Avaya Expands VoIP Lineup With New IP Phones

Avaya Thursday plans to launch a new line of IP phones that promise a sleeker, more intuitive interface, provide high-fidelity sound and feature built-in support for XML applications.

The first two models of the new Avaya one-X Deskphone Edition family of 9600-series phones will ship in July, including the 9620 IP Telephone for general everyday users and the 9630 IP Telephone aimed at power users who require top-level mobility and collaboration features.

Two other models are planned for January 2007, including the 9650 IP Telephone for employees such as executive assistants who regularly monitor and make calls on behalf other users, and the 9610 IP Telephone for walk-up users in lobbies or other public locations.

Avaya designed its new phones with the aim of making them more intuitive, adding on-screen prompts to guide customers as they use them, said Saied Seghatoleslami, vice president of product management for the communications appliances division at Avaya, Basking Ridge, N.J. “You don’t have to do a lot of guessing,” he said.

Mike Taylor, CTO and vice president of emerging technology at Avaya solution provider Strategic Products and Services, said the new phones add more context-sensitive capabilities that should help users navigate easily through features.“It’s more like a cell phone,” Taylor said.

A vendor’s lineup of IP phones can help influence potential VoIP sales, Taylor said.

“Often in cases where we’re dealing with customers looking at new systems, the people who look at it at the technical level may not pay that much attention [to the phones], but when you get to the people that are spending the money and have to use them every day, it matters,” Taylor said.

All of the 9600-series phones work with version 3.0 or higher of Avaya Communication Manager, the vendor’s VoIP platform. The telephones include high-fidelity handsets and headsets, a high-resolution, grayscale back-lit display and support for Power over Ethernet. Support for SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) will be available in 2007. Avaya also continues to ship its 4600 line of IP phones, which offer SIP support today.

Color displays are also on the roadmap for 2007, Seghatoleslami said.Using LEDs and softkeys, the 9620 supports up to 12 line appearances and includes 10/100 Ethernet switching capabilities, a USB interface, and an interface for forthcoming modules to add functionality such as Gigabit Ethernet, Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. It is priced at $395.

The 9630 adds support for up to 24 line appearances, high-fidelity wideband speakerphone capabilities, support for Avaya’s 24-button module and a button for easy access to mobility features. It is priced at $525.

The phones also include an integrated interface for Wireless Markup Language, which is based on XML, providing an opportunity for solution providers to develop applications to target a wide variety of customer needs, Seghatoleslami said.

“This is a place where the channel can get creative and differentiate themselves. Resellers can help customers understand how they can become more productive,” he said.

Several applications are already available for the new phones from Avaya development partners, including a suite comprising a directory, broadcast alerts, click-to-call and text messaging applications from Citrix Systems, an inventory look-up application from CalAmp, and student roll call and classroom communications software from Millenigence.0