The world’s number one selling phone system, Avaya, has now decided to seriously enter the conference market with the latest Avaya B179 conference phone. This is probably a logical extension after their acquisition of Radvision; a company that produces some of the best video conferencing solutions around.
This Avaya B179 SIP conference phone offers a familiar looking design that customers would be used to with brands like Konftel and Polycom. When you have omnidirectional microphones all conference units basically have to take on similar appearances so they can optimally deal with round meeting tables (and normal boardrooms). The B179 offers a host of productivity features and is actually an excellent SIP conferencing solution.
Check out this video from Avaya and it will give you an excellent idea of not only how it works but also how easy is it to set up.
The benefit of SIP conference phones is they’re IP. Rather than having to have a dedicated analogue port in a special room, you simply plug the B179 into a spare Ethernet cable anywhere in the office. The assumption here, is that you’re already running IP handsets across the board, or at least in the location you’re plugging the Avaya B179 in to. Which, lets face it, that’s the way technology is going anyway. This means you can use the Avaya B179 SIP conference phone anywhere in the office. That’s great for larger companies that have multiple meeting rooms, or simply want a business grade solution to have initiate a call from someone’s office.
Here are the key features of the Avaya B179 SIP conference phone:
Crystal Clear Sound
- Omnisound audio technology delivers crystal clear sound transmission during conferences. The 360° surround sound and powerful speakers also serve to optimise audio pick-up and broadcasting.
- Full Duplex – this technology stops voices being clipped, as you often find with phone handsets, as the B179 transmits and receives sound simultaneously.
- Noise suppression filters reduce static background noise and the B179 even has an equalizer that allows you to customise the systems pitch to suit user preferences.
Plug and Play simplicity with B179
As mentioned, you simply connect the Avaya B179 SIP conference Phone to an Ethernet line and you are ready to go! It’s easy. If you dont have POE you just plug it into a power point. The B179 also includes a conference guide which is great for making multi-party calls as well as providing a phone book that allows you to store personalised contacts for frequently dialed conference numbers.
Flexibility and Productivity Enhancing Features
Enhance web conferencing, video and other communications environments. The B179 SIP Conference Phone is a versatile high performer that complements your existing solutions, which can be easily redeployed as your business grows or as needs change.
Record and Play Back Your Conference Calls
The Avaya B179 has provision for an SD-memory card so you can record not just calls but also meetings. You can then play these back at a later stage or archive for future use. It’s a great feature to have on any conference phone and I’m surprised it’s not a feature they all offer.
Great for Small and Large Boardrooms Alike
The Avaya B179 SIP conference phone, with it’s powerful microphone pickup can easily handle boardrooms with 10 or more participants. Plus you can purchase optional expansion microphones that further enhance range (and number of participants) up to 70sq metre which is very impressive.
Works with the Avaya Aura platform and third party networks
Given that it an Avaya product its not surprising that it works seamlessly with not just the Avaya Aura product but it’s also designed to work with other SIP third party applications.
Simple Web Based Configuration
I really like this because so many conference phones have to use the little screens and keys to do everything. With the web-based configuration you can import/export contacts and settings. It even offers user profiles for customisation so you’ll automatically have your preferred settings and personal contact information.
The Avaya B179 SIP conference phone is an excellent unit and has quickly established itself as a genuine player in the market. What else would you really expect of Avaya.
As Avaya certified experts, Infiniti is proud to now offer the Avaya B179 SIP confrere phone to complement the brilliant Avaya IP office phone system. For more information about this please speak to our friendly staff.
