AdTran 706 and 712 IP Phone First Look

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One of the things I always look forward to seeing at trade shows are the new products that I have not yet heard of. Last week at the Internet Telephony Expo, I was pleasantly surprised to see that AdTran had one display two new IP phones that are set to hit the market in late February. For those of you who follow the VoIP hardware market closely, you know that AdTran had previously being using a brand version of the Polycom IP 301, IP 501 and IP 601 with their Netvanta IP PBX solution.

The new AdTran 706 and 712 IP phones are really slick phones. Here are some feature highlights:

• SIP Based
• Platform independent
• 6 lines and 12 lines respectively
• Dual RJ45 Ports
• Power over Ethernet Compatible
• Full Duplex Speaker Phone
• Large back-lit display
• Wall mountable
• Adjustable stand

The phones were so new that there were no data sheets, so I am simply recanting this from memory, but I can tell you that my overall impressions of the phones were these are definitely put together well enough to be a real competitor in the executive level IP phone space. AdTran is already working with IP PBX platform vendors to fully certify these phones, so unlike many late market entrants, these phones should work with any SIP based IP PBX. With MSRP’s of $249.99 and $299.9 respective, I would expect to see these phone on the street with prices in the $189 and $239 range, putting them in competition with their former OEM partner Polycom.