It is good to know that some people think you should pay for a PBX. There are clearly some good people in the world. However, you really don't need to spend all that time and effort choosing what PBX you want, finding somewhere to house it and paying someone to maintain it.

Once you have made the decision and purchased your PBX you will need to be very careful about changing your mind - any alterations will cost a fortune.And then there is the long term tie in - we have heard (and seen) contracts for 8 years. Birchills contract is simpy for 30 days you can change your mind at any time.

So why not check out the features that you get with a new system compared with the old systems. Maybe free is better after all!

	Old Fashioned Telephone System	Birchills Telecom PBX
Price Approx	£100's	Free
Extensions	Pay for plus handsets	Only pay for handsets
IVR	Pay for	Free
Voicemail	Pay for	Free
Extension Groups	Pay for	Free
Auto Provisioning	No	Done before dispatch
Caller ID Customisation	Pay for	Free
DID Direct Inward Dialling	Pay for	Free
Find Me/Follow Me	Not common	Free
Time of Day Routing	Yes	Yes
Extension Call Recording	Not common	Yes
Voicemail to Email	Not common	Yes
Voicemail Web Access	Not common	Yes
Call Pickup	Sometimes	Yes
Powerful Reporting	Not common	Yes
Conference Rooms	Not common	Yes
Speed Dial Numbers	Sometimes	Yes
Multiple Music on Hold	Pay for	Yes
Auto call forwarding	Yes	Yes
Fax to Email	Not common	Yes
Softphone	Not common	Compatible
Call Transfer	Yes	Yes
Call Conference	Not common	Yes
Live Monitoring	Not common	Yes

Birchills Telecom online PBX is available free with Birchills Telecom Connect and Birchills Telecom Freedom business phone system solutions.

Birchills Telecom business telephone systems supply to SMEs and start-ups. The Birchills Telecom Connect system gives you:

• A business phone system for an amazingly low monthly subscription and no capital cost
• Ultra competitive handsets
• Free calls to any other users on the Birchills Telecom network

PBX aimed at SME's and small companies are  typically sold by small telephone resellers, who purchase the sytem on demand from a wholesaler.

The equipment will require a power supply and incoming telephone lines to function. It will also require a dedicated area to house the electronics. There will be an annual maintenance charge for the installation. Upgrading or changing the system will require you to call in the telephone reseller. You will not be able to mix and match this equipment with that of another supplier.

The Birchills Telecom solution is an open solution which means that you can change to another providers without scrapping all your hardware. You can upgrade or downgrade at any time - there are no long term tie ins. There are no maintenance fees with Birchills Telecom. Birchills Telecom gives you free calls to branches.