Top 10 must have new features in upcoming firmware V1.3

[QBZappy]

Since OBihai has mentioned in this forum an upcoming firmware version 1.3, we should make it easier for them to identify some of the more urgently need improvements. This list can be a condensed version of some of the feature requests many have asked for. We are eagerly awaiting for the improvements that a 1.3 version will bring. I hope they pull another rabbit from the hat like they did with the GV implementation.

Here is my personal top ten mostly taken from the various suggestions in the Feature request section of the forum. I will admit to being a little partial to some of the features I personnaly requested.

1- My top wish is for proper handling of CID when forking (simultaneous ringing of multiple numbers).
2- Improved Syslog. Offering more info such as CID and more error trapping. This one should be an easy one to offer I would imagine.
3- Additional Service Provider accounts
4- Native T.38 Fax support
5- Streamline the Call Back options. Not the most elegant impementation in my opinion. I use this feature everyday.
6- OBihai supported CID lookup app. Or at least make the tools available for some of the smart OBi users to develop one which can be shared.
7- AA multilingual and/or allow uploading of IVR voice files
8- Gmail ID in COT
9- OBi as a Skype gateway. Complete integration or steps to simplify the setup
10- Builtin OpenVPN client. Units could be preconfigured and shipped to family and friends.

Anyone care to add their own list?

EDIT: Completed my Top 10 list

[DaveSin]

CNAM Lookup.  If possible, to pass the CNAM information from the Google Voice/Gmail Contact list or from any reliable external source.  If not possible, be able to pull the CNAM information from the Speed Dial list (if info is available from the list).

[Tack]

My top item, way above others, is incoming-call caller ID for softphones, passed through ObiTalk App.

Skype gateway would likewise be very useful.  Just as valuable as Google Voice.

Thanks.

[RonR]

Skype gateway would likewise be very useful.  Just as valuable as Google Voice.

I seriously doubt there will ever be native Skpe support in the OBi, but you can make and receive Skype calls using SipToSis:

http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=1196.0

[SomeDude]

I second the openvpn concept, when I am on wireless or network where there's DPI or "mucking" of packets, I don't want my calls tampered with. This should be at least ssl/tls backend from the device app and/or pc software.

[sundansx]

I second the syslog request (#2).

[jamesbody]

I would also love to see OpenVPN support.

Having an always on and power efficient way of getting back into remote site LANs to administer local devices would be extremely useful.

Does the hardware in the  OBi devices have sufficient headroom to allow this?

[yupeng]

I like these:
3- Additional Service Provider accounts
4- Native T.38 Fax support
5- Streamline the Call Back options. Not the most elegant impementation in my opinion. I use this feature everyday.
7- AA multilingual and/or allow uploading of IVR voice files
9- OBi as a Skype gateway. Complete integration or steps to simplify the setup

[pc44]

Hey QBZappy, Nice list!!!

+1 on this... #4- Native T.38 Fax support

I would think a ton of small businesses could make use of fax capability over VoIP.  Right now, VoIP fax options are limited and costly.

[bradmajors]

Better documentation.

With the current documentation some of the existing features are barely usable.

[Ostracus]

Skype gateway would likewise be very useful.  Just as valuable as Google Voice.

I seriously doubt there will ever be native Skpe support in the OBi, but you can make and receive Skype calls using SipToSis:

http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=1196.0

If memory serves they don't have a Windows x64 version.

Forgot to add Freetalk already offers a Skype ATA about roughly the same price as a Obihai in two versions.

[RonR]

Skype gateway would likewise be very useful.  Just as valuable as Google Voice.

I seriously doubt there will ever be native Skpe support in the OBi, but you can make and receive Skype calls using SipToSis:

http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=1196.0

If memory serves they don't have a Windows x64 version.

I'm running SipToSis on Windows 7 Ultimate x64 with no problems whatsoever.  I use it regularly.

[psichel]

The feature I want most is click-to-dial. A simple idea, but surprisingly powerful.

Imagine you have a calendar full of conference calls (10-digit phone number + 10-digit access code). Instead of dialing one sequence of digits after another, you could have your computer dial for you. Need to add another party? Have your computer bridge them in.

Since the OBi110 can act as a service bridge for IP phones and devices running the OBion app, having a simple way to setup calls from your computer takes the idea of a "Personal PBX" to a whole new level.  Click on a link to setup a call. Want to experiment with ISN dialing? Let 3rd party developers refine the solution.

The combination of Caller ID, dialing, and service bridging could be category defining.

- Peter

[VaHam]

The feature I want most is click-to-dial. A simple idea, but surprisingly powerful.

Imagine you have a calendar full of conference calls (10-digit phone number + 10-digit access code). Instead of dialing one sequence of digits after another, you could have your computer dial for you. Need to add another party? Have your computer bridge them in.

Since the OBi110 can act as a service bridge for IP phones and devices running the OBion app, having a simple way to setup calls from your computer takes the idea of a "Personal PBX" to a whole new level.  Click on a link to setup a call.

I think your asking for something beyond traditional click-to-dial here perhaps.  If traditional click-to-dial is what your looking for, then you can simply set your browser application options for handling callto: links to the softphone application your using (ex. bria3.exe) in conjunction with the OBion already.

To call a US number the link syntax on the web page would look like:
<a href="callto:AAAPPPNNNN#">(AAA) PPP-NNNN</a>

Want to experiment with ISN dialing? Let 3rd party developers refine the solution.

