On Hold Plus Bows New On-Hold Device

Staff On Aug 6 2001 - 6:00am

On Hold Plus has begun shipping the OHP 4500 digital on-hold audio system, which features an integrated analog-phone adapter to give consumers customized on-hold audio on analog home phones or small-business phone systems.

The $395-suggested-retail device unit lets users add music-on-hold capabilities to any conventional analog phone, including cordless models. Small businesses can also use the unit to provide music to most KSU-less telephones with up to four lines and 50 station sets.

The device complements the $399-suggested OHP 5000, which delivers on-hold audio through any phone that incorporates audio-on-hold functionality. These include conventional single- or multi-line telephones or more sophisticated business-phone systems.

The unit comes with MessageStudio software, which lets users create new on-hold content on their Windows 95 or Windows 98 PC, then transfer it in MP3 form directly into the OHP 4500's digital memory via a USB connection. The unit, which also ships with preloaded audio, features digital flash memory that can retain music and messages (standard capacity is eight minutes) during a power failure.

The unit also comes with a memory extension port that lets users expand recording capacity up to 32 minutes by adding additional memory cartridges.

A control panel displays program length, time remaining in the unit's memory and the unit's status. A trigger switch launches specific programs when the switch is pressed. External audio input jacks let users record from an external audio source, including tape, CD or personal computer. On-hold audio is monitored via a built-in monitor speaker.

The unit, which measures 9x7x2.25 inches, weighs 3 pounds. It can be mounted directly on a wall to play and record from a vertical position.