atcomsystems.ca/forum Forums TDM Business Telephone Systems Vodavi Telephones & Systems STS is officially discontinued

It's official. I just got an email from Vertical stating it will be no longer available after March 31st. Guess I'll be looking for a new product to sell. Look out Avaya or NEC, here I come!

Yep, it's gone. It was a good product.

No surprise here. It was unofficially discontinued when Vertical raised the price months ago.

What really bothers me the most is that I know it's only a matter of time before the XTS goes away as well. I have a huge job next month that I have already proposed an XTS for and I'm now scared to death to sell it. What if they discontinue that 3 months later? How will I tell this company that I just sold them a brand new system that I can only get refurbished parts for a few months after the sale?....I'm truly disgusted right now, and maybe this isn't the place to vent it, but it's the only place I know to go where other dealers feel my same pain.

Don't expect the XTS to die until the MBX networks with them. Once that happens it becomes a matter of dealer sales. Once enough of them switch over to the MBX, the XTS may fade, but that is not going to happen for a long while.

Yep, I had posted earlier about this announcement, but it rolled down. What irks me the most is the 45 days notice. Did they not think that we might have active proposals out there that are pending? I'm going to try to stock up here as much as we can to fulfill obligations. These guys are getting worse than Panasonic.

Their announcement also makes it perfectly clear that any remaining inventory is it, that's all, no more. In past experience with their other "discontinuances" (They use this word in place of 'discontinuation' regularly. Is "discontinuance" even a word?), the minute that the word hits the street, ANY product becomes impossible to obtain.

Thanks a lot, Vertical. What's the point in being a devoted and dedicated dealer anymore?

Don't expect the XTS to die until the MBX networks with them. Once that happens it becomes a matter of dealer sales. Once enough of them switch over to the MBX, the XTS may fade, but that is not going to happen for a long while.
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Derrick, STS sales were still good when they decided to kill it by raising prices. I suspect they'll play the same game with the XTS.

--Bill.

While I'm optimistic in your thoughts, Vertical had turned Vodavi into yet another 'patch cord' product line. If it isn't rack-mounted and connected via "RJ45" connections, manufacturers don't have any interest in retaining their long-term dealers over this. I'm so thoroughly disgusted by this trend.

When was the last time that enough wall space was afforded to us for a system? NOT. At the same time, if we request space for a rack, we get all of the space that we need. What is wrong with this picture?

The rack-mounting bracket kit for the XTS pretty much summed the future up for me years ago. The geeks have won the battle.

I think I'm going to start focusing upon a retirement "dashboard" (Vertical's favorite word for direction). Hope to see you guys when I get there.

Geeze Ed, stop whining :-) They did even dirtier when Vodavi MD'd the 96EX. I did an installation in December and they told us via the February newsletter that it was MD'd. No warning, no eol just gone. I think it was a lack of parts issue, but just the same.

At least here you knew in July that it was going away.

Carl

I think I'm going to start focusing upon a retirement "dashboard" (Vertical's favorite word for direction). Hope to see you guys when I get there.

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---Ed---
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I'm shoveling money away as fast as possible so I can bail in a couple of years.

Just looking around at products for the little mom and pop operations that is very simple without having to deal with all kinds of issues is the NEC DSX. I never ever thought we would be selling NEC again. Sadly, there seems to be few choices for simple TDM systems.