2007 is shaping up to be an exciting year for Epygi (News - Alert), a manufacturer of IP-PBXs and gateways. The company started off the New Year by unveiling the latest release of the software that ships with its hardware devices. Starting next month, Epygi will be offering API
licenses for a couple of its product lines and launching a new series of gateways.
To find out more about these and other developments at Epygi, TMCnet spoke with Warren Sonnen, the company’s Director of Product Management.
Software Update
To start off the new year, Epygi is announcing release 4.1 of the software that ships with Quadro 2x, 4x and 16x PBXs. The new software incorporates a number of enhancements, including improvements to the installation and setup process.
“We’ve been working on this since the middle of last year,” Sonnen told TMCnet.
Most the new software features are designed to simplify and accelerate the setup process of Quadro PBXs. For example, the new version includes a quick-install checklist that pops up onscreen when a Quadro is plugged in. This checklist guides the user through basic setup.
Voicemail setup is now also automatic. When a phone is plugged into the system, the software automatically guides the user through setup. Features the user may not have control over can be configured by IT staff remotely, via a Web browser interface.
The software also simplifies upkeep by performing automatic firmware updates, and a backup utility is provided so that a copy of the entire system configuration can be stored on a server or FTP location.
Other features of release 4.1 were added to improve uptime and enhance the user experience once installation is complete. For example, plug-and-play support for Astra and Snom phones is now included. When one of these phones is plugged into a Quadro PBX
system, it is automatically registered.
Support for distinctive ringing, and notifications sent via SMS, is also now included for Aastra and Snom phones.
Another example of this focus on usability is the inclusion of call relaying. This allows the user to place a call remotely through his or her work phone. By dialing into the system, and then placing a call, it appears that the call originated at the office.
“The call relay feature, in conjunction with SMS notifications, mean if you're not in the office it doesn't matter,” Sonnen said.
Other user-focused features include on-screen status indicators for different phone states (e.g. “do-not-disturb”), and a built-in 7-party conference bridge.
API License for Quadro 4x and Quadro 16x
Starting Feb. 12, Epygi will be offering a new license that developers can use to integrate third-party applications, such as call center applications, with Quadro PBXs. The license unlocks the API, which uses an XML
interface.
“The software is in the phone system day one, but to get access to it you need to turn it on,” Sonnen explained.
Licenses for the Quadro 4x and Quadro 16x will be priced at $200 each for unlimited usage.
QuadroM Gateways
Also Feb. 12, Epygi is launching a new family of 19," rack-mountable, single-port E1/T1
gateways, QuadroM. The new gateways, priced at $3,195, come in a metal enclosure and are rack-mountable.
Rack-mountability was added in response to customer requests. This feature is made possible in part by the metal enclosure. Metal, Sonnen said, is more durable than plastic.
“Plus, people like seeing metal instead of plastic,” he added.
QuadroM is the first in a series of new gateway launches Epygi has planned for 2007, Sonnen told TMCnet. During the second quarter, a dual-port version ($3,995) will be available, and at the end of the year a quad version (4 ports, $5,995) will be unveiled.
Sonnen noted that the new gateways are designed specifically with the South American market in mind, because of the way they handle compression codecs. In the U.S., bandwidth is not a problem so high-bandwidth codecs can be used with T1. But in South America, where E1 is the norm, high-compression codecs are necessary.
QuadroM supports 30 E1 channels per port using the G.729 codec.
Epygi also has plans to evolve the QuadroM line into a high-capacity conference server, Sonnen said.
Other News
Sonnen also updated TMCnet on some other developments at Epygi, including:
- Longer extended warrantees on all products; 4 years in the U.S., 5 years in Europe
- Full launch of ISDN gateway; this four-port gateway that utilizes basic rate interface (BRI) was introduced Jan. 1 for special order only, and now is a fully stocked item ($745).
- Launch of rack-mountable Quadro 4x and 16x PBXs and conference server; will be available starting February 12.
ITEXPO attendees interested in learning more about IP-PBXs and gateways are encouraged to visit Epygi’s booth, #1410, at the show. Even more information is available on the company’s TMCnet.com channel, Selecting VoIP Solutions.
Want the latest scoop on all things VoIP? Make sure you attend INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference & Expo East, January 23-26, 2007 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. While you’re waiting for the show to start, check out Rich Tehrani’s analysis of the communications industry in 2007. Don’t forget to stay till the end of the show for your chance to win a Harley Davidson Roadster or a Toyota FJ Cruiser.
Mae Kowalke previously wrote for Cleveland Magazine in Ohio and The Burlington Free Press in Vermont. To see more of her articles, please visit Mae Kowalke’s columnist page. Also check out her Wireless Mobility blog.
Extensible Markup Language (XML) | X |
eXtensible Markup Language is a data formatting standard that can be integrated into On-Line Analytical Processing a multi-dimensional database architecture and other protocols such as SOAP (next) and...more |
Private Branch Exchange (PBX) | X |
Originally, telephone features were provided by telephone central office switching systems, often called CENTREX.�PBX systems emerged as customers wanted to have more calling features and control over...more |
Transmission Level 1 (T1) | X |
A T-1 is connected between a Class 5 Central Office and Customer Premise Equipment switching system such as a PBX or ACD or data communications system such as a router, Frame Relay Access Device, etc....more |
Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) | X |
ISDN BRI is digital transmission using 2B+D or two B channels of 64,000 BPS for voice, data and video services and one D channel of 16,000 BPS for signaling over one-pair of twisted-pair telephone lin...more |
Application Programming Interface (API) | X |
A Remote Procedure Call (APC) also known as an Applications Programming Interface is a software programming function that allow one software program to activate (call function) another software progra...more |