Customer Reviews

VTech VT2461 2.4 GHz DSS Cordless Phone with Digital Answering System

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(15)
1 star:		(18)

 

 

I've had this phone for about 4 months now and have been very happy with it. The sound quality is very good and the phone has a number of nice features, and also has a nice contemporary design. A previous reviewer gave this phone a bad rating because the memory only allows for 32 digit numbers and the base unit will only accomodate 4 handsets. While this is true and may be a limitation for business use, it is not a limitation for most home uses. Besides the 2.4 GHZ, 3 mailboxes, 30 minutes of recorded messages, and the ability to have up to 4 handsets, this unit also stores a spare battery in the base unit which re-charges it. The spare battery is also used as a backup power source for the base unit if the power goes out in your home so you can still use the phone. I have also been pleasantly surprised with how long the battery lasts. It's no problem getting 5 hours of talk time between charges. And the speaker phone in the handheld unit, while not sounding the same as if you were speaking into the phone directly, works and is a nice feature. The phone is small and light weight which is another plus when clipping it onto your belt for use with the headset. All in all a very nice phone with a nice set of features.

This phone does so many things so well I hate to criticize it's few faults.

The good.

1. Backlit display and keyboard.

2. Easy to add numbers to memory.

3. Easy to edit numbers in memory.

4. Multiple handsets can be in use at a time.

5. Global or specific phone page. Intercom between phones.

6. Nice loud ringtones...many different sounds.

7. Speakerphone is loud and clear...one of the best I've heard on a consumer product.

8. Good range and sound quality.

The not so good.

1. Manual a bit confusing and slim.

2. Menus can be counterintuitive.

3. Dialing numbers from caller I.D. easier than from memory (so why use memory???)

4. Must retrieve messages from answering machine...can't get from handsets. Of course you can get your messages from another phone by inputting codes.

5. Can't transfer phone list from phone to phone.

6. Slightly echoy sounding...but not distracting.

7. No speakerphone in base unit. Vtech sells another version with this feature. I wish they had added it to this "higher level version."

Overall, despite the shortcomings, this is the best multi-handset system out there. The speakerphone works so well that I can't imagine buying a phone without this feature. I can be in the kitchen, cooking, handsfree, while having a discussion with my spouse on another floor.

I want to give it 5 stars because it does so much but there is room for improvement (are you listening Vtech?)

At first i was apprehensive on spending so much on a phone based on the VTECH brand. I have used sanyo, uniden, and panasonic cordless phones in the past. Based on reviews here and on epinions.com i decided to take a chance on this model by VTECH. Siemens units have had terrible reviews. ATT, panasonic, and sony all had lower overall reviews on the internet. Make sure you do your homework on which brand to buy.

I have one base unit and one additional handset from VTECH.

PROS: ----- 1) easy to set up and easy to use. 2) sleek design 3) love the built in handset speakerphone - my #1 requirement 4) i have had no reception or handset signal problems. 5) looks like you can replace battery pack with two rechargable AA batteries. (some self-ajustments required. but saves $$)

CONS: ----- 1) expensive. especially when you figure in the cost of extra handsets. 2) non-speaker phone volume seems low. can be adjusted during each phone use. as soon as i switch it to speaker phone, it is too loud.

overall this is a good product and you won't regret it. besides, if you are unhappy you can alway return it within 30 days.

We tried out this phone because we've had a REALLY tough time finding a decent cordless phone to replace our old main system (too many overhead wires in our home are causing the cordless phones to cut out or even disconnect).

After failing miserably trying to find a decent replacement, we just happened to buy an inexpensive zip-o frills "temp" phone by VTech until we could muster up the patience to try looking for a good main phone again. I was shocked -- It actually worked!!

So, with this in mind, I thought I'd give the VTech 2.4 GHz a try as our main phone. I'm SO glad I did. After I got over the sticker-shock, I'm happy to report: it's sleek (though the compact size of the handset feels a little unnatural without that belt clip on it), light, VERY easy to program, has all of your standard features, the base unit doesn't take up much space on your kitchen counter, and oh did I mention that it sounds great on either end?! Yeah, yeah! Finally one more thing off my list to do...

We bought this one because it looks cool and the fact that it's a cordless phone with answer machine and Caller ID all in one, a big space saver! One of the features we really like it the "hand free" option on the handle, you can put it on the table or on your belt while talking and people seemed to hear fine on the other end.

We do however noticed some static from the earpiece. After reading reviews on Vtech 2431, we'll try to move the base to a different location to see if the noise will go away.

