How to Verify the Lodgingstar work with our switch?
Lodgingstar telephones will with most industry standard PBX switches designed with an analog port card that can support a 90-volt neon message waiting light. The following are the most common systems, which support 90 volt NEON, are Hitachi, Mitel, NEC, and Nortel. The Lodgingstar series of telephones can also operate with a low voltage switches, such as Avaya. All our guestroom telephones have an automatic selection intelligent message waiting light, which will automatically configure the telephones Express Message Select? light to properly operate with both LED or NEON signal.

Should I select a 2-line phone?
Our 2-line Lodgingstar telephones allow the guest to talk on one or two lines and still operate their laptop computer in the guestroom. Our Auto Data Select? telephones automatically access the available line, preventing the hotel guest from having to determine which line is in-use while on the phone or operating a laptop. Business travelers and families using the Internet, in the guestroom will appreciate this feature.

What is the message waiting light designed for on your guestroom phones?
Our Lodgingstar Series telephones designed specifically for the guestroom and are equipped with a message waiting light that is designed to visually notify the guest of a message waiting and it also will flash when an incoming call is ringing. The Express Message Select? lighted speed dial key makes it easy for any guest to listen to their voice messages or call the front desk. It will automatically dial the location your have provided for your hotel guests with a single touch. They then have the option of listening on the speaker or the handset.

What are the most common message waiting light protocols on most PBX's? (For North America standards)
The following are the 2 most common message waiting light (MWL) protocols used in North America for hotels, and Lodgingstar series of phones will operate with both of them:

1. 90-volt neon Message Waiting Light:
This is the most common type of message waiting light and usually supports a "RED" neon lamp, and is the standard message waiting light in the hospitality industry. Our Lodgingstar guestroom phones with a message waiting light will support a 90-volt neon message waiting light. This type of message waiting light is supported by most of PBX products made by Hitachi, Mitel, NEC, and Nortel as well as other brands. The Avaya (Formally Lucent and AT&T) offer an optional power pack as an option to the standard Low Voltage message waiting light. Neon, High Voltage, or 90 Volts may refer also be used to identify it. The number of volts drawn from a neon message waiting light may vary and be in a range lower or higher, but will operate normally within the standard range.

2. Low Voltage LED Message Waiting Light:
The most common PBX using this format is Avaya formally (AT&T/Lucent) and possible some newer NEC switches. This message waiting light protocol is commonly referred to as Low Voltage, or LED in the industry. The Lodgingstar Series of guestroom phones with our Express Message Select? will support the most common LED message waiting light format without any modifications. This feature eliminates the uncertainty in selecting a new guestroom telephone for your property. This allows you to request our guestroom phones with confidence for most properties in North American.

Selecting the correct message waiting light format for your PBX? (For South America and the Caribbean, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Africa where a European standard (configuration) rather than North American is used.
Globally, in addition to the most common configurations in North America 90-volt neon message waiting light and the Low Voltage LED message waiting light systems used most often throughout North America, the following message waiting light systems are also infrequently in North America, but are very common throughout many parts of South America, Europe, Africa, and Asia, and include:

1. Reverse Polarity Message Waiting Light:
This is most common with the Alcatel PBX systems. They commonly use a 90-volt NEON MWL in North American; however, globally Alcatel deploys a rarely used method of a reverse polarity message waiting light technology in most areas where they sell their PBX's around the world. The Lodgingstar series includes an Alcatel compatible reverse polarity message waiting light option included in our Express Message Select?.

2. The Proprietary Siemens Message Waiting Light:
Siemens PBX systems have a proprietary message waiting light format internationally. Lodgingstar offers an internal modification for the Siemens message waiting light when required.

