Crystal clear sound

After I got married I had a little extra cash and knew I wanted a new phone for the house. With so many options out there it took me a while to decide what to get. After months of looking I finally decided on this phone. Let me explain why...
Choices, Choices

As I said - there are a LOT of options out there for phones. You have 2.4ghz, 5.8ghz, 900mhz, corded, with answering machine, without answering machine, and a myriad other options to choose from. Where do you begin?
Well, I began by listing some things I wanted - and didn't want - in a phone. I wanted it to be expandable so I could add other phones as I could afford them. I wanted clarity so the phone sounded good. I didn't want an answering machine because I've got one or two lying around and I use voice mail anyway. I also wanted something that had fairly good range.
The next step for me was to go to the local superstore and look at the different models. Hold them in your hand. Press the buttons. What feels comfortable to you? I'm a big guy and I have big hands so I didn't want something so small that my hands would cramp up while talking.

The VTech phone met the conditions I was looking for AND A WHOLE LOT MORE.

Features

I am going to try just to hit the major features because talking about all of them will fill a small novel. First - clarity. While you can't test this in the store, this phone sounds GREAT. I have never heard any static on this phone and interference does not seem to be a problem. When I am using it in my computer room it still sounds clear as crystal despite all of the electronics and radio frequencies running around in the enclosed space. With the digital spread spectrum the phone is able to switch to the best spectrum for a given set of circumstances. Again - I have NEVER heard any static on this phone.

Secondly - ease of use. You can program this phone much like a cell phone. In fact this phone even includes a CD and a USB cable so you can hook it up to your computer. You can download pictures, ring tones, etc... to this unit. It makes it really neat to have the same features on your home phone that your cell phone has. When my parents call their photo comes up on the full color screen and a special ring tone rings so I know who it is before I even check caller ID. REALLY COOL! The phone has just a few additional buttons and the process of using it is really straight forward. You can add and delete phone numbers as you need to and create your own phone book on the phone. While this is a really handy feature you cannot do it on your computer so it all must be done manually on the phone. You also cannot transfer it from one phone to another so as you expand the number of phones you have you have to program it all over again.

This handset had a feature I haven't seen very often on a cordless phone and it is one of the reasons I bought it. It has a built in speaker phone. I find this is really handy if you are checking voice mail or simply need to put the phone down for a second. Press the speaker phone and talk away - no need to worry about missing something the other person is saying. While it is a really handy feature it DOES sound like a speaker phone on the other end. You kind of sound like you are talking through a tunnel - but most speaker phones are like that.

The base of this unit also is a speaker phone so you can place a call from the base without using the handset. Since the base has this ability it makes it really handy to use as an intercom as well. You can press a button either on the handset OR the base and talk to the other phone or phones in the house. It's also handy when I am in that computer room and the wife wants me to come out and see daylight!!

This unit also allows you to plug in a headset and use the phone. The standard headsets that you would use for your cell phone will work in this unit. It is a REALLY nice feature! When I am in the kitchen cooking or working on something I can clip the phone to my belt, plug in the headset, and keep working and talking at the same time!

Batteries are another issue. Since this IS a cordless phone it does require batteries. On this phone it is not a problem because the batteries are your basic AA rechargeable batteries! The base will charge them and the phone works for quite a while on a single charge. The best part is that as the phone gets older and those batteries need to be replaced you will not have to spend months searching for a place that makes that specific brand of replacement battery! The base of this unit also has a place to hold spare batteries and will keep them charged. One added benefit to this is that these batteries will continue to power the unit in the event of a power outage. I used to keep at least ONE corded phone in the house because when the power died you were not able to make a single phone call! This system allows you to continue using your phone if you need to.

Setup

Setting this phone up was easy. You take all the parts out of the box, plug them in, type a code on the handset, and you are all set. It took me about 2 min.

This phone has a phenomenal range. I've taken the handset along with me on a couple of walks and the phone maintained connected with the base unit for nearly the entire trip. I do not walk that far - a couple of miles total in a little square around my house - but I would imagine 1/2 mile reception would be the average I got from this unit. I simply could not believe it!!!

Expanding this system is also really easy. Simply purchase a new expansion phone and plug it into the wall. No phone cable needed. Eventually I want to get rid of all the older cordless phones in the house and replace them with these phones. There are two types - one with the color screen and one with a basic two color screen. Both will have the same great quality but the two color one will save you some green.

Conclusions

Overall this phone has been a wonderful investment. While it is a little more expensive than other cordless phones the added benefits of the phone more than make up for this extra cost. My personal ideology is this - spend a little more once to keep from getting a cheap product several times. This phone will last me years I am sure and will more than pay for itself in savings of having to install phone plugs in every room of the house. I have recommended this to friends and they all were happy with this product.

The only downside I have found with this unit is size. My wife claims it is too big. I disagree with her. She is used to using a cell phone for all of her phone calls so a house phone WILL be bigger than that. I think it is a good thing. It is not heavy or bulky - and to my hand it actually feels a little small - but she wanted me to put this in here so here you go...

I would suggest grabbing one for yourself and see what it feels like to you. I am sure you will be happy with this phone.