[Asterisk-Users] The Minimum Cost of Setting up an Asterisk Phone System?

[Stephen R. Besch]

>Here's a cost analysis, rather crude and inspecific, of using Asterisk
>to implement a phone system. I'm really quite naive and new to all this,
>so I'd appreciate any corrections, tips, pointers, etc, from those in
>the community, who have far greater experience, knowledge, skill, etc.
>than I. Am I forgetting something important? Am I way off in my
>estimates?
>
For what it's worth, here's what we actually paid for our system:

    1) CPU: Salvaged from spare parts, estimated cost to purchase:   $500
          Asus A7V133, 900MHz, 256MB,60GB
    2) Two Nics                                                         
                          $50
    3) Digium T100P                                                      
                    $495
    4) 20 GS Budgetone @$65                                             
           $1300
    5) Adtran TSU600 Channel Bank (e-bay + patience)                   
   $99
    6)  2 Dual FXO plugins for TSU  @$100  (used)                        
  $200
    7)   1 Dual FXS Plug in for TSU @$100   (used)                       
   $100
    8)  Asterisk and Linux                                             
                         $0
    9) APC Smart-UPS 700 (used)                                        
              $60

             Total:                                                      
                           $2804        $140/Phone (including phones)
                                                                         
                                                 $75/phone (not 
including phones)

Obviously, this is a bit unrealistic for many of you, since there is no 
cost for the networking infrastructure and wiring.  This already existed 
on our site and in fact is provided by our University.  We also have a 
lot of computer and electronics expertise in our lab, which really 
helps.  By the way, the cost was less than 1/2 the estimate for Analog 
PBX hardware from an outside vendor (no installation) and less than 1/3 
of the quote offered for a system with less functionality from the 
University - and we would have had no control over the system and would 
have been charged an addition $5/month per voice mailbox, even if though 
we had to buy all the hardware! Finally, and this is a real plug for *, 
one of our scientists splits his time between Buffalo and Nova Scotia. I 
was able to place an extension at his Nova Scotia office for exactly "0" 
extra cost!  Our University IT department wasn't even able to quote us 
on that functionality.

Stephen R. Besch