AT&T 5840 5.8 GHz DSS Expandable Cordless Speakerphone with Digital Answering System

by AT&T

Product Details

Product Manual [2.80mb PDF]

• Item Weight: 2.7 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 4 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B00006LLHW
• Item model number: 5840
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (69 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: December 13, 2004

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

This innovative cordless telephone from AT&T operates on the powerful 5.8 GHz frequency. Its classic design provides comfort and ease of use along with advanced features, including a three-mailbox digital answering system, adjustable sound settings, the ability to run up to six handsets (one included, five optional) with only one jack, and speakerphones in both the handset and base.

The dual-band (5.8 GHz/2.4 GHz) design allows the base unit to transmit with more power in the 5.8 GHz frequency band and with greater efficiency at 2.4 GHz. The phone's true duplex transmission keeps the incoming and outgoing signals from interfering with each other.

The LCDs on both the base station and the handset provide caller ID/call waiting information (provided you have a subscription to caller ID service through your local phone company). The 5840's expandability with up to five additional handsets eliminates the need to hard-wire multiple extensions throughout the home. One phone jack and one power outlet are all you need to connect the 5840 base station and handset, while each additional AT&T 5800 handset requires only a power outlet for its compact charger/cradle. Calls can be transferred from one handset to another.

The 5840's enhanced audio technology derives from advances in acoustic design that have improved the frequency response relative to conventional cordless phones. The Sound-Select feature offers four different audio settings: bass, mid, treble, and natural.

The handset receiver lights up with incoming calls and can also be set to vibrate. It stores 50 names and numbers and works with your caller ID service to remember the last 50 callers. A spare-battery charging system enables the telephone to work even in a power outage. Choose from eight ringer melodies. Use AT&T replacement battery 2401.

What's in the Box
Base unit, handset, battery, AC power supply/charger, telephone line cord, instructions, warranty information

Note: The AT&T 5840 is no longer being manufactured. You may want to consider purchasing the newer AT&T E5860 instead.

Product Description

5.8GHz ITAD/CID expandable to 6 handsets - 5.8GHz Expandable cordless telephone system with digital answering machine- Expandable up to 6 handsets total- Only one phone jack needed for system- Caller ID, call waiting caller ID- 50# name and number Caller ID log in handset- 99# Caller ID history in base- Lighted LCD display in base and handset- 15 Minutes of digital record time- 3 Voice mailboxes- Call screening/intercept- Remote access- 2-Digit message counter in base- Last 10# redial- 50# Name and number directory- Trilingual setup menu- Headset jack- Analog and digital clock displays in handset LCD - Hold/mute- Keypad in handset only- Intercom- Conferencing- 2-Way page/intercom (between base and handset or 2 handsets)- Visual ringing indication- Call transfer- Line in use indicator- Sound select- Spare battery charger- Power failure operation- Speakerphone (handset and base)- Handset vibrating ringer- Intercom between handsets- Frequency hopping digital spread spectrum- Wall mountable- Silver and blackADDITIONAL HANDSETS: ATT5800BATTERY: BATT-2431, GE-TL96155, GE-TL96145, HHR-P546, ATTBATT-2401 , HHR-P546, ATTBATT-2401

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

201 of 202 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not Perfect, But Have Not Found One That Is, June 1, 2003

By 

max fischer "max-fischer" (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: AT&T 5840 5.8 GHz DSS Expandable Cordless Speakerphone with Digital Answering System (Office Product)

BOTTOM LINE: You've probably already discovered the lack of full-featured consumer-level cordless phones out there, especially in the 5.8 GHz category and that you really have to move into the SOHO dual-line systems and spend a good deal more to get a full-featured phone. But the bottom line is if you are looking for a full featured, single line, consumer level cordless phone w/ an answering machine built in, this is it - it's not perfect, but you don't have many other options in this price range.

THE ALSO-RANS: Panasonic KX-TG2593 - feature-packed, but 2.4 GHz and bad quality reviews (just releasing 5.8 GHz line - probably will have same quality issues). Siemens 4215 - great form factor and feature-packed, but 2.4 GHz, no headphone jack, no base functionality and lukewarm quality reviews (pricier SL3501 and 8800 lines have headphone jack but are 2.4 GHz). CIDCO's 2.4 GHz D271's - almost perfect feature set but no answering machine and not in same price range (only marketed through your local Bell company so you're not going to find a deal).

