How Does Email-Faxing Work

The very first Email fax was started on 1997. On June 24, 1997 - PSI Net, the first commercial ISP introduced Internet Paper(SM) a service that sent documents from your desktop PC to any fax machine on the planet through the Internet. Nowadays with the rapid growth of Internet users worldwide, Email fax has become one of the latest technologies that change how people connect to each other. By implementing Email faxing software, users can turn hard copy documents into Email attachment or vise versa, receive hard copy fax in Email format. The appearance of Email faxing reduces the faxing cost greatly and provides a powerful alternative for those that cannot afford a faxing machine.

So how does email faxing works?

To send an Internet fax, the user needs to create an email account. The fax content can be written in the body of the email, and attachments are normally permitted. The destination fax number is entered in the ‘To’ field, along with the Internet fax service name (efax for example). For example, if the fax number were 1-555-234-5678, the email would be addressed to 15552345678@efax.com. In the subject·field, user will need to input the recipient name, for example: Attn: Mr. Fax.

Receiving Internet faxes is even easier. If you are using Internet fax number, you will receive faxes as email attachment; if you are using conventional fax machine, your faxes will be receive from your fax machine just as others. Because Internet fax is sent in email form via the Internet - you can access your faxes wherever you have the Internet. This is ideal for mobile professionals, business travelers and for the ordinary person on vacation!

What are the options for Internet fax?

In the past year and a half, several vendors have produced and are selling Internet faxing services. There are several different flavors of this idea. There are companies that offer software only solutions that allow you to fax directly from your computer to any fax machine; and there are services offer fax-to-IP Internet gateway products, which are hardware-based routers that emulate a fax machines.

Faxing services that use software (for example eFax) require that you sign up with fax service provider. Using this software makes faxing as easy as printing. These services are good for companies that primarily send outgoing faxes from their computers.

The advantages of using this method are that faxing becomes considerably cheaper because you are not making long distance connections over the phone lines, no hardware is required, you get faster transmission, you can send many faxes at once, no dedicated fax lines are needed, and a web interface is available if you wish to add fax-on-demand capability to a website.

The disadvantages are documents must be sent from your computer. With these services, there is no support for fax-to-IP gateways.

While for fax-to-IP Internet gateway products you will need a hardware based routers that emulate a fax machines. With these, faxing is done in the regular way using the fax machine, but the gateway device, which then dials the destination fax machine and sends the fax, interrupts the process.

This service is good if you don't send a lot of faxes, but would still like to take advantage of the savings of using Internet delivery. It is also good if you do a lot of international fax calls. The disadvantages are that you won't save much on either domestic faxing, or faxing to countries where the Internet infrastructure is less well developed.

Conclusions

Wrapping things up, Internet services are one of the online services that can beneficial greatly to your business or personal expenses. Consider the scenario with a company purchasing a traditional fax machine, an extra phone line with a company settle its faxing needs with just a PC and Internet faxing account -- the savings will be significant if you go with an Internet Faxing service. So if you are one of those who are using conventional faxing machine day and night, why not spend 10-15 minutes check out Internet faxing at http://www.myinternetfax.biz.

The author, Teddy Low, is an experience writer and webmaster on Internet. Teddy strongly recommend business owner to send fax via email as the service will save up the faxing cost greatly.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Teddy_Low

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Searching For the Best VoIP Phone Providers

Telephones occupy a higher plane in the scheme of modern telecommunications technology. One of the most important modes of remote communications, it presents people with a convenient and easy way to touch base with anyone who is not with them. Because of its importance, almost every home in the United States owns at least one line, while there is always a phone ringing in offices and businesses at any time of the day.

A newer, but still equally vital, communications channel is the Internet. Developed in the second half of the 20th century, its usage has caught wildfire in the last couple of years, effectively breaking some of the long-held traditions of doing things.

E-mails and instant messaging (or chatting) are used by top-level executives and rank and file employees. The Internet is also heavily used for sharing files, research, on-line shopping, and entertainment purposes.

Its primary purpose, however, is still communication.

A few years ago, the Internet-based phone service called Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) became a huge thing in the market. Considered a breakthrough in the communications technology, it has since won over subscribers and customers looking for an affordable way of connecting with friends and family, and of conducting business. Some people have even cut their telephone lines and shifted to VoIP.

VoIP is popular because it works just like your conventional telephone. However, VoIP relies on the Internet to transmit and receive audio data, in the process converting your voice digital audio data. This means that you will receive and transmit clearer digital audio data at a much faster rate.

