Buy a better phone for half the price
Written: Apr 10 '01
|
Product Rating:
|
|
|
Pros: Broad roving range.
Cons: Rough channel transitions. Poor component insulation. Bad headset handling.
The Bottom Line: Thumbs down. Noticeable channel switches, poor component insulation, and lousy voice quality with the headset jack.
|
|
|
| Betwixt's Full Review: Panasonic KX TG2400 2.4 GHz 1-Line Cordless Phone |
REASON FOR BUYING:
One day I lost all patience with my old wireless. I'd wander 20 feet away from the base unit and the static would make all conversation impossible. There I was, explaining to clients that they had to hold for a moment while I got a cup of coffee. Or rather, there I was, NOT getting a desperately needed cup of coffee while trying to explain to a customer why their full bleed photo layout was less than feasible on their new web site. Sigh.
In the trash it went. (Later of course I fetched it out and put it in my bedroom... reasoning that most calls picked up in bed weren't likely to involve much wandering) You get the idea.
THE REQUIREMENTS:
Wandering. I live in a two story apartment that is less than 1000 square feet. It's a terrific place, and it's certainly not too much to ask to be able to roam anywhere I please during a call.
Call clarity. I make my living in the high tech industry where your credibility is only as good as the quality of your toys, er - tools.
Security. Heaven forbid someone HAM radio operator snoop my calls to my girlfriend about that hottie I met at the karaoke bar!
Convenience. I wanted to go handsfree. Not only do I want to be able to roam as I please, but I want to do so while making copies, feeding the cat, looking up information on the web, or anything else that I could be doing instead of pressing a hunk of plastic & silicon to my ear.
THE RESULTS:
In truth, I first picked up a slick little silver V-Tech number at about $170 because it claimed to have a pickup/speaker on the handset. This would mean I wasn't even stuck with a headset. It sounded ideal. Forget it. That's a separate review. Not worth the price.
The KX-TG2400B did perform well in the roaming category. In fact, I went out to my mailbox and across the street before the signal lost detectable strength. Great.
Unfortunately, there was a noticeable 'jerk' to the voice production whenever the phone swapped channels to retain clarity and protect the call from IR tapping.
I started my microwave and had severe (conversation disabling) static on the line. This is usually an indication that the components are not properly insulated. Call quality would be bad for anyone living near high voltage power lines.
The final insult was the headset. I got a cheap $19.99 headset with an adjustable band and a foam pad for the ear. Everyone I spoke with complained about the quality of my voice. "Are you in a tunnel? On a mobile? etc..." At first I blamed the headset. Then I tried it on a second 2.4Ghz phone from GE. Crystal clear. No complaints. Well, that was the clincher. The KX-TG2400B is going back.
This phone was $89.96 with a $10 discount from Best Buy, plus a $20 rebate. Even so it was a poor competitor to the GE 27700 2.4 Ghz model I bought for $57.50.
Recommended:
No
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
Betwixt
|
|
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Reviews written: 57
Trusted by: 66 members
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.