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Bria extends VoIP phone client to iPad
If you've been looking around for a solid VoIP/SIP client for the iPad or iPhone, consider CounterPath's Bria. For all the excitement around VoIP on the iPhone and iPod touch (including high profile apps like Skype, Vonage TalkFree for Facebook and Line2), relatively few developers have gone after the corporate side of the voice mix. With so many large enterprises using Asterisk-based PBX replacements for VoIP telephony, a solid SIP client for iPhone and iPad seems like a natural winner. Bringing the advantage of its long pedigree in desktop VoIP clients, CounterPath now delivers some of that savvy to iOS with Bria. On the Mac, Bria is the successor to the capable EyeBeam and free X-lite softphones; now shipping on both the iPhone (US$7.99) and launched this week for the iPad ($14.99), it provides some of the key features needed in a mobile voice solution. Bria works out of the box with major IP-telephony service providers (ITSPs), but keep in mind it does not include service with the app; you need to be using a hosted service or your company's IP telephony infrastructure for Bria to work. The three most important considerations for any softphone app are call quality; call quality; and, of course, call quality. I was able to make and receive calls on several WiFi networks using Bria and a Fonality PBXtra server (built off the Trixbox Asterisk platform). While I heard a bit of near-side echo and low-bandwidth choppiness during some calls, most of the time the audio was as good or better than it would be on a conventional iPhone call, and less likely to drop. The people I called reported my voice quality as 'awesome' and 'really spectacular,' so it seems the artifacts I heard from time to time were on my side only. It's easy to set up Bria; the app takes the same credentials and server info you use for your desktop VoIP/SIP softphone. Once you enter your server name and authorization, you can begin making and receiving calls. Bria is optimized for WiFi use, but it will work over 3G if you enable that option in preferences; however, you're at risk of chewing up your wireless data allocation if you make a lot of calls that way, and quality will suffer a bit. On the flip side, you are not using any voice minutes, and for calls to colleagues on your internal phone system you will appear to be calling from your office extension -- a great trick when you're actually enjoying a piña colada by the pool. %Gallery-126141% The iPad edition of Bria works perfectly with multitasking, allowing you to switch apps and continue a call in the background. Both standard wired headphone/mic combos and Bluetooth headsets work great, but what's really surprising is that the iPad works quite well as a speakerphone -- plop it onto your conference table and away you go. You can optimize your voice quality by selecting a preferred codec in the advanced app preferences; this is also where you turn on 3G calling, set backgrounding options, and adjust other items. For the best quality on 3G calls, Counterpath offers the G.729 premium codec as an in-app purchase -- unfortunately, it's $8.99, so it's unlikely to appeal to most users unless you really need the improved low-bandwidth mojo. Backgrounding may affect your battery life, since most SIP servers will require a UDP connection that isn't directly supported by Apple's notification scheme; some newer servers may work with TCP, which does save power and improve background rings. You can also set incoming calls to forward to your cell number for when Bria's not running. CounterPath's market position provides a good perspective on the impact of iOS and the Mac in the enterprise market, since its products address business needs almost exclusively. When I spoke to senior VP of marketing and products Todd Carothers earlier this week, he acknowledged the accelerating interest from businesses big and small in Apple platforms: "We have seen a significant enough growth in Mac Bria sales since the launch of 3.0 to SME/Enterprise customers. What's happening is Enterprises want multiple OS support with common UI elements." Being able to offer a consistent user experience across PC and mobile platforms would seem to be particularly important for telephony applications, since business users are going to spend a lot of time making and taking calls. Bria is definitely a business product at a business price, and it's a bit frustrating that CounterPath didn't choose to deliver it as a universal app instead of the split-SKU arrangement in place now. Nevertheless, if your company is rocking an IP PBX and you want a premium VoIP experience, there's no better choice right now.
RIM's BlackBerry Mobile Voice System 5 lets you stay tied to your desk without being tied to your desk
Though the Bold 9650 and Pearl 3G are clearly the big announcements out of Orlando at RIM's WES conference this morning, there was a third bit of news in the mix, too -- with a decidedly heavier enterprise slant, that is. BlackBerry Mobile Voice System 5 extends the existing product with SIP support, allowing calls to transition seamlessly between cellular and WiFi networks. What's more, it'll work on pretty much any open WiFi hotspot (subject to enterprise policy, we're assuming), so this is just about the best way in the business to keep you desk phone with you at all times. Assuming you're enough of a glutton for punishment, that is.
Line2 adds a second line to your iPhone for $15 a month
Would you like to add a second line to your iPhone? Perhaps you'd like to add a business number to the phone, but your existing phone is currently tied to your personal mobile number. You could always carry a second phone, but that's an expensive proposition, particularly if you're an iPhone addict. VoIP provider Toktumi has a solution that may work out well for you. They're now selling an app called Line2 (US$0.99) that mimics many of the capabilities of the standard Phone app, complete with a form of visual voice mail. Purchasing the app provides you with one month of free VoIP service. After that point, each month's continued service costs $14.95 for unlimited calls within the US and Canada. The service is purchased in-app, and was a point of confusion for me -- the app listing in the iTunes store shows a "Top In App Purchase" at a cost of $19.99 for a month. Toktumi's website and the promotional video (above) do show the lower monthly rate. While many VoIP solutions require a Wi-Fi connection to work, Line2 works over both 3G and Wi-Fi. The app has many of the features you might want in a business phone, including call waiting and call transfer, the ability to create conference calls with up to 20 participants, and even integration with Toktumi's hosted PBX service. For small businesses that want to present a more professional image to callers, Line2 might be just the right solution. Toktumi notes that the app also works with both the iPod touch (Wi-Fi only) and iPad (Wi-Fi or 3G).