The fact that it uses the Internet to transfer and receive digital data, makes VoIP calls much cheaper than the conventional landline phone calls. With the landline phone, a five-minute call can cost a lot of money. Internet voice calls of the same duration costs a fraction of the landline charges. Some VoIP phone providers even offer free long distance and overseas call.

Besides free phone calls, VoIP providers usually throw in extra phone features, such as three-way calling, caller ID, audio conferencing, video conferencing, call waiting and return call, in the package. Traditional phone companies also offer these services, albeit, with extra cost.

If you are interested in getting VoIP installed in your home, get in touch with the VoIP service providers nearest you. There are quite a number of VoIP service providers, so it is best to study all their packages and choose the one which suits your needs and requirements best. Even with you scrutinizing each provider, there is no guarantee that the one you chose will deliver what it promised in its sales pitch.

With many providers offering a trial period (usually 30 days), you may now test the quality of their services. If you are not satisfied, you can simply inform the company that you are no longer interested to use their services. If you do this within the trial period, you will be refunded.

Here are some things that can guide you in choosing the right provider. Look for one that offers maximum benefits to their clients, including free ATA (Analog Telephone Adapter), free or low cost IP phones, among other things.

For the best outcomes, choose the company trusted by your community. You can confer with your friends, colleagues to find out which service provider offers the best ones.

Aricle by Jessica Bradbury, you can learn more at her site on VOIP information, including VOIP phones.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jessica_Bradbury

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IP Phone Services

IP Phone service allows you to make phone calls through Internet. You can reach anybody with a telephone number whether it’s a local, international or mobile number. Some services work only on the computer or through a special IP Phone while some others work even on the traditional phone with the help of an IP adaptor.

Apart from the Internet service charges there are no extra charges involved for the calls. There are a number of services that provide this kind of almost free IP calling. The most popular of them are Yahoo Messenger, MSN Messenger, Skype, The Globe and Google Talk. However these free services have certain limitations. They require computer network and Internet or a special IP Phone.

There are many companies which provide commercial IP Phone services. Names of the service providers, their service features and tariffs are available on-line. These services allow an IP call even through the traditional phone lines. They connect an IP router, which is connected to the main router or the broadband modem at the service provider’s place, with the existing regular phone box at the customer’s place. This facilitates IP calls from a traditional phone even without computer network and Internet connection. But the problem is that when the computer network goes down there is no phone facility either.

The service provider charges for giving the connection. These charges include initial installation charges and the regular monthly service charges and or per call charges. The basis of charges differs from provider to provider. Some charge depending on the distance whereas some charge a flat rate for a fixed number of minutes irrespective of the distance. Some offer unlimited calls and unlimited talk time for a fixed monthly payment.

There are so many companies with varying service options and tariffs. Before choosing a particular service one should check the price range, features available and whether any technical support is offered. Also, one should check whether any emergency services are also provided and whether the IP phone number is portable with the existing landline number.

Even the paid IP Phone services are much cheaper than the regular phone call charges and prove especially economical for long distance calls. Due to the price war among the IP Phone service providers the customers can expect even more competitive prices.

There are only federal taxes on IP Phone services. The Federal Communications Commission, which regulates IP Phone services in USA, ruled that individual states have no jurisdiction to impose taxes on IP Phone services. This single point taxation helps the IP services stay cheap. Also, there might be only minimum regulation of these services for some time to encourage investment in broadband services.

IP Phones provides detailed information on IP Phones, IP Phone Services, Wireless IP Phones, IP Phone Systems and more. IP Phones is affiliated with VOIP Phone System.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Josh_Riverside

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How VoIP Phones Can Connect You to Anywhere in the World

A technological communication breakthrough, the Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) can let you have voice conversations through a broadband Internet connection or any Internet Protocol-based network instead of a regular phone.

The other terms for the VoIP are: IP telephony, broadband telephony, Internet telephony, voice over broadband or broadband phone.

There are advantages in choosing to use VoIP over the standard phone line. You automatically receive phone calls once you get connected to the Internet, regardless of the network that you are using. Even during phone conversations, you can still access the other programs in your computer.

VoIP is also possible during road trips, you just use a mobile phone that can connect to the Internet. Incoming calls to your home will be treated as local calls wherever you connect to the Internet.

VoIP to VoIP calls are usually free of charge, which is a good advantage. But the VoIP user would be charged if he or she makes a VoIP to PSTN calls.

Stable Internet connection for VoIP service users is another advantage. This ensures faster access and delivery of good quality voice data.

There are other features in the VoIP services that are not available with the traditional analog phones. These include video conversation, conferencing, sending or exchanging files parallel to the conversation, managing your address book and more.

