New LOWER PRICING on all Gigaset IP Models

Siemens

Gigaset phonesWe are pleased to announce that we have today reduced our trade pricing on all of the Gigaset IP models including the additional handsets that we sell.

The new pricing will be effective immediately and will include the following optional added value services:
1. Automated Online Ordering System – ProSys
2. White label Drop Shipping
3. Branded Despatch Note

View all ProVu’s Siemens Gigaset products

M3 HS Speaker problem

Recently, customers have reported that M3HS speakers are creating problems for them.

Some of the main issues are

1) Voice keeps cutting off during a call on speakers
2) M3 HS ringer not working
3) Voice quality is poor

Good news is, there is a firmware update that resolve most of these issues.

<%ThickBox(http://blog.provu.co.uk/media/5/20100630-unnamed.jpg|Snom M3)%>

I’d like to encourage all of you (who are still using an M3) to perform an update to this version following the instructions here:

http://wiki.snom.com/Snom_m3/Firmware/Beta

Please report any issues you might encounter.

M9 Clarification (UK stock)

The Snom M9 isn’t launched in the UK yet. Expected in a few weeks.

If anybody in the UK reckons they have M9s in stock then:

  1. They are grey importing EU versions into the UK ( so no UK plug, warranty or access to UK service centres)
  2. They are having you on. (this seems to be a common trick of etailers to get pre-orders on product)

Are few (less than 5) people in the UK have been testing EU versions of the product, but these are strictly not for resale.

We’ve had the product on order for over 6 months now (there have been a few delays) we’ll have UK stock from the first shipments out of Snom in Germany. As a reseller, you should always makesure you buy product from a Snom Certified Distributor (of which there are only two in UK).

So please can you tell me who has told you they have product in already?

I trust this clarifies, and please let me now if I can help further.

Tesco Cancels VoIP Service – Unlock Gigaset Code

Tesco will be phasing out its VoIP service, provided by Freshtel over the next few weeks. The service will be closed down completely on the 27th April 2010.

Tesco offer Gigaset handsets to their UK customers when signing up to use their VoIP service. These phones are locked to the Tesco/Freshtel service.

As ProVu are the UK Distributor for Gigaset VoIP Products, we’ve been speaking with them to find out how we can help all Tesco customers who currently have a Gigaset DECT phone, which they cannot currently use with another VoIP provider.

Gigaset have supplied ProVu with a simple document instructing you how to unlock your phone, so that it can be used with an alternate VoIP account from an ITSP or with your PBX.

For instructions on how, please just visit: http://gigaset.me.uk/

Portable IP Telephone

Question:

I hope you can help, last month I bought a Snom370 telephone through yourselves, and wondered if you have a SIP enabled portable telephone as an available option ? We have a team who walk between buildings covering up to 100 sq.meters. We have already tried the Snom M3, but this does not have a far enough reach from the base station.

You could try a Snom M3 Repeater. This will extend the range. If you can arrange the base station in the middle, and repeaters around in a circle then you can cover a huge area. Calls hand over between repeaters as you walk.

http://www.provu.co.uk/dect_repeater.html

Other option is something like a Gigaset S685. The handsets have a `best base` feature where you can register a handset to more than one base station. You need to be a little bit clever with setting up SIP accounts. Each handset needs a SIP account for each base. These then have to be setup to all ring together. This solution does not allow handover while calls are in progress.

A long term option would be the Snom M9 phone. A roaming feature is in the roadmap for this phone, but probably at least 1 year away from launch.
See www.provu.co.uk/snom-m9-dect.html

Snom Repeaters with Gigaset Dect Phones

To fix problems using Snom Dect repeaters and Gigaset phones. (well, there is no problem, but some people seem to have problems)

We have today tested in detail the Snom repeater with every kind of Gigaset base with all the common firmware versions.

It has performed flawlessly. Exactly as expected.

Tips:

1) It is easier if you switch the phone to prefer PSTN lines rather than VoIP. Then reverse this setting afterwards. Setting is in Menu, Settings, Telephony, Default Line. Set to Fixed Line while doing the registration. It does work without changing this setting but will display a VoIP error.

2) You need to enable Repeater mode on the base station beforehand. Menu, Settings, Base, Add. Features, Repeater Mode. You may need to disabled eco mode before repeater mode can be enabled.

3) You need to follow the manual registration method described in the instruction leaflet included with the repeater. Automatic registration appears to be only for Snom DECT bases.

SIP Security Alert

Just recently we’ve learnt of several automated attacks on IP based phone systems.

This is the rough sequence of events when an attack occurs:

  • The robot sends a sip invite to the target IP address on the standard SIP port 5060 UDP (I don’t know how it decides which addresses to attack in the first place).

  • If it receives a SIP error response then it knows that it is dealing with a SIP agent. Beginning at 200 it repeatedly sends in SIP register invites using the extension number as the password. The two that I’ve seen tried all extensions between 200 and 9999.

  • If there are any extensions with SIP passwords the same as the extension number then the robot will register with the PBX and make a very short call (just a couple of seconds) to test connectivity.

  • If the call is successful the robot disconnects.

  • It returns and re-registers on Friday evening at about 18:00 local time and then it starts as many calls as your PBX will allow, all to the same premium rate number. The two we’ve seen called numbers in Sierra Leon.

    • The scam is that the owners of the robot also own the premium rate line so they are effectively siphoning money from you to them.

    The two cases that we’ve actually investigated both burnt about £4500 in the course of about 24 hours of constant calling. In both cases the user/owner of the PBX was running one or more extensions with passwords set to the same value as the extension number.

    This is a pretty serious problem but it’s very easy to guard against provided you use passwords which are different to the extension number. Releases of SARK starting from V2.1.14 generate strong passwords for your extensions when you create them. You will also be OK if you use some secret password that isn’t the same as the extension number.

    If you do have extensions with passwords the same as the extension then we would strongly recommend that you change them as soon as possible in order to survive any attacks you may receive.

Factory reset of DECT Siemens Gigaset A580IP, C475IP, S685IP

Resetting the base station using a key on the base station

All individual settings are reset. Warning, your phone will not function after this process and will need to be setup again.

The system PIN will also be reset to “0000” and all additional handsets de-registered

Steps:

  • Remove the cable connections from the base station, both network and phone.
  • Remove the base station mains adapter from the socket
  • Press and hold the blue registration/paging button.
  • Plug the mains adapter back into the power socket.
  • Keep hold the blue registration/paging key (at least 10 sec.).
  • Release the registration/paging key. The base station has now been reset.

    You then need to start again with your device as if just delivered. You need need to enter all SIP details and register handsets.