VoIP Planet has posted this review of two different versions of the Asterisk PBX package. It's a nice review of both offerings. It does cover one of my favorite bonuses with ABE, the access to Digium's Support. Here is an excerpt from their review:
" In the first two parts of this sub-series we we looked at how to get the open source, free-of-cost AsteriskNOW, how to install and test it, and how to perform essential system administration tasks such as getting administrator and root passwords in order, keeping the system updated, and how to install and remove software. Today we're going to compare AsteriskNOW to the not-free-of-cost Asterisk Business Edition, and take a look at some of Digium's other shiny new offerings."
Does money buy happiness?
Of course it does, and anyone who denies it has never experienced poverty. Or tried to set up an Asterisk server. While I think do-it-yourselfers are the finest folks on Earth, sometimes it's more cost-effective to buy help.
When should you consider buying the Business Edition?
* You want to get up and running as quickly as possible
* You want ongoing maintenance and support
* You are not an experienced Linux administrator
* People on the
Asterisk mailing list are telling you "
Dude, you really need to buy the supported version"
The last one is a highly reliable indicator. The Asterisk users mailing list is high-volume and very helpful. It's rare that you can't find answers there. So if the nice folks on the list are saying your needs are too great for the free edition, you should probably take them seriously. So—the Business Edition gives you the official support from smart Digium persons. What else?
In my not-at-all-humble opinion, its most important features are priority quality control and bug fixes. According to
Bill Miller, ace Digium spokesmodel, the Business Edition receives over 1,500 quality-assurance tests. The current edition is based on the well-pummeled Asterisk 1.2, rather than the newly released 1.4. It's also a complete software appliance, built on rPath Linux. You get actual printed manuals and several choices for additional custom services, such as hands-on configuration help and custom development.
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