RE: VoIp proposed to replace T1 iSeries uses

When they talked about mixing voice & data, and voice taking priority,

I get nervous.

Well, technically speaking, it's all data if you move to VoIP. Through
QOS tagging the "voice" data packets will get priority over the "data"
data packets -- provided everything funnels through a QOS aware router
at the end. I've seen setups where the VoIP phones track back to one
router, which includes QOS capabilities, but the data goes through
another router and both routers then attach to the T1, in that case the
QOS does you no good. Also, is the T1 direct to them? If so, great, if
not, if it goes over the internet, remember, most internet routers don't
honour QOS tagging so the voice packets won't get priority on the net.

VoIP is really only as good as the phones you have. It's the phone that
converts your voice to data packets, and you get what you pay for. We're
using Cisco 7960's on the desktop, and the sound is great, just like
landline -- actually they add IN some noise, otherwise it sounds too
clean. But at ~$400/phone they ain't cheap! 

As for the ability to connect from anywhere, it's possible, although
more likely on a SIP phone than an MGCP phone. For example, the Cisco
phones we have have to be behind our router to work, and they're setup
as MGCP phones. However, we also have "soft" phones (a piece of
software) that we can run on our laptops and connect from anywhere, and
these are SIP-only. The softphone allows us to dial and receive calls
from anywhere as if we were in the office. I've been "in the office"
from the convention center in Boston, from a hotel in Miami and from my
sister-in-laws house. 

If this is a managed service check how they're going to charge for the
phones and #s. In a "traditional" phone setup you may have 200 users
w/phones on their desks, but, say, only 50 "real" lines to the outside
world, knowing that only 50 users will ever be on the phone at one time.
In a managed VoIP setup each user is a line, and can be active. It may
be cheaper per line, but you may end up with many more lines. It may be
possible to drop an Asterisk-based device in your office to act as a PBX
for VoIP.

As far as being worried about the iSeries, it's the voice people that
should be worried. You'll still be connected via a data T1 to the net,
it's the phone side that's undergoing a major change. The only thing I'd
watch out for is T1 utilization. 

-Walden