Save Telephone Troubles with BeamDial

BeamDial is a new wireless dialer for Palm handhelds that works with any analog telephone. Users pick a phone number from their handheld's Address Book. This is transmitted via infrared to BeamDial, which high-speed dials the number. It is available now for $50.

It has been designed to make it easy to use pre-paid phone cards, some of which require the user to dial 40 numbers.

Once a call is initiated, the user hears both the call being dialed and the ring tones through BeamDial's built-in speaker. When the user picks up the telephone handset, the dialer will automatically drop off the telephone line.

An application, BeamDial 1.12 , needs to be running on the handheld in order to use the dialer. It is compatible with all models running Palm OS 3.1 and up.

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Cool... but...

I.M. Anonymous @ 5/24/2002 1:59:07 PM #
This is pretty cool, I'm thinking of buying one, but their website and ordering procedures seem shady.
huh?
stephen007 @ 5/24/2002 2:27:05 PM #
Shady in what way?

RE: Cool... but...
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/24/2002 9:48:33 PM #
Look at how you order, it's just a regular form and there's no security or encryption on either. And the only other way to order it is to fax in your order with your info and credit card number. If they had secure ordering or a better way to pay then it wouldn't be shady.
RE: Cool... but...
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/25/2002 9:09:04 AM #
Well, there's nothing wrong with FAXing an order to them.
RE: Cool... but...
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/25/2002 4:50:37 PM #
I agree with the original posting. I'm pretty skeptical of any website that does not have a phone number I can call.

Cool toy....

I.M. Anonymous @ 5/24/2002 2:00:21 PM #
looks like a cool toy...but 50 bucks? i dont think im THAT lazy to have my palm dial the telephone for me...I would buy it if i was dyslexic.
RE: Cool toy.... same here
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/24/2002 2:32:06 PM #
same here. although its almost worth $50 (considering a lot of Sh$t people sell for $50 nowadays), id probably pass on this. i will get this if its $30 and seen on local stores which i can return if it doesnt work that well.

but i must admit that this is a great concept! keep it up though. we need more things like this introduced.

RE: Cool toy....
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/24/2002 4:39:54 PM #
I am dyslexic and I would not buy it.
RE: Cool toy....
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/25/2002 10:44:33 AM #
who are they trying to sell this thing too? i mean...it cant be businesses if their gimic is 'you can now dial phone card numbers with ease'...which is kinda cheesy sounding anyway....i dont expect anyone to buy this...even dyslexics. maybe if it were 20 bucks.
RE: Cool toy....
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/28/2002 5:38:54 PM #
How on earth does this help a Dyslexic? A dyslexic has to dial a phone number on the telephone right? A Dyslexic would also have to select a name/number from the Palm to send to the unit right? It's the same problem! This unit is only useful for extremely lazy people or people who just must have the latest gadget. For Dyslexics it is useless.
RE: Cool toy....
Sales @ 5/28/2002 8:26:22 PM #
You are missing the real purpose of the product to dial
a lot of numbers quickly without mistakes using the
numbers store in your palm address book.

If you use calling cards you have to dial the 800 number
then a password and then the number you wanted to
dial. This can be upto 32 digits. If you make a mistake
you have to start over... Beamdial does it all automatically.

If you use a calling card the cost is 3.5 cents per minute
from low cost services MCI from Costco and ATT from
Sams club. So you can save 7-8 cents per minute.

If you dial a lot of international calls you have to dial a lot
more digits. You can use interntational call card for specific
countries that will save even more money.

The palm is a great tool for controlling dialing as it does not
have a boot up time and it is fast to access the numbers.

Regards, Sales at Beamdial...

OK, I'm confused

sreiser @ 5/24/2002 2:32:13 PM #
Their Site Says "With BeamDial you can save up to 70% on your long distance phone calls". How? I didn't see any mention of a partnership with a Long Distance Provider. Are they assuming that we are making operator assisted calls instead of dialing?

RE: OK, I'm confused
Midknyte @ 5/24/2002 5:04:27 PM #
You can configure it to use a calling card...

RE: OK, I'm confused
Sales @ 5/28/2002 8:32:08 PM #
You save money by having the Palm route your calls
through a pre-paid calling card service at 3.5 cents
per minute.