How does VoIP work? Through the VoIP service, your voice is converted to digital signals that pass through the Internet connection to a destination that you choose. Also, through this service, you can make calls by a computer or a VoIP phone. In case the computer is turned off, the standard phone line can be used to make and receive calls.

An important requirement obviously is that VoIP users should have a high speed broadband Internet connection.

The VoIP phone is plugged directly into the broadband connection and this can already be used just like any other traditional phone. But if you want to use your traditional telephone, you will need to connect it to a VoIP adapter. The dial tone will then be provided by the service provider. Remember that you would need the VoIP software and a microphone when you use the computer to make phone calls.

How does the VoIP system work for long distance or local calls? You would need an area code that may be different from the area code of where you reside.

This code would determine whether calls are long distance or local calls. If the person calling you is outside the area or the service covered in your VoIP, he will be charged for a long distance call.

But this could differ, depending upon the terms set by the VoIP service provider. There are some service providers who charge a fixed rate for a certain time limit regardless of the distance between you and who you call.

Who can you call with your VoIP service? This information would depend on the terms, conditions and services available of your VoIP service provider.

But you can call anyone who has a telephone or mobile number and this includes local or long distance calls. The person you are calling will no longer need any special device other than his phone to receive your VoIP call. You can also make simultaneous calls or conduct video conferences, again, depending on the terms and service of the VoIP provider.

One disadvantage of VoIP phones is that during power outage, some services are not available so some VoIP providers provide backup power. Another disadvantage is that you have be constantly connected to the Internet to make and receive calls.

But you can divert the call to an analog phone or mobile phone if you do not want to miss any incoming calls. You can also activate your voice mail box so your messages can still be received even when you can no attend to them.

It is advisable that you choose a VoIP service provider that offers the directory assistance or white page listings because not all service providers offer this feature.

Also, check with the provider if they can directly connect you to the emergency service 911. Nonetheless, calling 911 through your VoIP phone will be treated differently from that using the traditional phone. But what matters is that you are able to readily seek help at times that you need it.

Connection to any place around the globe is possible with the use of a VoIP phone.

Article by Randi Reese, you can learn more at her site on business VoIP and residential VoIP Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Randi_Reese

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What is a VoIP Phone Service?

VoIP is a service where voice data is transferred over the Internet just like normal Internet data traffic. VoIP is also known as Internet Telephony or IP telephony. When the Internet connection is a broadband connection, VoIP is usually referred to as Broadband Telephony. Whatever be the terminology used, VoIP phone service is a method of providing voice communication using the Internet infrastructure.

VoIP Phone Service uses the existing infrastructure already installed for the Internet and speech signals converted to digital audio are sent in the form of packets. VoIP services can be interfaced with the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) and calls can be made to another computer, mobile phone VoIP phone or an ordinary telephone.

The services provided by VoIP are similar to those provided by PSTN with call forwarding, call waiting, caller identification, automatic redial and conference call facilities on offer. VoIP has an advantage over regular telephony in terms of security - the audio content is split into multiple pieces of very short duration and sent over the Internet as packets. The packets need not be received at intermediate points in sequence. It is very difficult for anyone to intercept a conversation being carried on VoIP.

VoIP has become very popular over the last few years as it has become a low-cost voice communication solution with wide user acceptance and a large consumer base. The service providers do not have to bear the expenses of installing infrastructure in the form of cables and switching equipment as the Internet infrastructure is already in place. In PSTN, the service provides is required to digitize voice and transmit the data after conversion to digital signals. The Internet infrastructure already carries signals of this nature and this reduces the cost for service providers significantly. This extends VoIP telephone services to the customer at much more economical rates than PSTN.

Another benefit of VoIP service is that it makes your physical location immaterial. All you need is access to a computer to be able to call any number of your choice, even international numbers for the cost of a local call.

There are downsides to VoIP services - Internet traffic is inherently unreliable in nature and in congested networks, the chances of dropped packets are very high. In such conditions, dropouts in conversation are inevitable. This is in contrast to the dedicated and reliable channel of communication provided by PSTN. For the same reasons, VoIP telephone services are unable to match the Quality of Service (QoS) guarantees provided by the PSTN.

Ms. Pinky is a Computer Support Specialist for more than 25 years. Has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Computer Engineering, MS Research work in Systems Engineering.

Get more free computer tips on her blog at http://jmdcomputer.blogspot.com/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Pinky_Mcbanon

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Eliminate PBX headaches with 3CX IP Phone System!

Evolve your communications with 3CX Phone System for Windows - an IP Phone System that completely replaces your proprietary PBX, supports standard SIP soft/hard phones, VOIP services and traditional PSTN phone lines. 3CX Phone System is far less expensive than a traditional PBX and can reduce call costs substantially by using a VOIP service provider. Its web-based administration makes phone system management easy. 3CX Phone System eliminates the phone wiring network and allows users to hot desk simply by taking their phone.