Implementing ISN dialing with a thrid party app would require writing a proxy for the OBion proxy to call.  A rather messy approach which could reak havoc with the OBion app.  However to implement it in the OBi it self would require only a few lines of code and zero additional overhead to Obihai.  Some things are better left to third parties perhaps; but ISN dialing is not one of them.

As far a every OBi being reachable via ISN dialing that would be nearly impossible for anyone other than Obihai to implement since their devices do not uniformly register their ip address to anywhere else.  Yes some third party could setup sip accounts for the OBi's to register with just as they do with any other sip provider; but unless a user setup an account with the third party then it would not work.  To do this currently one would be using up one of the two SP's to accomplish this third party solution; again something best handled by Obihai.

Obihai servers already know the association between ObiTalk numbers and ip addresses so no additional registration would be necessary.  If Obihai simply registered it's own ITAD then any incoming ITAD requests to their servers would simply hand off the call to the proper OBi just as it does now from other OBi's using the OBiTalk network.

The combination of Caller ID, dialing, and service bridging could be category defining.

- Peter

CID lookup requires querying a number of sources and comparing their results and finally presenting a best guess to the phone; IMHO, a task better left to a PBX.  IMHO this would simply require too many resources inside the OBi to implement.

Dialing, if it is traditional click-to-dial that you want, is already available.

Not sure what you mean by bridging in this context.  You can bridge calls between OBi SP1, SP2 and phone ports currently.  If your talking about using it to setup calls into a PBX why not simply use the PBX to do that?

[psichel]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and clarifying ISN dialing.

I'm the developer of Phone Amego, a Mac application that provides on-screen Caller ID, click-to-dial, and Mac integration.  I've already implemented Caller ID support for the OBi110 in Phone Amego.  Besides the convenience of on-screen caller ID, Phone Amego already does reverse lookups checking multiple sources as desired.  I'm not looking for the OBi box to present the caller name, only to pass along the peer number which it does (but could do better by indicating when call status is available in the syslog).

The reason I want click-to-dial is to make dialing easier for the user.  If you work in a sales related field and place many calls a day, instead of picking up your phone to dial, you could just lookup the contact in your Address Book or CRM software and press dial.  Notice if you want to enter a conference call access code, a "callto:"  link is useless because you need to send touch-tones, not initiate a call.

More importantly, soft-phones are a relatively small niche. By combining click-to-dial and service bridging, an OBi box becomes a universal auto-dialer that can dial for landlines, SIP based phones or services, and other nodes on the OBitalk network.

Consider all the different SIP based PBX systems and IP phones in the market. Imagine the the man years spent developing software to interface with each of these systems. With this modest enhancement, one device can dial them all. That's category defining.

Enjoy!

[DaveSin]

I'm the developer of Phone Amego, a Mac application that provides on-screen Caller ID, click-to-dial, and Mac integration.  I've already implemented Caller ID support for the OBi110 in Phone Amego.  Besides the convenience of on-screen caller ID, Phone Amego already does reverse lookups checking multiple sources as desired.  I'm not looking for the OBi box to present the caller name, only to pass along the peer number which it does (but could do better by indicating when call status is available in the syslog).

I'm curious if you are planning on extending Phone Amego for the Windows based PC?  Also, could this be extended to be hosted on a DD-WRT-Based Router through the OPKG /Ipkg Packages, where the use could opload their own CNAM data (Phonebook/GV Phonebook Data)?  I have a WRT54G-TM (DD-WRT) Router on my LAN with considerable excess Memory that could potentially be used for just such an Application.

[psichel]

I'm curious if you are planning on extending Phone Amego for the Windows based PC?

Not at this time, but I'm open to possibility.

CTI (Computer Telephone Integration) has been around for a while.  What's different about Phone Amego is:
(1) It does both dialing AND caller ID.
(2) It embraces the iPhone and the Internet.
(3) It works with most common phones (cell phones, landlines, VoIP).
(4) It provides extensive integration to work with other tools while remaining
     simple and compact.

Enjoy!

- Peter

[Ostracus]

To add, the ability to turn on/off the delay before the Obi110/100 dials a number without having to end with the pound key. Most modern phones this delay isn't necessary since they store the number temporarily then spit it out when the "talk" key is pressed.

[bhasden]

Since OBihai has mentioned in this forum an upcoming firmware version 1.3, we should make it easier for them to identify some of the more urgently need improvements. This list can be a condensed version of some of the feature requests many have asked for. We are eagerly awaiting for the improvements that a 1.3 version will bring. I hope they pull another rabbit from the hat like they did with the GV implementation.

Here is my personal top ten mostly taken from the various suggestions in the Feature request section of the forum. I will admit to being a little partial to some of the features I personnaly requested.

...
6- OBihai supported CID lookup app. Or at least make the tools available for some of the smart OBi users to develop one which can be shared.
...

Just wanted to let you know that I put together a .NET app to pull back the caller name and photo from your Google contacts and then send a Growl notification when a call comes into the Obihai device. This allows me to show caller id information on all of my laptops and the HTPC when watching television. I'm looking for people to test the software so if anyone is interested please let me know.

[QBZappy]

bhasden,

Great. I always hoped that 3rd party apps would start showing up. You would be the second that has offered an app which works with the OBi on this forum. There have been a few scripts developed around the OBi as well. I could be your first volunteer, however I don't have anyone calling me on my US telephone number since I am in located in Canada. I use it basically only for outgoing. I'm sure you'll get a few who will jump on this opportunity. This has already been requested by a few people.

How does it work? Can you have it do CID lookup for other numbers via an internet service as well or only limited to GV contacts?