Hardware for setting up voip in home office

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kevski

3 posts

Wannabe Geek

#65541 3-Aug-2010 11:46

Hi

I'm setting up a new office at home and thought that I would use voip for my office line. I'm new to voip so have a few basic questions about the best hardware to use. I need to replace my existing router as well so it is a good time to get setup.

1. am I better to buy an ip phone or will analogue do just as well?
2. recommendations for ip phones?
3. any recommendations for a wireless modem/router for voip use?
4. do I need to get a router with voip phone connections (like DLink DVA G3670B or Linksys SRP527) or will standard network connections do the job?

I don't mind spending some money for better quality but don't want to spend unnecessarily and I'm just trying to understand the components I need to make this work well.

Thanks

graemeh

2080 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 226

#362248 3-Aug-2010 11:57

Also make sure you pick a "real" Telco that supports number portability. You don't want to have to change your phone number if you move suppliers.

kevski

3 posts

Wannabe Geek

#362289 3-Aug-2010 12:33

Thanks.

Can you tell me which ones don't? Or, alternatively, tell me which ones do?

graemeh

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+1 received by user: 226

#362300 3-Aug-2010 12:48

kevski: Thanks.

Can you tell me which ones don't? Or, alternatively, tell me which ones do?

Not off the top of my head, no. Skype is the one biggie I've heard of that don't.

If they allow you to bring a number with you then I'd say it's a safe bet that they allow you to port the other way too. It's probably worth checking though and getting the answer in writing so they can be spanked later if it proves necessary.

The other thought I had was that since you are using it for business you'd also need to check that the support hours match your working hours. It's no good to you if you are expecting calls at 11pm, your phone has died and their helpdesk only operates until 9pm.

maverick

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WorldxChange

#362311 3-Aug-2010 12:58

The Cisco 527 is a nice box, has multiple VLAN support as well as wireless N and very good VOIP QOS, so should work well for a home office setup, also Polycom make really nice IP phones and generally have the best sound quality as they have better components but are pricy, the Cisco SPA5xx range is also pretty good and a bit cheaper.

Most Telcos in NZ have to have LNMP portability as it's a Telco requirement, but you will find a few choices on here with the corresponding for and against arguments.

I can't comment too much as I work for a VOIP provider and I will obviously very very bias when I say we have the best VOIP network in New Zealand? Just ask Telecom as we do the FTTH project with them for VOIP services

Yes I am a employee of WxC (My Profile) ... but I do have my own opinions as well

https://www.facebook.com/wxccommunications

hads

392 posts

Ultimate Geek
+1 received by user: 12

Trusted

#362502 3-Aug-2010 16:29

kevski: Hi

I'm setting up a new office at home and thought that I would use voip for my office line. I'm new to voip so have a few basic questions about the best hardware to use. I need to replace my existing router as well so it is a good time to get setup.

1. am I better to buy an ip phone or will analogue do just as well?
2. recommendations for ip phones?
3. any recommendations for a wireless modem/router for voip use?
4. do I need to get a router with voip phone connections (like DLink DVA G3670B or Linksys SRP527) or will standard network connections do the job?

I don't mind spending some money for better quality but don't want to spend unnecessarily and I'm just trying to understand the components I need to make this work well.

1. An IP Phone will gve you more functionality than an analog phone with an Analog Telephone Adapter (ATA) e.g. dedicated buttons for transfer, hold, dnd etc. An IP Phone will generally give better sound quality and possibly vastly better sound quality if it's IP end to end and able to use wideband codecs.

2. Polycom are very nice, but are more expensive than some alternatives. Yealink are very nice and a nicer price. snom are good too as well as Cisco SPA500 series, I don't like them quite as much myself. That's about the extent of brands I generally recommend, though there are many others, some good, some not.

3. Draytek are nice routers.

4. No you don't. You can if you like but it's not required.

For VoIP providers, 2Talk and Worldxchange are the two that people use in NZ. We use 2Talk ourselves.

hads

nicegear.co.nz - VoIP, DVB and other Linux compatible hardware