Hi, I have been lurking for awhile, I finally have something to post.
I have a small Electrical Service business, the person who answers the phone is rarely in the office. Is there a phone system that will forward to a cell phone depending on which extension is selected and can be called into to dial from so the office number comes up on caller ID?
The first part is easy....just about any system will do it.
The second is a little less common...it is a feature typically called DISA...Direct inward system access....allows you to call in and grab a line from the system and call out......just keep in mind by allowing it you open yourself up to toll fraud.
To the best of my knowledge the ESI systems do not offer that feature.
..........but NEC and Panasonic do, as well as many other brands. As upstateny stated almost any system can do the notification..... if it has a Voice Mail. The DISA part is fairly common but usually requires programming to stop the toll fraud.
My advise is to find a local telecom company that you can feel comfortable with, detail your needs, and work with them to accomplish your project.
Good luck.
Tadiran can do this without having to buy extra equipment. It is done on the backplane.
It is called Flexicall in the Tadiran system which allows the caller ID of the caller to show up on the cell phone instead of the Main number of the business. . The System also does DISA.
Let us not forget that if there is not a T-1 or PRI then there could be issues with disconnect.
Tadiran also has the advantage of being able to transfer the call back to extensions in the office. once the receptionist answers it by cell phone.
Steve
The ESI systems will give your callers an option to dial '4' to reach you on your cell phone or to forward all calls to your cell. I you want to see the originating caller ID you would need a PRI T1.
For the call forwarding and DISA will a regular lines work or do I need VOIP or SIP trunking?
Regular lines will work just fine.
Sam
With the caveat that to show the callers CID rather than your office CID on the cell phone, you would need PRI ISDN.
It looks like my best or most economical option is a hosted PBX, anyone have a good recomendation? I have tried Xchange tel and Aptela, I was't too happy with either.
Your experience is typical of what anyone can expect from a hosted service. They are not a viable solution to anything.
-Hal
I know most people blow it off, but if your office is small a Bizfon system will do both those features reliably and for less money.
A Norstar CICS will do the trick as well.