Tiny phone has excellent feature set but several design flaws.
Written: Oct 25 '03 (Updated May 16 '07)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Excellent feature set. Uses NiMH batteries.
Cons: Handset difficult to remove from charger base. Tedious menu system. Cost.
The Bottom Line: The SL3501's unsurpassed feature set is wonderful. Unfortunately its small size and other design flaws will likely turn away many prospective buyers.
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| dosware's Full Review: Siemens Gigaset SL3501 2.4 GHz 1-Line Cordless Pho... |
In our quest for the holy grail of cordless phone answering systems, my family has purchased 3 different systems during the past 3 years (2 Uniden models, one AT&T). All of these possessed enhanced feature sets, but suffered from either a lack of build quality (they died within a year) or suffered from poor sound quality. Our newest system, the one-line, 2.4 ghz Siemens Gigaset SL3501 possesses an unsurpassed feature set, sounds good, and appears (so far) to be built solidly. However, the SL3501 also suffers from a unique combination of unfortunate design flaws.
The GOOD:
Recorded messages are retrieved and managed using the handset- not the base station (the base station is relatively small and can be hidden from view if desired). When a new message is recorded, LED's on both the front and back of the handset flash. The handset LCD display also alerts the user to new messages. The handset also functions as the speakerphone. Like most cell phones, a vibrator mode can be activated (silent or combined with ring).
In addition to speed key dialing and an expansive 200-number directory, the SL3501 offers voice-activated dialing. If caller I.D. is active, the phone will speak the name of the caller (only if you've previously voice-recorded a name for that number). Synchronization of directory information between handsets is effortless.
The recording capacity of the SL3501 is better than most competitors: 30 minutes of recording time are available when using the "long-play" setting (but only 15 minutes using "high-quality" setting).
Unlike the vast majority of cordless phones the SL3501 uses a NiMH battery which should last longer than a NiCad. Fully charges in about 5 hours. In the manual, standby time is quoted as 250 hours and talk time around 15 hours. The SL3501 includes a prominent battery level indicator on the handset display.
The BAD:
The SL3501 handset is a tad small for my liking- it resembles a small cell phone. Very stylish indeed, but like most tiny cell phones, the SL3501 becomes uncomfortable to grip during extended conversations. I find myself using the built-in speakerphone during long conversations. An earplug-mic combo is included with the package. The keypad, though illuminated, is also small and causes aggravation when attempting to rapidly key-in numbers.
Although not a critical feature, the ringer tone sounds like a toy rather than a phone. The speakerphone sound quality is distorted at higher volumes - I expected a bit more clarity from a phone in this price range.
When a call is received, and caller I.D is active, the S3501 consistently displays caller information after the third ring. This delay seems a bit long: most caller I.D. phones and boxes I've used will display caller information after the first or second ring.
Set-up and menu navigation (again, using the handset) is not painful, but I often lose patience with the sometimes-inconsistent logic of the menu contents and layout (e.g., to scroll through caller I.D entries you scroll Up-Down, but to browse through recorded messages you scroll Left-Right). Common functions which should require no more than one button press are too often nested deeper in the menu system.
Another design flaw not often seen in cordless phones concerns the handset-charger interface. Most cordless phones sit loosely in the charging base allowing one to quickly grab the phone with one hand. The SL3501 plugs into the charger using female-male connectors. If you quickly grab the SL3501 with one hand, the small charging base comes along for the ride. Two hands are required to extract this phone from the base. Of course, you can leave the phone off the charger base for extended periods.
You can use up to 4 handsets with the base station. But extra handsets are pricey at around $120 each.
I really wanted to like this phone. And I do intend to keep it because it seems no manufacturer is willing to invest in a bombproof, intelligently designed cordless phone system. I'm almost ready to bring my corded phone out of mothballs for most uses.
UPDATE: 05/15/2007:
Remarkably, I am still using this handset in 2007- and I can give it a perfect score for build quality. Not a scratch on it after 4 years of consistent usage. Also, the original NiMH batteries are still going strong and last about 2 weeks without recharging (minimal use). No evidence of loss of charge. Suffice to say, you cannot purchase this model new anymore except through an outlet store or Ebay.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
dosware
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Location: Eagle, ID USA
Reviews written: 3
Trusted by: 0 members
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