In this update (November 2022):
- IMPORTANT: Current 3CX version – SSL Certificates
- Thanks for joining us – Channel Update Event in Auckland
- HOT Special – Yealink mid-range IP desk phones
- Upcoming webinar: 3CX – Holiday preparations and maintenance
- 3CX Basic Technical Training
- Project planning for December/January
- Soft Solutions UC resources on YouTube and our Blog
- Latest blogs from 3CX
- Grandstream’s latest releases
- Yealink BH72 Headset firmware update
- Yealink promotions
- 3CX partnership
- UC Hardware NFRs – Yealink or Grandstream
- Need demo equipment?
- Submit a great 3CX case study
- Firmware for IP phones
- Join our LinkedIn UC community
IMPORTANT: Current 3CX version – SSL Certificates
The current version of 3CX is v18 update 5. There is a looming deadline for all instances to be on this latest version by 30th November 2022. This is when 3CX’s SSL Certificates renew. The SSL Certificate allows the instances to connect to the activation server and verify. If verification doesn’t occur, the license will drop to a FREE edition which potentially will cause major issues for customers. Don’t delay, ensure you update all instances before 30th November 2022.
Version 16 officially goes EOL on the 30th of November 2022. Anyone on the older version will not be able to connect to the 3CX Activation Servers, plus many features are already offline. These include but are not limited to video conferencing; connections to mobile apps for iOS and Android; security features; everything new that v18 has introduced.
If you’re having issues with migrating customers and need to discuss them, reach our team at uc@sofsol.co.nz for assistance.
Thanks for joining us – Channel Update Event in Auckland
It was great to have so many partners join us for our UC breakfast event at the beginning of November. We had various presentations led by Megan Twentyman, our BDM for UC. Many great discussions were had. Our thanks to 3CX and Grandstream, who were in the country to present their exciting visions for the future. And yes, Yilmaz did arrive in Auckland after his unfortunate delay in Sydney with “the virus”. The photo proof is below.
HOT Special – Yealink mid-range IP desk phones
Effective from the 22nd of November 2022, the mid-range IP desk phones from Yealink are on a HOT special. This covers the SIP-T43U, SIP-T46U and SIP T48U models. Yealink has offered some pricing relief for the lead-up to Christmas – this offer is up until Christmas or until stock in the country is depleted, whichever comes first. We expect this to be extremely popular, so order quickly to not be disappointed. Once the stock in the country is gone, then pricing will revert. Across the models, the minimum saving is $22 per unit, so this would be the perfect time to stock up for early 2023 projects. If you have any queries, please reach out to us at uc@sofsol.co.nz.
Upcoming webinar: 3CX – Holiday preparations and maintenance
The end of the year is nearly here, and now is the time to plan for your customer’s holiday period and any maintenance needed. We’ll be hosting a bite-size Webinar next Tuesday, 29th November 2022, at 11.30 am to review this in more detail. You can register here now.
If you know you cannot attend the webinar due to prior commitments, you should still register, and you’ll receive a copy of the recording 24 hours after the webinar. If you have any immediate queries, reach out to us at uc@sofsol.co.nz.
3CX Basic Technical Training
We will hold a 3CX Basic Technical Training on Wednesday 7th December from 9 am until approx. 3 pm. It will be an online event with Anisha Mohammed, our Technical Specialist and Trainer. Spots are extremely limited and can be reserved here.
We are planning for our Q1 2023 training and will release those dates as soon as they are confirmed. If you have staff in need of training, please let Megan know at megan@sofsol.co.nz, and she’ll add the details to the EOI listing we hold.
Project planning for December/January
The silly season is already upon us! For any projects in December/January where you need licenses or physical stock, please plan and order/forecast early. We have good stock levels available, with replenishments taking place regularly. Still, we are already seeing the courier network taking longer than usual, which will worsen the closer we get to Christmas. Soft Solutions will close for two weeks of annual shutdown from 24th December, with the team back from 9th January. Our “elves” need time to rest and recuperate after an extremely busy 2022.
If you know you have larger projects for Q1, reach out to Megan so she can incorporate them into our stock forecasting and planning.
Reach us at uc@sofsol.co.nz if we can assist with your planning and forecasting.
