Customer Reviews

VTech 5831 5.8 GHz DSS Expandable Cordless Speakerphone with Caller ID/Call Waiting

5 star:		(32)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(11)
1 star:		(16)

 

 

I just bought the Vtech phone with two add'l handsets. I have been using them now for two weeks.

The GOOD:
Very high marks for voice clarity; range; and ease-of-use. The menu system on the phones and base unit are VERY well laid-out and everyone in the family quickly learned how to use it. The phone and base feel really solid and quality has been high all the way around.

I have found the voice quality on the base unit speakerphone to be very good. It rivals systems I have used at work.

There are a few really useful functions that I have already become addicted to. The ability to transfer calls from handset to handset (or handset to base) is great - as is the ability to page the base as an intercom ("Kids, come up for dinner, now!!). I no longer feel I'd like to have an intercom system between my upstairs and downstairs.

Also, the ability to use each handset as a speakerphone is really, really useful and the voice quality is very good.

The BAD:
Vtech left off two functions that I really miss from previous phones I've owned:
(1) One-button voicemail dialing. Your only option to access your (phone company) voice mail is to dial your number and enter your password, or scroll throught the redial menu or memory menu for your phone number. You still must enter passcode.
(2) No one-digit speed-dial functionality. This is almost unbelievable to me that Vtech would omit this. The phone stores a large number of entries, but you can't speed dial any of the memorized numbers via entering a memory location (e.g., #1, #2, #3, etc). While you CAN scroll through the list of numbers (either from memory locations or from the dialed number locations) - select the number you want - and press "on", that is different from dialing, say, "Mom and Dad" by simply pushing a location number (e.g., 15) and pressing "on".

Overall, this is a good quality phone. My only negative is the absence of a couple of traditional features.

This phone is the best I have ever owned. Clear as a bell from as far as about 70 yards from my apartment, outside, through the buildings brick wall. The person complaining about it not working with DSL is misinformed, in fact it CAN'T interfere with DSL. Of course if the person didn't install the filters that come with every DSL kit ever produced, then ANY phone will cause trouble. On top of that, because this phone is a 5.8GHz phone, it doesn't interfere with 802.11b (Apple AirPort, or any other WiFi) networking either. I have yet to hear ANY static of any kind using this phone.

The caller ID works flawlessly. The hand set has held a charge for over 3 days without recharging. The memory works as advertised. There is even a jack for a headset as well, this jack uses a 2.5 MM input, which is becoming the standard for Cell phones, so there are plenty of choices of which head set to get. The speaker phones on both the hand set and base are very clear, and people I have talked to on them say there is very little distortion.

This phone is easy to set up, has great features, wont interfere with the wireless or wired networking/internet connections in your house, and the price is right. I cant recommend it more clearly.

After trying several other phones that I didn't like, I'm extremely pleased with this phone. Looks great, works great, outstanding sound quality and good volume range. The uncluttered keypad appeals to members of the family who like it "simple" while still allowing the power users to customize it. It has a mute button (unlike many popular cordless phones), and it has a simple system for transferring calls between the base and the handset, or handset to handset. The backlit display has text that is large enough to read without a magnifying glass. It even lets you cycle through variations of the caller ID numbers to handle situations where you need to dial 1 or you shouldn't dial an area code.

Unlike another reviewer, I have had no trouble using the phone on a telephone line with a DSL connection.

A few quibbles:
- The caller ID "New Calls" list has to be separately cleared on each handset and the base. This involves many key presses that must be repeated at each location because each caller ID entry must be separately acknowledged.
- By default, both the base unit and the handset ring. This seems like a great idea until you try and locate the handset by its ringing, which is close to impossible if it is in the same room as the base. Fortunately, you can turn off either one.
- It would sure be nice if the caller ID understood custom ringing - we have multiple phone numbers that go to the same phone. Unfortunately, I haven't seen a phone that does this.
- In spite of the prominent "5.8 GHz" designation, the phone only uses 5.8 GHz in one direction - it's 2.4GHz in the other direction. You have to read the fine print to discover this information.

I've used primarily VTech and Panasonic phones for years now. I replaced my Panasonic with the 5831 and 3 additional 5820 handsets. This phone isn't perfect - but it's awfully close.

Yes, it's dual-band - but the 2.4GHz is reserved for the handset, and it's lower power, so there's less room for interference with your 802.11b/g equipment. My Panasonic 2.4GHz hosed my 802.11b network, but these phones work just fine with it.

It would have been nice if the handsets shared more info with the base station, but that's a minor quibble. A bigger quibble is that sometimes, when you press a number quickly twice in a row, it only registers once. Not that big of a deal if you remember to look, but it shouldn't happen at all.

I've recommended this phone to many people and they've all been very satisfied. They're very attractive, too, and they haven't been scuffed yet. (My Panasonic lost its shiny silver coating fairly quickly.)

Regarding the 'no redial button' - there is one. It's the leftmost menu button. It's a softmenu, so if you look above it, you'll see quite clearly that it's labeled 'REDIAL'. (The three items are 'REDIAL', 'MENU', and 'MEM'.) Press it and it will pop up a list of your most recently called numbers - then press 'ON' and it will dial it for you.

I recently bought this phone and 3 additional handsets (a total of 4). We live in a 4-level house with concrete floors and needed an extension on each floor. The setup was completely painless - it worked exactly as described in the manual. All handsets found the base immediately and worked fine. The handsets have a jack for a headset, a speakerphone function which works great, and a mute button which is a feature I had a tough time finding on other other cordless phones. Sound quality is excellent - I really can't tell the difference from a land line. The menu interface was intuitive to me. I had no issues with set up and use.

