The Wireless Data Network Finds Its Voice

I tested their products in my lab and came away thinking that while both need some work, they can be a new opportunity for VARs that have steered clear of selling voice applications. One reason is that the products use the same kinds of tools and skills that any wireless LAN VAR would already have. Another is that they are way cool and demo well for clients.

The two products take very different approaches: SpectraLink uses its own phone handsets--about the size and heft of a smallish Nokia cellular handset--and gear to connect to the wireless infrastructure. TeleSym uses add-on modules to Compaq iPaq Pocket PCs and special software to turn the PDA into a wireless phone.

That said, let's first look at SpectraLink's system. There are two basic pieces to the product: NetLink wireless phone handsets and the NetLink Telephony Gateway.

Setting up the Gateway box isn't very difficult. You'll need to telnet to its command-line interface, set up its IP-address parameters and configure the various telephone lines that you want your phones to respond to. Each gateway can handle up to 16 phones, and each phone handset has its own MAC and IP address--comforting parameters for network administrators who are used to handling PCs. It took me about two hours to set everything up.

TeleSym's SymPhone has two different pieces as well. In place of the handsets are software modules that exploit the speaker and microphone input of a fairly high-end Pocket PC PDA. I tested it on a Compaq iPAQ 3800. You'll also need a wireless PC Card adapter and expansion jacket for the back of the Pocket PC. There are hardware pieces called the SymPhone Call Server and Connector for the 3Com NBX 100 that must be installed on the enterprise network. Unlike SpectraLink, SymPhone works only with 3Com's NBX digital PBX, so this solution is more limited.

The SymPhone comes in two different versions. One is designed just for PDA-to-PDA communications behind a corporate firewall and does not interact with the public switched-voice network at large. That can be useful for workgroup communications, akin to walkie-talkies but across the entire range of the wireless Wi-Fi enterprise network. The second version works with the public switched-voice network and is similar in functionality to the SpectraLink system.

You'll need to open up port 3344 on your firewall to make use of this service. You'll also need to devote sufficient wireless bandwidth to the voice functions. Like many Voice-over-IP solutions, the more congested your network, the poorer your voice quality. And, after all, voice quality is the bottom line. While I didn't do extensive testing here, the anecdotal tests I did perform indicate that both products deliver fairly clear calls with few dropouts or latency gaps.

The prices for a 10-handset configuration are $8,500 for SpectraLink's system and $3,750 for TeleSym's SymPhone. Overall, VARs will find that these are both excellent small-business and workgroup solutions for getting involved in voice/data integration. They can pay off for companies with huge cellular phone bills, and they also offer control over wireless voice-calling patterns.