Key Features:

• Complete phone system - Provides call switching, routing & queueing
• Purchase cost dramatically lower than a traditional hardware PBX
• Scaleable - Unlimited extensions and phone lines. No proprietary expansion modules needed!
• Web based configuration & status indication - Easy phone system management!
• Unified messaging - Receive voice mail via e-mail
• Auto attendant (e.g. 1 for sales, 2 for support, etc.)
• Reduce long distance and inter office call costs
• No more expensive proprietary system phones - Use standard SIP phones
• Eliminate the phone wiring and make moving offices easier
• Out of the box configuration for many VOIP providers

Article Source: http://www.3cx.com/phone-system/

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EPBAX-DIGITAL KEY TELEPHONE SYSTEM

A Quality Product from
NABAR COMMUNICATION & OFFICE AUTOMATION PRODUCTS PVT.LTD.
Pune - India

Description :
This efficient digital system offers you a vast range of telephony features & modern telecommunication features. FEATURES:- *MONEY SAVING FEATURES-Online Advice of charge, Auto call disconnection, Call Budgeting, Dynamic STD lock, Direct call billing in rupees. *FACILITIES OFFERED- Auto redial 99 times, Paging on key phone, Caller line identification, Caller name & extn. no. on display, Conference upto 3/8 parties, Background music, Direct outward station access, Direct station selection.*NET WORKING FACILITIES-ISDN features, magneto trunk connectivity.*Efficient OFFICE MANAGEMENT- Versatile ASMDR, Power failure transfer, Programmable class of service, Multiple attendant''s Console. *CALL ANSWERING FACILITIES-Absent message text, Multi level voice, Auto answer/ Auto off, Numeric messaging, Voice mail connectivity. *HOSPITALITY FEATURES-Check in, Check out, Temporary check in/out, Room shifting, Message reminder, Alarm with message/music, Computer connectivity.

Article Source: http://telecommunication.indiabizclub.com/catalog/756~epbax-digital+key+telephone++system.~pune

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Small Business And Home Office Pbx

A good communication system is vital for the success of any business organization. So it will be a wise choice to maintain a PBX system for your small business and home office in order to keep in touch with your clients and business associates round the clock.

Economic Alternative to Enhance Your Business Communication The PBX phone system can be easily incorporated into your existing telephone lines. It is an affordable option that will help enhance your business communications. It is different from the traditional PBX system, in that it is not necessary to purchase and mount any expensive PBX hardware at your site. The services are offered by the service providers through a hosted server and so you are charged only minimum monthly service charges. In addition, you are also free from all the hassles involved in maintaining and upgrading the system.

A Phone System that Can Impart a Big Corporate Image

The PBX phone system intended for small businesses is integrated with advanced features which will help them acquire a corporate image. The system includes all the sophisticated features of the traditional phone system such as auto attendant, call transfer, call screening, caller ID, find me follow me call forwarding and lots more. With the support of the auto attendant feature, all incoming calls are welcomed with a professional sounding greeting message. The find me follow me call forwarding feature in the PBX phone system is a guarantee against missing important calls, as this facility makes use of the alternate list of phone numbers provided by you and redirects the calls to those numbers.

Receive Calls from Anywhere

The main advantage of using a hosted PBX system for your small business and home office is that you can accept calls irrespective of your geographic location, as the extensions are not associated with a phone in the office, but with an individual. And this helps to manage your business more efficiently. Moreover, the entire procedure of call transfer will be unknown to the clients. The small business and home office PBX system unites several employees who are at different locations by means of a single phone number.

By: John Kinskey

Article Sounrce: http://www.articledashboard.com/Article/Small-Business-and-Home-Office-PBX/679018

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Automated Pbx Telephone Support System

An automated PBX telephone support system is much sought after by small and medium sized businesses looking for advancement. Such a system facilitates smooth handling of the large number of incoming and outgoing calls within an office structure. PBX or a private branch exchange can be customized according to the requirements of a particular business or corporate.

Characteristics of an Automated PBX Telephone System An automated office phone system enables automatic transfer of calls to the user’s extension phone lines without the need of a receptionist. It functions with the backup of a public switched telephone network and the internet and connects the users and callers within a home-based or remote business structure. The calls are effectively channelized to the appropriate extensions utilizing a range of advanced functionalities and custom menu options. Auto attendant, call forwarding, custom greetings, after hours answering, voicemail and other value added features distinguish an automated PBX telephone support system.

