SPA-3000
Getting started with Asterisk just got easier. Well, it didn't just get easier, because the SPA-3000 isn't a new product. It's just that I just now realized how perfect this device is for the fledgling VOIPer.
The traditional advice is to get an Asterisk Developer's Kit which gives you one FXS port and one FXO port, expandable. In the old days, this wasn't bad advice because the old devkit was reasonably priced. The new devkit is better, but pricier. At $240 it can hardly be considered entry level for any but the most serious (or rich) Asterisk newcomers.
The Sipura SPA-3000 is an amazing
bundle of joy that also provides an FXS and FXO port. What I didn't realize
(but should have guessed) before now was that it can not only bridge its FXS
and FXO ports, but act as a gateway with external SIP devices, like Asterisk.
So this thing can do everything the Asterisk devkit can do except add FXS or
FXO ports, but without all the headache or cost. You can find these for less
than a hundred, and you don't have to install it in your PC, worry about
interrupts, or set up zap*.conf. You can still use Asterisk, of course, but
you can also pair it up directly with SER or any SIP
provider you like. Yes, you could do that with Asterisk too, but frankly
Asterisk isn't a stellar SIP implementation and if you're serious about SIP
you'll find on occasion that you might like to bypass it. (Whether or not you
want to be serious about SIP is another post. ;-)
If you want to get started with VOIP in the comfort of your own home, all you need is a Linux box and an SPA-3000.
What about all the phones scattered throughout the house? Plug the phone company directly into the SPA FXO, and the SPA FXS into the wall. (Or just go straight VOIP, in which case you don't technically need a 3000 but might be better served with a 1000 or 2000 family member)
What about Digium?! How will the Asterisk developers feed their children and pets?! You traitor! You capitalist! You... You... Microsoft-lover!
I am full of gratitude for the Asterisk developers and for Digium, but I frankly believe Digium's products are overpriced and I have no qualms in taking my business elsewhere when it makes sense to do so. I have a Sipura SPA-1001 and I am very impressed with the quality of it, so I am confident in my recommendation. Go with the SPA.
