Customer Reviews

GE 29869GE2 Digital Answering System with 4 Mailboxes

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(32)
3 star:		(18)
2 star:		(13)
1 star:		(28)

 

 

I literally got a headache shopping for a digital answering machine (. . .)I quickly found out that it is really hard to find a digital answering machine with more than 5 to 20 minutes total record time (this is for both stand alone machines and for ones that are phone combos). Another problem is a lot of machines only give callers less than a minute to leave a message. I also saw review after review of terrible sound quality for outgoing and incoming messages.

My husband cured my headache by finding this GE digital answering machine. I love that it has forty minutes of total record time, has a time/day stamp and remote access so I can check my messages when I'm away from home. I can also set this machine to give my callers from a minute to four minutes to leave a message. This machine is easy to use (I only needed to read the manual once). The sound quality for outgoing and incoming messages is really good. It is clear and understandable. I only detected very light background static that doesn't interfere with the messages. The machine's voice that gives instructions on use and time/day of messages is mechanical, but most of the time is easy to understand. This machine is loaded with features that work and are easy to use (I read reviews on other answering machines where the features did not work or were difficult to use).

Here are some tips of use. Make sure to use a 9-volt battery (not included) for backup during power outages. I saw another reviewer state that this doesn't work. I had no problems with it. All my settings and messages were kept when I unplugged the ac adapter from the wall outlet (I left it unplugged for 15 minutes). Whatever you do don't unplug the ac adapter from the answering machine base. If you do you will loose all your messages and most of your settings.

This GE digital messaging system is one of the best that I have ever seen or tried. Add to that the fact that this machine won't cost you an arm and a leg.

There are several reasons to like this GE messaging system. For starters, this machine is one of the first to offer 40 minutes of storage capabilities. Most of the digital machines out at the time of this review only allow 15 to 20 minutes.

Secondly, there are 4 mailboxes on this machine, making this a great machine for a family or roommates to use. Even if you live by yourself, the separate mailboxes is perfect to use to store messages separately from the main mailbox.

Another great feature is the clarity of the messages as they are being played and the time/date stamp. I have had absolutely no trouble understanding my messages or the digital voice in the machine.

There is also a battery back-up you can use to help save your messages and settings in case there is a power failure. (9-volt battery is not included).

The directions that came with the machine were very easy to read and understand. 10-minutes after taking the machine out of the box it was set up and ready to answer my calls.

One of the best features, to me at least, is that it has a toll saver feature. When set to toll saver, the machine will answer on the 4th ring if there are no new messages and on the 2nd ring if there are new messages. When you call home to check your messages, if it rings more than twice you will know that you have no new messages and can hang up without having to waste your time.

There are a few drawbacks to this GE digital messaging system, the main one being that the time/date stamp plays at the end of the message instead of the beginning. Personally, when listening to a message I like to know when they called in advance so that I can process the message accordingly in my mind. Aside from this, most of the drawbacks are small and do not affect the fuctionality of this machine.

If you are in need of a new answering machine, or just want to change from tape to digital, give this great little machine a try.

On paper the features look great but after becoming accustomed to Southwestern Bell CallNotes(answering service hosted by phone company), the features and ease-of-use are less than I hoped for. First complaint, even though you have 4 mailboxes, there is no way to protect each one with a separate passcode - one passcode provides access to all mailboxes so if you can't protect the privacy of your mail box (from roommates for example). Second problem is the very odd odering of the remote access menus. If you have a cell phone or answering service, I'm sure you are accustomed to listening to a message then immediately having the option to erase it. Not so here. You first listen to your messages in one box. Then you go back to the main menu. Listen to all the choices...last choice, press 0 to erase messages (probably the most common choice is last...after recording new greeting etc...how often will you do that?) Then, choose the box you want to erase, 1-4...yes, that is right...you must erase ALL messages in a box, you can't pick and choose. And the first thing i noticed about this product that is small but really annoying - the cord to the wall is hard-wired, you can't unplug it from the unit. I have a cord the exact length from the outlet to my table but I have to buy an adaptor to connect the unit's cord to my longer cord to reach the outlet....GE...make the cord detachable! I'll pay the extra .50 for the manufacturing costs. These problems were obvious after only 30 minutes of use...who knows what other problems will crop up?

The good things...yes..the sound quality is good and recording time is long as most reviews mention. Reasonably easy to get started. If you are buying it for these reasons, you will be happy, if you want full-featured mailboxes, you will be disappointed and if you are frustrated or disapointed by mediocre design, you have been warned.

This is the only Answering Machine out there with 40 minutes of recording time. Why no other company makes one is beyond me, but when we had only tape everyone made 30 - 60 minute record time. This machine has all the functions including rapid advance and skip or reverse and repeat, plus four mail boxes. Clear recording sound. No static (like other reviewer reports). Wish the other makers would recognize that some people need longer message recording time.

I don't get all the negative reviews. I spent over 7 hours researching answering machines; it came down to this GE model and the AT&T 1726. I decided on this one because I wanted 4 mailboxes, and I like the way I can leave a message for another mailbox right at the machine... also, I trusted GE more than AT&T.

Anyway,it's fine, works very well. Yes, the sound quality isn't quite as good as devices that use tape, but it's still very clear - remember, it's not meant to be a stereo system! Also, I noted all answering machines have many negative comments, so don't be alarmed, the devices really do work.

