Intro to DECT vs IP
Tags: asterisk, basestation, DECT, dect phones, proprietary phones, sip voip, wifi
We’ve deoplyed a number of pure VoIP wireless (wifi & proprietary) phones, but not dect.
Is there a simple overview of integrating DECT phones with Asterisk somewhere? I assume the DECT basestation has a multi-account SIP VoIP interface, and the handsets are just plain old dect?
Can you push configuration info to individual phones? (Are they individually addressible / configurable through SIP) etc?
Thanks
Carlos Alvarez said:
Jun 29, 12 at 4:58 pmThe SIP side of every DECT phone I’ve worked with looks/works just like any
regular SIP phone. Asterisk just sees a SIP endpoint. If it’s
multi-handset/multi-account it’s much like configuring a multi-line SIP
phone.
This is all dependent on the phone/base, but every one I’ve used does.
Again, it works just like any other SIP handset that supports a central
config server.
Honestly while there’s a little bit of learning to do, deploying a SIP-DECT
solution isn’t really different from other phones and you should just jump
into it.
We are very pleased with Spectralink for larger/industrial applications and
Panasonic for small office applications.
Devote four hours to learning and you’ll be comfortable with the configs
for either.
Michelle Dupuis said:
Jun 29, 12 at 6:16 pmCan you really mix & match any base station with any DECT handset?
Do handsets have proprietary features which only work with their own basestations? (eg: transfer between handsets)?
Can i buy a good base station and get cheap Costco Dect handsets?
________________________________
Sent: Friday, June 29, 2012 4:58 PM
We’ve deoplyed a number of pure VoIP wireless (wifi & proprietary) phones, but not dect.
Is there a simple overview of integrating DECT phones with Asterisk somewhere? I assume the DECT basestation has a multi-account SIP VoIP interface, and the handsets are just plain old dect?
The SIP side of every DECT phone I’ve worked with looks/works just like any regular SIP phone. Asterisk just sees a SIP endpoint. If it’s multi-handset/multi-account it’s much like configuring a multi-line SIP phone.
Can you push configuration info to individual phones? (Are they individually addressible / configurable through SIP) etc?
This is all dependent on the phone/base, but every one I’ve used does. Again, it works just like any other SIP handset that supports a central config server.
Honestly while there’s a little bit of learning to do, deploying a SIP-DECT solution isn’t really different from other phones and you should just jump into it.
We are very pleased with Spectralink for larger/industrial applications and Panasonic for small office applications.
Devote four hours to learning and you’ll be comfortable with the configs for either.
Chris Bagnall said:
Jun 29, 12 at 6:27 pmYes and no.
Yes. And that’s the ‘no’ part of my answer above – whilst they may make
& take calls, you might well lose additional functionality. Transfer
hasn’t been a particular problem (in my experience, it’s better to use
the native asterisk functions for this on DECT phones), but call lists
most definitely have been an issue.
As above, if you weren’t worried about all the features, quite probably.
But reasonable Gigaset DECT handsets designed for the base aren’t
exactly expensive – I think the C610H is around the 30GBP mark -
substantially less if you’re ordering quantity. And I’ve seen older
models for substantially less – I picked up a batch of new – but old
model S450s for around 30GBP for 6.
I don’t think I’ve seen DECT units in Costco for much less than 20 GBP.
Michelle Dupuis said:
Jun 29, 12 at 7:12 pmI like the look of the C610H. Is there a matching DECT base station by Gigaset?
(I can’t figure this out looking at their site)
I see a C610IP but it’s not clear if that base station supports multiple SIP accounts, multiple calls active.
________________________________________
Sent: Friday, June 29, 2012 6:27 PM
Yes and no.
Yes. And that’s the ‘no’ part of my answer above – whilst they may make
& take calls, you might well lose additional functionality. Transfer
hasn’t been a particular problem (in my experience, it’s better to use
the native asterisk functions for this on DECT phones), but call lists
most definitely have been an issue.
As above, if you weren’t worried about all the features, quite probably.
But reasonable Gigaset DECT handsets designed for the base aren’t
exactly expensive – I think the C610H is around the 30GBP mark -
substantially less if you’re ordering quantity. And I’ve seen older
models for substantially less – I picked up a batch of new – but old
model S450s for around 30GBP for 6.
I don’t think I’ve seen DECT units in Costco for much less than 20 GBP.
Chris Bagnall said:
Jun 29, 12 at 8:22 pmI use the N300IP. Supports 3 active SIP calls I believe – and yes, does
have multiple SIP accounts (6, if I recall correctly).
Michelle Dupuis said:
Jun 29, 12 at 10:42 pmDo the C610H and C300IP use an international standard for frequencies? I can’t even find gigaset sold in USA/Canada…
________________________________________
Sent: Friday, June 29, 2012 8:22 PM
I use the N300IP. Supports 3 active SIP calls I believe – and yes, does
have multiple SIP accounts (6, if I recall correctly).
"giovanni.v" said:
Jun 30, 12 at 6:46 amIl 30/06/2012 0.16, Michelle Dupuis ha scritto:
Yes if the base station allow multiple handsets registrations (usually
true for DECT over IP bases) and both base and handsets support GAP
(generic access profile) which is the DECT substandard for multi-vendor
support.
Certain features are optional in the DECT/GAP standard, this allow a
manufacturer to implement certain specific features or not. Pay special
attention to theses features, all optional:
- Roaming
- Handover
- Transfer
Transfer can be implemented in multiple ways which can make this feature
easy to use or not.
I think transfer via the R key is a must but many cheap handsets may
force you to navigate/scroll a menu to get this feature… really
boring! If the handset does not support transfer natively an asterisk
feature code may be used… but that’s also annoying.
Standard frequencies used by DECT are different between USA vs. Europe.
Regards,
Giovanni.
Andrew Joakimsen said:
Jul 15, 12 at 11:25 pmGigaset C610a (base + handset combo) are widely available, even on Best Buy and Amazon. You can add additional handsets each with its own registration. Seems to work well, haven’t stopped using them like I
have all the wifi phones. Range seems decent, although handsets feel hollow and lightweight they seem reasonably solid. Sometimes when dropped the batteries fall out and although the box indicates “Made in Germany,” the power adapters are made in China.