BT DUET 60

...I decided on was the BT duet 60 white in colour. I chose this one mainly because it was cheap and it looked great.

**Price and Availability**

I bought mines from BT direct www.bt.com Now I am with another telephone provider and BT told me at the time of purchase that some features may not work with my current telephone provider as this is a BT product.

www.bt.com £14.99 plus £5.99 standard delivery
...need to send back to BT if you want to get plagued with junk mail from them. Just to add here there is no requirement for you to send the warranty card back to ensure that you are covered for the 1st year, during the first year your receipt will act as proof of purchase.

**Looks**

This phone is available in white and black and looks very stylish for the amount of money you are asked to pay for it. The handset is nice ... more

I needed a new basic telephone for my kitchen so I decided to search the internet for a small and basic telephone that was not to expensive. The phone I decided on was the BT duet 60 white in colour. I chose this one mainly because it was cheap and it looked great.

**Price and Availability**

I bought mines from BT direct www.bt.com Now I am with another telephone provider and BT told me at the time of purchase that some features may not work with my current telephone provider as this is a BT product.

www.bt.com £14.99 plus £5.99 standard delivery

www.247electrical.co.uk- £20.55 this includes delivery

Also available at Argos for £14.95

Ok so I paid a little more that I should have, at the time I bought it I believed that Argos did not stock it but how wrong was I.

Available in Black or White

**Within the box**

When you first open the box you will find the phone (handset) and the base wrapped in bubble wrap. There will also be a great instruction booklet, 3 AA batteries for the phone and warranty card which you will need to send back to BT if you want to get plagued with junk mail from them. Just to add here there is no requirement for you to send the warranty card back to ensure that you are covered for the 1st year, during the first year your receipt will act as proof of purchase.

**Looks**

This phone is available in white and black and looks very stylish for the amount of money you are asked to pay for it. The handset is nice and basic with all the buttons on the underside which is always hidden when the phone is on the base. There is a BT logo on the handset which is always visible as it's printed on the side which shows whilst on the base. The Lcd display is nice and small and does not stand out like a sore thumb, with only 4 buttons visible at all times I would say the phone looks the part and fits in well.

**Handset**

The handset looks very basic from the outset but when you get familiar with the phone you will soon realise that this handset is the brains behind the phone. There are a total of 20 keys on the handset which seems a lot but remember the standard buttons alone take up 12 buttons. Now the other 8 buttons include 1571 which is great if you use the answer service from your provider, Last number redial, Call waiting button, secrecy button and memory buttons. The handset also has the LCD on it which will show you whose calling etc.

**Lcd**

This will show you who is calling if you have caller id and it will also store who has called whilst you have been out too. A nice easy function to use which will always come in use. Right below the LCD screen you have the buttons that will allow you to change the contrast, scroll through numbers that have called you, delete any numbers in the called list and a nice little button that I like is the call button. So when you know that you have missed a call from your Mother, rather than dialling the number in full simply press the call button (this option will only work when you are looking at the called list). As much as I like the LCD display the only moan I have about it is there is no backing light so there is no way of seeing who is calling you in the middle of the night.

*Call waiting is a feature that you will normally be charged for - please contact your telephone provider.

**Number Memory**

Something that we all seem to spend ages setting up but never really use, well on this phone you can have the 3 post used number stored in to dedicated buttons (referred to M1, M2 &M3) I love this as I can easily call my favourite numbers by simply lifting the handset and pressing one single button. Now the phone also has a small piece of card which allows you to write the names of the stored numbers, I would advise you to use pencil just in case you change the numbers at a later date. Now in addition to the 3 memory buttons you can store up to another 10 numbers on this phone. I could not believe how easy it was to store the numbers, all you need to do is press store then the position you want and then dial the number too press store again and that's you.

**Adjustable sounds**

Features on this phone allow you to have control over the ringer volume and the volume of the ear piece. Ringer volume has 3 setting which consist of High, Low and the all important off, a switch on the side of the handset allow you to chose the preferred volume. Two volume settings on the ear piece Normal and High can be selected easily by adjusting the switch. The great thing about ear piece control is that you can adjust at anytime during the call. The ringer has only one sound and is a basic telephone ringer.

**Other Buttons**

1571 - You know that sound that indicates you have a voice message? (two tones alternating) when you hear this sound all you need to do is press the 1571 button and you will be taken directly to your answer machine messages.

Secrecy- Another button that I could not live without, you know how it is the phone rings and its for someone else in the house, well all you need to do is press the dedicated secrecy button the scream on the person it is for. Using the secrecy button will guarantee that the caller will not hear you shouting.

Redial- A button that can be useful when you are trying to get thought to someone but all you get is the engaged tone. The redial button will dial the last number that has been called from your handset.

Call Waiting (R) - another cool feature on this phone has to be the dedicated call waiting button. If you have call waiting in your phone line then all you will need to do is press the button when required and then you will be able to jump between the two calls

**99 Call List**

If you have call waiting activated on your telephone line then this feature will be another useful one. Rather than having to dial 1471 (Uk only) to see who has called you whilst out all you need to do using the arrows is scroll through the list of calls received. You are able to go back through the last 99 calls received; information available will depend on the type of call. For example No Number 23.27pm on 01/11 would indicate that someone called you from a network which is unable to transmit numbers - other example 0131 222 5555 14.15pm on 31/10 would tell you that the number called at this time. When you get to the end of the list the LCD will simply display END OF LIST. I have to say that I absolutely love this feature as it shows me who has called and at what time, this is especially handy when I am on holiday so I am guaranteed never to miss an important call again.

**Making Calls**

Lifting the handset from the base will give you the dialling tone, now you can either punch in the required number or you can use the memory keys. I think that this phone is easy to use but the only problem I have here is when I press the wrong number it means me starting all over again. Unlike having digital phones which would callow me to press the C button and then correct myself you don't have this option. What ever number you do dial it will be displayed on the LCD but with the LCD being on the other side of the handset I don't see much point of it displaying it as you cant see it as your dialling the numbers.

**Receiving Calls**

When the phone rings within a second or two the number will be shown on the LCD all you then need to do is pick up the handset and that is you connected to the call. Obviously if someone calls who you do not want to talk to all you need to do is let it ring. To end any calls just replace the handset.

**Alerts**

There is a little light situated on the handset near the bottom which will flash different colour depending on what is happening. When you receive a call the light will flash red to indicate the call and when you have missed a call then the light will flash green

Battery low indicator will display on the LCD to indicate you need to change the battery.

**My Thoughts**

This is certainly a great wee phone that has served me very well for the past 3 months and I am sure that it will continue to work for years to come. I especially like the fact that I am able to change the ringer volume to an OFF position as many phones don't seem to have this setting. The fact alone that this phone can store up to the last 99 calls has to tell you that you are buying a quality phone at a reasonable price. I would not have any problem with recommending this phone to anyone as a second or maybe third phone but I would not recommend it as a main phone as this phone is corded and the cord does not seem to stretch all the far and the LCD would definitely require a backing light before it could be used as a main phone. When making and recieving calls the phone is always very clear.

Hope this will help you with your decision - Marcellep Ciao November 2005  

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