I know several people have had reliability problems. We've had our GE for two years and it still works great. It didn't lose anything after a 24 hour power failure. (Don't forget to install the battery!) However, we did get caught once when we moved the answering machine in our new place and disconnected the AC cord from the base.

I love the many features. (See other reviews for details.) We use the GE as a traditional one mailbox answering machine, and we use the extra mailboxes to store messages out of the main inbox. 40 minutes of record time makes this easy. Switching between the primary and secondary outgoing greeting is as simple as pressing a single button. We've checked messages remotely with no problems.

I, too, wish the time/date stamp was at the start of the message. I also wish there was some way to rewind a playing message by only a few seconds instead of having to go all the way back to the beginning.

Wow, I am impressed. I don't think much of GE products usually. If anything, I have used their alarm clocks and telephones without much fanfare: they work, but I know that other brands like Panasonic and Sony usually perform and look better, and may even be easier to use... but you have to pay quite a bit more for their products, so I settle for GE when I don't need the best.

You can imagine how surprised I was when I got the GE 29869 answering machine. I know some reviews said that it had good sound quality, but a few reviews also said it had poor sound quality. Different strokes for different folks, I guess. I am happy to confirm that this unit does, in fact, have good sound quality. And not many digital answering machines can claim that! Certainly not my old Sony TAM-100.

The Beast
I bought the Sony 3 years ago in summer 2000, and was *un*pleasantly surprised when I bought it home. I thought I was getting a good deal on this unit -- half price off MSRP at the college bookstore. Only catch: no returns. "Hey, it's a Sony... it couldn't possibly be that bad," I thought to myself. Whoops. Bad sound quality. And me, unable to return the darn thing!

Tips on sound quality
The GE's sound quality is fairly good on outgoing and incoming messages. You have to be careful about how you position the unit, however, and how you "talk" to the machine when you record your outgoing message. I have found that your outgoing message sounds best when you are at a 45 degree angle to the microphone and about 12 inches away (measured from mouth to mic), with the machine about 6 inches in front of you on the desk. I originally recorded the outgoing message hovering directly over the unit, about 8-10 inches away. It was a little muffled. I also noticed that placement was important for listening to recorded messages. Place the unit close to the wall for best sound.

Taking messages
Back to the GE. While I would say that sound quality is one of the most important things to look for in an answering machine (sadly because most digital machines sound pretty bad), it is not the only thing. Of course, another important criterion for answering machines to excel on is answering the phone when you don't pick it up and taking the message faithfully and accurately. I'm happy to report that this GE does its job well so far in the limited time I have used it. I have not missed any important messages (knock wood).

Features
- remote message retrieval with 3-digit password
- multiple mailboxes (4 in this case)
- message counter display
- can set two outgoing messages
- call screening
- memo
- 2-way conversation recording
- message scan
- 40 minute recording time
- time/day stamp
- move messages between malboxes
- fast foward (2x speed playback)
- power failure 9v battery backup
- selectable rings (2-8)
- toll-saver (4 rings no msgs, 2 rings new messages)

Features that it is lacking
- cannot disable call screening (you can always hear the person leaving the message unless you turn down the volume manually)
- lacks call display, doesn't read out the number of the person calling
- does not have anti callerID blocking feature (it tells the caller that calls whose callID numbers have been blocked are not being accepted)

The AT&T 1726 has all 3 of the above features that the GE lacks. I cannot vouch for the sound quality of the AT&T, though (never used an AT&T before), and it is more expensive.

Conclusion
So far, this unit works well, has good sound quality, and is very reasonably priced for its performance and features. I have only used it for a week, so it's not long enough with which to judge reliability. 4/5 stars

The battery backup didn't work. With the 9V battery properly installed, the slightest interruption of power resulted in losing the outgoing message. This is not ok for a business office's answering system. Amazon was great and sent me a replacement answering machine, but it didn't work in that one either. I thought maybe it was a defect with just that batch of machines, so I purchased one locally. That machine had the exact same defect.

I wanted to be able to give this answering machine a good review, I really liked the features and it was very user friendly, but with messages so vulnerable it is useless to me. If you don't mind losing your messages with no warning, it is a great machine.

I see a lot of good reviews here. I must admit that the answering machine has a very good interface. The problem is that a few months after I bought it the speaker started making this crackling sound. It sits on a desk where we're working and it's very annoying to listen to this continuous random crackling noise. It was inexpensive, so I just bought another one. A few months later, the new one started doing the same thing! I assume there was some sort of manufacturing defect. I just can't figure out why I don't see anyone else mentioning this problem. Maybe this issue has been fixed by now, but let this be a warning that yours may do this too.

In terms of features & price, this answering machine is one of the best deals you can get. With 4 separate mailboxes and 40 minutes of digital recording time, what's not to love, right? Well, after less than a year of use, the answering machine no longer answers incoming calls. After 4 rings, the outgoing message begins to play from the speaker, but the answering machine never picks up! It took my wife and I several days of not getting any messages to figure this out. Who knows how many important messages we missed because of this? Very infuriating.

We have since replaced the answering machine with a Sprint SP-812 that we picked up used from Craigslist.org for $10. The SP-812 only has 1 mailbox and 12 minutes of recording time, but at least it reliably answers the phone... and that's the most important feature of all.