Getting the most our of your guestroom speakerphone?
The sound quality of your guest's calls when using a speakerphone will vary depending on the environment and PBX voltage. The following information is some basic tips for getting the best performance and guest satisfaction from Lodgingstar series of guestroom telephones with a speaker:

• Our guestroom speakerphones are designed for a normal guestroom environment. We recommend that they are not used where there is a lot of background noise. Other people's voices, stereos, televisions, printers, or other office type equipment can cause this. Try and place the phones away from the room air conditioning and heater fans if they blow close to your telephone.
• A speakerphone may a times sound hollow and/or echo sounds when it is used in an extremely acoustic room environment. Common causes of this include an unfinished room with plain plaster walls and ceilings, uncovered glass windows, and or uncarpeted floors. By avoiding this type of area the speakerphone will perform better.
• Instruct your guests not to put anything over the speaker mic hole when using your speakerphone. They should also avoid moving papers or other things right next to the microphone hole.
• Make sure that only one person is talking at a time and wait till the other caller is finished speaking. Two people cannot speak at the same time; it will cut one of you off. The term for this is clipping. We recommend muting your speakerphone mic if you will be listening to voice mail and other recorded messages on your speakerphone.
• If your guest is using the speakerphone they need to stay near the telephone for maximum clarity. They should not try to walk around the room away from the phone while speaking or listening.
• Our Guestroom speakerphones perform best when they are on your furniture in the room. This helps the sounds and allows the maximum sensitivity of the speakerphone to transmit the voice more clearly.
• We recommend that our guestroom speakerphones not be used in most conference rooms. They are not designed to be a conference speakerphone and we strongly recommended one for this application.

Suggestions for keeping your Guestroom Telephones clean?

IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO NEVER SPRAY ANY TYPE OF CLEANER into your telephone; it can drip into the telephone and damage the electronic parts inside. All telephones will be damaged if any liquid gets on the internal electronic parts. This type of damage may affect your warranty.

We suggest that you put the spray onto a clean cloth. By using a damp cloth you can wipe off the whole telephone surfaces clean. Fantastic or other no-rinse liquid sprays cleaner products are good for removing fingerprints, grease, or other similar dirt. We recommended that you avoid using abrasive or bleach cleaners like Comet, or Soft-Scrub. They may cause damage or dull the surfaces of your telephone.

Use a dry cloth to wipe the phone down after cleaning it. This should restore the
phone to a fresh appearance.

The Guest says their guestroom phone appears to not be working?
At times a guest may say their guestroom phone appears not to be working. We suggest that you have maintenance staff try several simple things as a first step before replacing the phone. The first thing to do is change all the cords, including the wall cord and the handset cord. The second step would be to try a different handset before deciding that the entire telephone needs to be replaced. We have found that the cords are the most prevalent cause of your telephone not working properly. We then suggest one final step before changing the phone if the cords and handset don't resolve the problem; test a similar phone that you known is working elsewhere. The problem could be in the wiring, or PBX and not the telephone at all.

Can I or the guest program speed dial keys on my phone?
If it is necessary to re-program the speed-dial memory keys on a guestroom telephone follow the instructions in your user book. DO not leave this in the room. You do not want the guests changing the pre-set programming. One reason may be some of the numbers programmed in the speed-dial keys may have been changed.

Quick Reference Guide to re-programming:
To reprogram a key on a Lodgingstar series phone, lift the handset, press <STORE>, dial the number to be stored, press <STORE> again, and then press the speed-dial key the number is to be stored in.

After re-programming a speed-dial memory key, check it by lifting the handset and pressing the programmed speed-dial key to verify that the correct number is dialed.

How does the Message Waiting Light ac as memory key memory on the Lodgingstar Series Guestroom phones to retrieve the guest's messages?
The Lodgingstar Series of telephones has a programmable memory key as the message light and can be programmed the same as the other memory keys:

How can I keep the faceplate clean on our telephones?
The faceplate is usually a paper area. It would be nearly impossible to clean the paper itself. You can remove the clear plastic faceplate overlay and clean it. This may correct or enhance the visibility.

Make sure that after you clean and dry the plastic overlay you put it back on the phone. This way you protect the printed-paper faceplate underneath.

We generally suggest that a property orders additional faceplates. They are going to be damaged by normal use and accidents. This will save your property money over time. You can order spare faceplates with the original order.

What causes sticky keys on my telephone and can they be easily cleaned?
NO. Liquid spilled on a phone is the most common cause of the buttons or keys sticking. It usually will require professional service or replace.

It is possible to try and clean sticky keys at the property. You could disconnect the telephone and remove both the clear and paper faceplate. Try using a cardboard paper about the size of a business card. You should cut it in to strips that fit into the cracks around the keypad and memory keys. This could clear up some of the sticky key problem.