Almost there AT&T
Written: Aug 23 '03 (Updated Aug 24 '03)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Compact and stylish. Good base functions. Battery backup. Easy menu system.
Cons: Handset, not AT&T's best. Poor range. Switching between lines on the base is unintuitive.
The Bottom Line: Nice design and very full functioned. AT&T almost has it, but the cheap cordless handset and terrible base line switching detract from what could be a top phone.
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| begreen's Full Review: AT&T 2462 2.4 GHz 2-Line Corded / Cordless Phone |
The 2462 is more than a phone, it's a phone system that packs a lot of features into a small and attractive package. I considered the Panasonic, but they look like space toys. At first I was daunted by the considerable number of features, but the menu system is pretty easy to follow and I had it programmed and my answering machine messages done in a jiffy. I find the base and answering machine sound quality to be good. My hearing isn't the best and I can understand everything with the volume turned up. The speakerphone works pretty well too.
Most functions are easy to follow, but the common task of switching to another call is not. On the cordless handset one just switches lines and the other line is automatically placed on hold. I like that. But on the base, you must first go to the menu and select hold, then switch lines, then - even though you have the receiver in your hand and it is off hook - press the headset or speaker button - you can't activate the corded handset!!! This is incredibly lame and clearly the worst feature for such a common task. I like the spare battery option in the base. It allows one to keep a spare charged and doubles as a battery backup in power failures. (We get these several times a year). AT&T says it should work for about an hour. Another nice feature is the address book which supports 50 entries per device. It would be nice to have a feature that allows the user to synch address books entries from the base to the handset, but the programing is straight forward. The entries display on the menu screen so you don't have to remember to push "Auto + 7" to reach aunt Polly. Another way to look at it is that between the base and the handset you have 100 addressbook entries. That's a lot compared to the 9 we have on our other phone.
The only other negative is the handset quality. I have a $29 AT&T 900mhz cordless that feels and works much better. The 2462's cordless handset has poorer sound quality, especially at any distance. It cuts in and out briefly at only about 50 ft. from the base. My Panasonic 2.4 GHz phone works perfectly up to about 600ft. in our rural location. I expect that in an urban area or a steel-framed building that the reception could be much worse. This may explain the high number of store returns showing up on eBay. AT&T should provide a stubby antenna on the base to remedy this. Also, a few people have commented that the volume level from the cordless handset is weak. On my side it seems fine, but I've had to switch to the base a couple of times so my Mom can here me.
Overall I'm happy with my purchase because I got this as a store return for less than $100 on eBay from "mawbell"(great eBayer). I had two phones and an answering machine before, so my office desktop has cleaned up considerably. My original intent was to replace the other cordless phones in our house with additional handsets that communicate with the 2462's base station. (It supports 8). I won't be doing that because the lower quality of the cordless handset. My recommendation for this phone system is a qualified yes if the base station's features are more important than the cordless handset's. If AT&T improves on this phone in the next generation it could be a real winner. As it ships now, it is above average on the base with the exception of line switching and below average on the cordless handset reception.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
begreen
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Reviews written: 8
Trusted by: 0 members
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