Phone System Services -Cook-County, IL 

Whether you need a legacy phone system maintained, or an entirely new communications system for multiple offices, Andromeda Technology Solutions is the answer you have been looking for. As our expertise also includes complete data network solutions, you can rest assured that we can fully integrate a communications system that will best leverage your existing or future IT infrastructure.

In many cases, your telephone system is the first thing people will experience when dealing with your business.

• Does it show your company in a good light?
• Is it set up so your clients have a good experience?
• Does it help maximize employee productivity?

Let us show you how a phone system should be set up!

Experience the simplicity of having an experienced company to handle all aspects of your communication systems, letting you focus on running your business.

Contact us or fill out the Request form on this page now to ask us to contact you!

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Hybrid PBX and IP-based Phone Systems

We support a host of major phone systems—from Avaya, NEC, Panasonic to Toshiba— and are a certified Panasonic dealer for both a traditional PBX system, as well as a true IP-based VoIP system. The beauty of these systems lies in their very extensive feature set (over 800 features) and their mix-and-match capabilities. Each system can mix analog, digital and IP phone sets to match almost any application. Also, each system has extensive functionality built-in for incorporating branch offices, work-at-home employees and other remote workers.

We spend a great deal of time understanding all your requirements, so we can select the system and functions that are exactly what you need.

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The Phones Become the Network

If you are considering an IP-based telephone system, it is important to understand these systems are more data systems than phone systems. Unlike a traditional PBX system, a VoIP system puts a significant burden on your data network, and requires specific equipment and configuration to ensure everything is running properly.

Many traditional telephone service companies lack the skills to properly install and maintain a VoIP system. Andromeda Technology Solutions excels in all aspects of voice and data, and will ensure you get the system that is right for you.

Whether Cloud-based, Hosted/virtual PBX, or completely on-premises, we have the knowledge AND experience to guide you and implement your voice communication system to perfection.

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Replacement of Legacy Phone Systems

We have many years of experience upgrading/replacing legacy phones systems from: ComDial, Nortel, Toshiba/Mitel, and Samsung just to name a few. If you would like to experience service from a truly customer-focused organization, call us when you are ready to replace and upgrade your existing legacy telephone system.

			KX-TA KX-NCP KX-TDA KS-TDE
			IP Office Definity Magix Legend Partner
			Aspire Elite IPK I-Series DS/DSX

AndroPedia Tech Library

As part of our service, it is important to keep our client-partners well informed on Telephone system developments, news, and best practices. Here is just a sampling of typical items from our AndroPedia^SM library archive:

It costs money to make money.

It’s safe to say that you’ve heard this phrase somewhere – especially if you own or manage a business.

Rent . . . Employee Salaries . . . Utilities . . . Outsourced Services . . . Supplies . . . the list goes on and on and on.

With the cost of being in business steadily increasing, it is important to save where you can.

We speak with business owners about how technology can add value on a daily basis. We assist in improving uptime which increases productivity, we help business owners and managers secure their data so they can rest easier knowing they have proper protection in place.

We help business owners secure their physical locations with access control, security cameras and burglar systems.

We even help businesses increase revenues with professional website development and digital marketing strategies.

All of that said, there is still one area that we see business owners overspending on time and time again.

Care to guess what that might be? . . . if your phone bill came to mind you nailed it!

If you are like many other professionals, you want to take a good look at your phone bill but don’t know where to start. With that in mind we grabbed a few things to pay attention to and cost saving ideas that you’ll find below.

Tips and Tricks to Help From Overpaying on Your Business Phone Bill

Pay close attention to your contract dates

While there is a certain expected increase in services over time, all too often companies are being overcharged every month by their service provider because they are out of contract.

Service providers don’t want you on a month to month agreement. They want to know they have your business for extended periods of time.

On top of this, the end of your current contract is a great time to see what else is out there. Even if you stay with the incumbent provider, you’ll know that you are getting the best rate and may be able to get a deal for sticking around instead of jumping to the competition.

Take a look at how your phones are serviced

Getting your business “in the cloud” is a big topic these days. With many different cloud based applications and even cloud based hardware, it is no surprise that your phones also have cloud options.

There are many types of phone systems available to you and they are serviced differently which means that they have different costs associated as well.

While we won’t dive into too much granular detail, your main options for a phone system are on premise digital systems, on premise IP based systems and other cloud based systems or VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) systems as they are commonly known.

At times, a VoIP system may offer a cheaper monthly expense but over time it may end up costing more than your traditional PBX or on premise solution.

We would recommend bringing in professional assistance before switching from an on premise system to a cloud based or VoIP system. There may be infrastructure costs or other back end costs associated with this switch you should be aware of before making the change.

Make sure all of the lines you pay for are in use

This may seem like a no brainer but as your organization grows and you have more phone lines in service, it is easy to forget that one or many might not be necessary.

The most common instances of these forgotten lines are dead extensions, fax lines or other dedicated office equipment lines and potentially even dedicated lines for security.

