November 14, 2006
Askey and Texas Instruments in VoIP Deal

By Johanne Torres
TMCnet Contributing Editor

Askey Computer announced on Tuesday that it opted for Texas Instruments (News - Alert) (TI)'s VoIP systems for its IP phones and residential and enterprise gateways.
 
Specifically, Askey chose to deploy TI's integrated VoIP silicon and software systems, which include the Telogy Software for VoIP and PIQUA software used for better voice quality and IP performance. The first IP phone and gateway products which will incorporate TI's technology from Askey, the VPD1120 phone and the VGE1020 residential gateway and VG603 enterprise gateway, are all currently in production.
 
"TI's high-performance VoIP technology with embedded quality features offer us the most integrated hardware and software solutions to deliver the best and most flexible VoIP products to our customers," said Wangson Wang, senior director, broadband communication division I, R&D group at Askey in a statement. "We are very impressed with the company's solid roadmap for developing and enhancing its VoIP product portfolio."
 
TI's TNETV1055 will power Askey's IP phone products by expanding the options for designers to create a wide variety of IP phone offerings. With TI's software, Askey will also be able to integrate different features into its IP phones.
 
Alternatively, TI's TNETV2021 and TNETV2840 will enable Askey to provide products featuring echo-cancellation, adaptive jitter buffering and tone detection. This combo seems to be a good option for small to medium enterprise applications to be used at places such as apartment buildings and college dorms.
 
Askey also chose TI's TNETV1060 CPE gateway system for residential and small office/home office (SOHO) gateways. Askey selected this particular system for its suite of VGE1020 gateway products. The TNETV1060 supports all current VoIP standards and will enable Askey's customers to scale their current gateways to larger business applications requiring additional channels of voice if needed.
 
"We understand that Askey is committed to delivering a complete and robust suite of CPE devices to its customers, and with TI's VoIP software and chipsets at the heart of its products, we believe that Askey can truly differentiate itself by offering high quality VoIP solutions with advanced flexibility to support future needs," stated Debasish "Ron" Nag, director of business development, Asia, Texas Instruments. "With its dedicated VoIP team and experience working with OEMs targeting all VoIP segments -- from gateways to IP phones, Askey's expertise and diversity correlates well with TI's broad range and reach in the VoIP industry."
 
TI had recently scored a similar deal with IP-based technology provider Mitel as the company also tapped TI to power its new suite of IP phones to be based on TI's VoIP technology. The companies' partnership allowed for the integration of TI's TNETV1050 IP phone system with Mitel's (News - Alert) new 5300 series IP phones to deliver real-time access to applications and services, including Web-bed browsing, contact lists, call history logs, amongst others.
 
Mitel's new 5330 and 5340 IP Phones feature a large 160 x 320 graphics display with 24 or 48 self- labeling, multifunction, programmable keys. The 5330 and 5340 are full-duplex, hands-free speakerphone systems with support of Wideband Audio Handsets for better acoustics. The devices are enabled through TI's single-chip TNETV1050 system which combines the key processor, communication and peripheral functions necessary to build an advanced IP phone.
 
The TNETV1050 is based on TI's programmable TMS320C55x digital signal processing technology. Programmability of the TNETV1050 allows customers such as Mitel to support a number of IP phone implementations with full duplex speakerphone capabilities, including support for three-way conferencing, and lower bit rate and wideband codecs. The TNETV1050 offers IP phone and PC connectivity to the Ethernet LAN, and a USB interface. This feature allows for a set of devices to connect to the phone, such as card readers, fingerprint recognition, PDA synchronization, and video conferencing.
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Johanne Torres is contributing editor for TMCnet and Internet Telephony magazine. To see more articles by Johanne Torres, please visit Johanne's columnist page.