Two things to be aware of: 1) The range appears to be somewhat limited. It had no trouble going through our concrete floors, but the sound started to break up less than 100 feet from my front door. This was affected by the presence of other buildings between base and handset. If long range is important to you, look for another phone. 2) Telephone numbers saved in the handsets will not synchronize with each other - you have to enter numbers in all of the handsets individually. I believe that some other products offer this functionality but the V-Tech does not.

All things considered, I am satisfied with this product. It satisfied my requirement for a cordless system with multiple handsets, good sound quality, acceptable range, a decent speakerphone, and a mute button. Lastly, it doesn't interfere with our 802.11 wireless network.

I read all the reviews before buying it and I was kind of worried about the range but trust me lot of these people are looking for an ham radio not a phone!!!!
This phone works great and the range is perfect for a normal family house. My house is a 3 level one and I set up the base in the basement ( that's where I have my office ), and the handsets one on each floor ( I bought an extra one ) and the range is perfect, no static, no loss of connection to the base. Also this phone has great sound that I never heard before in a cordless, someone said that you hear a little echo in the handset and is true but is not bothering the conversation at all.
The sound correction is a cool feature even if I don't use it.
The other really great feature is the speakerphone on the handset.
I guess a lot of people who wrote reviews did buy this phone for a office use and got a little upset figuring out that this is just a normal home phone cordless.
Somebody complained about the fact that if you save a phone number in the base phone book and try to recall it from the handset ( or the other way around ) is not there ( the phone book are not shared ) but that is actually good if you are going to have different components of the family using the single handsets.
In my case I use the base most and my wife use the handset on the top floor so she has memorized her own "girlfriends" numbers on the handset phone book that, trust me, I don't need to find in the base phone book that I use for work !!!
All around a nice and smart phone, working fine in my case.

I was very happy with the 2.4 GHz expandable VTech phone, except for the interference between it and the 802.11b (Wi-Fi) wireless computer network on the same cluttered 2.4 GHz band.

This phone is everything the 2.4 GHz model was, plus a more slightly larger and more comfortable handset, better sound quality (both normal and handsfree/handset-speakerphone modes) -- and, of course, no more interference with the 2.4 GHz 802.11b wireless LAN (I understand it receives on 5.8 GHz but still transmits on 2.4 GHz, but we haven't encountered any problems).

The only downside we encountered is that the intercom function is now on a softkey menu instead of a hard button (as it was on the 2.4 GHz model) so it is less convenient to use and almost impossible with one hand. It does now allow you to intercom-ring all handsets at once, which the 2.4 GHz model didn't.

Consider getting an extra battery for the base unit -- the base keeps the battery charged for operation during a power outage, or as a spare for a handset.

In my opinion this is the best phone that Vtech has ever made and has the best handset sound I've ever heard in a cordless phone.

The one thing that stands out with this phone is the sound quality.....it is excellent. Very quiet, no extra noise and plenty of volume, one of my requirements. The range on this phone is very good. The base works well, I only wish that the buttons were bigger and weren't slick. I found my fingers sliding off the buttons while trying to push them. Also Vtech should have either designed the base or furnished an adapter to tilt the unit so you could see the lcd display. I found myself having to stand up to see who was calling. The speaker phone on the base is very good but not as good as my 2.4 Cidco D271, it has the best speaker phone I've ever used. I would rate Vtech's speaker phone a notch below the Cidco. The displays on both the handset and base are very easy to read and controls are laid out well. Another complaint that I have is the way the caller ID works, which is not just limited to Vtech. Some manufacturers have what's called caller ID matching, which is when a call arrives and a match is made in the directory it is displayed as it's shown in the directory. In other words when mother calls it's shown as "Mother" just how I entered it into the directory. Why more manufactures don't use this technology is beyond me.

Overall this new technology 5.8 GHz phone from Vtech is very good and would have received 5 stars if it wasn't for the speakerphone and the way the base is not tilted.

The speaker phone quality of the base and handsets are perfect. I was able to drive around the block with my handset without any breakup of signal while talking. The base is the only thing that needs a phone jack so you don't need umpteen phone jacks in your home or office for the same phone line. This phone is perfect for someone who relies on cordless phone durability and good battery life. I have never had one of the hand sets run out of juice. I have had this item for over 6 months now.

I used to have the newest and greatest Panasonic. I tried Panasonic 3 different times. Dealing with warranties got old real fast. The features were great but the durability was nil.

These VTech phones are awesome. They are light years better than any competing cordless phone.

I've owned several cordless phones, but everyone of them has had a deal-killing flaw. Either the battery life was too short, the range was limited, too much interference, etc. I was very happy with a 2.4 ghz phone I purchased recently, but it interfered with my wireless computer network. If someone was using our laptop to connect to the Internet via the wireless network, and someone wanted to use the phone, either the wireless LAN went down or the phone had too much interference to have a conversation. This phone, which operates at 5.8 ghz rather than 802.11b's 2.4 ghz, doesn't interfere. That alone makes this phone a winner for me.

On other issues, sound quality is terrific. Range seems as good, if not better, than any other phone I've used, and battery life is satisfactory. The phone is packed with useful features and is pretty intuitive to operate. I couldn't be happier with the phone.