3Com 3101 User Manual page 6

BOOKS OPEN -New 3Com® 3101 Basic Phone and 3101SP Basic Speaker Phone Page 6 of 10
understanding the consonant portion of words in a phone conversation. We hear
the vowels that are part of the lower frequencies and we guess at the rest of the
word. Our brain is forced to use context to decipher the rest of the word.
Sometimes we guess right and sometimes we get confused. A common proof point
can be found when someone says their name on the phone. Obviously, there is no
context when someone says their name so we are most apt to guess wrong. Don
may sound like Tom. Try this yourself and see how often people mistake one word
for another when both have the same basic sound but not the same consonants.
This problem is exacerbated when a caller is not speaking their native language.
So who cares if you guess wrong and Tom and Don get confused? Well the answer
is you, if you pay people to get work done over the phone. Wideband adds back
the high frequencies of speech and can dramatically improve the intelligibility of
conversations. Anyone that has ever experienced a conference call that sounds
like one rambling mumble can appreciate that this was not productive use of time.
Consider what a business with 100, 1,000 or 10,000 employees spends to have
employees discussing plans over the phone. Not the long distance time but the
people time. Then imagine what 1%, 2% or 5% of that time might be worth?
Better conversations equal greater productivity.
Wideband is also fundamentally better technology. Bottom line is that all IP
phones will support wideband one day soon. Many vendors have discussed future
support and component suppliers are modifying products to support it so it is just
a matter of time before wideband is a standard requirement. So, why would you
invest thousands of dollars in a high quality speakerphone that DIDN'T support
wideband? These would soon be wasted dollars. Would you buy a new car without
airbags when your other choices included them at no cost? If a customer believes
that IP is the next generation of telephony technology why would they buy the last
generation of audio quality?
New Stand
The 3101 Basic Phone and 3101SP Basic Speaker Phone include a new one-piece,
multi-position stand that articulates from 15 to 45 degrees. This is the same stand
that is used on the 3102 Business Phone and the 3105 Attendant Console .The
phone can be adjusted easily for a variety of desktop positions, or the stand can
be collapsed to mate with a standard wall mount plate. No additional wall mount
bracket is required. Please note that the existing NBX Wall Mount Bracket
(3C1027) is not supported on the 3101 Basic Phone and 3101 Basic Speaker
Phone.
The stand comes pre-attached to the phone for faster on-site installations.
New Message Waiting & Ring Call Indicator
Hard to miss at the top of the new 3101 phone is an oversized message waiting
indicator light bar. Bright enough to be seen across a room it alerts users to new
http://usdb001/MKTLIB/MKTLIB4.NSF/2daf7c11afa65af588255ff9007b7195/c1a0f6e17a... 8/5/2004