Berlin-based snom Unveils New VoWi-Fi Phone

As one of the few phone vendors that just makes phones, Berlin-based snom technology AG is gaining an expanding foothold in the North American market for SIP-based IP endpoints.

The company announced—and showed off—the snom 820, first in a new line of phones that feature high-resolution color displays and other ground-breaking features.

"The 300 series phones are not disappearing; they're our bread and butter phones," business development director Mike Storella told VoIPplanet.com in a briefing last week. "But as the public wants to see color displays." Indeed the 820's 320 by 480 high-resolution color display is a first for the company.

The 820 is also a piece of high industrial design—the work of a renowned German design firm—and a totally new look for snom.

A potentially game-changing new feature is hidden in the back of the sleek case: a USB port into which a Wi-Fi dongle can be plugged. "This allows the phone to be Wi-Fi and get its connection that way," Storella said. "I think we're the first ones doing that." True, as far as we know.

So, imagine you're one of the increasing numbers of companies that's deploying Wi-Fi rather than wired IP networks in its facilities. What do you do about phones? Up to now, the only viable solution would be a Wi-Fi-enabled cellular mobile phone—or running a wired phone network to people's desks—pretty much defeating the point of having a wireless LAN in the first place.

Another first for the snom 820 is the ability to manage five-way conference calls. Most IP phones max out at three-way.