Samsung (News - Alert) OfficeServ V4.60 is the system’s latest software release and introduces some new system and end-user features to address employee productivity, system security and flexibility and to help with cost reduction. V4.60 includes over 20 new features and four new hardware expansion cards designed to help small and mid-size businesses (SMBs) better meet today’s mobility and collaborative needs using all modes of communication, including voice, video, mobile, instant messaging and presence. Additionally, as businesses continue to face significant economic challenges, the software adds support for some new capabilities that require fewer system resources and less maintenance, reducing costs.

The OfficeServ 7000 IP-PBX (News - Alert) family includes five platforms suitable for the very small office and SMBs:

• OfficeServ 7030 (a compact KSU serving the low-end of the market; handles up to 20 users)
• OfficeServ 7100 (a pre-configured, single cabinet system for small offices; handles up to 32 users)
• OfficeServ 7200S (a single cabinet version of the 7200 system; handles up to 64 users)
• OfficeServ 7200 (a two-cabinet system that scales to 120 users)
• OfficeServ 7400 (a three-cabinet system for SMBs; handles up to 480 users)

Up to 99 OfficeServ systems (or earlier Samsung iDCS systems) can be networked to handle growing multisite customers. All of the Samsung OfficServ systems support the same telephones, soft phones and wireless devices. There are also some advanced capabilities for smaller businesses, including built-in mobility features (OfficeServ Connect and Mobile Extension or MOBEX) and unified communications (OfficeServ Communicator Basic and Professional) with support for video calling, instant messaging and presence status information. 

Samsung’s newest SMT-iSeries VoIP phone portfolio offers five models for entry-level, mid-range and advanced user needs. The high-end SMT-i5243 has a 4.3-inch color display, a visual phone book (Caller ID with photo), a USB port for connecting a memory stick, Web camera or Bluetooth device and an XML browser; users can download images and ringtones and access Samsung’s OfficeServ Messenger for instant messaging.

What’s New with V4.60?

The latest OfficeServ V4.60 software includes over 20 new features and four new hardware expansion cards and builds on previous releases that added features for mobile workers, namely OfficeServ Connect for simultaneous ringing (to five other numbers) and Mobile Extension, or MOBEX, for assigning an extension to a cell phone, home phone or other phone number outside the OfficeServ System. The OfficeServ Communicator productivity application for Windows PC-based calling, including video calling, enables presence and instant messaging, white-boarding and file sharing capabilities when combined with Samsung’s OfficeServ Messenger server application.

Here are some of the latest features:

• MOBEX Enhancements – V4.60 enhances the MOBEX feature with several new capabilities, including MOBEX Callback (to receive a system callback when placing an outbound call on their mobile phone), MOBEX Scheduling (to set three time periods defining when the simultaneous ring feature is on or off) and MOBEX Call Type (to define which incoming call types are permitted to ring the alternate devices).
• Presence Awareness – The new built-in Presence Awareness feature builds on the system’s existing Programmed Messages capability that allows a user to display pre-defined messages on the phone display. Now, the user can define ‘actions’ along with the programmed message. For example, the user can set the display message to read “On Vacation,” and at the same time, activate Forward All to Voicemail to send any incoming calls directly to voicemail.
• Conference Card Enhancements – In 2010, Samsung introduced a Meet-Me Conference Card for OfficeServ 7200 and 7400 platforms (24 conference channels per card). V4.60 adds new features, including an add-to-calendar attachment for e-mail invitations, a system-wide instruction template, 17 prompt languages (previously English only) and automatic daylight savings time adjustments.
• Emergency 911 Conference Feature – The system now monitors and tracks 911 calls, ensuring that resources are available to route the call by automatically dropping active calls if needed; three predefined monitoring stations can be set to ring and conference in when a 911 call alert is detected.
• Multicast Paging – The system adds support for paging to SMT-i Series IP phones via multicast data packets, using only one Media Gateway (News - Alert) Interface (MGI) channel to reduce the load on the data network during a page and reduce other required system resources such as cards and licenses.

The new version also supports multiple SIP Service Providers. Up to four SIP carriers can be registered simultaneously, allowing the customer to use different carriers such as for local, domestic long distance and international calls; customers can choose the carrier based on lowest cost. Several new SIP trunking features are supported, including Fax-over-IP, Caller ID blocking, SIP Trunk Error Alarms and more. Finally, new system hardware includes three new station cards and a redesigned 20-port voicemail card, the SVMi-20i, with internal MGI channels for IP phones, SIP trunks and other IP devices and license expansion.

Availability: Samsung OfficeServ V4.60 software is available as of 1Q2012 worldwide; the software is free of charge and upgraded for end users by Samsung dealers.

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