Beamdial will dial the 800 number, the passcode and
the number, high speed, automatically. For each
minute you use on long distance you can save
7-10 cents per minute over your 1-XXX-XXX-XXXX
normal service. The special rates are only
on pre-paid calling card but require dialing all the
extra digits upto 32. Using beamdail it does all
the dialling and it does it automatically.

If you have all your telephone numbers stored in the
palm address book and look them up when you make
calls. Now all you do is beam them to the beamdail unit
and it will dail the call.

Regards, Sales at Beamdial.

I have a free telephone dialer already!

montyburns @ 5/24/2002 2:44:23 PM #
it is called my finger.
(it works as an ear cleaner, too!)

RE: I have a free telephone dialer already!
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/24/2002 2:57:52 PM #
Isn't the ear cleaner the long, skinny part that fits in the slot thing on your PalmOS device? It also works as a phone dialler.
RE: I have a free telephone dialer already!
Sales @ 5/28/2002 8:37:43 PM #
Yes, you can use your finger.
But if you are using the low cost pre-paid card you have
to dial a lot of digits (32) 40+ for International.
You also have to dial them correctly each time.

If the numbers are in your address book why not have the
palm do it automatically. It will also redial. Save the
time, wear and tear on your fingers. Then you can save
them to clean the wax out of your ears...

Regards, Sales at Beamdial...



Beam Dialer?

I.M. Anonymous @ 5/24/2002 2:59:11 PM #
Coming soon to a dollar store near you!

Yawn, must be a slow news day.

This is a waste

I.M. Anonymous @ 5/24/2002 3:00:48 PM #
Couple comments here:
1: There web page nevers shows a decent size of this device. It could be huge.
2: Why would I carry another device to simply dial the phone when my handera and clie both do this natively.
3: The whole "save 60-70 % on calls using this device" is shady at best.

once someone actually tries this device, let us know how it goes, until then, no way....

RE: This is a waste
Altema @ 5/24/2002 3:12:37 PM #
You can get a general idea of the size if you go to their site, then click "support" and "installation help". Good thing there were some photos, as the device on the main page could be as small as a thumb (kinda looks like one too..), or as big as a watercooler. The product seems aimed at office installation (sales persons, helpdesk?) more than home or road use. If i was still helping run a helpdesk, I'd consider it, but not for my current job.

RE: This is a waste
Fammy @ 5/24/2002 4:41:37 PM #
It says it only works with analog phone lines. Correct me if I am wrong, but aren't most major business customers' phone lines non-analog (digital)? I know we have one analog line at work so we can test our websites over AOL dial-up. A regular modem won't work. I doubt this product would either. It's one of those "we made it because we could" not because it'll be useful (especially at $50).


_____
Jason
how does your clie do this natively?
choong @ 5/25/2002 12:18:03 AM #
when you mean natively, i'm assuming there's an app? cos, i don't quite get how the clie can do this 'out of the box' which is what "natively" means to me.

please let me know. it would be cool to see how...

thanks.

andrew.

RE: This is a waste
Berliner @ 5/25/2002 1:24:46 AM #
There's a free dialer program "DTMF Dialer for CLIE 1.0":

http://makeashorterlink.com/?M10441FE

It's pretty cool. And works.

-B.

...Wherever you go, there you are...

RE: This is a waste
WireLes @ 5/25/2002 11:21:48 AM #
I agree, this would be great on a help desk if it worked on digital lines. The help desk in my workgroup is manned by 10 different people all but one of whom I have influenced into using a Palm OS pda. Now we just look up the # and have to manually dial it. This would be a great feature built right into your desktop phone. Nortel, Siemens, Toshiba, Meridian are you listening? Patent, did somebody say patent?

FTAO Berliner
choong @ 5/25/2002 12:16:23 PM #
Thanks very much for this. I've just downloaded it...

Regards,

Andrew.

RE: This is a waste
Altema @ 5/25/2002 7:56:53 PM #
Yes Jason, most helpdesk phone systems are digital, thanks for jarring my memory. I should have remembered that because I had to setup an analog backup system for our helpdesk for y2k.

RE: This is a waste
Sales @ 5/28/2002 8:43:28 PM #
1: There web page nevers shows a decent size of this device. It could be huge.

The Beamdial unit is small contains 3 AA batteries so is self powered and fits
in your hand.

2: Why would I carry another device to simply dial the phone when my handera and clie both do this natively.

