Telephone Reviews

Bought this phone based on Consumer Reports. However, when trying to set it up, whenever I plugged it in, an extremely loud buzzing sound came out. Adjusting the speaker volume had no effect. Evidently some kind of short circuit in the product. Poor quality control. Now need to go through a cumbersome return process (I was installing it more than 30 days after buying it).

We like this phone so much we've bought two and are about to purchase a third. What we really like are the dual caller ID displays (so you can check caller id even if the handset is not at the base, or vice versa) and the dual keypad with speakerphone, which allows us to to check our voice mail while we're doing other things.

A really nice package by Uniden.

Received this item for Christmas, and am pleased with some features, and not others. Recording my own message for the answering machine part was not successful. It came out all muffled and unacceptable. Handset ring is not same as base ring. Confusing to use memory features. Does it's job for the price.

Our old phone is a uniden. The first one we had bought back then didn't do well for us. The second was wonderful. We had it for about 5 years and abused it quite badly. It still works but we needed a new one. So we bought another uniden. I probably won't buy another one. I bought this one because it was more money than others. My thoughts- more money spent the better the phone. I have static the whole time. Changing channels does not work. Troubleshooting says it could be appliances and we do keep it in the kitchen. But we kept our other one in the kitchen and had no problems. I would suggest to buy one in a store- quicker exchange if it doesn't work for you. Cordlesses are touchy.
Otherwise, I thought the features were great. I picked this one also because it has the functions we needed and not unneccessary ones. We don't use caller id. One thing I liked about the more expensive uniden (with caller id) we did not buy is that you can program a distinct ring for different callers. I think since this phone does not have caller id this function would have been great.

This is the second time I have tried a Vialta Beamer. First the tabletop version and then the TV version. My children and parents were so excited to see each other while talking on the phone. We thought that this technology was truly made for families like ours. Unfortunately, it is just not there yet. The picture is not clear and it can't really capture any motion from the kids. We were truly disappointed again in Vialta.

The Beamer TV Videophone is a Must Have for anyone with family and loved ones who live far apart!
I live in California, my parents and family live on the east coast. In a good year, we get to see each other maybe 3 times. Since moving to CA, I've married, have a daughter and have a son on the way -- making it even more important (and more difficult at the same time) to get to see my family on the east coast. But with the Beamer TV videophone we see each other at least once a week. The quality of transmission is really good and far above what my expectations were, and the price is unbeatable. Plug it into your phone line, connect the video line to your TV (just like a vcr) and you're all set - no other installation, no other costs/fees. Now my parents can see their grandkids grow, and my kids will get to know their grandparents better and see them all the time - as opposed to just a voice on a phone and cards and gifts in the mail. I'm getting this thing for all of my siblings next. Beamer TV Videophone is a definite must have for anyone with family/friends who live far apart!!! It's just too easy and too great not to have one!

It may work well. I don't really know since I only have Call Waiting and it seems to require both CID and Call Waiting to function. I'm taking it back and giving Catch-A-Call a try.

All considered this seems to be a pretty decent phone. It is very clear and picks up very little interference. I only use it in the house so I can't speak for it's range,however it works fine in the house. Since it is smaller than our old phone(as are most newer phones) I find it a little uncomfortable to hold onto for longer conversations and the earpiece does not conform real well to my ear (too small). It has a volume control and when you place a call you usually have to turn the volume up because the initial volume does not seem to be very loud. This is a minor inconvenience but it can get annoying. If I were to grade this phone I would probably give it an A for performance and a C for comfort and convenience. I hope this helps you.

This device functions as a digital camera, web cam, and video recorder.

As a digital camera, I'd give it a "C-." Picture quality is only average. You can improve the picture quality somewhat with the included software, or use your own image correcting program. But don't expect professional quality images. There is also no zoom feature.

As a web cam, I'd give it a "B." It works fine on a Windows 98/ME computer, but frequently malfunctions on a XP machine. There is no built-in microphone, so you will need your own to record sound.

As a video recorder, I'd give it an "A-." Video is recorded in the .avi format, which is quite large, with no sound, up to about 35-40 seconds. Video quality is very nice.

In conclusion, this device should work well on a Windows 98/ME computer, but I cannot recommend it for a machine running Windows XP, even though Creative insists it's XP compatible. If you have XP and want a Creative PC-CAM, get a newer model than this one.

April 2004 update: the camera is malfunctioning. The power does not turn off unless I remove the batteries. When the power is running, I cannot take any photos or switch to different camera modes. I replaced the batteries with new ones, but that didn't fix anything. My 90-day warranty expired a long time ago, so now I'm going to get a better, more advanced, XP-compatible, (and of course more expensive) digital camera. And it definitely won't be a Creative digital camera.

I bought the lithium-ion battery to replace my N-Mh one that after a year and a half would no longer hold a charge. I am an engineering technician and know a bit about electronics and was glad to get a lithium-ion battery.

I have had my energizer battery for eight months now. It is okay. I would buy it above other types of batteries (not name brands of batteries), but only for this phone.

When this battery if fully charged, it gives me only an hour and a half of talk-time. When I don't talk on it, the charge lasts for four or five days. Because I do use my phone, whenever I am home, I always have to plug it in and leave it charging.

Before with my N-Mh battery, when the battery was too low, it would discharge the battery (a lengthy process), but I could stop that and get an extra five minutes out(to say good-bye). With this battery, the phone just turns off and that is that.

My brother just bought a cell-phone. His came with a lithium-ion battery. It is half the size of mine and has a talk-time of four hours. He has a Nokia 81xx.

I don't think Energizer made his battery and I wish they had made mine with a little more life.

The case is made of good leather & put together well, but the inside lining was glued on for some reason before sewn together, so the glue rubs off on the phone. Over time, this won't be a problem. The velco cover is strong enough to prevent accidental openings, but the trade off is that it makes the case a little bulky. Lastly the belt clip is insufficient, should've used a belt loop instead. The case came off my belt 3 times already by accident. Luckily the case protected the phone from damage.

This was a great idea for a phone that solved my problem of being able to put a phone into a room where there was no phone jack. It is a clever looking phone that allows you to change the color of the faceplates.

I used this phone for 6 months - it worked just fine, my calls sounded pretty good. The phone would last about 2 days before I had to recharge it...

The problem I have with this phone is that I dropped it once -- and now it does not work. I have tried everything from recharging it for days to replacing the battery. Now I understand that it's my fault for dropping the phone - but I believe cordless phones whould be built sturdy enough to withstand the occasional drop or knock off the coffee table.

I've tried to contact the manufacturer, but received no response from them in trying to fix the phone or order a replacment part. My only recourse seems to be that I have to buy a new one...

I am ok with the product. The only thing I am not happy with it is that it plays the "old" messages every time after you hear the "new" messages. I only want to hear the "new" messages.