dans,
I respectively disagree with your assessment of who is responsible for the quality at Nitsuko and NEC. Your comments are typical of the old NEC dealers who have always looked at Nitsuko as a low-cost, low-quality manufacturer. (I guess this bias may be a result of sales competition throughout the years.) The truth of the matter is that both companies produced some very good products and some below average products over the years. However, the merger of NEC and Nitsuko (NEC Infrontia) has produced an outstanding organization, that by combining the strengths of both companies, has achieved the highest key system market share in the US.
Regarding the phone comments, I'm the guy who created the DS/DSX/IntraMail system architecture and designed the DSX phones (thanks for the kind words), so I know a little about what the real story is. Back when we were designing the DS system, we needed a phone quickly, so we used the i-Series phone that was in development for the Japan and European markets (those markets used a slimmer, K2-style handset). This phone was very successful for Nitsuko. However, it might have been a bit too dainty for the US market (fat hands need bigger buttons).
With the huge success of the DS behind us, we (i.e. the "Nitsuko" guys) were able to design the best phone possible, exclusively for the new DSX system and the US market. We received many favorable comments about the design (the dealers and end-users love it) and think it may be one of the best NEC phones yet. With all due respect to my fellow colleagues who were with NEC before the merger, the DSX phone and system design had nothing to do with them.
I suggest you take a look at the DSX system and IntraMail. Your customers will thank you. (More surprises to come.)
p.s. Feel free to PM if you need more info.