Beamdial is designed to operate with your home or hotel phone and plug in.
Beamdial has a speaker so you can monitor the call in progress.
Beamdial dials high speed DTMF directly on the telephone line FCC type.
Beamdial was target to give high speed long distance bypass
using prepaid calling services.


3: The whole "save 60-70 % on calls using this device" is shady at best.

Shady ??? If you purchase a prepaid calling card at Costco or Wallmart
the cost is 3.5 cents per minute. If you use this service instead of
you current long distance service 1+ dailing you can save at least 7 cents
per minute. If you purchase special pre-paid International calling cards
you can save even more on International country specific dailing.

Search the internet for pre-paid calling cards and you will see the many
offers for lower cost alternative long distance and international dialing.
The Beamdail provides a convient way to dail all the numbers using
the address book in the palm.

Regards, Sales at Beamdail....


Needs integration into a Speaker-Phone

I.M. Anonymous @ 5/24/2002 3:02:38 PM #
This way, you would NEVER have to touch a phone!
RE: Needs integration into a Speaker-Phone
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/27/2002 9:00:27 AM #
What and put all those telephone sanitizers out of jobs? :-)

Predict it will be $10 in a year

ardee @ 5/24/2002 3:15:36 PM #
Not a bad idea, but it (or a close copy -- hope they have patent protection) should be about $10 in about a year.


RE: Predict it will be $10 in a year
Sales @ 5/28/2002 9:11:01 PM #
Thanks, that make us all feel good here...

Regards, Sales at Beamdial

I downloaded a free copy

crustyedgeofinnovation @ 5/24/2002 4:13:41 PM #
just go to their site and download a fre copy. I still can't get mine to work though :-)

RE: I downloaded a free copy
Ninja @ 5/24/2002 6:59:27 PM #
I think you have to have the hardware device also not just the software. I mean isn't that where the fifty bucks comes into play. I think they better start using SSL on their order page though. Otherwise even people who might be willing to pay that much might think twice before forking over their credit card info on an unsecure page.

RE: I downloaded a free copy
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/25/2002 9:19:08 AM #
Man.... doesnt anybody understand a joke when they see one anymore?
RE: I downloaded a free copy
Ninja @ 5/26/2002 7:22:00 PM #
So what is the joke that they are trying to charge 50 bucks for this and get you to give your credit card info on an unsecure page.

Forget IR do Bluetooth

I.M. Anonymous @ 5/24/2002 8:54:54 PM #
A product like this screams for Bluetooth. Pointing the Palm to the device can be a pain considering desktop clutter can easily block the IR path. This is a good start but the following will make this killer:

* Have a Bluetooth link to avoid a line of site.
* Make it a USB device that links into the Palm desktop or Outlook and it will dial from a PDA or desktop organizer apps.
* Package it as a PC card for laptops.
* Sell it as a software only product that uses existing Bluetooth radios and Bluetooth cell phones.
* Have the software track call history and select a calling plan on the fly considering the number dialed and location the call is originating.

I'll wait for the 2.0 rev.

RE: Forget IR do Bluetooth
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/25/2002 9:02:49 AM #
Why would I need extra hardware (or software) for a desktop/laptop app like this? I can already dial people in my Outlook contact list with my modem.

Why Bluetooth? I would need to be in the line of sight of the phone anyhow. Unless I want to dial people and not actually talk to them.

RE: Forget IR do Bluetooth
Sales @ 5/28/2002 9:08:19 PM #
Blue tooth modules are too expensive at this time.

However, IR on the Palm works very well. It does
vary in performance from unit to unit. We have
some units that will communicate greater than 10ft
away.

Regards, Sales at Beamdial....

Like most Palm hardware...

I.M. Anonymous @ 5/27/2002 1:46:33 AM #
This is about as useful as a Springboard.
RE: Like most Palm hardware...
TDS Computer @ 5/27/2002 11:18:30 AM #
"About as useful as a Springboard"??
My springboards are quite useful. I use my Memplug daily, My Xircom Wireless Ethernet, Modem, and Camera almost every week. Springboards are quite useful.
This device would only be useful if it could integrate with a digital phone, though. Analog phones really only are popular in peoples homes. I suppose if you run a home based business it would be OK...

Visit us at www.tdscomputer.com
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