How Phones, Cordless Type, Can Interfere With Your Wireless LAN

When it comes to phones, cordless phones aren’t as simple as they look. In a traditional telephone, the radio signal received by the telephone base is transmitted directly to the handset through the coiled copper cord. For a cordless phone to work, it has to find a way to transmit the radio signal from the telephone base to the handset wirelessly. In order to do that, a cordless telephone has to be a phone and a radio receiver/transmitter as well.

Most digital phones, the cordless ones, operate in three different radio frequencies, 900MHz, 2.4GHz and 5GHz. Cordless phones that operate in 2.4GHz and 5GHz use the same frequency bands as most wireless LANs. When you use these phones too close to your LAN, they can cause radiofrequency interference which could interfere with your internet connection or even cause it to fail. Here are a few tips that could help eliminate or reduce the interference from both of these devices.

Ways To Reduce Interference From Phones, Cordless and Wired

• If you’re tech-savvy and you have a bit of extra cash, you could buy a different phone, a cordless one that works in a different frequency or you could change your wireless LAN to work on a different frequency band. These options will cost you but they’re also the most effective way to stop interference now and prevent interference in the future.
• If you’re tech-savvy but you don’t have that extra cash, you could try changing the channels at the access point of your wireless LAN. If you’re using an 802.11b system, try switching to channels 1, 6, or 11. If you’re using an 802.11a system, check what channel your cordless phone is using. If your wireless LAN and phone are using the same channel, switch your LAN’s channel to something else.
• If you don’t know much about computers, one of the easiest things you can do is to keep your wireless LAN and your phones, cordless and wired ones, as far away from each other as possible. Avoid using your Wi-Fi too far away from your LAN or too close to your cordless phone.
• If you really need to use your laptop or other Wi-Fi devices away from your LAN, use a remote external antenna to bounce the signal. That way you could keep your LAN and your cordless phone far from another without losing your wireless signal.
• If you see an external antenna on your phone, cordless or wired, keep the antenna as low as possible. This will dampen the radiofrequency signal coming from the phone and reduce the amount of interference.
• If your house is two stories or more, keep your phones, cordless headset and base, on the first floor and your wireless LAN on the 2^nd or higher floor.

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Looking For Some New Phones? Cordless Features You Should Look For

When it comes to phones, cordless models are very useful because they provide mobility that you can’t get in a traditional phone. There are as much as 50 interactive features in a cordless phone and so many different models to choose from. So what should you look for when buying a phone?

With all phones, cordless or otherwise, you really just need to look at a few basic features. These features are important because everyone uses them and the rest are just extras. Look for these features in a cordless phone and make sure they’re good. Once you find them in a phone that you like, you’re sure to have a phone that you’ll use for a long time.

Cordless Phone Basic Features

• Voice quality and reliability. If you need the best voice quality and reliability in phones- in cordless models– you should go digital. Analogue signals are easier to disrupt and interference can affect voice quality. Look for cordless phones with 900MHz or 2.4GHz frequencies and noise reduction circuitry.
• Security. Again, this is where digital cordless phones have an advantage. Cheap analogue phones, cordless and even wired ones, have frequencies that are easy to intercept using just a radio receiver. If you’re using a cheap cordless phone, you’re running the risk of having your conversations being heard and broadcast elsewhere. Digital cordless phones are a lot difficult to intercept. And you need to convert the digital signal before you can get anything intelligible.
• Battery life. A good battery is worth its weight in gold, especially in a phone with cordless handset and if you’re the type of person who’s always on the move. More expensive cordless phones usually have longer talk times than cheaper models. Always check what type of battery your cordless phones have. Some require that you discharge them completely before placing them back in the cradle, some don’t. To make sure that you’ll never run out of juice, get a phone that offers dual batteries or get extra batteries.
• Alarm. In phones, a cordless handset needs an alarm because they’re easy to misplace. Look for phones that have an alarm when the handset is out of range or low in power.
• Usability. You need a phone that’s easy to use even in difficult situations. Imagine being able to use only one hand in the dark. Is your cordless phone easy enough to use in that kind of situation? Can you easily call for help quickly and easily in those situations? As much as possible, focus on function first over form. Go for phones with cordless handsets should have raised keypads that are evenly spaced and easy to locate even without looking. Cordless phones with LCD displays are also good if you need to look for them in the dark.
• Phone services. Look for a model that matches the phone services that you already have. Do you have flash dialling, call waiting, or caller ID? Look for phones, cordless models that allow you to use these features and if possible, make it more convenient for you to use them.