Means to Cut Down Telecom Rates

A PBX phone system comes with a variety of money-saving features. It eliminates the need for buying an on-site hardware system. Connections to different extension phone lines are given through a single connection, as well. Hence, the users can save the money that would have to be spent for onsite hardware maintenance, and for getting additional phone lines for each extension. Moreover, the provision for toll free numbers and local numbers is highly cost-effective.

Effective Call Management within an Office Network

Nowadays, business people prefer automated PBX supported phone system in their office space because of its effective call management features. You may be having employees working in different geographical locations. Utilizing state-of-the-art technology, it enables easy call transferring services to different extensions of the concerned business establishment. The extension phone numbers can be a cell phone number, office number or any other personal number. This phone system enables all-time accessibility between the employers and employees as well as that with customers.

Highlights of an Automated PBX Telephone Support System

• Easy to manage
• Create well-established corporate image
• Establish virtual presence in multiple locations through local phone numbers
• Attract more customers through professional call attending service
• Scalable

By: Armstrong C

Article Source: http://www.articledashboard.com/Article/Automated-PBX-Telephone-Support-System/674513

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Office Phone Systems With PBX Technology

Office phone systems with PBX technology help in the smooth running of any business establishment. These services are mostly used by small and medium sized businesses because these are less expensive than the conventional premise based communication systems. A PBX service can be obtained from a hosted PBX service provider. These systems come with disaster recovery capability; any damage to the public telephone network has little, if no impact on these systems.

Advanced Features of an Office Phone System with PBX Technology

A PBX office phone system enables any small/medium business firm to function just as a big corporate. The auto attendant service in it greets the callers with a professionally recorded welcome greeting. The calls are efficiently handled; without even giving a busy signal, the calls are routed to multiple departments of the office. Voicemail, caller ID, call transfer, find me follow me call forwarding and many more services are provided in such office systems. These also come with a host of menu options such as dial by extension, dial by name and zero out to live operator.

PBX Phone Systems Have the Following Significant Characteristics

• Can be easily installed
• Eliminate phone cable connections
• Affordable
• Superior customer service features
• Improve business productivity

Find the Right Providers for Quality Services

Since these are the communication systems most sought after by business people, PBX phone systems enjoy great demand in the market. Before finalizing, you should compare the various plans that each provider offers such as direct receptionist, direct messaging, and direct enterprise. Understanding the needs of your small or large business environment, you can choose the right one.

Hassle-Free Service with Cutting-Edge Technology

A PBX technology supported office phone system comes without any additional equipment to install, unlike the traditional ones. Since these are web-administered office phone systems, multiple lines will be connected to the extension lines in your office. In short, an office phone system with PBX technology not only reduces the hassles of handling equipment, but also cuts down the extra telecom expenses.

AccessDirect is a leading service provider of small business Hosted PBX systems including: voice mail, toll-free and local phone numbers, and fax-to-email service. Our office phone systems with PBX technology can aid in the smooth operation of your small business.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=John_K_Kinskey

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How a VOIP Hybrid PBX System Can Improve Your Business Communications

Today's business owners need to completely understand their current phone system before deciding if VOIP is right for them. Businesses that use older phone system technology may not appreciate how much money they're spending on long distance and phone company fees. VOIP and VOIP hybrid PBX systems have had a lot of publicity in the past few years, but are they the right choice for your business?

Positive Aspects Of VOIP

VOIP works completely different than traditional phone services because they do not rely on the phone company's copper wire network. Because of this, your company's monthly long distance charges are greatly reduced by using a VOIP phone system. Along with the decreased call charges, the costs to manage the network are nearly eliminated. VOIP offers may advanced calling features and enables your business's employees to access their phones while away from the office. Another advantage is that voicemail can be checked by telephone or computer.

Negative Aspects Of VOIP

The biggest problem with a VOIP system is its instability. If your company's internet connection goes down, the phone system will not work. Many companies cannot afford the chance that their phones will not work because they depend on phones for customer communication.

Positives Of A VOIP Hybrid PBX

VOIP hybrid PBX systems have become the best choice for small, midsized and big businesses. A VOIP hybrid allows the company to use the IP network and they won't need to pay long distance charges when talking with people all over the world.

The VOIP hybrid PBX systems allow companies to use either the traditional copper phone lines or the high speed internet for all their phone calls, unlike the VOIP system. The major advantage of this is that if the internet does go down, the company does not lose their phone system.

The dual capabilities of the VOIP hybrid PBX systems mean businesses save money on their long distance calls and that remote employees can have direct access to the main phone systems as if with a pure VOIP program. They also still have the security of a copper line system.

