Archive August 2009
Skype plans call rate increase
Skype recently announced that from the 6th September 2009 it will be increasing its connection fees to 7.9 cents (US$) from 3.9 cents (US$) per call. This excludes rates to countries included in the ‘Global Rate‘, but unfortunately no African countries (including SA) are part of the Global Rate.
We wrote with some excitment recently about the availability of Skype-In numbers for SA so its unfortunate that rates to SA will now be that much higher. The rates are currently displayed on Skype website as 72c (incl. VAT) for calls to SA landlines, and R2.50 (incl. VAT) to SA mobiles… quite pricey when compared to local SA VoIP providers. The increased connection cost will add about an additional 30c SA per call!
More info on rate changes here
The Siemens Gigaset DE380IPR
Voipblog recently had the opportunity to test the new Siemens Gigaset DE380IPR, the first desktop IP phone from Gigaset. The simple yet stylish looking model is clearly designed for the residential and SME sector and could be a big hit for service providers looking to standardise on a good quality handset.
Gigaset is well known for their range of cordless DECT handsets but relatively new to the desktop phone market. The move is likely to be the start of more SME solutions from Gigaset since Siemens internal divisions have been carved up and there is no longer the conflict of Gigaset stepping on the toes of Siemens PBX division. But enough about Gigaset and more about the phone…
The physical appearance of the phone is appealing with a raised LCD screen and all the common function keys for hold, transfer, conferencing and DND being easily accessable. The one notable surprise on the physical specs is the lightness of the handset, giving it an almost cheap feel, when compared to more sturdy handsets such as snom.
The web interface is the same intuitive interface as the cordless phone models, so a breeze to configure and set up. The phone supports numerous codecs including the G722 wideband codec. This, along with the Siemens HDSP (High Definition Sound Performance) support on the phone, provides excellent sound quality on the device. So the skepticism regarding the weight of the handset was unjustified when it came to performance.
The built in router on the DE380IPR is clearly a feature that would appeal to residential users or ITSP’s allowing for software selectable router or bridge mode. Below are a couple screenshots of the web interface
Overall the Gigaset DE380IPR is a great product, comparable with the snom 300 or Polycom IP320/330 and, supporting wideband, at a local retail price point of about R 900 it seems like a good deal!
Skype for Asterisk
Asterisk recently launched the add-on Skype channel driver for Asterisk based PBX systems, allowing complete access to the Skype network, including low cost PSTN access and free calling to over 440+ million Skype users. The Skype for Asterisk single channel sells for $66 (approx R560) on the Digium website.
Key features include:
• Make Skype to Skype calls
• Calls to landlines and mobile phones
• Receive calls with SkypeIn
• Make world-wide PSTN calls with SkypeOut
• Make and receive multiple concurrent Skype calls from the same Skype account
• DTMF support for incoming and outgoing calls
• Read Skype profile fields from incoming calls
• Set and retrieve online status
• Set privacy settings
• Handle incoming Skype calls using all Asterisk applications (voicemail, ACD, MeetMe conferencing, etc.)
• Simultaneous access from both Asterisk and the Skype desktop client
• Use Asterisk phone for voice and Skype desktop client for IM, video
• Trunk calls between Asterisk servers over Skype
• Supports G.711 and G.729 (included) codecs
39 Free VoIP Softphones
An interesting review of 39 free softphones by VentureVoIP. The softphones mentioned are all free downloads that do not require any form of registration.
The most well known on the list has to be Counterpath‘s X-lite. X-Lite 3.0 lets you make audio calls to any softphone, mobile or landline number, and make video calls and send IMs to any softphone which supports these functions.
Firefly is also apparantly popular amongst IAX Asterisk users and recently also offers support for Mac, where previously it only supported Windows.
PhonerLite is notable for being one of the few with support for the G.722 wideband codec.
The Mitel Sigma SOHO solution
The Sigma SOHO PBX has been around for some time now and has interestingly been adopted by many of the major South African providers including Vox, Mweb, iBurst and Vodacom. So what is so great about the device that has gathered such broad support? Or is it a case of go with the safe, tried and tested product?
Sigma who? The Sigma is a SOHO ‘office in a box’ solution which supports up to 8 extensions (4 analogue wired + 4 cordless handsets), built in DSL, router and WLAN. The PBX features are fairly limited but incorporate the basics (call transfer, waiting, hold etc.) to meet the majority of SOHO users needs.
The Sigma was originally manufactured by Lake Communications which was subsequently bought out by Inter-Tel, and more recently, Mitel purchased Inter-Tel for US $723 million! So little Sigma has found itself with a variety of foster parents in its 3 year life span.
Part of the reason for its adoption locally is surely because of its global success. BT in the UK has been selling the device as its BT Micro solution for a number of years. Another reason is that it is well packaged and well priced. A Sigma with one desktop phone and one cordless DECT handset retails at about R6000.
It is however severely limited in its scalability and for any business expecting to grow beyond 8 extensions should seriously consider alternatives that are expandable and more feature rich. It is also restricted in that it does not support SIP handset registration so you are limited to the prescribed phones.
All in all though a decent product that seems well suited to the SOHO sector and with the majority of SA providers selling it on a rental basis the concern regarding scalability might not be a significant problem since they are likely to have larger solutions available should a company outgrow the Sigma.
Would be great to hear experiences from people using the device?
Skype In numbers available for SA
Skype-In is a subscription service from Skype where you can purchase your own ‘online’ number. Anyone calling that local number will be forwarded to your skype account. The service has been offered by Skype for a couple of years already but only recently were you able to order a local South African number.
So now all those SA expats living on the muddle isle up north can give Grandmother Dearest in SA a local number to call them on without Gran having to waste away her pension on expensive international call rates… aah, thanks Skype!
Skype-In ‘online’ number costs $18 (R144) for 3 months or $60 (R480) for a full year. The numbers all seem to start with 27011083… so looks like a JHB local number.
There are also some great bundle deals using Skype-Out on offer, incl South Africa 400, World 400 and Unlimited World.
South Africa 400 offers 400 minutes worth of calls to landlines in South Africa per month and costs $14.95 (R120) per month… not bad at all, thats 30c a minute per call (normal SkypeOut rate is $ 0.078 or 62c ZAR). Are there any local VoIP providers offering these bundles?
I guess we should be thankful to finally have some choice in SA! Yipeee for Skypeee!
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- Cheeky move by SA's biggest operators... the interconnect rate debate continues http://tinyurl.com/yjtxfem
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