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41 of 41 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent full featured phone with some usability problems, November 24, 2003
The SL3501 is the upgrade to the Siemens 4215 series and carries over most of the 42XX series characteristics. The upgrade solves some of the 4215 issues but gives it the one thing it really didn't need, a smaller handset. I've owned the 4215 for about 2 years. When the base died, I started shopping for another phone. The T3501 was attractive because I could use my two 4200 handsets. However there were a lot of things I didn't like about the 4215, so I shopped around purchasing a total 3 different phones before coming back to the Siemens.Here's how the 4215 compares to the SL3501: Sound quality - The 4200 handsets have excellent sound quality, perhaps too good. Siemens choose not aggressively filter out the higher frequency range, so you clearly hear the background hiss inherent in any wireless device. They have nicely corrected this in the SL30 (the included handset). You can hear some background noise, but not a lot. They had to sacrifice some high frequency but the result is a more balanced sound with less noise. A worthy trade off. Head set jack - An inexcusable omission on the 4200 has been corrected in the SL30. However, it's a proprietary jack for Siemens headsets only. They soften the blow by including an ear bud type headset. For around the house, I much prefer the full size headset with a boom mic. The included headset is functional but I could never get it loud enough or find a comfortable spot in my ear. Answering Machine Voice Quality - The 4215 answering machine has some of the worst sound quality I have ever heard. There are 2 quality settings, both are pretty bad. The SL3501 improves the quality, but only a little bit. Siemens still lags behind Panasonic and others in this area. Easy Access to volume - To access the volume control, it's a multi key stroke operation that requires you view the display. This makes it pretty impractical to use while on a call. Sadly this is just the same on the SL30. Two small buttons on the side of the phone would have solved this, URGH! Base, what Base? - The 4215 base was already pretty small and discrete. Plus it doubled as handset charger. Since accessing the base was all performed through the hand set, there were no controls on the base. In the SL3501 they have taken this one step further and separated the base from the handset charger. Like the 4215 there are no controls on the base (expect page and handset registration) so the base can be placed discretely out of site, or centrally located for better reception. While this is nice, it contrasts with many other phones where the base serves and primary location for access to messages as well as serving as a speakerphone. The Panasonic 5.8 has a particularly nice base which really adds a lot to their over all package. The Competition As I mentioned, I tested 3 other phones which were the Panasonic 5.8ghz, AT&T 5.8, Motorola 2ghz. Of these, the Panasonic as was the clear winner. The AT&T was nice, but there was bad echo on all calls. Plus I could never get the speaker quite loud enough. The Motorola was not even close. The sound quality was horrible and the directory could not easily be transferred between phones. Comparing the Panasonic to the SL3501 Sound - The Panasonic has exceptional sound. Like the SL30 the higher frequencies are trimmed back to cut the background noise. However it's more noticeable on the Panasonic. To my ear, the Siemens does a better job handling the hiss, while still retaining some higher frequency. But I'd have to give the Panasonic the nod for overall sound quality which is richer and fuller. The larger handset probably helps this by giving the speaker some "cabinet space". Speaker Phone - Sorry, but the SL30 speaker phone is not that good. It's not very loud and gets choppy when there's ambient noise in the room. The speaker phone on the 4200 is better. The Panasonic's speaker phone is still better yet. It's loud and clear. Access to the Dialing Directory On the Panasonic you access the directory with omni dial, which requires 2 separate steps (down, then right). Most of the time, I got it wrong resulting in 5-8 button presses just to get to the directory. On the Siemens its one button and you are there, much easier! Voice Messages and Caller ID On the Siemens, there is a small red flashing LED that signals either messages or calls have been received. You access the call log and the messages with one button. Reviewing the messages and calls clears the flashing LED for all phones. On the Panasonic, the messages are indicated by a small flashing number on the display and a flashing LED on the base. If you are only looking at the handset you could miss it. The caller ID calls are all handled individually by the base and the handsets. If you answer the call on one handset, all the others mark it as "missed call". You have to clear the "missed" calls on all the handsets individually otherwise each handset always indicates that new caller ID calls have come in, even if they were answered or cleared on another handset. This makes the "new call" indication pretty much useless. Also, the Panasonic doesn't lookup the caller ID numbers to the names listed in the directory. The Siemens does this which is particularly useful for cellular callers where the name is listed as "wireless". Summary The SL3501 is a nice upgrade to the 4215. Many will find the handset too small, but fully functional. It has great sound, rich features and performs well. It has excellent integration with caller ID and the messages making more a phone "system" rather than a phone/answering machine combo. Sadly the German engineers didn't fix the 4200's usability issues and still haven't added a standard headset jack.
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