Selkowitz Technology | Seattle’s small business network and telecom consultant

Where the Allworx Phone System Excels

We’ve regularly compared phone systems - Talkswitch vs Allworx, Talkswitch vs Response Point, etc. For your average small business I really like the Talkswitch system due to its feature set, ease of management, excellent support policies, and very affordable entry points.
But for a different class of buyer - those looking for top end functionality the […]

Talkswitch Helps a Renton Church Save Thousands

We recently had the opportunity to install a Talkswitch Phone System for a local Renton church. A new building is what made them start looking for a new phone system, but it turned out upgrading not only delivered better functionality but also saved them money.
First, how they saved money. Their old phone system didn’t have […]

Talkswitch 6.1 Improves our Favorite Small Business Phone System

Talkswitch just released their new 6.1 update for their systems with some nice new enhancements. While these changes seem small - in the right situation they’re really handy.
Check Firewall Diagnostic - to work right VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) requires specific configuration from the network router. This one click diagnostic makes it easy to confirm […]

What’s Response Point Doing at Costco?

Microsoft released their small business phone system, Response Point, to great hoopla in late 2007. It seemed their intent was to use their Partner program to get the product out to small businesses. This market strategy made a lot of sense, but their recent moves to undercut that model makes me think that plan isn’t […]

How Softphones Can Be Useful

A softphone is a software phone which runs on your computer and let you make and receive calls anywhere with an internet connection. I use the Eyebeam softphone to connect to my office phone system when out of the office.
You might ask, why not just forward to your cell phone when out of the office? […]

Costco AccessLine Digital Phone System - How Does it Stack Up?

I recently received a Costco email about their specials including a “Digital Phone System for Small or Home Business”. This system is a Mitel 1000 with Accessline service its an interesting bundle, but not necessarily better than options like Talkswitch.

Hosted VoIP vs Buying a Phone System - What About Maintenance and Service?

I my last article I showed that buying a phone system can cost about half of a hosted VoIP service over three years, but didn’t get into maintenance costs or service quality.
One of the selling points of hosted VoIP is no equipment to maintain - they have easy point and click interfaces for making updates. […]

Hosted VoIP vs Buying a Phone System - What Costs More?

I’ve often knocked hosted VoIP systems for quality of service and price, but given new packages I wanted to reassess the option. When looking at phone packages you need to consider a few costs - equipment, installation, and monthly services.
One Hosted VoIP carrier recently approached me to carry their product, one interesting change is their […]

How to cut a phone bill by thousands of dollars

I recently had an opportunity to review the very old phone system and phone bill for a local church. They’re growing and moving into a new space and wanted a new phone system for the new location. What they didn’t expect was a new system would cost them less than keeping the old one!
Their old […]

What You Need to Know About Leaving VoIP

We’ve recently had a rash of businesses want to leave VoIP carriers like Packet 8 and Vonage due to call quality issues. The first thing to know is the origin of the phone number - if the phone number originated with a traditional carrier then its easy to bring it back, though it often takes […]

Are Open Source PBXs Best for Small Business?

The tech industry has been pushing the concept of Open Source PBXs as opposed to commercial systems, claiming more functionality and lower costs. I can’t agree though, I think these articles fail to separate the old generation from the new generation of commercial phone systems.
Commercial phone systems have traditionally been expensive systems with limited features […]

Why Looking at new Phone Service with a new Phone System Makes Sense

One of the universal truths is no one likes talking to the guy trying to sell them phone service. But in many cases when a business is looking at a new phone system, its a good time to talk phone service as well to make an optimal package.
For example one job we did recently the […]

How to Have Direct Inward Dial Numbers (DID) Without a T1

Most small businesses are happy with normal phone lines and a receptionist or autoattendant to route calls. But some small businesses want numbers which ring directly to certain extensions, best known as a DID.
Traditionally to have DIDs you need a T1 or PRI plus a compatible phone system. The issue here is cost, a T1/PRI […]

