Nortel IP Phone 1200 Series

We have a mixture of around 400 1220′s and 1230′s (mostly 1220′s) in our newest facilities. So far we have been very happy with them and have all but stopped buying the 1100 series.

The 1200′s are significantly cheaper than the 1100 series, but for a good reason. They only have a 2 point adjustable base (which i find to be mildly annoying), a lower res screen that is not backlit, and no bluetooth.

Still, they have their pros as well. The 1200 series is solid color molded plastic unlike the painted 1100 series (which scratches easily). You also have discrete navigation buttons (thank you!!) and with the 1230, you have ten discrete line keys as opposed to six with the 1140.

If the cons mentioned above do not matter to you, the cost difference should make your purchasing decision a no brainer.

Avaya claims in their roadmap that both the 1100 and 1200 series phones would be SIP supported. We’ll see how that plays out.

One item of note. In my own personal experience I have seen the off hook button problem with *many* of our 1100 series phones. I got so frustrated that I tore apart one of our affected sets to see exactly what was causing the problem.

It turns out that the U-shaped spring/clip that sits underneath the off hook button loses its ‘spring’ after repeated use. I compared this clip to those used in the 200x series and it ‘appears’ identical. The only conclusion I was able to reach is that material & manufacturing differences allowed an inferior part to be used in their newest handsets.

We have several thousand barney phones in use and in the eight years I’ve been working with them I’ve seen maybe ten of them fail due to an off hook button.

I have yet to see this issue in the 1200 series in a little over a year of heavy use.

We have about 5250 IP phones. A mixture of 1120, 1140, 1220, 1230, 2210, 2211, 2004P1, 2004P2, and 2050 soft clients.

- Wes