Overview

Although many administrators might gloss over this chapter in the book, it is likely one of the most important. The concept of user experience is often an overlooked idea and yet vital to a successful unified communications (UC) deployment. Although IT success is often measured by metrics and numbers, they rarely tell the whole story. UC adoption can be viral, but only if the right tools are in place and end users have a quality experience. The back end infrastructure is certainly important; however, end users never see any of it. What they use everyday is a UC endpoint.

UC endpoints encompass a wide range of devices. Although some argue that PCs should be included, others suggest that they provide a poor experience and a dedicated, purpose-built device such as a headset or IP/USB phone should be used for an optimal experience. For that reason, we leave laptops and PCs out of the discussion for this chapter.

Microsoft ensures that specific devices meet set user experience quality levels through a third-party test and evaluation process. These devices are labeled “Optimized for Microsoft Lync.” Without getting into a sales pitch over what’s the best, the key point is to recognize that devices certified to work with Lync are sure to provide a quality end user experience. In addition, the Lync client will always prefer Optimized for Microsoft Lync devices over standard devices. At launch, Microsoft announced more than 60 optimized devices ranging from wired and wireless headsets to webcams to IP phones to conference devices. Lync Optimized devices are literally plug and play. The Lync Communicator client will find them automatically as soon as they are plugged in and start using the device.

This chapter covers a wide range of devices including the following:

• Standalone IP phones

• USB headsets, speakerphones, and handsets

• Webcams

• Conferencing devices

Finally, the chapter concludes with best practices for choosing and deploying UC endpoints for a variety of scenarios.