Voice over IP (VoIP) communications specialist Aastra announced the release
of Connector, a PC-based search-and-dial application. Connector unifies
telephony call control with Microsoft and Google PC desktop tools and acts as a
single access point for users to search for and dial contacts, as well as
retrieve and pop up contact information, documents and e-mails based on
incoming caller ID.
The optional Connector Softphone provides the same user interface and
functionality as the PC application.
Connector makes use of the XML API built
into Aastra SIP phones to allow users to automatically control their phone via
these APIs, and also allows users to control the built-in softphone using a PC
speaker and microphone or using a USB phone.
Once connected to a desk phone or softphone, users type the name of a person or
business into the Connector telephony tool bar, and contact matches from
Outlook, Clearspan Directory, Active Directory or LDAP directories, Google Maps,
or Google Search will pop up; then users just click to dial. For incoming
calls, users can set the application to automatically open an Outlook contact,
do a Windows desktop search or generate a toast pop-up based on incoming caller
ID.
"Aastra Connector is an innovative solution that will provide Aastra
customers with rich PC-phone integration," said Tim Whittington, executive
vice president and general manager of Aastra USA.
"Its simple-to-use search-and-dial capabilities improve productivity and
enhance the Aastra value proposition to our end customers."
The company also said Graybar, a distributor of electrical, communications and
data networking products and provider of related supply chain management and
logistics services, is now an authorized distributor for the Aastra MX-One
Compact. The MX-One Compact is designed to provide small to medium-size
businesses (SMBs) with a solution for IP telephony and unified communications
(UC). The MX-One Compact supports standards-based communications protocols like
SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) on both extension and trunk lines and is
available with a variety of terminals (i.e., SIP, IP, cordless) and
applications.
According to the company release, the MX-One Compact scales from 50 to 1,000
users and can be converted to the full enterprise version of MX-One with a
license upgrade. Applications include integrated mobility, where mobile phones
are integrated into the call manager (called fixed mobile convergence);
productivity enhancing tools such as advanced messaging (for voice mail, fax
mail and unified messaging); and a call screening and contact center
application. Solidus eCare Lite is a specially packaged version of Aastra's
multimedia contact center solution for enterprises, which can be also converted
to the full enterprise version with a license upgrade.
"Graybar and Aastra have had a solid working relationship for years,"
said John Drolet, vice president of sales, indirect channels and carriers at
Aastra USA. "With
recent changes to Graybar's PBX portfolio, we are confident that the Aastra
MX-One Compact system will bring our mutual customers a product portfolio that
will benefit resellers and their end users for many years to come."
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