Ease Of Access With VOIP Hybrid PBX systems

Just like a VOIP system, a VOIP hybrid PBX system allows employees to use the company phone system with softphones. This means that employees can still receive telephone calls through the PBX system when they are working remotely or away from the office. Traveling or remote employees can use softphones to access their voicemail and can make their calls through the internet instead of the traditional phone system and will save money.

VOIP hybrid PBX phone systems use the internet for phone calls, which can save a significant amount of money like a pure VOIP system by combining the features of a VOIP system with the stability of a traditional copper phone line.

Brian Gatza is a leading distributor of Allworx and Talkswitch small business VOIP hybrid PBX phone systems.

Best Deal Allworx offers a variety of feature rich small business phone systems designed to improve efficiency and professionalism.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Brian_Gatza

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Saving Money with VOIP Hosted PBX Service

There are so many ways that a VOIP Hosted PBX can save you money I can’t begin to cover them all in a short space. However, here a few of the major cost saving aspects of a VoIP Hosted PBX system:

Cash Flow - Controlling cash flow is a major factor that determines the ultimate success or failure of any business, regardless if you are a start-up or an established business. Tight control over capital expenditures and operating expense is essential. On average, a VOIP Hosted PBX costs 20-40% less than a premise-based PBX. Also, CAPEX is minimized because you don’t have to “Buy the “Box”.

Additionally, because of the way premised based PBX systems are designed, you have no choice but to buy more equipment than you actually need to support your current requirements.

Sounds crazy, but it’s true. Why spend precious dollars now on equipment you won’t need until six or 12 months later or longer? A VOIP Hosted PBX allows you to pay as you grow. In other words, you only buy what you need to support current requirements.

Adding new employees to the system is fast, easy, and cheap. More importantly, you don’t have to pay for something until you actually need it.

If you are ever affected by a downturn in business, a VOIP Hosted PBX gives you the flexibility to reduce your expenses accordingly by reducing your telecommunications requirements with no penalty since you only pay for what you need, when you need it. Generally, you cannot do that with a traditional premise-based PBX without incurring some form of financial penalty.

Moves, Adds, and Changes - Unlike a traditional PBX, in a VOIP Hosted PBX environment, Moves, Adds and Changes do not require an on-site technician to make changes to your phone system. A VoIP Hosted PBX can be remotely configured by the provider, thus providing you with the flexibility to add, change, delete or move users within hours instead of days.

Eliminating costly monthly maintenance contracts will reduce your expenses because there is no need for a technician to visit your location every time you want to make a change. This is done remotely by the VOIP Hosted PBX provider, which also gives you with greater flexibility to respond quickly to changing business or market conditions.

Significantly Reduce Depreciation Losses - Traditional PBX systems depreciate almost 70% the day you install them. With VoIP Hosted phone service, you won’t have to worry about depreciation since you’re not purchasing equipment.

Although there are many other reasons that a Hosted PBX can save you money, such as reduced maintenance, elimination of the need to track and implement software patches, no requirement to maintain PBX equipment inventories, no vendor finger-pointing, and faster trouble resolution, the overall savings can be summed up by considering the Total Cost of Ownership of a traditional PBX compared to that of a VOIP Hosted PBX.

In the December 2005 issue of Business Communications Review, Ken Dolsky and Warren Williams of InfoTech published an in-depth analysis comparing the TCO/ROI of a Hosted PBX to that of a premise-based IP PBX for a single location with 50 users. They concluded for most instances, the Hosted PBX environment was the clear financial and performance winner. Even though their analysis shows a significant opportunity to reduce costs with a VOIP Hosted PBX, it is important to point out that the analysis did not not take into account large savings associated with increasing employee productivity and revenue using the Hosted PBX’s advanced features.

Here’s another piece of advice.

When you replace your traditional PBX with a VOIP Hosted PBX system, then plan on buying a bigger piggybank, too.

Bill Casey is the VP of Marketing for Reignmaker Communications, headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. They offer Hosted PBX service.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bill_Casey

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PBX Phone Systems - Call Answering Service

Incorporated with a number of quality features, a PBX phone system with call answering services is an ideal solution for professional handling of calls. This sophisticated phone service enables you to operate your business from anywhere. Even those who are busy moving about can communicate with their clients, anytime.

Effective Call Management Facility

A PBX phone system effectively handles telecommunications among the staffs and clients in national and international locations. With rich features such as auto attendant, call transfer, auto-dialing, call forwarding and find-me follow-me services, you can professionally handle all the incoming calls to your workplace. Multiple call transferring is possible in this phone system that functions with the aid of a hosted server. Wherever you are, you can freely communicate with the callers, irrespective of location.