First Look: RF telephony for iPhone
Internet Telephony Provider rf.com is getting ready to launch its iPhone-specific PBX service. The service allows you to place calls both internationally and to online providers like Skype using your normal iPhone minutes. So if you have a friend who's on Skype but has no Skype In access, you can call them just as if they had their own number. RF operates its own PBX, which you connect to over a web client. Once there, it finishes routing the call using VoIP and connects it to your iPhone handset. You use your iPhone calling plan minutes whether you're talking to a guy down the block or your buddy in Beijing. Because their client is web-based, it works with 1.1.4 and earlier iPhones as well as 2.0 iPhones and later. All the heavy lifting happens at the RF servers, connecting you through the VoIP networks. RF's service is free and still extremely beta -- so be prepared for growing pains as they stabilize their software and roll it out. RF Founder/President Marcelo Rodriguez says they're planning on keeping the basic service free for the forseeable future. They are monetizing by reselling the service to VoIP service providers such as PhoneGnome and will be offering premium features at a later date. %Gallery-25599%
FRITZ!Box Fon 5124 and Fon WLAN 7170 do it all
Have you been looking for one uniting box to rule all of your multifarious telephony and related gadgetry? Well if you live in Europe, search no further -- the new AVM FRITZ!Box Fon 5124 and Fon WLAN 7170 are here. As much as we hate to type the ridiculous name with the exclamation point in the middle, we will admit that we're interested in any solution that functions as a router, handles PBX (for landline connections), is an ADSL modem, and sports a USB host port for sharing drives or printers across a network. The WLAN model (obviously) adds wireless into the mix, for those who want to keep up with flashy new trends. The 5124 is available now for €140, and the 7170 for €160.[Thanks, Nirav]
Linux-powered VoIP uber-phone does WiFi video conferencing
We're not sayin' we'd put one of these bad boys in our living room or anything, but adorning the board room table with a four-line VoIP phone that sports a built-in 3.5-inch LCD, webcam, and Zach Morris-style handset wouldn't be a half bad use of resources. The SysMaster Tornado M20 uber-phone does a lot more than hold down IP calls, as it also manages to handle video conferencing, IPTV, video- / audio-on-demand, internet radio, voicemail, email / chat / news, and local weather information. This conglomerate even touts a dual-core processor, 32MB of RAM, and 32MB of flash memory, and the integrated Ethernet jack, WiFi, RCA audio outs, and Linux-powered UI are all welcome additions. Of course, we've no idea if you can rig up Tetris on this thing and use the 4, 8, and 6 keys to control your pieces, but it'll only cost you $260 and a tick of your time to find out.
BlackBerry Mobile Voice System allows access to PBX
RIM's new BlackBerry Mobile Voice System is set to offer access to your office's PBX (IP, TDM or mixed vendor) from your BlackBerry handset. Connectivity to your PBX is achieved via the Acendent Voice Mobility Suite and additions to the BlackBerry Enterprise Server cleverly named BlackBerry Mobile Voice Connectors. There are a few dandy features under the hood such as the ability to place, receive and manage calls, extension dialing, and -- we think this is a great idea -- your Caller ID following you about, giving users of the system one number accessibility for customers and coworkers alike. What new system would be complete without a bit of big brother power? Well, the system includes the ability for calls to be recorded or logged for "service assurance" purposes. We will take the bad with the good, and the good here seems to definitely be the winner.
Fonality launches trixbox Appliance, Asterisk-based VoIP PBX
Like Asterisk? Been waiting to take it to work with you as a VoIP PBX? Enter Fonality's trixbox Appliance, a new small business-grade rack-mounted server good for providing phone service for up to 500 nodes via VoIP, E1/T1, and 48 analog lines. Admins can look forward to the AsteriskNow GUI or the trixbox's own, running atop Linux, (with the usual Apache, MySQL, PHP, etc.); users can look forward to the usual intra-office voice systems, including perks like voicemail-to-email, and the like; middle-management can look forward to staying within budget when signing off on the $1000 base price tag. Silly wabbit, trixboxes are for VoIP nerds.
iBlue, Mac mini based IP PBX
I'm not an expert on VoIP (that's Voice over IP) technology, but I do know an interesting way of distributing software when I see it. 4S newcom GmbH has developed a new software based IP PBX (that's telephone switch to you, put simply). Normally, this wouldn't be something we discuss on TUAW, but they are distributing this software PBX on an iPod Shuffle (from the looks of it, it is the old style Shuffle). The press release says that even on the 512meg version (which will soon cease to be produced) there is room enough for the software and 4 hours of music.The system also includes a Mac mini, which gets booted off the iPod Shuffle, after which you can install the software on the Mac mini.2,999.00 Euros is how much you'll need to get this system when it ships on November 6th.[via GigaOM]
