VoIP News: VoIP Hardware

New single-chip solution for VoIP phones

ESS Technology has released a new chip for VoIP phones which it claims is the first of its kind.

The ES9701 embeds two subscriber line interface circuits (SLICs) along with an Ethernet switch, which ESS believes will provide a high level of integration at a low cost for both VoIP adapters and applications.

Included in its features is a 32-bit RISC processor, an AES encryption module and an LCD display with keypad interface.

Additionally, the ES9701 comes packaged with a VoIP phone/adapter reference design as well as a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) stack.

Robert Wong, the firm's vice-president of marketing and worldwide sales, said: "The ES9701 enables rapid development of VoIP phones and adapters at the lowest system cost. Finally, we can have affordable VoIP for everyone."

Last month, ClearSight announced that it had added new functionality to its Network Time Machine which can help with VoIP analysis.

The turnkey recorder is now able to support network time protocol servers.

Posted on: 2009-01-06, in: VoIP Hardware

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Mobile VoIP phones 'should support SIP'

Mobile
VoIP phones can offer businesses a number of benefits, but they should support session initiation protocol (SIP), according to a commentator.

Rob Leggett explained on CRN that mobileVoIP phones - or Voice over Wi-Fi - can "increase the reach, reliability and security of [firms'] wireless networks and deliver data and voice wherever needed".

It does this by connecting the wireless LAN to the IP PBX, but Mr Leggett said that businesses interested in the technology should make sure the handset supports SIP to ensure "interoperability with the widest range of IP PBXs".

On top of this, the phone should still have all the standard features needed, like transferring and conference capability.

He also warned that any handset used should adhere to enterprise security policies, which usually means it can support WPA2 and 802.1X.

Last month, the manufacturer of a processor used in VoIP phones said it caused the handsets to be more "green" than most phones.

Sitel said its SC14450 product allowed power consumption to be reduced by half.

Posted on: 2008-12-17, in: VoIP Hardware

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Processor 'provides green VoIP phones'

VoIP phones using a 'green VoIP' processor use less energy than others, according to its manufacturer.

The SC14450 processor from Sitel was found to reduce power consumption by up to half.

In experiments conducted by the company on dual 10/100 Ethernet VoIP phones the power used was less than 800mW.

Sitel claimed that the technology would be of use to businesses which want to employ the cost saving benefits of VoIP solutions but are finding their power consumption higher than normal phones.

This is because VoIP phones traditionally need to be powered from mains electricity or using Power-over-Ethernet (PoE).

However, Sitel believes that the technology will also be useful for businesses which are concerned about their carbon footprint.

This will be especially important as the European Commission is considering limiting the stand-by power consumption of office equipment to 2W if it has a display and 1W if not, the company said.

Posted on: 2008-11-26, in: VoIP Hardware

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Intel to help VoIP virtualisation

VoIP virtualisation will be easier on the next range of CPUs from Intel, according to the chip manufacturer.

The new processors will be based on the upcoming Nehalem core architecture and will be aimed at the virtualisation and communications sectors, reports Comms Dealer.

Currently, many IT departments do not want to virtualise VoIP and other critical applications like unified communications because of worries over performance and reliability.

"The vision is that we'd like to see more business critical apps running virtualised," Nehalem chief architect, Ronak Singhal, told the magazine.

"The potential is obviously there and if it can't be I'd like to know what problems there are."

Virtualisation is a process where several operating systems run on a single server.

A server being used for application is idle for a large majority of the time, so when it performs more than one task it can keep energy costs down and improve power efficiency.

Intel has also said that the new CPUs will be better suited to dealing with multimedia, allowing high-definition video conferencing on laptops.

Posted on: 2008-09-24, in: VoIP Hardware

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IP telephony carrier market contracts

The IP telephony carrier market contracted ten per cent sequentially to $861 million (£470 million) in the second quarter of 2008, a report has revealed.

According to research by Dell'Oro Group, service providers were not investing in infrastructure, instead putting their money towards projects.

This was especially true in North America, because the weak economy there was putting pressure on revenue growth for the national network operators.

"Through the first half of 2008, service providers have had trouble justifying the investment in infrastructure upgrades, because revenues from their fixed-line business continue to decline as prices erode and subscribers switch over to cable and, to an ever greater extent, wireless services," said the vice president of Dell'Oro, Greg Collins.

"Service providers are showing that they would rather direct investment dollars toward revenue generating projects than toward equipment that might make existing services more profitable.

However, there was good news for IP telephony in the voice application server market, which saw growth of 30 per cent compared to the second quarter in 2007, with Dell'Oro explaining this is because they are used for new, revenue-generating services.

Posted on: 2008-09-09, in: VoIP Hardware

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