[asterisk-users] Grandstream GXP2000 -- What's the Catch?

[Zeeshan Zakaria]

Grandstream phones are cheap because they use cheap stuff to manufacture
them, plus their software/firmware and remote provisioning and configuration
system is very basic. Their firmware was bad until newest version, and still
some features like day light saving doesn't work. Will you be changing time
on 80 phones twice a year? Let me repeat, their remote provisioning and
configuration system is very basic, don't use for 80 phones installation, or
you'll regret later.

One of my client did that mistake for a 40 phone setup and regrets about it.
Some phones went bad after a year, LCDs on some of them are now less
brighter than others, speaker phone is not loud enough for paging, and
biggest of all, always problem with sound quality on many of the phones,
though some work perfect.

For 80 phones deployment, you need real phones, and you can't go cheap
otherwise you'll running around later keep fixing them, and hearing too
complains from their users

A good IP phone costs $200+, which once installed, will never give any
trouble and whose users will never call to complain about sound or any other
issue. In my experience Linksys 942 were excellent, Aastra is also great
(just small screen size), haven't tried Polycoms and Snoms yet, but they had
their own limitations, like no back lit displays or limited number of lines,
because of which I didn't buy them.

Make sure your phones have back lit and tilted displays, otherwise many
users will have complains.

Linksys has simply the best remote configuration and provisioning system and
also their phone 942 is not black. If you want to be able to control all the
phones remotely once installed, Linksys is the best choice. When buying in
large quantity, can ask them to give you a detailed documentation for remote
provisioning. For 80 phones, trust me, you'll need a good remote
provisioning and configuration system. Second choice is Aastra, with some
issues in their web gui, and also a small screen, doesn't really look like
an IP phone. Third choice is Polycom, if they can give you a back lit
screen. I am putting Polycom in third place because I've heard good things
about their remote configuration features. No idea about snom's, but I
didn't like their look so didn't buy them.

My choice, Linksys 942, and I have upcoming an 80 extension installation
too.
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