New UB Phones Offer Helpful Features

Staff on phone.

Tom Jauch, UBIT Communication Systems Engineer, shows off his UB phone

By Daniel Mayper

Published September 17, 2015 This content is archived.

Today’s technology allows you to stay connected anytime, anywhere. Thanks to UB’s new phones from Cisco, it’s now even easier to manage your phone calls…even when your UB office phone is miles away.

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Daniel Mayper (UB Student, Class of 2016) was raised in Long Beach, a small beach town in Long Island, NY. He already holds an Associates Degree in Marketing and is working towards completing his Bachelors in Economics with a minor in World Trade.  His goal is to one day become a Chief Marketing Officer.
  

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CISCO’s new 8800 and 7800 model phones are currently available to replace older UB phones. The phones provide similar calling features as previous models, with certain models offering USB ports for device charging, Bluetooth 3.0 technology supporting various hands-free devices and phone book exchange with smartphones, 800x480 24bit color screens and built-in videoconferencing capabilities.

If you would like to upgrade your phone to take advantage of these new features, you or your department will need to purchase the new telephone set. UBIT stocks this equipment and provides them to our customers at cost, minus the cost of the end user license, which will carry over from the old device. See UBIT’s Phones service guide for more information.

What’s Changing?

Communication Systems Engineer Tom Jauch of Network and Classroom Services, part of UB Information Technology, spoke with UBIT News about the new phones.

“Despite the new features, these new phones function very similarly,” Tom said. “But they do have a slightly different look and feel to them.” Embedded in that new look and feel is an array of new features that make your phone ‘smarter.’

“There is also little difference between the 8800 and 7800 models. The newer 8800 model has a nicer screen, a backlight which is a little more visible and has a few more calling lines than the 7800.”

Talk Anywhere

When your UB phone rings, a recent feature called Single Number Reach offers the option to either answer the call there or redirect it to your cell phone. Unlike forwarding a call, personal numbers are kept private. Start a call in your office and later send it to your cell phone, or vice versa. Single Number Reach is available on older UB phone models.

Anybody using Single Number Reach can easily customize its features using the Unified Communications Manager Self Care Portal. This online control panel makes it possible to add a mobile or other personal phone number that can receive incoming calls to, or calls redirected from, their UB phone. It’s even possible to customize which number rings first based on time of day or day of the week. The control panel is accessible by logging in with your UBITName and password.

Make Your Presence Felt

Zoom image: Phone features Phone features.

Tom cites UB Phones’ new Presence feature, also available on most older UB phone models (except Cisco's 7911, 7912, 7940 and 7960), as an example of how integrating phones with other devices makes phone calls “smarter and more intuitive.”

When browsing the call log directories (missed, received and placed) on your phone, the state of other campus phones will appear to the left of the entry as an icon.  If the extension is available, it will appear as a handset on the cradle , and if the person is busy, two handsets will appear side by side, off the phone cradle.

If you have any questions or problems using any UB phones, contact the UBIT Help Center (ubithelp@buffalo.edu, 716-645-3542).