Home Phone System

[shaurya]

Hello,

I am exploring a Phone system that is Automation friendly...I mean something that fellow members have tried hooking up with different Automation products and had good satisfaction. Following point comes to my mind..

1. Cordless and supports 4-6 head sets
2. VOIP friedly
3. Atleast 2 line phone system
4. Can integrate with Outlook. I hate looking up no in Outlook/PDA and then dialing
5. Route Cell phone calls to Home phone when I or my wife is in home
6. Provision for 2-4 Voice mail boxes.
7. Automatically dial a particular calling card for International/Long distace calls based on the area code of the number being dialed..

Sorry that I am very vague when I say "Automation Friendly" as I myself don't know what I am asking for. I haven't started any of my automation projects yet...

Thanks,
Shaurya

 

[upstatemike]

The Panasonic KX-TA824 has most of the features you list (not sure about the credit card and Outlook parts). The built-in voicemail is nice and the speakers on the cordless handsets support paging announcements through the system. I don't know of any other system that supports cordless all-call paging.

More info at ablecomm.

 

[markthomas]

Shaurya,

The open-source package Asterisk, combined with SIP-compatible phones (available from most VOIP hardware vendors) can do all of your points. And it has a lot more features, too.

It's a software package that runs on Linux, but if that's a little out of your comfort level there are companies that provide various commercial bundles to make it easier and support them (e.g. Thirdlane, Digium).

If you want a little more info on Asterisk, there's an introductory video mentioned in this thread.

 

[electron]

I would definitely consider Asterisk as well, that video really does a great job of how you can get started, without being overwhelmed with too much information. I personally run Asterisk@Home, which makes it extremely easy to get started (it builds the machine for you, and installs many useful tools).

 

[Squintz]

What use would I get out of using Asterisk? I only have one VOIP phone line coming into my house. Vonage is my provider and already offers me voicemail that I hardly ever check. Why should one go with Asterisk? I am missing the whole point.

 

[electron]

Check out the video.