First Look – Obihai OBi100 and OBi110

We are really excited to offer Obihai VoIP adapters as an option for VoIP connectivity for the residential or small business user.  Obihai offers an opportunity to make free or low cost calls over the internet using existing analog devices for most users.  Using your choice of a SIP VoIP service provider or Google Voice, the OBi100 and OBi110 are low cost VoIP adapters that can be easily configured by even the non-technical user to save a ton of money on voice calling.

What is it?

The OBi100 and OBi110 are VoIP adapters supporting 1 analog device such as an analog phone or fax machine.  The OBi100 series will connect to almost any SIP service provider or Google Voice.  The OBi100 features 1 FXS port for connecting an analog device while the OBi110 offers a single FXS port along with an FXO port for connecting to your landline.  The addition of an FXO port on the OBi110 can be used to connect to emergency services (911) when needed, or to provide a backup line in the event that the internet goes down.

Who is it for?

There are 2 scenarios where the OBi100 and OBi110 will work well. First is for the residential user looking to eliminate their home phone, but still have some sort of calling capability when a mobile phone is not ideal.  Using Google Voice, the OBi100 and OBi110 can convert the digital signal from VoIP into an analog signal so that consumers can use their home analog phones, maybe one of those nifty DECT phones with the satellite handsets, with their FREE Google Voice account.  The OBi VoIP adapters are the only analog telephone adapters which work with Google Voice natively, but they will also work with most SIP providers as well.

In addition, Obihai offers TOTALLY FREE calls between Obihai devices. So the OBi100 series VoIP adapters would be a blessing when long distance communication between 2 parties is necessary on a consistent basis.  A scenario that comes to mind would be parents talking to their children while they are away at college, or families keeping in touch with loved ones who are deployed in the military.  Using the power of VoIP, any parties that are also using an Obihai device can call FREE to each other ALL THE TIME!  In this manner it is similar to Skype, but you can make these calls using your existing home phone, and your PC doesn’t need to be on.

The second scenario would be the SOHO or small business looking to save money on their phone bill by using VoIP.  The OBi100 and OBi110 offers connection capability to a SIP trunk or PBX for remote workers using analog phones to connect to the HQ IP PBX, or for the small business to use a VoIP Service provider and their existing small business analog phone system (up to 2 lines). In case you didn’t know, you can save a ton of money by switching from analog to VoIP, especially if you are making a lot of long distance calls.  I am guessing you probably know that already!

Obihai also offers 2 higher end models, the OBi202 and OBi302 which can support up to 4 accounts. The OBi202 when combined with an OBiPLUS subscription can be a standalone phone system for a small business!

Availability

Great news! The OBi110 are available now!  If you want the OBi100 you will have to wait another week or so… they will be shipping on November 23rd! (Just in time for the Black Friday rush!)