How to make twilio outbound call types in nodejs

Question

i found two examples on making an outbound call using twilio , and i was not clear about the difference among them 1]

client.calls.create({
  url: 'http://demo.twilio.com/docs/voice.xml',
  to: '+14155551212',
  from: '+15017250604',
})
.then((call) => process.stdout.write(call.sid));

This is the first procedure which is clear to me where 'to' and 'from' are listed

2]

const VoiceResponse = require('twilio').twiml.VoiceResponse;
const response = new VoiceResponse();
response.dial('415-123-4567');
response.say('Goodbye');

console.log(response.toString());

Here in the second code , 'from' parameter is not there and also its different

Do both work the same ? Which one is better for making outbound calls using node.js

Also can i replace the 'url' parameter in the first method with the TwiML written in node.js ie second method

Answer 1

Twilio developer evangelist here.

The different methods there are using the REST API and TwiML to make calls respectively. There's more to your question though.

When you want to generate a new call you need to use the REST API . This allows you to set the number you want to call and the Twilio number you are calling from. You also need to set a URL in this request, as you included in this example.

When the call connects from your REST API outbound call, Twilio will make an HTTP request, a webhook, to that URL to find out what to do next. Your URL needs to respond with TwiML which describes what to do next. You can make a simple response like <Say> , <Play> or <Record> , but you can also <Dial> the call onto another number. This is technically another outbound call, but you can only make a call in this way in reaction to a webhook from Twilio.

Let me know if this makes things more clear for you.