To me, the Vtech 2461 is a fine example of good intentions gone awry. The handsets and base units are compact, attractive, and multi-featured. The handset sits fairly securely in the base unit, unlike some other vertically stored phones, but the wall mounting system is a horrible kludge. Do not buy this phone if you need a wall-mounted unit. The sound quality is decent enough for a wireless unit. It will never be confused with a wired phone, but we found it satisfactory. Range was sufficient for our use around the house and yard, with no problems. Programming the phone via its multi-level menu system is easy enough. For us, the problems with this phone are not in the set-up, range or sound quality, but in ease of use. We bought this phone for home use, expecting to be able to use multiple (up to 4) handsets at various locations around the house. I think that most purchasers would have the same type of use in mind; given that it is a single-line phone it would not seem to be aimed at a business market. The ability to keep a directory on the handset was important to us. We were amazed and disappointed that there was no way to transfer directory entires (all or part) from one handset to another. If you want four handsets around the house with identical directories, you must manually program each handset, a very tedious job at best. When a phone number changes, you must make the rounds of the handsets changing each one individually. I can see that in an environment where a particular user has a single assigned handset this might be an advantage. In average home use, it is a major drawback. The Siemans Gigasets, by the way, apparently allow you to maintain your handset directories either way. At the top of the handset keypad there are three "soft keys", keys whose use changes and which are labeled with the current use by a display above them on the screen. These on-screen soft-key labels are so small as to be almost unreadable, especially by older eyes. In many modes the left and right soft keys become scroll-down and scroll-up keys, but the keys are arranged horizontally. A single vertical rocker, a'la Nokia, is far preferable. Really poor ergonomics! To find a number in the directory, you can either scroll through the directory or use a 'find' feature. Scrolling is fine if you have few entries. If you have many entries you will want to 'find' what you're looking for. To do this you must first press a 'mem' soft key. Instead of finding yourself in the directory, you now have to read the diminutive soft-key labels to see with soft-key is now the 'find' key and press that. You can then enter one or more letters of the name you're looking for, but the names matching what you've entered do not show up so that you can see how you're doing; no, you must press the 'find' key again. Now catch this: the 'find' soft-key is now a different soft-key than the 'find' you pressed a second or two ago near the start of the operation! Again, lousy ergonomics. This sort of thing, along with some basic missing features (no speed dial, can't get to answering machine from a handset) have disqualified this system for us. It is being returned. Too bad, because Vtech is so close to having a great little system here!

I read many of the reviews here and at several other locations regarding the VTech VT2461 and the Panasonic KX-TG2730S and the camps seemed to be very divided. You loved one and hated the other. So I took a chance, and bought them both! My plan was to figure out which one was better and return the other. For me, the VTech is on it's way back. It is not that I didn't like the phone, I just think in my side-by-side one week test, the Panasonic is better.

The VTech is less substancial than the Panasonic and just seemed less well built and the answering machine was harder to understand than the Panasonic. However, I did not have any of the "white noise" issues I read about but that could be because I live in a pretty rural area with little interference. The hand unit is much smaller than the Panasonic, which I found with 2 kids made it easier to lose, also the speaker was in a funny location and I had to position it on my ear in an uncomfortable location. The phone is very modern looking and seemed more at home in a contemporary, chrome New York apartment than my country kitchen. I will admit that it is very easy to set up but not quite what this red-neck was looking for in features, feel and functionality.

Which leads me to the Panasonic KX-TG2730S. Very nice phone! The set up was a little more time consuming but worth the investment. The reception and sound is great and after 2 weeks, I still have not had to recharge the phone. What battery problem? The first time I lost a bar on the battery indicator was when I programmed 50 telephone numbers into the handset after using it for 3 days. Now don't think I took it easy on this phone, I alternated between it and the VTech for incoming and outgoing calls and we make and receive lots of calls at my house.

So to recap, the VTech is a good phone but not what I would call a family phone it is less rugged, easier to lose, and the sound on the answering machine too digital and harder to understand, and the look is too modern. I did not notice the "white noise" problem on this phone.

The Panasonic was the full featured phone I was looking for that met my needs and my families needs. So if you are considering these two phones, I hope this helps.

I love the feature set for this phone. It solved one problem for me, but caused another. I have a big, old house with one phone jack.
I bought a base unit and two additional handsets for a lot of money which I thought expensive, but ok if it really performed. The setup was trivial - plug and play but the sound quality was poor. EVERYONE who called thought they had dialed our cell phone by mistake. The audio is digitized, and it sounds that way.
Sadly, I am returning the whole thing.
For this amount of money the audio quality should be perfect.

This phone is a ridiculous piece of garbage. The main reason for my comment is the lack of support. Though I could type for hours on this subject, I will keep it short and to the point.
The Problem: I have a strong hiss in the background of the phone when talking. The hiss is so bad that I actually had a "ring" in my ear after a 45 minute call.
1. I look in the manual for some recommendations to solve the problem. I follow their suggestions with no success.
2. I call tech support's toll free number. They cover in a voice recording basically the same suggestions as the written manual. They state that if the voice recording did not solve the problem, then I would have to talk with a live person, M-F 9-5 (most of us work, so I had to take time off of work to stay home to troubleshoot this purchase). The next day, I call and the untrained uneducated person on the other end READS VERBATIM from the manual. I tell her that I tried everything in the manual, I followed the steps of the voice recording and that I was calling to talk with someone for a suggestion as to what the problem could be. Her response was to read from the manual again. She was certain that it was because of the location of the phone. So, I tell her, I tried every room in the house, upstairs, downstairs, at the demarc at the outside of the house, EVEN AT MY NEIGHBOR'S house. Her response was to send it in for repair. Excuse me, I just bought the phone and 3 handsets yesterday for a lot of money, so now I need to send it out for a few weeks? NO.
I am very disappointed because I thought I had a phone that would meet many of my home needs. Well, I guess I have to wait until a GOOD phone manufacturer incorporates similar features.

My quest begins.

The Vtech looks nice and has really cool functions, but the problem is that the sound quality is really bad and choppy. Also is has lesser range than the Panasonic 2.4 Ghz phones. In fact, my old 900 mhz phone has better sound quality and greater range than the Vtech. Please do not buy this phone...it was a complete waste of money. I had to sell the phone (with the 3 additional handsets) on auction just to get rid of it. Vtechs only look nice...but thats about it.