[Berryman]

Conference phone upgrades by the company will eliminate interference caused by smart phones.

Smart-phone makers unwittingly gave Polycom the best pitch it could have to get voice conferencing customers to upgrade their conference phones: that annoying buzz caused by the radio frequency interference the smart phones create.

Polycom on Feb. 5 will introduce upgrades for its installed base of more than 2 million analog and IP conference phones that shield the phones from interference from Treos, iPhones, BlackBerrys and other smart phones that users bring to conference rooms.

�A lot of companies tell people, �Don�t bring your BlackBerry to meetings,� or �Don�t put them on the conference table.� Some people think it�s just related to e-mails on the smart phones, but it�s really the way the mobile device keeps in touch with the cell tower,� said Brian Phillips, senior product marketing manager at Polycom. �Even if users aren�t actively in a call or sending or receiving messages, it�ll happen, because [the cell tower] talks back to the cell phone to make sure it�s still connected.�

Polycom re-engineered many of the components used across its line of conferencing phones to shield them from the buzz-causing interference, which is more pronounced with smart phones that use a GSM network. Polycom upgraded microphones, speakers and cabling to better shield its products from the interference.

�As we see the proliferation of smart-phone devices transmitting with more power and frequency, it�s really brought this issue to light, especially with heavy users,� Phillips said.
In a survey of 1,000 Polycom customers, about 90 percent said that the buzz occurs frequently on conference calls, according to a Polycom spokesperson.
The upgraded phones are available now, and Polycom did not change the price of its phone models. Polycom is offering a $50 to $100 discount for customers who wish to trade in their existing phones.

Source: eWeek
Polycom Makes the Buzz Go Away