Zultys IP Phone Goes Remote

The ZIP 4x5 phone can handle four simultaneous incoming or outgoing calls. It also includes four Ethernet ports and one analog port, as well as built-in VPN, firewall, call encryption and Network Address Translation capabilities.

"It allows customers to go totally remote and provide really good security for each of the remote offices," said Michael Yates, vice president of professional services at Washington Technical, a Kirkland, Wash.-based solution provider.

Remote users can connect the phone to a centralized IP-PBX over a high-speed Internet connection and receive all of the same features and functionality at home that users at the corporate headquarters get, said Iain Milnes, president of Zultys, Sunnyvale, Calif.

At the same time, through the analog port, users also can connect a standard phone line to support an analog fax machine, provide a local number for 911 calls or incoming customer calls, and establish a backup means of making and receiving calls if the Internet connection to headquarters fails, Milnes said. The phone also supports voice-activated dialing and Bluetooth wireless technology.

Since the ZIP 4x5 is based on open standards such as Linux, the IPsec security protocol and Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), the phone operates with Zultys IP-PBXes or compatible equipment from other vendors.

Zultys prides itself on making its products easy to use and implement, Milnes said. "Resellers faced with installing something like a Cisco [system] have to undergo strict training, and then it takes two to three days to install, as opposed to us, where training is minimal and you can install it in a morning and then move on to the next project," he said.

Available now, the ZIP 4x5 carries a list price of $400, or $450 with a Bluetooth headset.