By Mitch Scott

Imagine this….. It’s 5:00 in the morning, it’s pouring down rain and it’s freezing cold outside.   You huddle under the covers reluctant to leave your warm cocoon to battle the weather and the traffic just to make it to work on time.

Now consider the same scenario when your business is utilizing the latest in VoIP technology from Emergent and the NEC UX5000.    You roll out of bed at 7:30, take a relaxing shower to wake up, put on some comfortable clothes and a pot of coffee and walk into your warm home office to start your day at 8:00!

Sound to good to be true?  With VPN (virtual private network) and VoIP keysets this fantasy can become reality.  A VPN connection allows you to access your office PC (via a secure connection) from anywhere in the world that you have an internet connection.  VoIP technology gives you a remote telephone extension – with all the same capabilities of the phone at your office – that can also be used anywhere you have a broadband connection.

Enjoy using a laptop?  There is software available for the NEC UX5000 that will allow you to use a “Virtual Telephone” and a USB headset to take your office anywhere you can find a WiFi connection.  A cafe in France?  A beach in the Bahamas?  VoIP technology allows you to work when and where it  is best for you.

Warning! Technical Talk!

This explains how the NEC UX5000 VoIP terminals operate.  A VoIP enabled telephone system is deployed at the main office.  The UX5000 is connected to the LAN (local area network) and assigned an IP address.  In a home office, a special router is installed that allows you to connect back to the main office via a special network called a VPN (virtual private network).  The NEC UX5000 VoIP telephone is programmed with an extension number just like the phones in the main office.

The VoIP telephone has the exact same features and capabilities as the phones in the main office.   The remote keyset has access to the telephone lines at the main office.  Paging and intercom calls will be heard at the remote keyset.  Calls can be transferred to the remote VoIP keyset.  It is literally as if you unplugged a phone from the main office and plugged it in at your house.

Conclusion

Increasing gas prices, popularity of Green IT,  reduction in office space and the increasing need for “road warriors” to keep in contact with the office continue to make remote VoIP keysets more and more popular with small to medium sized businesses.

Advances in technology are making this valuable feature very affordable, especially considering how much it can improve your and your employees quality of life.