards their destination. So, if you are calling your friend having the same network as yours, they follow a simple pathway. The calls you make are routed to the base station nearest to the person you are calling. However, If you are calling someone on a different network, the process is lengthy and complex.

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Why are Landline Phones Still Relevant?

With the pandemic situation going on, it is important to separate work-life from personal life. Using your cellphone for work reasons can be a daunting task. Having a landline helps you maintain the work-life balance. All your business and work-related calls are diverted to the landline and you can pick the ones that you want.

How Landline Phones Work

Secondly, if you have children at home then a landline is a good thing to have for their safety. Moreover, landline phones have access to E911 directly (in the US). It might prove very beneficial in times of an emergency. Many landline phone providers have various plans and packages. Some of them even offer the ability to make unlimited local and long-distance calling. Therefore, with all these benefits, you must have a landline for your home.