Soft Solutions UC resources on YouTube and our Blog
We’re working hard to add to our existing resources around UC. This includes recordings of our popular monthly bite-size webinars, unboxing videos, reviews of popular equipment as we put it through its paces and more. In addition, our Blog has articles with key information. You can subscribe to the Blog and be notified each time the Soft Solutions blog is updated – if it’s relevant to you, then you’d visit the new information.
- Follow our YouTube page here
- Subscribe to our Blog page here
During October, we held a webinar that specifically focussed on recent 3CX license changes with Perpetual licenses no longer being able to be traded in. We covered what to do if you do still have perpetual licenses. The POC (Proof of Concept) process has also changed, so we walked through how this works. You can view the recording on our YouTube page here.
Check out Anisha’s latest blog article looking at the Yealink all-in-one MeetingBoard:
- Yealink MeetingBoard – in this Blog, Anisha reviews the recently released all-in-one meeting solution from Yealink. We were lucky enough to have the only one in the country for a short time to put it through its paces. We have our very own unit arriving in the next week or so, and you’ll be welcome to pop in and test it for yourself! Contact us at uc@sofsol.co.nz. if you’d like to know more.
Latest blogs from 3CX
3CX continues to add to its extensive blog posts. This past month has focused on the new features released during update 4 and 5 and how to fully take advantage of the features. Check out these blogs now:
- New Firmware Release for Yealink T29G, T46G and T48G Models – when update 5 went live, EOL phones from Yealink were removed from provisioning. 3CX worked closely with Yealink, and Yealink has produced a new firmware that allows auto-provisioning for the models mentioned. Links are on the Blog for the correct firmware, and these models/firmware will be added back into 3CX at update 6. Read the Blog here.
- Web Client Status Profiles: A Powerful Presence Tool – knowing where people make for a better engagement with an organisation as you set expectations of returned calls. This Blog looks at the power of the presence feature in 3CX, which is often taken for granted. It also dives into the scheduler tool and voicemail greetings. This is very topical with the holiday season’s approach – check it out Blog here.
- Achieving Smooth Contact Centre Operations with 3CX – This Blog focuses on what contact centre managers are looking for in a communication solution. No one shops for a phone system today; they want multi-channel ways of engagement, and 3CX ticks those boxes. Read the Blog here.
- 5* Communication Solution for a 5* Club Med Resort – 3CX’s latest Case Study looks at how Club Med in South America has implemented 3CX. A great read and reference to show potential customers that large organisations are choosing 3CX for its rich feature set. See the press release here; the link is within the Case Study.
Grandstream’s latest releases
Grandstream has unveiled new Android 11 Video IP phones. The GXV3450 features a 5″ touchscreen, two mega-pixel CMOS camera for video calling with a privacy shutter, integrated WiFi and much more. It can also have a GBX20 Extension Board attached, making it ideal in many different business areas. The GXV3470 features a 7″ capacitive touch screen and is designed in portrait mode. This is ideal for enterprise users being a phone and tablet all in one!
The new GRP2636 is an exciting addition to the GRP new generation phones. Featuring a 4.3″ colour LCD screen, built-in WiFi and all the enterprise features you’d expect, it also features a 24-extension key paper BLF panel. This is the perfect replacement for the previous GXP2160, which was incredibly popular with its paper BLF panel.
For more detailed information and specifications, reach out to us at uc@sofsol.co.nz.
Yealink BH72 Headset firmware update
Last week Yealink released an updated firmware for their BH72 Bluetooth headset. This is available for immediate release on their support website here. They have made some further improvements to the units, with a 30% improvement in noise-cancellation and a 35% improvement in the range you can move from your computer being just two of the highlights. If you haven’t already downloaded and installed Yealink’s USB Connect management tool, you can access it on their website here. If you would like to know more about Yealink’s headset options, reach out to our team uc@sofsol.co.nz.
Yealink promotions
2022 is racing to a close, and we’re in the last few weeks of Q4. However, we have great Q4 promotions from Yealink, so don’t delay, as they will end just before our Christmas shutdown period. You can view the full flyer of promotions at this link, and we highlight these in our Weekly Newsletter Promotions section each week. Key promotions during Q4 are:
- MVC840 MS Teams Large Room Systems – special bundles offer a significant saving to customers – must order by 16th December 2022 to ensure delivery prior to Christmas:
- Bundle 1 = 1 x UVC84 12X USB PTZ 4K Camera, 1 x MCore Mini-PC, 1 x MTouch II, 1 x VCM38 Ceiling Mic, 1 x MSPEAKER II Soundbar.
