Our 'start-up' mode client needed a PBX for their small fast-growing business.  We surveyed the local market place and found all the traditional solutions and a few 'on the edge' of traditional.  But, they all required an investment of $3k to $5k.

Vendor                                   Investment    VoiceMail                 Warranty
=====================   ========   ==============   =======
Panasonic                                 5,550.44       2-ports 64-boxes       2-years
NEC Electra Elite IPK II            5,179.00       4-ports 128-boxes     1-year
Avaya                                         5,347.01        4-ports                       1-year
Nortel                                         4,973.41        4-ports 10-boxes       2-years
Digium w/Asterixk                     1,540.00        Components
Fonality PBXtra Standard           995.00       Components
Tribox Appliance base               999.00       PC-based
AllWorx 6X                                4,000.00       Components             1-year
TalkSwitch                                 3,200.00       Components              1-year (Cheaper for as few as 12 extensions)
OneBox Receptionist                $80mth        Remote via E-mail     N/A
                                        + setup onetime <$50

Then we discovered the increasingly established array of virtual PBX services that fit the bill.  There are several virtual PBX vendors but we found onebox to have the best feature-rich/low-pricing match to our client's small business needs, and particularly the requirement to integrate cell phones (or any in-place phone) into the virtual PBX's operation.

After signing up and going though a somewhat daunting set-up procedure (their sales and later tech support folks did assist) we found ourselves with a very workable solution, that included a long list of features and benefits.  Here are just a few of our favorites:

1. A virtual receptionist welcomes callers in a professional voice to offer an auto-attendant menu of choices.
2. Callers can access a dial-by-name directory of staff members
3. Each staff member has what's called a 'Personal Assistant' that is much more than just a mail box.  They can --use it to ring multiple phones simultaneously, --set-up a cascading order of phone numbers to be called in sequence, --schedule their availability and otherwise direct callers to voicemail, personalize greetings and messages, and MUCH -more.
4. Voice mail messages are all forwarded as file attachments to regular E-mail accounts, or staff members can use the onebox 'built-in' E-mail client.
5. Each 'Personal Assistant' mail box can be set up with a personalized phone number to permit --calling staff members directly, --faxes sent to that personalized number are automatically converted to acrobat files and delivered via E-mail, and --more.
6. Calls received or made through the services can easily be transferred to the extensions of other staff members no matter where they happen to be.
7. Administration is web-based making it possible to implement additions or changes anytime most anywhere, anytime.

There are many Virtual PBX vendors worth checking out.  Here are a several that we evaluated as being among the major competitors:

Company            Website                        Entry Pricing    Extensions     Add. Extensions        Minutes
===========  ================== ==========  ==========  ===============  =======
Access Direct     messagingservice-com   49.45               5                    10.00 for 5                 500
eVoice
 Receptionist      evoicereceptionist-com   29.95               3                     9.99 each                1000
Gotvmail             gotvmail-com                  9.95               unlimited          unlimited                   100
Innoport             innoport-com                   9.95                5                    (next level)                 150
My1voice           my1voice-com               10.00                1                    (next level)                 100
OneBox             onebox-com                  49.94                4                    11.99 each               2000
Pat Live              patlive-com                   74.95                unliminted       unlimited                       ?
Phone.Com        phone-com                     9.88*              10                    ?                              300
Phone People     phonepeople-com           9.95                 5                   (next level)                 100
Powerfone          powrfone-com                29.95              15                    n/a                            500
Ring Central       ringcentral-com                9.99                5                    (next level)                100
Virtual PBX        virtualpbx-com                 9.95                 5                   15.00 for 5                 100
Voice Shot         voiceshot-com               25.00                unlimited         unlimited                   275

                                       (* if paid annually, for websites --> copy, paste and correct)

If you're 'PBX challenged' we encourage you to consider this type of solution.  Our client is pleased that we did! 

We recently found a useful price & feature comparison at: www-solo-tradepub-com/free/w_tipp15/pf/w_tipp15.pdf (<-- copy, paste and correct).

If you're considering a real or virtual PBX you may be interested in our guide titled: Internet Phone Services-The Who, What, Why and How?

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