Call Answering Service to Access the Right Person

A PBX phone system never lets calls remain unattended or makes the caller wait for a long time listening to busy signals. This phone system is equipped with a wide range of menu options such as dial-by-name, dial-by-extension, group dialing and more. The callers are greeted with professional sounding messages during office-hours and non-office hours. Calls are automatically transferred to the particular staff that the caller is trying to contact. Through the find-me/follow me service, the incoming calls will be directed to the user's cell phone numbers or other personal numbers. In case the person is unavailable or busy, the callers can leave their messages in the voicemail box of these auto attendants. With the voice to email service, these messages will be sent to the concerned email IDs.

Configured According to Business Requirements

Small and medium sized business owners prefer to project a better image of their businesses. Hence, a PBX phone system that has all the functionalities of an expensive standard phone system in the offices will be a welcome feature, especially since it comes at economical rates. The great advantage of such a system is that it can be configured according to your particular business requirements.

AccessDirect, a leading communication service provider in the US, offers PBX phone systems with call answering service. Our PBX telephone systems are available for small and medium level businesses.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=John_K_Kinskey

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VoIP PBX Solutions For Businesses - What To Look For

Business communications has always been a challenging arena for management....subject to cost, function, reliability, and other pressures and concerns. The emergence of VoIP technology....and specifically application to PBX systems via IP based protocols....has provided an enormous opportunity for companies to reap many benefits.

Many companies today have multiple office locations around the country or around the world. Currently, each office uses its own PBX system and inter-office phone calls are routed through the PSTN and charged long distance and international rates by carriers. Most companies also employ workers on a part time basis who work from their homes. Those workers get reimbursed for telecommunication expenses they incur while performing their duties. It just makes business sense for companies to explore alternatives to consolidate their telecommunication systems and reduce costs.

The answer......purchase a Voice-over-IP enabled PBX system and deploy it in a Virtual Office setup.

Voice-over-IP (VoIP) is a fairly new technology for transporting voice calls over the Internet which allows users to realize substantial cost savings on long distance and international calls. Besides cost effectiveness, VoIP enabled PBX systems (or IP PBX) offer easy integration with existing telecommunications systems and are characterized with low operating costs as their upgrade is done through software updates rather than more expensive hardware replacement. Additionally, the technology simplifies the communication infrastructure (no need for separate voice and data cables) while offering high scalability.

Virtual Office models are used by companies that want to consolidate their communications, reduce costs and achieve more cohesive corporate images. To implement the model, a company has to install a single IP PBX system in its headquarters and distribute to employees IP phones or regular phones with VoIP adapters. Employees can make intra-office and inter-office phone calls through dialing PBX extensions. Such calls are routed through the Internet and are practically free. Company customers, on the other side, can dial a single inbound number plus extensions in order to reach the company's employees. The latter receive the calls on their IP/Regular Phones at any location in the world with Internet connectivity.

So what kind of a VoIP PBX solution does your business need? - a turnkey Virtual Office solution that could be customized to meet your company specific needs.

My recommendation for this solution is the highly acclaimed package from Packet8. Recently 8X8, Inc's Packet8 Virtual Office Solution for small and medium sized businesses received Network Computing Magazine's Editor's Choice award over competitive offerings from Covad Communications and Velocity Networks. That's some pretty stiff competition....and says a lot about Packet8's performance. The Packet8 Virtual Office solution received the highest overall rating for its rich feature set, call management tools and low subscription price.

The Packet8 Virtual Office is a cost-effective, easy-to-use alternative to traditional PBX systems that allows users anywhere in the world to be part of a VoIP-hosted virtual phone system that includes auto attendants, conference bridges, extension-to-extension dialing, business class voicemail and ring groups, in addition to a rich variety of other business telephone features normally found on high-end, premise based PBX systems. Their Virtual Office reduces an organization's telecommunications total cost of ownership (TCO) with a minimal initial investment combined with unlimited local and long distance business calling throughout the United States and Canada and Packet8's low international rates.

Now.....here's an overview of what to look for when making the business case for investment in VoIP technology for a VoIP PBX solution:

* Ways to save money for corporations.....

- Eliminate or reduce intra-office toll charges

- Avoiding service and support contracts on existing PBX hardware

- Eliminate the need for on-going Centrex services -- and charges

- Reduce expansion costs via lower costs for adds, moves and changes; lower user hardware costs

- Reduce the on-going costs for separate voice messaging systems

- Provide productivity benefits for remote and traveling workers who can be empowered with the same integrated capabilities as office workers

- Reduce user training and learning on phone and messaging systems

- Cost-effectively implement unified messaging

- Improve security

- Reduce systems downtime and improve performance

Additional benefits for call centers.....

