BeoCom 3 ISDN Telephone

Manufactured: 2001 - present
Designer: Designit A/S
Colours: Blue, Black, Red, Green, Silver, Grey

" Whether it's for business or pleasure, BeoCom 3 increases your communication options. You'll always find a BeoCom telephone that matches your needs when it comes to intelligent features and placement options. "

BeoCom 3 makes the use of latest ISDN technologies to bridge the gap between the home and workplace. With it, two telephone conversations can be held at one time, or access the Internet can be made while simultaneously talking on the telephone. BeoCom 3 offers integrated support for the advanced tele-services offered on the ISDN net. With the raised front panel and intelligent layout, day-to-day operation couldn't be simpler. The wheel allows instant access to the extended internal phone book, while the large display gives an immediate overview of the options and functions open to you.

BeoCom 3 is already available in: Denmark, Germany, Norway and Sweden. Later to be introduced to: Austria, Belgium, France, Italy, Holland, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland.

As the barriers between work and play disappear, good communication is a matter of making the latest digital technology work for you - wherever you are. That’s what the new BeoCom 3 is all about - an ISDN telephone that breaks down barriers and puts you in charge. A strong, functional design gives BeoCom 3 a strong visual identity. The handset sits upright beside a raised front panel that rests upon a ring of coloured zinc. The BeoCom 3 handset sits comfortably in the hand and is easy to lift-up and replace in its specially designed ‘cup’. ISDN technology has opened a whole new world of possibilities, but they’re only worth having if they’re easy to access and simple to use. BeoCom 3 offers integrated support for a wide range of these services and ensures an intelligent and logical operation.

Assign two telephone numbers to BeoCom 3 and identify them with their individual ringing tones. Give your telephone and fax machine separate numbers, or access the Internet while simultaneously talking on the telephone. You can forward a call to another number, put an incoming call on hold, or enjoy a three-party conference call. Regardless of whether you use the lightweight handset, the hands-free speaker, or the optional headset connection - the excellent sound quality of BeoCom 3 remains the same.

Whether it’s for the busy home, the home office or the small business environment, BeoCom 3 is a tabletop telephone that looks good wherever it’s placed - and whatever angle you look at it from.

Designing BeoCom 3

In designing the new ISDN telephone, Bang & Olufsen Telecom A/S used the services of the design house Designit A/S of Denmark. Being an ISDN phone, the phone had to be able to handle two-lines and be suitable for the office and home alike. And being Bang and Olufsen, the phone should have style written all over it!

In carrying out the task, Designit assembled a multidisciplinary team of industrial designers and interface designers; having identified the essentials the team began to generate concepts and visions in an exploration of different directions that the phone should take into becoming a viable and working product. The basic composition with the raised front panel, standing handset and intelligent layout was chosen and refined in close collaboration with Bang & Olufsen until final production.

User interface for BeoCom 3

Given an outline for the required features, Designit was asked to design an efficient interface for easy use. It was decided to keep everything as intuitive and as simple as possible. Necessary text and simple icons were chosen, again by closely adhering to the requirements set out by Bang & Olufsen. The result was a stylish and very functional telephone, bridging the gap between business and pleasure by supporting easy use of both basic and advanced features such as two calls at a time, easy access to advanced tele-services and extended phone book features.

BeoCom 3 was awarded the iF Design Award 2002 for outstanding design which the company had recieved for the 7th time!

BeoCom 3, Bang & Olufsen's first 100% ISDN telephone, has been selected as the winner of the prestigious iF design award 2002 in the product design category. Given by International Forum Design of Hannover, the official awards presentation will take place on 13th March 2002 at CeBIT in Hannover, Germany. This marks the 7th time a Bang & Olufsen Telecom product has been honoured by iF.

Citing the combination of outstanding ergonomics, functionality, degree of innovation and design quality, the jury selected BeoCom 3 from amongst a field of 1,900 entrants. iF design awards are given in the following five categories: Product-, Packaging-, Transportation-, Public-, and Communication Design. All recipients of this years iF design awards will be on display ah the iF Design Center at the Hannover Fairgrounds until 30th September 2002.

"BeoCom 3 is the perfect communication tool for the busy home, home office or small business environment. Combining design elements such as the ergonomic handset, shaped to draw associations to a quill pen in an ink well, with all the technological features from the ISDN world, BeoCom 3 is yet another example of the synergy effects that form the foundation of our work in the Bang & Olufsen group. It is a great honour to once again be recognised by iF", says Managing Director of Bang & Olufsen Telecom Peter Eckhardt.

With its raised front panel and intelligent layout, the day-to-day operation of BeoCom 3 couldn't be simpler. The wheel allows instant access to the 200 name and number phone book, while the large display ensures an immediate overview of all the options and functions on offer. Regardless of whether the user chooses to use the handset, hands-free speaker or headset connection, the sound quality remains excellent.

BeoCom 3´s light and sculptural design ensures that this is a telephone that looks good wherever it's placed - and whatever angle you look at from. Available in blue or black, the ultra-light handset sits easily in the specially designed "cup" and has no restrictions on how it can be placed.

BeoCom 3 was designed in co-operation between Designit of Århus, Denmark and Bang & Olufsen Telecom. It was launched in Spring 2001, and is now available in Denmark, Norway, Germany and Switzerland.

About the iF design award

The iF design award has been staged since 1954, and today is regarded as one of the most important design competitions worldwide. It attracts over 1,900 entries from 35 different countries every year. The jury, composed of top international designers, not only critically examines and selects the award-winning entries, but also guarantees iF's special status and the high-quality reputation of the iF label.

Previous Bang & Olufsen iF design award recipients:

1990: BeoCom 1000, BeoCom 2000

1992: BeoCom 1500

1995: BeoCharger 9500

1996: BeoCom 5000

1997: BeoTalk 1100

BeoCom 3 Features

Function: corded telephone, hands-free

System: ISDN

Placement: table

Colours: Base - aluminium, handset - blue, black

Phonebook: 200 names / numbers

Optional: headset