Cisco Desk Series vs. Cisco Unified Communications Manager (Call Manager)

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Cisco Desk Series
Score 8.4 out of 10
N/A
A whiteboarding, videoconferencing and a second laptop display in one single device. The Cisco Desk Series delivers a collaboration experience to desks, in shared spaces, or small huddle spaces. Models include the Desk Pro, Desk, and Desk Mini. All Desk devices have advanced audio intelligence built in for distraction free meetings, a USB-C connection to pair devices wirelessly or dock a laptop.
$5,495
one-time fee **discounts available
Cisco Unified Communications Manager (Call Manager)
Score 8.6 out of 10
N/A
Call Manager is a unified call control center from Cisco that supports enterprise collaboration functions across the spectrum of IP telephony, video & web conferencing, and messaging. Features include call forwarding, call back, call transfer, ad hoc conferencing, and call park.N/A
Pricing
Cisco Desk SeriesCisco Unified Communications Manager (Call Manager)
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Cisco Desk SeriesCisco Unified Communications Manager (Call Manager)
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsMust contact sales team for pricing
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Cisco Desk SeriesCisco Unified Communications Manager (Call Manager)
Considered Both Products
Cisco Desk Series
Chose Cisco Desk Series
At first, it was picked because it could work with several other conference tools. While the Room gadgets are indeed remarkable, the Webex ecosystem as a whole is still immature and could use some fine-tuning. We looked into other options, including Cisco Unified
Cisco Unified Communications Manager (Call Manager)
Chose Cisco Unified Communications Manager (Call Manager)
We have been a Cisco based shop and have looked at other cloud voice options such as MS Teams pbx, and others, but ultimately, the features, endpoints, and reliability of Cisco has been the common factor in staying with them as our voice provider. Their integrations, room …
Top Pros
Top Cons
Features
Cisco Desk SeriesCisco Unified Communications Manager (Call Manager)
Cloud PBX
Comparison of Cloud PBX features of Product A and Product B
Cisco Desk Series
-
Ratings
Cisco Unified Communications Manager (Call Manager)
7.4
40 Ratings
10% below category average
Hosted PBX00 Ratings9.919 Ratings
Multi-level Interactive Voice Response (IVR)00 Ratings5.929 Ratings
User templates00 Ratings8.238 Ratings
Call reports00 Ratings5.037 Ratings
Directory of employee names00 Ratings8.038 Ratings
Call Management
Comparison of Call Management features of Product A and Product B
Cisco Desk Series
-
Ratings
Cisco Unified Communications Manager (Call Manager)
7.3
43 Ratings
15% below category average
Answering rules00 Ratings7.841 Ratings
Call recording00 Ratings5.526 Ratings
Call park00 Ratings8.037 Ratings
Call screening00 Ratings7.534 Ratings
Message alerts00 Ratings7.838 Ratings
VoIP system collaboration
Comparison of VoIP system collaboration features of Product A and Product B
Cisco Desk Series
-
Ratings
Cisco Unified Communications Manager (Call Manager)
7.7
39 Ratings
7% below category average
Video conferencing00 Ratings9.329 Ratings
Audio conferencing00 Ratings8.839 Ratings
Video screen sharing00 Ratings6.115 Ratings
Instant messaging00 Ratings6.518 Ratings
Mobile apps
Comparison of Mobile apps features of Product A and Product B
Cisco Desk Series
-
Ratings
Cisco Unified Communications Manager (Call Manager)
8.7
23 Ratings
5% above category average
Mobile app for iOS00 Ratings8.423 Ratings
Mobile app for Android00 Ratings9.121 Ratings
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User Ratings
Cisco Desk SeriesCisco Unified Communications Manager (Call Manager)
Likelihood to Recommend
8.6
(28 ratings)
9.2
(44 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
10.0
(1 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Usability
-
(0 ratings)
8.7
(4 ratings)
Support Rating
9.1
(1 ratings)
8.0
(14 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
User Testimonials
Cisco Desk SeriesCisco Unified Communications Manager (Call Manager)
Likelihood to Recommend
Cisco
The tool is great for having a day in and day out video calls with the client in today's COVID world, where physical interaction is limited and the best suited is for having meetings with clients and showcasing them the product demonstration, at a large scale as this has smooth video interaction and makes any large scale webinar a piece of cake while using it.
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Cisco
The Cisco Unified Communications Manager platform would be most suited for the below scenarios. 1. An organization with very restricted policies and compliance where can't move to cloud-based solutions for data security. They can install the CUCM on-premises. 2. An organization that is still on a legacy phone system could adopt CUCM to save costs and have better services.
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Pros
Cisco
  • It charges my laptop while being an amazing secondary monitor.