- Virtualize call centers, allowing more flexibility in the center's configuration....either helping consolidation efforts, or providing enterprise capabilities to telecommuting call center workers

- Improve customer support services and reduce abandoned calls and call times

- Improve customer satisfaction and reduce customer turnover via improved call center services

Cost considerations....

- VoIP telecommunication hardware and software

- IP phone sets or soft phones

- Network upgrades for possible quality of service and performance upgrades

- Implementation labor and professional services

- On-going support and administration labor

- Support and maintenance contracts

- Increased support calls and potential user downtime losses on initial deployment

- IT Training

- User Training

- Write-off, write-down and disposal costs for existing telecommunication assets

Potential project risks......

- Quality of service/performance

- User training and adoption

- Administration and support skill levels and resources

- Proprietary vs. open systems interoperability

How Does The Solution Work?

Inter/Intra office calls.......

Caller A, who is located in the corporate headquarters, wants to make a call to Caller B, who is located in the corporate headquarters or in any of the company's offices worldwide.

Caller A picks up his VoIP device (IP phone, phone with adapter or softphone) and dials Caller B's extension.

The VoIP PBX server searches its internal database and obtains call routing information about Caller B The VoIP PBX server routes the call to Caller B's VoIP device.

If the destination number is unreachable, the system forwards the call to Caller B's voicemail.

As soon as Caller B picks up his VoIP device the conversation starts.

During conversation Caller A's VoIP device convert voice to digital packets and send them to Caller B's VoIP device and vice versa.

Both A and B can use traditional PBX functionality, like call on hold, caller ID, call forward, etc. Calls are free

Outbound calls.......

Caller A, who is located in the corporate headquarters, wants to make a call
to Caller B, who is a company customer.

Caller A picks up his VoIP device (IP phone, phone with adapter or softphone) and dials the customer's number.

The VoIP PBX server searches its internal database and obtains call routing
information about the VoIP carrier, who should terminate calls to Caller B's area code.

The call is routed to the VoIP carrier.

The VoIP carrier terminates the call to Caller's B number over the PSTN.

During conversation, Caller A can use traditional PBX functionality, like call on hold, caller ID, call forward, etc.

Calls are charged on time basis at pre-negotiated rates with the VoIP carrier

Inbound calls.....

Caller A, who is a company customer, wants to make a call to Caller B, who is a company employee.

Caller A picks up his phone and dials the company's central access number.

The VoIP PBX server prompts the caller to enter an extension.

Caller A dials Caller B's extension.

The VoIP PBX server searches its internal database and obtains call routing information about Caller B.

The VoIP PBX server routes the call to Caller B's VoIP device.

During conversation, Caller B can use traditional PBX functionality, like call on hold, caller ID, call forward, etc.

Calls are either free if the company uses a local access number or charged on a time basis if the company uses a toll free one.

Voice over IP (VoIP) technologies carry great promise to reduce telecommunication and networking total cost of ownership while empowering businesses with new capabilities and agility. When making your decision on deploying a Virtual Office VoIP PBX solution consider the strategic and tangible benefits as well as the costs and risks outlined above. If it all seems too overwhelming seek out the assistance of an unbiased independent advisor such as Business-VoIP-Solution

Michael is the owner of FreedomFire Communications....including DS3-Bandwidth.com Michael also authors Broadband Nation where you're always welcome to drop in and catch up on the latest BroadBand news, tips, insights, and ramblings for the masses.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Michael_Lemm

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What is EPBAX???

The electronic private automatic branch exchange (EPABX) is equipment that has made day-to-day working in the offices much simpler, especially in the area of communication.

The EPABX may be defined as a switching system that makes available both internal and external stitching functions of any organisation.

The selection of an EPBAX is a difficult task and requires deep knowledge of traffic pattern of the office. By using an EPABX both the internal and external needs of the organisation are fully served. With the advent of powerful microprocessors and advancements in the field of computers, the EPBAX can boast of versatile features. Hotline can be established between the boss and his immediate subordinates.

The feature of a call transferring and forwarding is another area enabling mobility of the users. Autoconferencing and automatic redialling of numbers found engaged on the first trial are some of other advancements in the features of the EPBAX.

The selection of an EPBAX for an organisation should be preceded by a thorough study of the needs of the office. The exchange should be supporting features like voice DISA-n-auto attendant. This feature helps in doing away with a receptionist or an attendant. Further, the specifications should ensure inbuilt paging, auto fax homing, hot outward dialing, remote dialing, remote servicing and auto shut dynamic lock.

Source:- http://www.tribuneindia.com/1999/99oct28/science.htm#4

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