Telecom Tips
You are likely to keep a new digital telephone system for 10 years or more, which make the purchasing decision very important. If your unhappy with a new PC or if it breaks, it will be obsolete in 2 years anyway, but you really don't want to regret spending thousands on a phone system that will last for a very long time.
Next, desktop computers are essentially the same. Whether you buy a Dell, HP, or Build your own model, a computer will have an Intel or AMD CPU's and run Windows. Telephone systems are all different. They all use different proprietary telephones and run totally different software. This means you need a vendor trained in your particular system to keep it running and fix anything that breaks. We'll get more into brands and vendors shortly.
Now just because office telephone systems last a long time, that's not to say that there aren't improvements. There have been several major leaps forwarded in telephone systems. The last few were the advent of voice mail, digital telephone systems, and now Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), also called IP telephone systems.
When you start shopping for a new phone system, you need to know some basics so you are not overwhelmed by the variety of choices and the buzz words that sales people like to throw around.
There are different types of telephone systems made today. PBX's, Key, and Hybrid are the most common types. PBX's are generally for large companies with over 100 phones. They typically have a large receptionist console and may use regular house-type phones instead of proprietary digital multi-line phones. The next type are called Key systems because each outside line is represented by a key on a multi-line telephone. Key systems tend to be much smaller, usually no bigger then 24 phones, and have fewer features.
The most popular systems made today are called Hybrids. Hybrids combine the best features of both the PBX and Key system designs. In fact, almost all systems phones made today are Hybrids, even if they call themselves PBX's or Key Systems.
All telephone systems require a KSU or Key Service Unit in order to work. The KSU is the phone systems chassis or cabinet. The KSU contains the CPU, power supply, and all the assorted cards that make the system work. KSU's have a limited number of slots in which cards can be installed. This determines how big the telephone system can get. Some systems can have more then 1 KSU to accommodate more cards for larger capacity, normally called expansion KSU's.
There are different types of cards installed in the KSU, but primarily you have station cards and line cards. Station cards can be either digital station or analog station. In most system, digital station cards come in 8 or 16 ports. Analog station cards normally come in 4 or 8 ports. Each port is one telephone that the system can support. This is important because you don't want to add an extra card for just 1 phone unless you really need it. That 1 extra phone can cost over $500 for the phone and the card. You can always add to the system later if you need to grow. We go more into phone choices in the Handset section.
Line cards can also be digital or analog. Digital line cards are for T1's or PRI circuits. Analog line cards are for regular lines (Plain Old Telephone Service, POTS) and typically come in 4, 8, or 16 port sizes. Again, each port represents 1 outside line that the telephone system can support. We go more into lines in the Network Services section.
All systems made today are modular. You normally buy just what you need today and you can add cards to support more phone or lines when you need them. You should ask about the incremental costs of adding cards, phones, and lines so you understand how much it will cost you to grow. However, you may consider buying additional cards when you purchase if they are less expensive if purchased in advance.
How big your new telephone system can grow is a major part of the buying decision. It's important to know how many lines and how many phones your system will support. You don't want to buy a telephone system that only goes to 24 phones if you need 22 because you have no room for growth. Even if you think you'll never need to add anything or your space will never support more phones, it's important to remember that your phone system will last 10 years and you don't want to throw it away in 5 years because it's too small. Don't forget, phones aren't computers. You don't just throw them out and buy a new one every few years. Telephone systems are long term items so you have to think about the future.
Fortunately most phone systems, even moderately priced ones, grow very large. Don't be scared off by a system that grows to over 100 phones thinking that it will be very expensive. All systems are modular, so you only pay for what you need.
Another important factor is how the system grow. All systems require circuit cards to add lines and phones, but some system need more. Some systems have more then 1 size CPU. In fact some have as many as 5 sizes of CPU, each with their own size limits. On the Toshiba DK424, there are 5 CPU's. The smallest and least expensive only supports 16 outside lines, while the largest supports over 200 lines. Most vendors will propose the CPU that meets your needs today, but will not explain what it will cost you to grow. On the Toshiba DK424, it can cost over $2000 to go from CPU A to CPU B to get beyond 16 lines.
Other systems have add on memory cards or software licenses. The NEC Elite IPK requires a memory card to go from 48 ports to 192 ports and the Toshiba CTX requires a license for every phone or line.
Whichever system you buy, it's important to ask about all the expansion capabilities and requirements. You don't want to get a huge bill to add 2 phone because you need a bigger CPU or additional licenses.
Nothing is more important to a phone system then the handsets. After all the handsets are the only part you ever actually touch. There are a great variety of phone types, sizes, and styles, even within the same brand. Take a look at 2 or 3 brands and the phone choices can be intimidating, but don't worry we're going to simplify it now.
Type
There are 2 basic types of phones; Digital and Analog. Analog phones are basically just regular house type phones and can even be cordless. Analog phones are used when very limited functionality is required, just pick up and dial. Going with analog phones can be less expensive (but not always), but in almost all cases, small and medium sized systems will use all digital phones.
Digital phones are proprietary. Digital telephones come in multi-line, single-line, and cordless varieties. Depending on the type digital ph ones can cost from $100 to over $500. More on this below.
Buttons
The number of buttons on the phone is the most important thing. Most brands will make 2 or 3 sizes of phones. NEC makes 8, 16 and 32 button phones. Toshiba makes 10 and 20 button phones. Avaya makes 6, 18, and 34 button phones. As you can see, each brand is different.
The number of button affects the number of outside lines and features you can have one touch access to. If you have 12 outside lines, you need a phone with at least 16 buttons, so you can have a button for each line plus a few left over for features. Some of the more popular features that people put on buttons are all call paging, intercom hot keys, speed dials, and conversation recording. All systems will have dozens of features that can go on buttons. If you don't have a button you will have to dial an access code (like intercom #39) instead of just pressing 1 key. Some feature don't even have codes, but require a button.
You should get prices on the different size phones. It's usually best to get the middle or large size of phone. It probably won't cost much more then the small phones, but you get a lot more for you money. It's kind of like buying a 4 door car instead of a 2 door. The bigger phone will give you more elbow room
The large size of phone is normally for the receptionist and isn't typically recommended for every desk because too many button can be confusing.
One thing to keep in mind. The number of buttons should only be the buttons with LED's that came "show" a line or a feature. These buttons are called flexible keys. Some vendors will count all the buttons on a phone, including hold, speaker, and message light, in order to make their phones seems better then a competitor. I've seen people call a 20 button phone a 29 button phone because there were fixed or hard keys such as speaker, mic, volume up & down, and redial keys. This is not very honest, so be leery of dealers like that.
Displays
Most phones will come with or with out LCD displays. For example you can buy a Toshiba 10 button or 20 button phone with a display or one without, so there are 4 models to choose from.
Displays cost extra so you need to know what the display does. On some systems it's shows nothing more then the date and time, number you've dialed, and how long you've been on the phone. On other systems the displays include soft keys, which are button below the display. Soft keys' functions change depending on what your doing. While your phone is idle the display may show the time and how many messages you have. When your checking your messages the display may show forward, rewind, and delete and the soft keys below do what the display says. If you making a conference call the display will show you how to add or drop callers.
Some systems even have large screen displays with more soft keys. On systems with soft keys, especially with voice mail, displays are usually worth the extra price.
