In this update:
- 3CX’s roadmap and updates
- 3CX price changes during August
- Webinar – 3CX latest updates
- Webinar – Yealink: Breaking boundaries between DECT headset and handset
- Grandstream’s GWN WiFi Access Points
- VoIP Hardware NFRs – Yealink or Grandstream
- Yealink promotions
- 3CX partnership
- Changes to 3CX technical training
- Submit a great 3CX case study. Get pizzas for your team!
- 3CX blogs – essential knowledge
- Need demo equipment?
- Firmware for IP phones
- Join our LinkedIn VoIP community
3CX’s roadmap and updates
The 3CX development based on their roadmap is progressing rapidly. Update 4 is now live and we have update 5 in beta. Last month we covered off the upcoming changes from the roadmap – it’s important to stay up to date as changes are occurring quickly. A key thing to remember is that as they’re making changes under the hood, some things are not where you expect them to be.
Update 4 saw users able to configure their own scheduled hours from within the WebClient – this is also where new users need to set their friendly name for 3CX Meeting before they can begin using it. These items are no longer in the Management Console – don’t panic though as it’s all a work in progress. You can read the final release blog for update 4 here.
Update 5 has had two Alpha releases and is now in Beta. This update is focussing on WhatsApp integration and Live Chat improvements across both the Dedicated instances (our traditional licenses) and StartUP which is still also in beta. There is good information in each of the three blogs released on the changes. You can find these here:
- Alpha 1 – released July 29th – this is the first look at WhatsApp integration and configuration of LiveChat moving to the WebClient for those with Admin privileges. Read the full release information here.
- Alpha 2 – released August 8th – important improvements for the WhatsApp integration and more detailed information on who can make alterations to LiveChat and the settings that users require. See the blog at this link.
- Beta 1 – released August 12th – a first look at the enhancements to Live Chat with customisations able to be made from within the WebClient by those with the correct privileges. WhatsApp is integrating into StartUP as well as this continues to gain features. See the full details here.
It’s important to remember that Alpha and Beta releases are not designed for production systems but are for you to test on your inhouse test systems. It’s good to be testing the new features where possible so you can confidently convey the information to your clients.
In the documentation for update 5 Alpha 2, near the end a few key things were noted – it’s important to highlight these. These key things were:
- The Instance Manager is removed at update 5, this was foreshadowed in the roadmap announcement.
- They intend to deprecate Facebook support in favour of WhatsApp, but once Facebook updates their API to work like WhatsApp it may be added back in.
- The old messaging implementation will be removed in update 6, when upgrading to update 5 (once it’s live), you will need to delete customers previous configurations and redo in the new improved and simplified way.
- MS Teams integration support is now in maintenance mode – there are no plans for new updates to the Teams feature in favour of SIP gateway. More information will follow when we have it, but this is a shift and should be noted.
Once update 5 goes live (expected soon), we’ll then start to see more information on update 6 which is to implement group mode and revamp the WebClient.
If you have any queries, reach out to us on voip@sofsol.co.nz.
3CX price changes during August
On August 10th the new 3CX USD pricelist was released. For us in NZ the key change was the increase of Standard license renewal prices. A reminder of the changes that we outlined last month:
- New Standard licenses are no longer available for purchase.
- Standard license renewals for Annual Subscriptions or Perpetual continue but have increased in price.
- If a larger Standard license is not renewed on time, it will drop to the free Dedicated 4-SC license (previously Standard 4-SC) and the only upgrade path is to a Professional or Enterprise license.
- There are no longer any new perpetual SKUs for sale.
- Trading in a Perpetual license to Annual Subscription – currently this is still available and you receive a free license for 1 year BUT 3CX has announced this trade-in option will be withdrawn very soon. No confirmed date has been issued.
- Hosted by 3CX – this service launched in ANZ earlier this year. Price increases occurred in late July. Customers now receive 2 months for free and then it becomes a chargeable service. Pricing also increases if they increase the size (simultaneous call count) of their 3CX license. Hosted by 3CX for ANZ uses Vultr based out of Australia with servers in Sydney and Melbourne.
- StartUP sales are expected to begin in late September 2022 – margins will follow the Partner Programme discount structure that is in place for the Dedicated instances.
If you need any further clarifications, please reach out to us on voip@sofsol.co.nz.
Webinar – 3CX latest updates
Join Megan Twentyman (Brand Manager) and Anisha Mohammed (Technical Specialist) on Tuesday 30th August at 11.30am for a 3CX Webinar to review the latest updates for v18. In update 4 and the update 5 beta features that once resided in the Management Console are now in the WebClient. This affects all users. For users with administrator privileges for 3CX there are also new controls for other users and the Live Chat feature. It’s very important to stay up to date with these changes so that you’re ready for your next 3CX deployment. We’ll look at these changes and Anisha will give a quick walkthrough demo. We look forward to you joining us – please register for your spot here.
Webinar – Yealink: Breaking boundaries between DECT headset and handset
Join Yealink for this Webinar where they’ll be introducing the new DECT WH62 and WH63 portable units. The innovations keep coming from Yealink and on this event, you’ll see a product overview and live demonstration of the DECT all interacting together. Soon you’ll be able to pair both phones and headsets to a base station. There will be a Q&A session at the end and your chance to win a new WH62 portable headset. Register directly at this link and don’t forget to list Soft Solutions as your preferred distributor!
