Customer Reviews

Conair TAD1212 Callkeeper Digital Answering System - White

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

 

 

I have to say that I have hated most answering machines that we have owned but I especially hate this one. First, the light that indicates a message blinks way too slow. So, if you look at it quickly as you come in you don't even see the flash and don't know there is a message. Second, the remote access feature has never worked for me. Third, we have had this machine for about 6 months and it is already dead. Somehow it decided this past week to open the phone line and keep it open. I have no idea how long my phone was "off the hook."

I have not had one long enough to know about reliability, but I can discuss features. This machine is a very basic, low-end, inexpensive model:

--It does have the 2 ring/5 ring tollsaver feature. --Each message is limited to 45 seconds. --No date/time stamp. --No "memo" function. --If you retrieve your messages remotely, they stay on the machine, and the message counter still blinks for them. I don't think they can be deleted remotely.

Like almost everyone, I've had a dozen answering machines because they just didn't operate long, or didn't do what was needed. This little machine does its job day after day, even cooperating with a fax machine perfectly (unless I gum up the works by trying to answer from an extension!). My only complaint about it is the short and unpredictable message it will record for incoming calls and the microscopic time allowed for the outgoing message! You just have to be fast and concise on the Conair!

This product worked great, considering its price. Then, after 3 months, it stopped working at all. Considering its price, I shouldn't have been surprised. I would recommend buying two, in case the first breaks.

I've had the machine about a month. I thoroughly read the instructions and have found that the remote call in does not work--for me. I call form work and the machine won't. Further, after the machine is full, it stops working. The Save/Stop feature is the SAME button. So, you may not want to save a message, but you still have to push that button. I guess, since it seizes up after 10 messages, it doesn't matter if you saved it or not. You have to erase all to help it to start again.

I bought one of these a year ago. Worked great - though messages are limited to 30 seconds each which is a bit short. Sadly mine just died - horrible screeching noise when I pick up the phone and callers got a busy signal for a day. I suppose you get what you pay for... Conclusion : Good value, but suspect reliability

Stay clear of this machine....it is not user friendly (you even need a screwdriver to change the battery), the buttons are not easy to use and many of them need to be operated in a way that, at first glance, doesn't make sense and is not consistent with other machines out there. Forget about trying to use the remote answering feature without the owner's manual handy. I got so frustrated that I threw mine in the garbage after a couple of weeks and bought another machine.

In this case, I got this free then downloaded the manual from ConairPhone.com. This unit is cheap in both price and quality. It lacks some basic features which other "cheap" models have such as: date/time stamp, selective erase feature, skip a message, save a specific message. This unit, as mentioned previously, ALWAYS requires the user to listen through all messages to get to the most recent. That's if the user has remembered to save them. If the user forgets to press the "stop/save" message button after listening to them, the next call will force erasure of ALL saved messages. No chance of retrieval. I tried the remote operation with my cell phone and was unable to activate the unit, since my phone will not play the tones long enough. This is a BASIC unit. Don't get it if you want a few features; this one can be a source of frustration.

The most serious problem is that it sometimes doesn't drop the phone
line properly after the caller hangs up. So the phone line is still
live, which, after a few seconds, leads to that annoying "If you'd
like to make a call, please hang up ..." message. No problem, I
manually unplug the phone line. But the answering machine still
thinks it's recording a message, so it's wedged. No way to switch it
off, play back the message recorded so far, nothing to do but to
power-cycle it (both the A/C adaptor and the battery). This, of
course, means the loss of all messages, including the last message,
which you never even got to hear. This is really bad.

Other problems are relatively minor: no date/time stamp; low 45s
limit on each message; and no selective erasure of messages (must
erase all or save all). The sound quality was okay, and there is a
way to skip through the messages, contrary to what another review
claimed.

The final problem is actually quite funny: the machine apparently
plays a local radio station continuously at low volume. I confirmed
that it is the source, as the playback stops when I power off the
machine. I found it quite entertaining, but it drove my
wife nuts.

My mother bought this unit for my elderly aunt for her new apartment. Not only is the unit non-intuitive and feature poor (even for a 72- year-old schoolteacher), but it refused to work once the power was restored after Hurricane Isabel. I suspect that it could not handle even the most minor voltage surge when the power came back on. The unit was so new the box was still sitting on her kitchen table (luckily). I'm going to shop for an inexpensive unit from a manufacturer with a proven track record of reliable phone products (Panasonic - loved everthing I've ever owned of theirs).