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

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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.

Equipment Costs
The Mitel 1000 is a 2 line, 4 Extension system, they charge $109.98 per month for 12 months to pay for the system - $1319.76 in total. They compare the system cost to options like Talkswitch which is just $1171, though all paid up front. What’s misleading is they claim “upfront equipment savings” of $1161.02 over Talkswitch…but that’s just the first month, Talkswitch costs less for the first year.

What’s even less fun is features like autoattendants cost monthly with this Costco package - something which is included in the Talkswitch with no monthly fees. For Costco Gold Star and Business Members the autoattendant costs another $33.95 per month…or $407.40 more each year.

Equipment Installation
The Accessline service doesn’t mention professional installation, while you’ll probably get good phone support, sometimes its helpful to have professional installation. Talkswitch can be self installed as well and has free phone support, but also has a nationwide network of professional consultants who can help install your system. And really, is it worth spending days figuring out how to install and configure such a system when we install comparable Talkswitch systems for just $500?

Wiring is also a big issue when installing phone systems. The Costco system requires a dedicated run of phone cord to each desk phone - few offices will be wired right for plug and play installation. Talkswitch requires wired ethernet network to connect to the phones - something we find in most offices. This makes Talkswitch easier to self install.

Monthly Service Costs
Admittedly Costco’s current sale with no phone service costs for the first year is a pretty sweet deal, the second year is $49.98-59.98/month for two lines with 3000 minutes long distance - or $30 more per month for unlimited long distance. This is VoIP service so you must have high speed internet access, excess bandwidth, and ideally a QoS router.

If you don’t use that much long distance, two local lines in the Seattle area are as low as $35.98/month with long distance being $.05-$.06/minute without a plan. This is a traditional (non-VoIP) service which means simpler and more reliable service. If long distance is something your business uses significantly VoIP may be worth it - we’ve got great carriers where two unlimited lines would be $70/month - $10-20 less than Costco. You’ll need an upgraded Talkswitch for $300 more, but you get additional features like direct inward dial and capacity for 4 VoIP lines - double the capacity of Costco’s system.

Expansion
If your small business is looking to grow, expansion room is a weak point of Costco’s system. It supports only 2 phone lines from Accessline though you can order 2 more from another carrier, 4 desk phones, and 4 cordless phones. A Talkswitch 240vs supports 2 phone lines, but can cheaply expand to add 4-8 VoIP lines and trumps the Costco system with 16 extensions (phones). Talkswitch can also grow easily by adding additional units - its capable of a maximum of 32 phone lines, 32 VoIP lines, and 64 extensions.

Conclusion
This Costco system isn’t a bad deal, but its not exceptional either. The equipment costs more than Talkswitch, features built into Talkswitch are expensive monthly services on the Costco system, Talkswitch has more installation options and likely easier wiring, Talkswitch works with more phone service options for a lower cost, and Talkswitch will grow to many times the capacity ensuring your investment stays with you.

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