GPhone is a bust for me, at least for now, but other solutions are available. Ars Technica pointed out an 802.11b wireless VoIP phone from Zyxel. Then there’s the Vocera VoIP communicator badge that everybody at Dartmouth College uses. They were happy to show it off during the Unleashed Wireless Conference they hosted last Fall.
[UPDATED]: The VoIP market is heating up. Vonage is set to offer a wireless phone soon to help compete against AT&T’s new entry into the VoIP market. Then there’s VoicePulse and Packet8 also making a play in the full-service residential/small business VoIP market.
[b][[color=red]UPDATED[/color]]:[/b]
Subject: RE: Sales Inquiry
From: Yotam Levine
Date: March 22, 2004 6:38:26 PM EST
Casey,
Here is the latest information on the Prestige 2000W VoIP WiFi Phone:
The Prestige 2000W WiFi phone enables people to make telephone calls through the internet in conjunction with a Session Initiation Protocol (SIPv2) server. Depending on which SIP server the user subscribes to, one may also be able to make phone calls to POTS and cellular phone subscribers as well.
The Prestige 2000W uses 802.11b wireless transmission standards and requires a wireless access point for internet calls. Additionally, phones can be used without SIP service within a local network to provide IP to IP calling and intercom functionality. Also, Prestige 2000W phones can be configured in an ad-hoc configuration for use without access points.
Currently the Prestige 2000W is slated for a late April / early May release. Unfortunately, no pricing is available at this time, but more information will be presented closer to the official public release.
The Prestige 2000W is currently slated for sale through ZyXEL’s normal distribution and sales channels. For more information on where to buy ZyXEL products, use the URL below:
http://www.us.zyxel.com/wherebuy/index.php
Please frequent the ZyXEL North American web site at www.us.zyxel.com for more updates. Currently the Prestige 2000W is not presented on our North American web site, but we will update this as the product becomes ready for North American release.
Please feel free to contact us if you have any further questions. Thanks for your interest in ZyXEL!
Sincerely,
Yotam Levine
Channel Account Representative Northeast
ZyXEL Communications Inc.
1130 North Miller St.
Anaheim, CA 92806-2001
Hours: 7am – 4pm PST Mon – Fri
Office: 800-255-4101 x255
Fax: 714-632-0858
Visit us at http://www.us.zyxel.com