  • Optimizes the video and audio with superior sound and microphones.
  • A very nice compact digital whiteboard.
  • Hooks in with Webex meetings and Teams in such a seamless way.
  • Handles calling like a desk phone and is natural to use.
  • Looks so beautiful and is such a great addition to your desk.
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Cisco
  • This solution is extremely stable and has been running in our environment for several years without (unscheduled) downtime.
  • The ability to have voicemails automatically sent as an email message is extremely helpful in helping us to keep in touch while away from the desk.
  • The Call Manager provides us very granular settings to route our calls as we want.
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Cons
Cisco
  • The WebRTC function that's used for certain meeting types should include a progress bar. A lot of users think the device is frozen.
  • At entry, the price was a bit high. I haven't bought one recently.
  • More backgrounds would be nice.
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Cisco
  • Administration web page is little bit hard to understand at the beginning specially if you are not familiar with naming convention and GU Interfaces.
  • Call Detail Record interface is fine but would be desirable to include more options that fit organization needs in terms of reporting purposes.
  • Self Care Portal interface could be more useful to the end user if it includes options to manage some features without administrators involving.
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Likelihood to Renew
Cisco
Simple, Fantastic and always improving with software upgrades
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Cisco
We have been using this product for 20+ years and will continue too. This is a great product and new features are always coming out.
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Usability
Cisco
No answers on this topic
Cisco
Although it's very easy to use, once you understand the concepts of IP telephony, as I said before, I think Cisco could have improved the management interface of the platform, adding modern technologies and the design language of the other platforms like DNA Center, etc. This interface hasn't had a substantial improvement for about 10 years
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Support Rating
Cisco
I have not had to use support yet as our use of Webex Desk Pro is so new, but all the questions that I have had have been answered with such promptness and clarity that it is clear Cisco has a passion about this device and about providing high quality in all that they do. Their support is top notch and you will never need to fear when reaching out to them.
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Cisco
CUCM is supported by most third-party vendors for related products, so it makes finding solutions to specific needs easy. Also Cisco TAC is very knowledgeable, and we have never run into a problem they have not been able to resolve. Usually they are resolved without the need to escalate tickers either.
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Implementation Rating
Cisco
No answers on this topic
Cisco
This was the first phone system we implemented that could span multiple locations. We were very satisfied once fully implemented
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Alternatives Considered
Cisco
Organisation decided to went ahead with Cisco Webex Desk Pro becase of these following key differences: 1.- Microphone: Advanced noise-canceling microphone array vs Built-in microphone with Logitech MeetUp. 2.- Speakers: Superior Sound system vs Built-in speakerphone with Logitech MeetUp. 3.- Display: 27-inch 4K touchscreen vs. No touchscreen with Logitech MeetUp. Cisco TAC support is great.
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Cisco
We have been a Cisco based shop and have looked at other cloud voice options such as MS Teams pbx, and others, but ultimately, the features, endpoints, and reliability of Cisco has been the common factor in staying with them as our voice provider. Their integrations, room systems, and hybrid design allows for us to be flexible and keep a high up time vs reliance on 100% cloud.
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Return on Investment
Cisco
  • For team work, projects are completed sooner and you can make a profit
  • Saving time and this means the possibility of more profit
  • If the number of projects is large, the investment will return quickly
  • The software license fee is too high
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Cisco
  • Communication and collaboration - Our offices are able to communicate both internally and externally due to this system.
  • Down time - Struggles with CUCM has caused a lot of down time due to the instability of the system.
  • High Costs - the cost of both the license and the maintenance was much higher than other systems.
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ScreenShots

Cisco Desk Series Screenshots

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