[OPLINTECH] Phone systems

[Jessica Dooley]

I also had a good experience switching from POTS to OnSIP for hosted VOIP
with Yealink phones (bought separately). What differentiated OnSIP was that
they offered a per-feature pricing model, as an alternative to the per-user
model. Since libraries have many more handsets than lines, buying a set of
features rather than a quantity of users enabled me to switch to OnSIP for
30% of what the library paid for the same number of POTS lines. It was
highly configurable, as well, and both the handset features and system
features (such as pre-scheduling announcement messages for holiday dates,
etc) were a big hit. As with any phone migration, the only big caveat is to
ensure the vendor can verify your local numbers' portability in writing
before committing.

For digital faxing, I used Interfax. I agree with all Tyson's points about
the benefits of digital faxing! Interfax is just a volume digital fax
vendor, so it can be a cost efficient option, and give you flexibility
about how you'll configure email addresses, copiers, staff management, etc.
The library offered self-serve outbound faxing via copiers, and inbound
faxes went to a shared mailbox that staff could print on request. When I
last worked with that setup, I did not yet have a way to vend - a managed
services provider might close that self-service vending gap.

The other caveat that may arise about removing all POTS lines is whether
any system is using the POTS lines for monitoring (fire, elevator,
security, etc). Some monitoring services will offer cellular modem as an
alternate communication method. In some situations (such as for elevators),
local regulations may require that a dedicated POTS line be retained. It
can be worth factoring these costs into migration planning.

Jessica D. Dooley
Infrastructure Specialist
Ohio Public Library Information Network
jessica at oplin.ohio.gov
614-728-5254


On Wed, Sep 1, 2021 at 9:56 AM Tyson Horton via OPLINTECH <
oplintech at lists.oplin.org> wrote:

> We went with a company called Onsip with Grandstream phones. We have been
> happy so far. We started using them a couple years ago. We also had to work
> with our local Copy/Printer company, that maintains our printers and
> scanners, to get set up with a virtual faxing system (Efax) to eliminate
> our fax lines as well, but keep our number. All of our faxes still go out
> through a copy/scanner from our number, but the incoming faxes come in to
> an email address. That took some getting used to with the staff, but we
> have been managing well. It greatly decreased our "junk faxes" that come
> in. You are able to preview before you print, so that is nice.
>
> www.onsip.com
>
> On Tue, Aug 31, 2021 at 3:27 PM Colleen Sandusky via OPLINTECH <
> oplintech at lists.oplin.org> wrote:
>
>> We are looking at replacing our phone system soon. Does anyone have any
>> recommendation? Any systems to stay away from? We are not interest in VOIP
>> and we have less than 20 handsets with 4 lines. We are currently using an
>> Executone system, which is fine but was obsolete when it was purchased.
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Colleen Sandusky
>> Loudonville Public Library
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