3Com is marketing the 3108 wireless VoIP phone as a perfect fit for doctors and nurses, teachers, and government employees, but it also might be a good fit for anyone who roams a large office or campus setting. The new 3Com phone is designed to make or accept VoIP calls from anywhere within range of a wireless hotspot.

Voice over IP took a few steps away from the computer this week as 3Com released the new 3108 Wireless Phone, an IP-based handset that lets you make Internet calls through wireless networks.

The 3Com 3108, which employs 802.11b/g wireless and the Session Initiation Protocol (a standard used for conferencing across networks), has all the features of a standard cell phone, including address book, call log, speed dialing, and ring tones.

You can configure settings directly on the phone or by connecting it to a PC. Additionally, the 3108 uses WPA2 security and AES encryption to keep calls private.

You can make or accept VoIP calls from anywhere, as long as you are within range of a wireless hotspot.

When conducting a call, whether incoming or outgoing, you can use all the features of a traditional phone system, including transferring the call to others, putting callers on hold, and listening to voice mail.

And, because you're on the network, you can access your e-mail and other data applications from the phone.

What's missing are the per-minute charges you'd suffer while using your cell phone. Because the phone relies on VoIP, calls on the 3108 Wireless Phone are basically free.

Made for Walkin'

3Com is marketing the phone as a perfect fit for doctors and nurses, teachers, and government employees, but it also might be a good fit for anyone who roams a large office or campus setting.

Other manufacturers have wireless VoIP phones on the market, but the 3Com 3108 is one of the first models to use the Session Initiation Protocol. The SIP protocol enables call-management functions to be embedded in the phone, rather than in the network infrastructure, as with standard phones.

The data functions are delivered in a peer-to-peer fashion that is system-independent, meaning the phone can work with any SIP-compliant, IP-capable PBX system.

The 3108 is available now and costs $415.