AT&T phones are not made by AT&T - they are designed and marketed by the VTech (maker of VTech phones like the 5831) subsidiary Advanced American Telephones under a licensing agreement with AT&T. My guess is AAT was a Ma Bell spin-off years back that VTech acquired so you are probably still getting some of the quality you associate w/ AT&T. Enough trivia...on to the phone:

PROS:
- Call quality/construction - can't overemphasize this (base sits right by my computer setup and still have great call quality)
- Full-duplex speakerphone: you can hear and be heard at same time (an uncommon feature on consumer speakerphones)
- LCD/Phone Book on base
- 3 different mailboxes for different family members
CONS:
- No Speed dial: No one number/one touch speed dial from either base or handset - they really dropped the ball on this one. However, dialing from phone book takes as few as 3 button pushes.
- 15 minutes answering machine record time seems pretty low (all of Siemens' lines have 30-45 minutes)
OTHER ISSUES:
- Message waiting indicator flashes neon blue on both base and handset - a little much for me but some may like it
- Inability to share phone books between handsets is a neutral: small business may want the same phonebook on all handsets; family may want parents/kids to have separate phonebook
- Wi-Fi: phone transmits at 5.8 GHz base to handset but 2.4 GHz the other way. If you have Wi-Fi this may be an issue as 802.11(b) transmits at 2.4 GHz. Possible future migration of Wi-Fi standard to 802.11(g) at 5.8 GHz is less of an issue because that frequency apparently is less congested than 2.4 GHz.

Note: I actually purchased the 5830 (but tested 5840 also). If you need the digital answering machine (b/c you don't have local phone company voicemail) go with the 5840 but you won't get the talking caller ID or a keypad on the base that you get with the 5830 (see my review on the 5830).

The top contenders in this category each have something (different) missing. In this price range, go with the AT&T 5840 (or the 5830) and be done with it before you drive yourself crazy as I did.

108 of 110 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great answering machine; extreme range, October 26, 2003

By 

Pruitt Hall (Greensboro, NC USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: AT&T 5840 5.8 GHz DSS Expandable Cordless Speakerphone with Digital Answering System (Office Product)

My wife and I finally decided to retire our 8 year old Nortel (sold by Sprint in those days) answering machine and corded home phone. What made us want to finally give up the old reliable beast was we had assembled a 'hodge-podge' of phones through the years, having: The Nortel (which is both our phone and answering machine), two corded GE phones, a 900 mhz GE and a 2.4 Ghz Panasonic. If you have a teenager and a six year old, plus a working home office, you can probably relate. We were wanting to buy something that offered a nice base unit with answering machine and something that would allow additional 'satellite' phones to be connected, ease of use and all follow one common design theme. We actually put this on the back-burner and looked over the past six months at offerings from Panasonic, V-tech and Siemens, never really finding one that really excited us enough to replace what we had. While shopping this past weekend, we saw the new AT&T 5.8 Ghz phone and decided we had put it off long enough. We also purchased an additional handset to replace the Panasonic and have plans to purchase two more to replace the General Electrics. Here's what we found:

--The design itself (base and handset) can be labeled either 'high tech' or 'European'. It's definitely a 'pretty' phone; the base unit is equally as nice. Controls are VERY intuitive and well laid-out. Build quality is very good to excellent; the handsets feel robust in your hand and the materials used appear to be of high quality.

--The answering machine itself is actually extremely easy to use. It offers 3 mailboxes so you can customize your greeting to allow a caller to plop their message into one of the three mailboxes. One gripe here: You cannot further record individual mailbox greetings; i.e. If you tell a caller to hit '2' to send to our daugher's voice mailbox, they are greeted with a 'BEEP' and no message; our old Nortel allowed six mailboxes and customized greetings within EACH mailbox. However, this isn't as bad as it sounds. We found that everyone that called us always complained our answering system to be too complicated and, in over 8 years I don't think 2 people ever used the feature. Quite honestly, I'll bet the phone vendors did a little market research and found nobody uses it, cause it sure isn't a cost factor (maybe .01 cents each) to allow a chip to do it. I think it truly was left out on purpose. Also, prior reviewers state that the sound quality is HIGH on the announcements and LOW on the playbacks. I haven't experienced any problems with it AT ALL. However, it is slightly louder than I would have expected; maybe I've just got good hearing, but even at volume level 1 (the lowest setting), I can hear everything just fine.

