[Asterisk-Users] WiFi Phones

[Alan Harrison]

On Sat, 8 Oct 2005 00:15, Michael Graves wrote:

Try "Strix" as the access points,  It has cell handover and roaming features.  
Very important for telephony wireless.


> Jim,
>
> I have one of the Hitachi WIP-5000 wifi phones. Been using it about 6
> months. I've even travelled with it and tried to make use of hotspots
> here and there. My primary application for the phone was to replace a
> Panasonic analog corldess phone and Sipura SPA-2000 combination for my
> home office.
>
> I have both 802.11b (house) and 801.11g (office)  on the property. The
> WIP-5000 is a .11b device. While it supports long encryption keys it
> does not support WPA...which is specific to .11g. I have been able to
> make it mount both WLANs with encryption enabled. There is a bit of an
> issue making it jump from AP to AP seamlessly as both APs must share
> channels & SSIDs, which is troublesome.
>
> As a phone its behaviour is very good. It's very small. The battery
> life has been good. It has a 2.5mm jack for a standard headset, which
> is essential for me. It can perform basic PBX functions better than the
> ATA/Panasonic pair. I wish that the volume would go a bit
> louder...that's my one major complaint about the phone.
>
> However, what I've learned about wifi along the way is more
> enlightening. My wlan is simply not sufficient to ensure a good voice
> experience. I've been using several access point including; Linksys
> WAP54G, Linksys WAP11b & a cheap Belkin 802.11b. None of these provide
> absolutely continuous calling. Periodically the wlan goes away for a
> couple of seconds then restores itself. The result is a momentary pause
> in an ongoing call...very much like a cell phone. The call never gets
> dropped, but I often need to ask the other party to repeat their last
> statement.
>
> Also, the range you can expect is nowhere near what you will achieve
> with a normal 2.4 or 5.8 GHz cordless phone. I get around 40-60 feet
> maximum...and I don't like in a brick house.
>
> As an alternative I've also purchased an Aastra 480 CTi which comes
> with a cordless handset. Too early to know much about this in detail
> but so far I like it a lot.
>
> Michael Graves
>
> --Original Message Text---
> From: James H Thompson
> Date: Thu, 6 Oct 2005 12:04:50 -1000
>
> Anyone have good words to say about any of the WiFi handsets currently
> available?
>
> Thanks.
>
> Jim
>
>
>
>
> --
> Michael Graves                           mgraves at pixelpower.com
> Sr. Product Specialist                          www.pixelpower.com
> Pixel Power Inc.                                 mgraves at mstvp.com
>
> o713-861-4005
> o800-905-6412
> c713-201-1262
> fwd 54245

-- 
Regards,

Alan Harrison
PABX Advisory Services Pty Ltd
PH  02 9893 7888
Email alan at pabxas.com.au