You obviously don’t want to disconnect these without investigating how it might impact things at the office – especially if the lines are dedicated to security.

We’d suggest having a professional technician come on site to test and document your lines if you believe you are paying for lines that aren’t being used.

Consider a PRI

A PRI is a Primary Rate Interface but the acronym is a commonly used term for phone bills and the telecommunications industry.

In a nutshell, a PRI is a circuit with a physical device on site that allows you to group multiple analog lines or DID (Direct Inward Dialing) numbers onto one circuit.

We’ve found that a PRI cuts down costs for companies with approximately 6 analog lines or more. Instead of paying a monthly fee for each of those lines, you pay a fee for the service to your PRI and an upfront cost for the hardware.

Of course, this doesn’t save you money in every instance but more often than not, using a PRI will cut your monthly bill a bit.

Check your bills regularly

There are many different reasons you want to check your phone bill every month.

Service providers may change rates, add fees or any other number of things and if you pay the phone bill without regard or even set it up on auto pay it may take months before you recognize the discrepancies.

The more comfortable you are with reading your phone bill, the more you will understand about the different fees and charges and the less likely you are to have random fees or charges go unnoticed.

When all is said and done, we suggest taking a deeper look into your phone bills about every 6 months. You can do this yourself or task an outsourced firm to do it. There are even brokers out there that  you can contract to shop rates and ensure you get the best deal.

Andromeda is not in the business of providing your actual phone connection, but we are in the business of providing you with the best technology and customer service experience with your phone system.

With that in mind, if you ever have a question about something you aren’t sure about on your bills, our staff is more than welcome to help you out.

The post Are You Overpaying On Your Phone Bill? Tips and Hidden Tricks to Save On Your Business Phone Bills. appeared first on Andromeda Technology Solutions.

“Time Is Money”

The fact is, downtime and productivity loss from phone system failure can cost your business thousands of dollars in the blink of an eye. Today you have hundreds of options at their fingertips (literally); all one search engine away.

Don’t lose business all because your legacy phone system finally took a dive. You also don’t want to force your own hand when it comes to choosing a new phone system due to lack of preparation.

That being said, check out these 5 signs your pbx phone system is on its last leg.

Signs of PBX Phone System Failure

1. Your system is 10+ years old – Congratulations! Your system has served you well. Older systems probably don’t have parts in production or programming updates being rolled out which puts you at risk of a failure with no fix. 
2. Static Filled Lines – Nothing is more frustrating than a call filled with static. Faulty equipment and wiring can lead to this issue. 
3. Voicemail/Programming Issues – Possibly the most prominent sign your pbx phone system is on its way out are programming issues. Have you ever lost all of your scheduled programming or noticed completely inaccurate dates and times out of nowhere? Are voicemails disappearing on you? Maybe lights have stopped functioning and you are no longer notified when you have a message. Do customers and employees complain about programming issues like being routed to the wrong location or a buggy Auto Attendant function? 
4. Functional Limitations – Older systems don’t have many of the useful functions you have probably heard about in modern systems i.e. Voicemail-to-Email, Mobility, Remote Support and streamlined programming. 
5. System Overheating? – Many legacy systems don’t have adequate cooling systems. Do you have a fan sitting in front of your pbx phone system to keep it from overheating? That is an especially relevant telltale sign that your system is at the end of its life.

We have several different options in business phone systems. Our knowledgable staff is here to answer any questions you may have and help you choose the most robust system for a great price. Contact us today.

The post 5 Signs Your Phone System Is On Its Last Leg appeared first on Andromeda Technology Solutions.

Hackers and scammers have hit the ground running in 2021, launching an extensive new phishing campaign that targets the legions of PayPal users around the world. The campaign is being run on both text message and email channels and if you're a PayPal user, you may have already seen it. If you haven't, in the days and weeks ahead, you'll probably get a text or an email to the effect that the company has detected suspicious activity on your account.

It will say the company has taken the step of "limiting" your account, which puts restrictions on withdrawing, sending or receiving money. Whether you get the text or email variant of the communication, the scammers will "helpfully" include a link, and ask you to verify your account information in order to remove these restrictions.

Naturally, this isn't a legitimate PayPal communication and if you tap or click on the link, you'll be sent to a spoof page that looks like it contains a PayPal login box. Unfortunately, if you attempt to log in, all you'll be doing is handing your login credentials over to the scammers, giving them unfettered access to your account. If you maintain a balance in your PayPal account, it will be promptly drained. If you have bank accounts or credit cards linked to your account, you can expect them to be abused.

This isn't a new idea or a new type of campaign, but it is one of the first coordinated efforts we've seen in 2021 and as such, it pays to be aware of it.

If you get a communication regarding your PayPpal account and you even suspect that it might be true, rather than relying on the link supplied in the text or email, open a new tab and navigate to PayPal's login page manually. That's the easiest way to avoid this type of scam.

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