--Neat feature worth it's weight in gold: There's a button, right on the front of the answering machine to turn off the anwering machine. Phones still work fine; you just don't have an answering machine. Several times my wife needed to turn off our old Nortel and it had to be accomplished via a series of menu options. VERY sweet of AT&T to put it right on the top and easily accessed. It even talks to you, saying "Machine OFF". Nice touch.

--There's a big NEON blue indicator that flashes whenever someone else is on the phone or using a dial-up Internet connection. Our old Nortel had this too, and once you get used to seeing that light, you'll wonder how you lived without it.

--Neon BLUE. Let me say right here, you'll love or hate the NEON blue color of the: menus, ring around the earpiece, IN USE indicator and several other places. One thing is for certain: Someone at AT&T didn't want you to miss these indicators. Personally, I think they are cool personified; but your individual tastes may vary.

--Intercom. Very handy feature. You can literally use the phones as an internal phone set or intercom. It allows paging between any number of handsets and the base, plus a global page option. This feature alone is worth the price of the phone, to us, as it eliminated the need for a separate intercom system, which we were considering for our teenager who suffers from 'selective hearing'.

--Range and sound quality. Even though this isn't technically a true 5.8 Ghz phone (base to handset is 5.8, but handset to base is 2.4 Ghz) the range is OUTSTANDING. I can go all over our yard (1/3 acre) and down the street two houses and only when I get to the third house, do I start to get static. Also, how's this for neat? You can select a menu option that will have the phone TELL you when you're starting to get out of range! And sound quality is SUPERB. I can't think of any other way to describe it; it's awesome. About 10 notches above our old Panasonic 2.4 Ghz and the GEs, well they're not even in the same universe. Also, each handset is a full-duplex speakerphone and everyone I have spoken with on them say, 'You're on a speakerphone? Gee, doesn't sound like it'. You will be impressed with the sound quality.

--Pros: Extremely good sound quality, ease of use and setup. Great speakerphones, good answering machine, digital recording. Cool looking if you like 'high tech'. Robust.

--Cons: I miss my Panasonic's call timer; the AT&T doesn't time calls for you. I wish it were a true 5.8 Ghz; while it probably doesn't matter, I feel AT&T should have at least put a disclaimer on the box or something. I only found it out when I read the specifications and then when I came to Amazon and read some reviews.

That said, I can absolutely recommend the AT&T 5840 without any reservations. I'd have given it 5 stars, but felt one thing preventing me from doing so. It will have to prove itself a LONG, LONG time to beat our old Nortel. So, I'm withholding a star for it's unproven track record. But as it stands, I love it, it works superbly and I have no issues with it at all.

100 of 103 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Just about as good as they come, January 13, 2003

By 

Craig Moore (Cincinnati, OH United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: AT&T 5840 5.8 GHz DSS Expandable Cordless Speakerphone with Digital Answering System (Office Product)

For an all around workhorse system that offers thoughtless ease of use, powerful built in functionallity and expandability you will be hard pressed to find a phone of this caliber offered from a competitor. After looking at dozens of other systems I found every single one had caveats. The 5840 however was the closest match to my needs. The only feature I believe that should have been included but wasn't was the base dialing. But this is quickly remedied through the purchase of an additional handset. Simply leave the included handset cradeled after each use and the problem is solved. Even should the handset go missing you can still answer incoming calls on the speaker phone.

As for no speed dial this is somewhat of a misnomer. If your speed dial is a frequently used number then 99% of the time it will appear in your redial menu. Simply select it and it works just like speed dial. Granted it isn't true 1 button calling, but it is still very handy. Range is fantastic. I can't get any squelch anywhere within my house (Upstairs or in the basement). Appearance is very clean and professional and beats the heck out of a lot of the plasticy play-school-esque phones currently available. Sound is above average with customizable tone control. For anyone going from a less than perfect phone to this system you may have some adjustment. There is absolutly no hissy feedback in the line. Often if both parties are silent you may feel as though you have lost your connection. The sound of near perfection is something most phones have difficulty with.

As for nice touches and features. Call transfer is quite handy. Phone to phone intercom is also very nice. As is the built in battery backup. Handset use and drain is well above par. Days off a cradle doesn't hardly phase the charge.

As for an all around household system, the Joneses will be hard pressed to find a superior feature laden solution. So don't lament the (Bigger, Better Badder) scenario, because frankly it doesn't currently exist. As for the die hard home office user there may be a need to look elsewhere for wireless networking, but for the typical family with typical utilization this will take you to a level that will make your old phone feel like 2 tin cans and a piece of string.