Grandstream’s GWN WiFi Access Points
Last month we announced that Grandstream’s GWN WiFi Access Points now come with a standard 3-year warranty. To follow on we have some very useful video guides. One is around what WiFi 6 is and will help you to be able to explain it to your customers. The other two videos are around configuration – one on preventing evil twin attacks and the other on extended your WiFi to another building close by. All are well worth a watch.
Do you know what the key differences between WiFi 5 and WiFi 6 are? Do you understand the advantages of WiFi 6? This video guide from Grandstream is an excellent technical overview broken down into easy to digest information that your customers will be able to understand. I highly recommend watching this over your morning or afternoon coffee.
Many of us have heard of evil twin attacks – do you know how to configure your Grandstream GWN Access Points to prevent such attacks happening? All Grandstream Access Points except for the GWN7610 and GWN7602 have this Rogue AP prevention feature available. In this overview video you’ll learn how to configure this correctly from both the AP’s GUI and the GWN Cloud. Being able to advise your clients that there are settings to prevent such attacks occurring will build trust with your clients.
Customers often have the scenario where they have a main office building and close by a warehouse building or secondary office building and they need to extend their WiFi. This is possible with Grandstream’s units if it’s in close proximity and direct line of sight under 100 metres. This technical configuration video talks through the steps for configuration. The key is that the Access Point that is the receiver in the secondary building is just getting access to the building. You can easily hang a POE switch off it and connect via POE phones and additional Access Points that can be wireless within the facility. With it all being managed via the GWN Cloud it really does make sense to consider if this may work for your client’s premises.
For more information, reach out to us today at sales@sofsol.co.nz.
VoIP 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.
Yealink promotions
The Q3 promotions from Yealink are now live. You can view the full flyer of promotions at this link and we highlight these in our Weekly Newsletter Promotions section each week.
- Purchase 5 x MP54 or 5 x MP56 phones and receive a BH72 Bluetooth headset for free – special bundle SKUs apply.
- Room Panel for Teams or Zoom – special pricing applies until 31st August 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.
- A30 and A20 MS Teams meeting bars with CTP18 touch panel – special pricing plus a free VCH51 sharing box – extended to 31st August and looking to be extended to 30th September.
- 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 VoIP Brand Manager Megan Twentyman. Or if you’re ready to sign up – use this specific link. Soft Solutions will help speed up your application.
Changes to 3CX technical training
We’ve just had an update from 3CX that updated technical certifications are currently being written and will come into effect in a few weeks! This is the first major re-write since version 15 and it will be a requirement for everyone to re-certify. There will be a grace period to allow everyone to get the new certifications. The other exciting news is that 3CX are coming to NZ in late October – we’re awaiting the confirmed dates and venues for trainings and will run a VoIP showcase event alongside. Anyone that reached out to Megan needing themselves or team members trained, will be notified as soon as we have more detailed information. If you have a requirement for training, please let Megan know on megan@sofsol.co.nz and she’ll notify you when bookings open for all events. We have a few partners that need Basic Training for their partnership goals so we will run a small event in September to hold us over until late October.
Submit a great 3CX case study. Get pizzas for your team!
Would you like a lunch shout on Soft Solutions? We want local NZ stories of 3CX in action. We’ll get a good story out, featuring your skilful team. You can also use it for your own marketing. No story is too big or small – it’s about your customer’s success. We have a simple questionnaire you can work through with your customer. 3CX’s marketing team will then consider it. It’s a great reason to touch base with your customer and ensure their 3CX is working as it 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 team. Reach out to our VoIP Brand Manager Megan Twentyman. We’ll make the process painless and treat your team!
3CX blogs – essential knowledge
The 3CX team continue to deliver new content, information, and updates for v18. We post links to these first, on our LinkedIn VoIP Community Group. If you’re not a member you can join here. Here’s a summary from the past month:
- 3CX StartUP – this latest blog looks at the StartUP features and when they’re expecting it to move from Beta to full release. Check it out here.
- Don’t be “that” guy blog series – while this series was released a couple of months back now it has some helpful tips, so we’d highly recommend checking out each of the blogs in this 4-part series. It looks at the security of your 3CX system and the best practises to ensure your customers are protected. In volume 1 it drills down on why you should definitely keep complex credentials – weakness will allow entry and that’s the last thing your customers need. In volume 2 the focus is on call fraud and what a hacker is trying to achieve. There are some clear guidelines on what you should configure to protect your customers. Volume 3 looks at the top 4 PBX security tips and it’s important to check you’re following this best practise. Volume 4 is the final instalment is this series and looks at monitoring your instance and not missing alerts. These blogs are essential reading for sales and technical staff alike to ensure that best practise configuration is being followed.
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.
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 VoIP community
Our “Soft Solutions NZ VoIP 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, VoIP updates and any other general VoIP news. Join the LinkedIn group here.
Thank you for reading.
The VoIP Team at Soft Solutions
Phone: 09 306 0450, Freephone: 0800 733 233, E-mail: voip@sofsol.co.nz.
