[VoiceOps] IP key systems?

[Jay Hennigan]

We have had good success in both the hosted PBX and on-site IP-PBX
realms, but still run in to the occasional customer that needs key
system functionality.

Small retail shops, medical offices, restaurants and the like are
typical key system users.  They like the capability of putting "Line 3"
on hold at one phone, walking across the store to check on something,
and picking up the held call at another extension.  Call park and
retrieve is a steep learning curve and an inconvenience for these people
and they don't need a lot of PBX features such as individual DIDs,
individual voice mail, dial-by-name, and the like.

Is anyone having success in this space?  Ideally we would like something
on-site that is reasonably inexpensive (meaning not triple what a
similar analog key system would cost), compatible with Polycom SIP
phones and would have a similar user look-and-feel to an old-school
Panasonic 616 or the like.

There was a small box I seem to recall seeing at a trade show but IIRC
it required proprietary features of Aastra phones and had a relatively
small limitation as to the number of phones/lines.  Six lines by 16
phones would probably be more than adequate for our customers.

I realize that we could roll our own with Asterisk or similar but was
hoping to find an already developed product.

--
Jay Hennigan - CCIE #7880 - Network Engineering - jay at impulse.net
Impulse Internet Service  -  http://www.impulse.net/
Your local telephone and internet company - 805 884-6323 - WB6RDV