Finally a VoIP Plan that Makes Sense

VoIP line plans aren’t like traditional lines in the case of business VoIP. Where a traditional phone line is flat rate in a local calling area, VoIP usually has no concept of local calls and lines are either metered (per minute inbound and outbound with no local calling area) or flat rate nationwide. These kinds […]

Talkswitch vs. Allworx - Small Business Phone Systems Compared

I recently had the opportunity to install an Allworx system for a client that wanted the Allworx system specifically. Most of our systems are Talkswitch systems, so I use Talkswitch as a benchmark for other systems.
Functionality
The Allworx has an impressive feature set, beyond a full feature phone system, its a router/firewall, network server, and more. […]

Its easy to leave an Avvanta (Blarg) Phone System for Talkswitch

This past little bit I’ve talked with a number of companies looking to leave behind their Avvanta/Blarg IP phone system due to support and call quality issues. The good news is its an easy switch and in some cases can even reduce monthly costs!
We’ve been replacing Avvanta’s proprietary computer-based system with the Talkswitch Phone System. […]

Talkswitch Wins VON Magazine Innovator Award for VoIP Systems

VON Magazine recently awarded Talkswitch with their Innovator Award for companies representing the future of Internet Communications (VoIP). Given to only 65 companies worldwide, this award truly goes to only the top achievers in the communications industry.
The VON Magazine Innovator Award follows on the heels of TalkSwitch being named the absolute best VoIP phone system […]

When SIP Trunking (VoIP) Makes Sense

VoIP is all the rage and hype in the telecommunications business, but VoIP can mean many things and its fitness for a specific purpose varies greatly. When it comes to replacing traditional phone (PSTN) lines with SIP trunks I always hesitate because its not right for every small business.
SIP trunks often are delivered two different […]

The Small Business PBX Phone System Checklist

Looking for a new phone system for your small business? The good news is there’s more options than ever before…the bad news is you need to wade through more options than ever before. Here’s a few things to keep in mind.

Talkswitch 6.0 Makes Small Business Phone Systems Even Easier

Talkswitch, the original all-in-one small business phone system, just released their new 6.0 software. The biggest difference Talkswitch owners will see is the new configuration software.
Lets back up a bit, traditional phone systems (both key systems and PBX) were programmed by punching commands into a specific phone. Because of the complexity of making changes, this […]

Response Point vs Talkswitch - a comparison of small business phone systems

Microsoft has been getting a great deal of press recently for their new Response Point small business phone system. While they’re trying to pitch it as a breakthrough, there are some really great well established small business phone systems worth comparing it to. For comparison I’ve decided to compare Talkswitch - which Small Business Computing […]

TalkSwitch Voted Best VoIP Phone System for Small Business

Small Business Computing Magazine each year issues awards for “the absolute best in small business” as voted by their readers. The winner for 2008 was Talkswitch.
As a Seattle area Talkswitch authorized partner I’m proud to say we offer the best in small business telecommunications equipment and services.  Talkswitch has some strong competition in brands like […]

Does Comcast Business Cable Slow With Time?

I’ve been seeing more of Comcast’s business cable service and noticed an interesting trend. When first installed the services often register speed tests upwards of 15Mbps - and impressive speed and well above the service level. What’s interesting is if you retest the same line a few months later, I’ve finding they’re “only” doing ~6Mbps […]

Is Flat Rate Long Distance Right For My Business?

Many of the business telecom carriers are rolling out flat long distance service packages to counter the VoIP services. While these can sometimes be of benefit, its worth a bit of math to be sure.
For example Verizon was offering my client 5 lines, features, and flat LD for $350/mo plus fees and taxes. With Integra […]

Call Reporting on Sale

Talkswitch just announced the Call Reporting application will be available for $100 off ($399-599) from Nov 19th to the end of the year.
Call Reporting is a very useful tool to deliver insight into calling habits and actions. Here’s a few examples:
Professional Services (Legal, CPA) - set calling codes allowing you to bill clients for time […]

