AT&T 1818 Telephone with Digital Answering System (Wind Chill White)

Rating:
Summary: Great Features, Message Quality is So-So
Review:
The features are great: several volume levels each for ringer, handset volume, speakerphone, and message playback. It has a talking caller ID (even though there is no LCD to display caller ID information). The batteries allow use without power, the speakerphone sounds good to me, and you can listen to your messages privately through the handset.

The answering machine does have a cheap digital quality to it. Even the factory pre-recorded announcement sounds slightly garbled through the handset.

Also, I found the handset sound quality to have a slight, high-frequency buzz around sounds. When you turn up the volume on the handset, the sound becomes more distorted, as well as loud.

The appearance is solid and businesslike, and feels well-made to me. The manufacturer is Advanced American Telephones of Hong Kong. They are owned by VTech and have made ATT brand phones since 2000.



Rating:
Summary: Garbled messages
Review: All the features work great. It's easy to use and easy to program. The only trouble is you can't understand the garbled messages.

Rating:
Summary: Don't buy this machine
Review: Although it comes with a lot of features, this machine [stinks]!!! The sound quality is absolutely TERRIBLE - voices are distorted and sometimes get cut off. I have to listen to the messages at least twice to figure out who called. Even though I have the machine on the lowest volume, it plays back messages quite loudly. Setting up the machine is a chore, too. Save yourself the trouble - don't buy it.

Rating:
Summary: Negative Reviewers are Right
Review: I bought this machine to replace my old cassette-based Panasonic that had finally died from incessant telemarketer calls.
The AT&T's set up was easy and all the features work, but the sound quality is unacceptably low. I hardly recognize my own voice on the recorded message, and callers sound as though they are speaking from under a blanket. Pity AT&T didn't consider improving the sound quality for a few dollars added to the price.

Rating:
Summary: Negative Reviewers are Right
Review: I bought this machine to replace my old cassette-based Panasonic that had finally died from incessant telemarketer calls.
The AT&T's set up was easy and all the features work, but the sound quality is unacceptably low. I hardly recognize my own voice on the recorded message, and callers sound as though they are speaking from under a blanket. Pity AT&T didn't consider improving the sound quality for a few dollars added to the price.

Rating:
Summary: Great phone
Review: I don't see what the fuss is about! This is a very easy to use phone. The setup took just two minutes! The phone announces the caller's phone number which is great! The quality of the messages is excellent and it announces the caller's phone number during playback. It blocks unwanted calls too! Haven't had trouble understanding any messages. The answering machine stops as soon as you pick up the phone. No more listening to my voice during playback!
For the price, this is a great phone! I recommend it to all.

Rating:
Summary: Works great, except it will randomly disconect during calls
Review: I guess it's a phone with a sense of humor--or it's very sensitive, one of the two. The features are nice, but something sticks when I lift the reciever, so it will keep ringing even though the reciever is up. In addition, I think something is wrong with the cord, because if you move slightly during conversations, it will cut out. Voice quality is kind of scratchy, too. Neat features, but if you want neat features to play with on your phone, get a cellphone and play with the endless pleathora of ring tones.

Rating:
Summary: I love this product
Review: I have owned this phone for several years, and have never had a problem with it. I love the voice announce caller ID feature. It has saved a lot of jumping and running for the phone, especially in the evening when I don't feel like getting up to look at a readout to see who's calling. The answering machine works very well, and has plenty of room for my needs. Overall, this has been a very good product and I would definitely recommend it to anyone.

Rating:
Summary: JUST BOUGHT, AND IT'S A DEAD HORSE!!!!!
Review: I just purchased this phone from a store. It was one of the cheapest corded phone yet seemed to have all the basic and necessary features I need. As soon as I got home I tried to set it up. It was an easy setup, but alas, there's NO DIAL TONE, no sound whatsoever. Don't get it wrong, I'm not an idiot, I know the first thing is to check the lines and the connections everywhere, including the walljack connection and the speaker. IT SIMPLY IS A DEAD PHONE. As soon as I replaced it with my old phone, I heard the dial tone. I tried repeatedly and the result was always the same: with this new phone, no sound whatsoever; with any other working phone, the dial tone is heard. I also tried replacing the speaker cord with another one, still no sound, so it's not the cord problem. I guess the mechanism is just faulted. AT&T should be embarrassed. I'm going to return it tomorrow. (How necessary it is that all electronics stores should allow returns of new items.) Meanwhile I'll continue my search.

Rating:
Summary: Problems with Sound Quality
Review: I purchased this unit and had to return it due to problems with
the sound quality when playing back messages. The machine has some
very nice features, but if the messages are not clear, then the
unit is not reliable. I may miss some important information. I
even left messages, I knew what I said, but during playback, some
words were muffled and difficult to understand. I was surprised
that ATT put on the box, "Excellent Sound Quality". Its not.