These
small business PBX phone systems are the best in their category.
Different types of businesses require distinctly different phone systems.
Although hosted VoIP or a cloud based phone system represents the
preferred solution for many, offering lower initial costs, advanced
feature sets with easy installation and self management, some businesses
find that they require a hybrid on-premise PBX solution that can be
installed with their existing cabling and connect to a T1/PRI circuit.
Other small companies just want a good quality durable phone system to use
with their existing phone lines, be reasonable in price and has an
attendant, voicemail and is easy to park, page and transfer calls. Some
others demand an affordable system on premise that they can manage
themselves. Whichever category your company may fall into, here are the
top picks for both a cloud based PBX and a premise PBX today.
Different needs require different solutions. The right phone system should improve communications between your customers and employees and increase business productivity.
Three of our top choices are award winning cloud based PBX
systems from established hosted VoIP providers. All are well tested with thousands of customers
getting high marks in overall satisfaction. RingCentral Office and
Vonage Business represent great choices for any size business, from a 7 phone small
business to a 100 plus person multi-location organization. On the other hand,
Grasshopper's virtual phone system is a stand-out with an
entirely different platform, which was designed for the entrepreneur or
micro-business.
Our other three choices are all on premise PBX
systems, each earning a top choice for a particular business
situation. Ayaya's
IP Office has been a worldwide go to solution for many years delivering
outstanding features and reliability. A more traditional IP-PBX that
can solve more complex requirements including hybrid solutions. The award winning Grandstream UCM6200 series IP-PBX
delivers robust features without license fees that can be managed in house
with support from the manufacturer. And the NEC DSX-40 brings a solid
small digital phone system that can connect to regular phone lines. It
delivers just enough of the prominent features that it has been chosen by
numerous businesses for its durability and
lasting performance.
RingCentral
is a
multi-award winning cloud PBX provider that is great for any size
company. With four excellent plans to choose from users can get just the
right package of features without having to pay for those that they do not
need. RingCentral touts their service as affordable, simple
to set up, manage and use and with each, they succeed. It's well
designed with advanced features that include call recording, video
conferencing, and Internet fax and integrates with most CRM software
packages. By cutting down on vendors and using RingCentral services
for multiple needs, not only will it simplify every businesses' communications, it saves on
additional expenses. (more at
RingCentral Review)
Vonage
Business Cloud, offers unified communications to connect from
anywhere through voice, chat, text messaging or video. Their service
brings a robust set of features
for small to medium sized businesses. Their services are broken into a
three tier pricing model, Mobile, Premium and Advanced, with each plan
having their own set of features, although certain features like Call
recording and Visual Voicemail requires the top plan. Vonage has
worked on app Integration with its service and brings an impressive
list of popular business applications that will work.
Grasshopper
virtual phone service is designed for very small micro businesses or
entrepreneurs. Integrated to deliver big PBX basic features without even
the need to spend money on a traditional IP desk phone, it's a
service that can be up and operating in an hour. Using your smart
phone, you'll get your own business number with ways of keeping your
business customers distinct. Their service ensures that you can make and receive business calls and texts from anywhere
using their app. Handle multiple business calls distinctly with
automated professional greetings, call forwarding, and voicemail
transcription. For those that fall into the right category (a micro
business) Grasshopper is an affordable well designed phone service
that will take a business to a "bigger" and more professional level.
(more at Grasshopper Review)
Avaya's
IP Office, one of the world's most popular hybrid UC IP-PBXs, is
an extremely flexible and totally scalable solution. The Basic Edition,
which can handle up to 100 users, has voicemail, message to email
conversion, call forwarding, audio conferencing and an automated
attendant. From the Basic Edition Avaya offers enhancements with both on-premise and
cloud based services for a total business Unified Communications platform.
Being a hybrid IP-PBX, businesses get a flexible deployment allowing for the
use of digital phones where older cabling may exist while still
incorporating IP phones in offices. Connect through any type of service;
FXO, SIP and T1/PRI.
Grandstream UCM
6202 VoIP IP-PBX is an excellent appliance that gives the
benefits of VoIP, such as multiple SIP trunk connections, no license
fees, affordability and a management GUI that is intuitive and well designed, to
name just a few. Two FXO ports are built in for those that want
failover using one or two traditional phone lines.
You can choose
almost any IP phones as all are fairly easy to configure, however Yealink phones
will be matched the best. With the available help and
guidance from Grandstream the UCM series VoIP PBX is one of the few
that allow for a tech savvy IT person to self management and install.
The
NEC DSX-40 with IntraMail has built a reputation of being an
affordable and reliable digital PBX business phone solution for companies that
want to keep their existing telephone lines. Good for up to 8
incoming lines, the DSX-40 is capable of handling up to 24 stylish
digital telephone stations. Durability and intuitive operation are the
hall marks of the desk phones with either a 22 or a 34 button model
available. With lots of standard features including an Attendant,
Directory Dialing, Message on Hold, and Conversation Record most small
businesses will find the DSX-40 just enough with an affordable price. Once installed and setup this system will operate for years
without any need for service. In June 2019 NEC ended support for all
DSX products, however they will remain a popular small PBX for years
to come and systems are readily available refurbished from many
installers and suppliers.
Our six PBX choices all offer an outstanding phone system for a particular business situation. Each of our three hosted VoIP picks are established providers and should continue to advance their platform and offer new advanced features as they are developed. The number of companies choosing cloud based services have accelerated and that trend will continue as initial costs are low and overall value very high. Integrated multi-channel communications in one app has emerged as a formidable solution. Business owners are now adjusting to more employees working from home. They have determined that cloud based PBX solutions offer an uncomplicated effective solution.
The three best on premise PBX systems are excellent choices given particular needs or circumstances (as noted), and have proven to be stable, robust systems. For those that want control and the ability to self install and manage their own VoIP phone system, the UCM6200 series appliance is a top choice with a great feature set and an intuitive GUI.
With so many phone system choices it's easy to get overwhelmed. Not all systems are right for everyone. A telecom professional can guide you to the best solution.
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Best Cloud Based Phone Service Best On premise PBX System
Find out which are best cloud PBX phone companies. These are the top rated hosted VoIP providers: Best Cloud PBX Companies
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