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Highlights of our 2010 phone reviews: desk phones

by Leo Zheng

Highlights of our 2010 IP phone reviews

Published: December 20, 2010

The new year is just around the corner and that means it’s time for a quick look back at our favorite IP phone reviews.

Entry Level

In the not-so-distant past, entry-level VoIP phones were—well, to be honest—not all that great. Oh how things have changed. We reviewed and loved the Polycom 335 at the end of 2009, but this year we were impressed by an even more affordable solution from Aastra, the 6730i. This relatively new addition to the Aastra lineup features programmable keys, up to 6 line appearances (which is a lot for an entry level phone), and wideband audio. The paper key labels that came with the phone threw me off at first, but where else are you going to get 6 line appearances and wideband audio for around $70?

Check out our full Aastra 6730i review for additional details.

Executive Level

Executive level phones are aimed at more advanced enterprise users. This year we gave high ratings to both the Aastra 6739i and the Grandstream GXP 2020.

The 6739i is one of Aastra’s most advanced enterprise grade IP phones to date. The phone features a high resolution 5.7” 640 x 480 color touch screen display and more programmable keys than you ever thought possible on a VoIP phone. XML support allows users to load up the phone with productivity enhancing applications. Additional features of interest include Bluetooth and built-in USB support. The 6739i is also the best sounding Aastra phone we’ve ever tested. With hardware improvements in addition to support for G.722, users get high-definition audio the way it is supposed to sound. This phone does not come cheap. Expect to shell out over $360-370 to get one of these on your desk.

Check out our full Aastra 6739i review for additional details.

The Grandstream GXP2020 left us pleasantly surprised. This phone may not be as visually impressive as the Aastra 6739i (plain-looking and boxy versus sleek and modern, 320x160 LCD versus 640x480 color touch screen display), but when you take into account the fact that you can pick up four of these for the price of one 6739i, you begin to appreciate all of the things you do get. The GXP2020 does everything a more expensive enterprise class IP phone does at a half, a third, and sometimes even a fourth of the price. This phone comes with a large backlit LCD display that is easy to use and navigate, high definition audio support, 6 line indicators for separate SIP accounts, and more. We’ll definitely be keeping an eye on new releases from Grandstream (like the GXV140 Multimedia phone) in the future.

Check out our full Grandstream GXP2020 review for additional details.

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