Avaya Dual Mode lets mobile users switch between wifi and cellular networks mid-sentence

The Avaya One-X Mobile Dual Mode, developed for the Nokia Eseries range of phones allows workers to shift from network to network using one phone, with one number, and “hand off” calls to cellular networks with just one button.

It works like this: When a worker is communicating while roaming inside company walls, it automatically uses the company's communications system and a secure Wi-Fi network. This drives cost savings by eliminating the need to use cellular minutes while at work. When the worker travels outside a company's Wi-Fi network, they can hand off their Wi-Fi call to the cellular network outside by pressing a button, keeping their conversation going uninterrupted.

The convergence of telecommunications is designed to make the process of communicating easier for all parties. Calls made to a worker's deskphone can be received on the mobile, ensuring mobile workers remain accessible to customers and colleagues wherever they go; employees can use a single mobile device to control all incoming and outgoing communication; and the elimination of unnecessary cellular charges slashes the overall cost. Enterprise telephony features available with the dual mode solution include conferencing and transfer and extension dialing, while security benefits include the ability to authenticate the Nokia Eseries device to a PBX, which allows only authorized users to access company systems.

The Avaya system is available now, to those with Nokia Eseries phones. It is already in use at George Washington University, where managing director of Technology Operations and Engineering, Bret Jones, states "I see dual mode communications as the logical evolution of mobility. We have the same challenges of a corporation, dealing with a highly mobile workforce across three campus locations. Enabling employees to use one device to consistently handle communications across public and private wireless networks is a big benefit."