Free On-Hold Music for Talkswitch Owners

Talkswitch just released a batch of on-hold music for Talkswitch phone systems owners. This means instead of hearing beeps your callers hear music when on-hold, being transferred, or in a queue. Having music on-hold is very important for any office where callers ever have to wait - no one enjoys beeps and many callers won’t […]

New Talkswitch Models

Talkswitch, a maker of small business phone systems, just released a bunch of new models detailed here. The long and short of it is greater capacity and greater value. Now VoIP systems can handle up to 8 VoIP lines, particularly nice for offices with many long distance VoIP trunks and/or IP extensions out of the […]

Microsoft’s Response Point Phone System…Does it Matter?

Microsoft has been releasing more details about their Response Point phone system for small businesses and while its being called a “killer” I’m not so sure.
Microsoft has name recognition, but I’m not certain their reputation will bode well for them in the phone systems business. Phone systems should be nearly bulletproof reliable…Microsoft’s product reputation […]

Talkswitch 5.0 Software - Enhancing the Small Business Phone System

We just got our hands on the new Talkswitch 5.0 software and I’m happy to say its really an outstanding improvement to an already amazing phone system. One of the great things is all Talkswitch software updates are free for life, so all these features don’t cost Talkswitch owners a dime! Here’s what’s new:
Expanded […]

How the Talkswitch Phone System Improved Functionality and Reduced Long Distance Costs for a Local Law Firm

A few months ago a local law firm came to us with an interest in a Talkswitch Phone System. At the time they had a Panasonic wireless system which delivered the basics but couldn’t meet their needs. While much of the firm was in Everett, they had partners all over the U.S. and wanted to […]

Three Ways T1 Providers Vary

Its a common misbelief that all T1s are the same, so go ahead and pick whichever is least expensive. The truth is while any (data) T1 will provide 1.54Mb back to the central office, the rest does vary greatly.
1) Latency/Hops - I recently had a client upgrade to a Speakeasy T1 (not my pick) from […]

Should Your Business Go VoIP?

VoIP is the big buzz in the telecom business, but is it really right for your small business telecom needs?
What is VoIP?
VoIP or internet telephony refers to using the network/internet for phone communications instead of traditional phone lines, T1 trunks, etc. VoIP generally manifests itself three different ways:
1) VoIP phone lines - this replaces the […]

Newsletter

Tech news has been remarkably slow of late, but we finally have enough for a newsletter! Also I’m happy to say I’m largely healed from my broken foot, so you’ll be seeing me out and about more again.

Reviews
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Why We Picked Talkswitch for Our Small Business Phone System

You may not know we actually use Talkswitch for our company’s phone system, for quite some time we’d been trying to figure out how to route calls to everyone in the field, avoid large long distance bills, and handle our clients calls generally in a better manner.

For the longest time I figured we’d do a pure VoiP solution, but in 2006 I saw too many failed VoiP phone systems get sold to small businesses. Not a single VoiP system I saw like Avaya, Aptela, Packet8, Speakeasy, etc could deliver reliable call quality, call routing, or a decent return on investment…

How can Verizon’s Service Be So Bad?

I’m fortunate I don’t often have to work with Verizon support, today was the worst case ever. I’m used to them being bad but eventually being able to solve the problem at hand…but not today.
My client couldn’t find their IP configuration information for their new DSL line, a pretty easy thing to call and […]

Why Hosted VoiP Doesn’t Add Up

Hosted VoiP PBX services are very tempting to small businesses as many offer unlimited long distance and minimal startup cost as there’s no PBX to buy. The reality is the dollars usually don’t add up to a winning proposition.
Take for example a mortgage company I recently talked with. They’re growing and at their next stage […]

5 Reasons Your Business Shouldn’t Use Cable Internet

5) While cable providers tout their speed, they’re only talking about their download rate. Cable internet generally has a very low upload rate reducing performance for sending files and emails with larger attachments.
4) Cable has no promise of uptime or repair time. If you depend on your internet connection for business not having these guarantees […]