Customer Reviews

ComSwitch CS3.0 Telephone Line Sharing System/Fax Switch

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

It is not a great piece of hardware, but it WORKS for what I needed it to accomplish. I wanted an automatic single-line switch for a HP all-in-one fax, Panasonic answering machine, and a couple of phone extensions. This product works with the local caller ID service, something similar competing products seem to have difficulty with.

The documentation is simple and easy to read, but is certainly not a great guide to the operation and user interaction of this product. The CS3.0 documentation is about as good as what I got with my answering machine - it at least seems to be written by a person that writes acceptably in U.S. English. However, these instructions provide the bare minimum to get the thing plugged in and working. I would suggest the buyer be prepared to experiment with the configuration options and live with the expectation that trial and error will be necessary to get it working to their satisfaction.

One important note: I wanted an "automatic switch" for a single telephone line. Per the enclosed product instructions, I have to choose the "Automatic Answer OFF" setting to get the CS3.0 to manage my telephone line devices the way I need it. Go figure.

Another reviewer here indicated great dissatisfaction with this product. After going through the setup of this product hands-on, I can understand the potential for becoming frustrated. I would further suggest that anyone that has concerns of whether the CS3.0 will work for their needs, should call the manufacturer and ask some very direct pre-sales support questions. Good luck!

We work out of our home and need a fax machine but not the expense of having a dedicated fax line. We fax about twice per week. This device allows us to share the main phone line with the fax. All we need to do is let the phone ring more that once and if the call is a fax it automatically goes to the fax machine. If not, it rings and we can answer it or the answering machine will get it. It saves us about $30 per month and is well worth the cost to buy.

Biggest issue is that while we're talking on the phone and another call comes in, the device interrupts the ongoing call with an overly loud busy signal. The call isn't ended but it's very difficult to continue a conversation. Also had a problem answering calls from phones not directly connected to the device. The device did not detect that the phone had been answered and routed the call to the answering machine.

As I grow older I find myself less and less interested in the latest gadget. I don't have time to fool around with half a$$ products. I like it when things just work. I'm even willing to pay a little more for a product that actually works like it's supposed to. The device worked right out of the gate like it's supposed to and I did not have to pay an arm and a leg for it. I did take noticed after a bit that caller ID only worked with call waiting. Checked the manual and sure enough it says caller ID is off by default. I thought to myself, odd it would be off but I am getting caller ID on call waiting only. I went through the quick programming steps as laid out and sure enough the caller ID works now.

You know, the device works as promised and is easy to program. What more can you ask for. A note about programming. A lot of little electronic gadgets have extensive programming procedures like the factory remote for my sons car.....roll down the passenger window, honk the horn, start the car 3 times, depress the brake twice while holding the power button on the radio then release for 3 seconds and hope it works. Well that might be a little of an exaggeration but you know what I mean if you've ever had to go through a ridiculous programing procedure on a cheap little electronic gadget.

This device just flat out amazed me with ease of programming and the fact that is just worked. I have a cable modem and cable telephone service. Surely if anything would screw up the device this would. I actually let the item sit unpacked for about a week as I really did not feel like dealing with it. Boy was I surprised!

One last time......I can't say enough good about this device. If it proves to fail or let me down I'll write a follow up review.

I AM HAPPY WITH THIS PRODUCT. IT ANSWERED MY PROBLEMS WITH FAX/ANSWERING MACHINE NEEDS. IT WORKED AS STATED, I DID NOT HAVE TO CHANGE ANYTHING. I FOLLOWED DIRECTIONS AND IT WAS A GREAT HELP TO SOLVING THE NEED TO USE ONLY ONE TELEPHONE LINE AND CALLS WERE DIRECTED TO THE RIGHT LOCATION, WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS. I WOULD RECOMMEND THIS FOR ANYONE SEEKING THE NEED TO HAVE FAXES RECEIVED WITHOUT THE ANSWERING MACHINE MESSAGE HEARD FIRST. IT WAS COMPLETELY PROFESSIONAL.

REASON FOR PURCHASE
Before I bought this product, I used to never be able to take faxes when I was out of the office. The answering machine always picked up before the fax machine, so there was no way to receive a fax manually. And if I had to take a fax while I was in the office, I would need to be near the fax machine to push a button. With this product, it's routed automatically. And even if it wasn't properly routed, I could hit a couple of buttons and it will route the call manually (hasn't happened yet though).

PROS
This product works exactly how I expected, and I am very happy with it, which is why I'm taking a little time to write this review. Many people posted that it was difficult to set up, but for me it took 2 seconds. Honestly, I haven't even set up the caller ID yet, but I know all I have to do is look in the manual and follow the 3-4 steps to turn it on. I'll probably do that later today. Or maybe I won't. Either way, it's as easy as taking out the trash, which I probably won't do later either.

CONS
I feel that a business' phone line should be picked up on the first (or second) ring. The ONLY con is that it takes two rings to detect where it's being routed to, so when we finally hear it ringing, the customer on the other end has already sat through 2 rings (and a slight clicking sound). But I can say this is not a fault of the product; it takes a minimum of 3 seconds to detect fax tones, so there's really nothing that can be done short of knowing what's going to happen in the future. Personally, I know that this review will help people like myself buy this product in the future. But I don't need a machine to figure that one out...

Very Nice Prodcut, Conpaired to High Priced products, Simply saves me from having to purchase another phone line. thanks

I had a Com switch for maybe 4 years that worked fine. I changed out my system and didn't need it any more. I guess it's still buried in my garage somewhere. Recently I changed all my home network again and bought a Com Switch CS3.0. Like most people I didn't read the manual properly and called tech support. They answered in seconds and took the time to walk me through all the features and set-up procedure. The unit works great, exactly what I wanted. On re-reading the manual it covers everything.

WOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWW, I HAD IT HOOK UP IN ABOUT 10 SECONDS, WORKS WONDERFULLY WITHOUT READING INSTRUCTIONS...GREAT BUY.....DON

Received the item in 3 days. Installed it and has been working fine every since. Would highly recommend this product for cost and service.