AVM at CeBIT 2003: New FRITZ! Version 3.04 7 New FRITZ! Features Provide Added Value and Lower Costs
Berlin/Hanover (ots)
Internet Sharing with Traffic Shaping-Integrated Call Forwarding-Three Times the Fax Speed-MMS Over ISDN
The new Version 3.04 of AVM's ISDN software FRITZ! makes its debut at this year's CeBIT fair. The Berlin communications specialist carries on its tradition of added value through software upgrades. In the latest version, FRITZ!web shares Internet access with all computers in the LAN, and optimizes the flow of data through traffic shaping. Call forwarding, a capability for which network operators often charge a monthly supplement, is now incorporated in FRITZ!fon at no additional cost. Other new features in FRITZ! 3.04 include three times faster fax communication in FRITZ!fax, and MMS (the Multimedia Messaging Service) over ISDN.
FRITZ! Adds Value
Combining an ISDN-Controller with a full software package, FRITZ!Card is an all-in-one solution for data communications. AVM continually delivers new communication features and capabilities in the form of software upgrades. Effective protection against unauthorized dialing, fixed-line SMS, and color faxing are just a few examples of new technologies that have been supplied free in FRITZ! software upgrades. The FRITZ! 3.04 upgrade that premieres at CeBIT is no exception, providing new areas of application for existing FRITZ!Cards, both in stand-alone PCs and in the LAN.
FRITZ!web Now Offers Internet Sharing and Traffic Shaping
In small PC networks, the Internet connection managed by FRITZ!web can now be shared with the other PCs in the LAN. This means that web access for all networked PCs is just a few mouse-clicks away. For those who want to build such a LAN without all the trouble of cabling, the BlueFRITZ! products are the ideal hardware platform. Also in this version, AVM introduces to ISDN the traffic shaping technology that has recently proved advantageous in ADSL access. In LAN use, for example, this means that web surfing is significantly faster when downloads are taking place. Traffic shaping provides optimum handling of the incoming and outgoing data streams, and of different users' connections.
FRITZ!fon with Integrated Call Forwarding
The FRITZ!fon program has been expanded to include an integrated call forwarding capability over the second B channel. FRITZ! thus provides an ideal complement to conventional Call Deflection (forwarding by the ISDN operator's central office), with simplified operation. ISDN subscribers can use FRITZ!fon on a low-cost BRI ISDN line, and still enjoy such features as an answering machine, fax reception and call forwarding. And FRITZ!fon's intelligent call forwarding is especially economical for connections between different cellular operators' networks. For optimum savings, users can specify their home number as a "best friend" number for the cellular operator's special low rate. Then calls can be placed from the mobile phone to a number in a different mobile network by dialing first the home number, then the number of the actual destination. Because the first leg of the call enjoys the low "best friend" rate, the complete connection is often cheaper than a direct call from one mobile network to the other.
Fax Up to Three Times Faster
Thanks to a combination of compression techniques, the new FRITZ! version achieves up to three times the speed in fax transmission. In normal black-and-white operation, the fax speed is significantly increased by the lossless data compression technique JBIG. The JBIG standard (ISO/IEC 11544) has been adopted internationally and is used by many fax equipment manufacturers. As a special treat for all FRITZ! users, both black and white and color documents can now be faxed in "Fax64" mode, using ISDN's full native speed of 64 kbit/s. To obtain this fax speed, the receiving end of the connection must also be equipped with one of more than 11 million FRITZ!Cards in use today.
MMS Over ISDN
Another FRITZ! first at the AVM stand is "MMS over ISDN". MMS, the Multimedia Messaging Service, combines images, sound and text in a single transmission. As for SMS messaging, FRITZ! dials an available MMS service center over ISDN, which then forwards the multimedia messages to compatible mobile phones. FRITZ!mms also polls the PC's default e-mail account at regular intervals and automatically forwards any pending messages according to user-defined rules.
JBIG: Joint Bi-level Image Experts Group, the international standardization committee that has developed ISO/IEC 11544, the lossless compression standard for black-and-white images.
For further information:
AVM Computersysteme Vertriebs GmbH Alt-Moabit 95 10559 Berlin
Urban Bastert Head of Pubilc Relations Tel. +49-(0)30-39 97 62 14 E-mail u.bastert@avm.de
Betina Albers Press Officer Tel. +49-(0)30-39 97 66 45 Fax +49-(0)30-39 97 66 40 E-mail b.albers@avm.de
Original content of: AVM GmbH, transmitted by news aktuell