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Buying A Business Phone – Five Things You Need To Know

Buying a business phone can be daunting. There are so many different business phone systems to choose from so it’s easy to make a mistake. You could easily end up wasting money and getting frustrated with a phone that can’t keep up with the demands of your business. Before you even choose a business phone system, you have to ask yourself five questions. These five questions will help you figure out which business phone will work for you right now and into the future.

Before Buying A Business Phone Ask Yourself…

1. What does your business need from a business phone system? You have to list down what you need and you want to get from your business phone and be specific about it. Business phones aren’t just for making and receiving simple calls. Are you expecting a lot of business calls from outside the country? Do you have employees that telecommute and you need to conference with? Anticipate the demands you’ll be making on your business phone in order to assess what you need.
2. How can your business phone change with your business? As your business grows and changes, the way you do business will also change. So the demands you have on your business phone system will also change. In deciding what business phone to buy, you’ll need a business phone system that will easily adapt to the changes that your business will go through.
3. Can you manage the business phone system that you want to buy? Start simple and start small. As much as possible, get a phone system with basic management software so you can do simple phone management tasks on your own. Having to call technical support for minor changes and troubleshooting wastes time and money.
4. Is your business phone dealer reliable? Business phone dealers are responsible for the sale, implementation and programming of business phone systems. Make sure your get a dealer that has experience and provides reliable service support.
5. Have you done your business phone homework? Ask as many business phone dealers and other business owners about getting a phone system. It’s always good to ask for an opinion so you’ll get an idea on things you may have missed. Compare as many dealers as possible to get the best deal.

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Business Phone Conference Feature – How It Can Help Your Business

A business phone can be expensive. When setting up a small business, it can be tempting to get just any old phone. But getting a business phone can give your business a distinct advantage because of the numerous business features. One of the standard features of business phones is the conference feature.

The conference feature in business phones allows several parties to talk to one another all at the same time. Business phones have different conference features and they can vary in terms of complexity and price. The simplest and the most inexpensive are conference phones with a half-duplex system. State-of-the-art business phones have video conferencing and are VoIP enabled. Some even allow live chats, emails, and sharing of images and video while conferencing.

No matter what type of business phone you’ll get, you’ll undoubtedly use the conference feature. That’s because conferencing can benefit businesses in so many ways.

Benefits Of Business Phone Conferencing

• Conferencing saves you money. Instead of getting all your clients, employees or business partners in one location, it would be cheaper to just set a date to have a conference call. It’s very cost–effective, especially if you have employees who telecommute, if you have branches in different locations, or your partners and clients can’t go your meetings. Instead of spending for transportation; all you need is a conference business phone.
• It’s easier for people to get together for a conference meeting than an office meeting. Office meetings take a lot of time. It’s also been proven that extremely long office meetings are counter-productive and takes your employees away from their work. But with teleconferencing, your employees can multi-task while attending their meeting. This increases the productivity of your employees even while they’re at the meeting.
• Business phones now allow more ways to conference and share information, so it’s easier to bounce of ideas and collaborate with your home-based employees. You can now easily discuss your projects through shared data sent through your business phone.
• Conferencing improves communication between your employees and with your clients. Because business phone conferencing is cheaper and easier to set-up, you can set-up more meetings. Conferencing improves communication because you’re talking more often, the dialogue is more direct, and the conversations are more spontaneous than that of regular meetings.

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