- Bundle 2 = 1X UVC84 USB 4K CAMERA MCore Kit (Mcore mini-PC & Mtouch II) 1x WPP20 2x VCM34 Mic 1x Mspeaker II 1x POE Switch, 1x VCM38 and 1x RoomPanel RoomSensor.
- Room Panel for Teams or Zoom – special pricing applies until 16th December on this fabulous panel to show if a room is available or not. Designed of course to integrate with your Microsoft Teams or Zoom Rooms system.
- UH34 and UH36 USB Headset bundles – buy 5 and receive 6 – special bundle SKUs apply. Extended to 16th December 2022.
- A30 and A20 MS Teams meeting bars with CTP18 touch panel – special pricing plus a free VCH51 sharing box – extended to 16th December 2022.
- Deal registration of MTR opportunities – receive a $20 Uber Eats voucher for registering a deal and a further $30 Uber Eats voucher when you close the deal and order!
- Yealink NFR programme – reach out to megan@sofsol.co.nz for options.
- Yealink Academy – training for sales and technical team members. Complete a certification and share on LinkedIn, tag us in and we’ll arrange a spot prize! Get bragging rights to being one of the first in NZ to complete – will it be you?
For any questions, reach out to our sales@sofsol.co.nz team.
3CX partnership
If you’re not a 3CX partner, now is a great time to explore how effective the 3CX IP PBX unified communication platform is. We’re sure it will fit several of your clients’ requirements – with options for Cloud hosted / on-prem and Linux / Windows installations, it’s highly flexible. 3CX have recently updated their website but a great overview is straight on their landing page at 3cx.com. To chat around becoming a partner and what 3CX’s expectations are, please reach out to our UC BDM Megan Twentyman. Or if you’re ready to sign up – use this specific link. Soft Solutions will help speed up your application.
UC Hardware NFRs – Yealink or Grandstream
If you need to equip your team or office with hardware, reach out to Megan (megan@sofsol.co.nz) to find out what is available and the special pricing we can offer. Limits do apply and the NFRs must be for inhouse use and not on sold to customers.
Need demo equipment?
Just a reminder that we operate quite an extensive range of Grandstream and Yealink demo equipment. Borrow a device to put it through its paces, or for a client event to showcase. We also have access to EPOS-Sennheiser and Jabra headsets. If you have a requirement, please reach out to megan@sofsol.co.nz and she’ll be happy to assist.
Submit a great 3CX case study
People sell to people, and stories sell great technology! Would you like a lunch shout on Soft Solutions? We want local NZ stories. We’d love local stories of 3CX in action, how Yealink and Grandstream hardware is helping your customers, and other stories that help people see the value of UC technology. We’ll get a good story out featuring your skilful team. You can also use it for your marketing. No story is too big or small – it’s about your customer’s success and a unique angle on how their challenges have been solved. We have a simple questionnaire you can work through with your customer. 3CX’s marketing team will also consider stories around larger deployments, but we’ll work on localised NZ content. It’s a great reason to touch base with your customer and ensure their 3CX and systems are working as they should be. You can also check if they need a larger license or extra hardware. Propose a case study for consideration, and we’ll arrange a treat for your next team lunch. Reach out to our BDM for UC Megan Twentyman. We’ll make the process painless and treat your team!
Firmware for IP phones
Remember it is vital to keep checking for updated firmware, for your VoIP hardware. Grandstream and Yealink release new firmware as it is developed. The firmware is available free of charge from their respective websites. It does take some time for 3CX to verify new firmware so be sure to check the latest supported firmware that 3CX advises you to use. This is found on the 3CX website here. If you are ever trouble-shooting any issue with 3CX, the first thing they will check is whether your hardware has the supported firmware version. Now is a great time to ensure everything is up-to-date and working optimally.
Join our LinkedIn UC community
Our “Soft Solutions NZ UC Community” group has been created so our customers get all the latest news quickly. We post regularly and welcome new members to the group. Keep up to date with upcoming Soft Solutions events, UC related updates and any other general UC news. Join the LinkedIn group here.
Thank you for reading.
The UC Team at Soft Solutions
Phone: 09 306 0450, Freephone: 0800 733 233, E-mail: uc@sofsol.co.nz.