Dialpad is an all-in-one voice-over-IP (VoIP) platform that provides voice calling, messaging, and meetings in a single app. In previous reviews, we’ve observed that Dialpad leans heavily on software innovation to distinguish its offering. It has delivered several improvements since our last review; in fact, it releases updates every two weeks. (It’s up to you to decide how comfortable you are with that pace.) Overall, we were pleased with the latest enhancements to the platform, most notably some upgrades to its AI-powered Voice intelligence (Vi) feature.
Dialpad Pricing and Plans
Dialpad’s tiered pricing structure is unchanged from before and starts at $15 per user per month billed annually, or $20 if billed monthly. This makes it one of the less expensive products in this roundup overall, along with the likes of 8×8 XCaaS. A free trial is available.
A new Pro tier costs $25 per user per month and requires a minimum of three licenses. However, for the added cost, you gain 24/7 support, support for local calling in 50+ countries, CRM integrations, and unlimited text-only meetings for up to five hours duration each, among other perks. An Enterprise offering is also available if you have 100 seats or more, but Dialpad doesn’t disclose pricing for this tier. The most important advantage at the Enterprise level is support for identity management integration with Okta and OneLogin.
This time around, the video conferencing add-on previously known as UberConference has been rebranded as Dialpad Meetings. It has the same limitations as before: Dialpad Meetings adds video conferencing to any tier of the basic product for free if your meetings are limited to 10 participants and 45 minutes or less. For more than 10 participants and meetings of up to five hours in length, you’ll need to upgrade to a Business meetings plan, which will add $15 per user per month to your base plan.
User Experience
Like the other products in this roundup, Dialpad offers desktop softphone clients for Windows and macOS. However, it’s also possible to do everything through a web browser if you don’t want to install an app. This makes Dialpad accessible from literally anywhere you can access the Internet (provided you have a suitable headset or microphone and speakers available).
This time around, Dialpad has upgraded the desktop experience to function more like a communications hub, with the addition of Slack-like chat channels and the ability to launch a voice chat with one or more contacts.
As mentioned earlier, you’ll need an Enterprise plan to connect to a corporate identity service. But Dialpad does support user authentication with Gmail, Google Workspace, and Microsoft 365 accounts out of the box. This not only makes it easier to connect users to it, but it also simplifies and automates the syncing and updating of contact and calendar information without any additional steps required.
We’ve always been impressed with Dialpad’s mobile app, which is available for iOS and Android and duplicates the functionality of the desktop and web apps. Unlike some other products, you can easily switch between mobile and the other apps by initiating the transfer from the device you want to switch from.
We were disappointed to see that the HD Calling feature of the mobile app was still listed as Beta as of this review. Nonetheless, when we tried it over Wi-Fi, the voice quality was more than acceptable. Dialpad has also added the ability to do video calling on mobile devices, which puts it on par with products like Microsoft Teams Phone.
Administration
You administer Dialpad from a central web page, much like the other products in this roundup. All administrative functions launch from the settings icon on the main page. A quick start function steps you through the different configuration items, including setting business hours, creating departments and groups, establishing call routing rules, and uploading or recording audio messages.
Some features, like Voice Intelligence, must be enabled at the company, office, or shared line level. It’s also possible to configure Vi preference for individual users, departments, or groups. Individual users can disable Vi with a single click on a per-call basis.
The Admin console allows you to specify things like business hours so that calls at odd hours are forwarded directly to voicemail. For the latest release, a new Failover Settings feature allows you to choose what to do should there be a general service outage, including forwarding to a non-Dialpad number. While all VoIP companies claim a high service availability number, the reality of cloud service interruptions makes this a welcome addition.
The new geographic call routing feature allows you to direct incoming calls to a specific number based on the incoming area code. This is particularly useful for sales organizations looking to connect regional buyers to the closest representative.
The Analytics page displays call volume over time in a graphical chart along with a call count breakdown graphic showing inbound and outbound calls with details about call initiation, missed or unanswered, and more. One thing missing from this report is call quality information, which other products we tested, including Editors’ Choice RingCentral MVP, provide.
What Is Voice Intelligence?
One of Dialpad’s most-touted selling points is its Voice Intelligence feature, mentioned above. This voice- and language-recognition engine powered by artificial intelligence (AI) provides several features. The most prominent of these is automatic transcription of voice calls, which is enhanced by machine learning (ML) to improve over time.
Improvements to the Voice intelligence (Vi) feature have resulted in better accuracy of voice transcription and in identifying action items for both calls and meetings. Call summaries can be sent to meeting participants for follow-up.
Another item under the Voice Intelligence tab is Real Time Assist cards, which are designed to hold specific information or instructions for call-takers in certain situations. You have to create these cards manually, but Dialpad’s Vi feature can display them automatically when it detects certain trigger words or phrases in the voice conversation. So, for example, when Dialpad detects that a caller is asking for your business’s street address, the call recipient can automatically be shown the addresses of relevant locations. Still another feature, called Custom Moments, uses custom trigger words or phrases for post-call review and coaching.
The Software Advantage
Because it’s so software-focused, Dialpad also concentrates on its integration capabilities. The list of integrations has grown each time we’ve tested it. Examples include HubSpot, Intercom, Microsoft Teams, Salesforce High Velocity Sales, Slack, and Zendesk.
Among the new integrations added since we last looked at it is Miro Whiteboard, which connects the shared whiteboard concept to Dialpad’s meetings feature.
An app marketplace web page shows all available integrations along with a search tool if you don’t see what you need. Some integrations, like Slack, offer similar functionality to that found in Dialpad but address the need to integrate with products a company already has in place.
A Software-Driven Solution for SMBs
Dialpad continues to deliver a solution for small-to-medium organizations that’s cost-competitive and delivers features not found in other products, particularly its AI-driven Voice Intelligence. It’s still weak in some areas, such as call quality reporting, but its rapid development cycle suggests it will continue to add features based on customer demand. Organizations looking for a modern VoIP solution that ditches old paradigms in favor of software-driven voice communications would do well to check out the free trial.
