Hosted PBX – Choosing your Handsets

A hosted PBX can be mated with virtually any IP phones in the market today; however there are still a few considerations before purchasing any handsets especially if you will be acquiring it separately and not from your service provider. Generally it is best that you buy it from your provider but still you have the freedom and the luxury to shop around for better prices.

Just remember your hosted PBX provider may or may not charge configuration charges so the IP phones will work with their system. It is also best that you ask for an array of model that they can recommend since most probably these are the units that have gone through their testing and research phase and has proven to work effectively with their hosted PBX system along with all the features.

Choosing your Handsets

Before buying a handset it is advisable that you create a checklist that will allow you to compare models and brands easily, the checklist should reflect the price, size of LCD display, number of programmable buttons, audio codec, number of Ethernet ports and accessories. These are the common points that should be considered in an IP phone however it will depend on how you would use specific units. Continue to shop around until you fill in your list with at least 3 options.

You should also take into account the specific use of each handset, for example does you staff need a reception style desk phone, perhaps a regular desks phone for typical calling tasks, a wireless DECT and so on. Finding the right handset for the specific tasks is important since it will promote efficiency and convenience.

Another point that you should consider is the warranty, like in any product you purchase a minimum warranty of 3 months should be given to you. Most of the IP phones are manufactured in China and the United States and if you are living in another country warranty claims maybe difficult and sending the phones overseas is not cheap either so it is best that you buy from an accredited supplier for easy warranty.

However if you wish to save from all the trouble of having to shop around and hop from one store to another then you just might want to acquire the handsets from your VoIP provider directly in that way the units will surely work perfectly with the system and warranty claims will be easier. This will also make sure that you will have full support not only for the cloud services but also for the physical units that you have.