Digium Releases Switchvox SMB 4.5

Open-source telephony software company Digium announced the release of Switchvox SMB 4.5, an updated version of Switchvox, the voice over IP Unified Communications solution designed for small to medium-sized businesses. Based on Digium’s Asterisk open-source telephony engine, Switchvox SMB is an IP PBX that integrates a user-friendly Web interface with UC features such as fax, chat and video calling. SMB 4.5 is available now free of charge to customers with a current Switchvox SMB software subscription, and customers can continue using Switchvox 4.0 or implement the optional upgrade to 4.5 via the company Website.

The introduction of Switchvox 4.5 and new Phone Feature Packs extend the power of the Switchvox to Polycom phone handsets. Features that were previously only available through the Web interface are now made available through Phone Feature Packs to these phone handset displays, enabling users to access features from the phone handsets such as call recording, visual voicemail, a searchable company directory and call parking lots. Options for more fundamental phone functions, such as hands-free click-to-call dialling, distinctive ringtones for different types of calls, extension failover to a backup Switchvox SMB server, and support for multiple extensions on a single handset, are also available in version 4.5.

Tristan Barnum, director of Switchvox product marketing for Digium, said Switchvox is designed for businesses that want a cost-effective phone system that goes beyond the functionality of a typical PBX. "Switchvox SMB’s tight integration with Web applications and back-office software gives businesses an unprecedented level of productivity, while features like VOIP, chat and video calls provide flexibility and profound cost savings,” he said. “Today, with the introduction of version 4.5, we’re extending the most popular functionality of Switchvox to the feature-rich Polycom handsets, where they can be accessed intuitively."

Switchvox SMB 4.5 offers additional features to support users and administrators including caller profile information such as photo, extension, title and location, which appears on the Switchboard and on the display of Polycom phones with Phone Feature Packs on internal calls, flexible language support for half a dozen languages and Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) for Switchvox 4.5, which gives administrators the ability to collect real-time data about the status and health of their systems.

Earlier this month Digium launched AsteriskExchange, the official online marketplace featuring products built or integrated with Asterisk. Users can find both free and commercial Asterisk-related products with user reviews and ratings, popularity rankings and a search tool to help simplify the process of finding the right product. Current categories include IP phones and gateways, speech and text engines, voice prompts, call center solutions and vertical application packages. Additional categories will be added as the marketplace expands, the company stated.