BT Verve 500 TWIN > Reviews > A phone I cant recommend highly enough

Author's product rating:   

Reception & Clarity of speech	Excellent
Range of features	Good
Reliability	Excellent
Value for money	Good

Advantages:	works well, stylish and smart looking
Disadvantages:	prices vary so widely on the internet

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

For a long time I've been living with a cordless phone inherited from an ex - and to be fair, it's done its job. Recently however, I decided to upgrade (because I lost the handset to the other one!) so I purchased a BT Verve 500 Twin.

So, you're probably wondering why I purchased this particular phone. Is it exceptional in performance, is it really cheap, or does it perhaps vibrate in an appealing manner? Well, if I'm being totally honest, I picked it because it comes in red, and it certainly is NOT cheap.

Now, at between £60 and £98 (and believe me, I'm really kicking myself right now for paying the higher price) it's not exactly cheap. But then again, cheap isn't always good. So what features does it offer?

Its pretty smart looking for a start, as far as I know, available in black, silver., or red, with a very modern, simple., slimline deisgn.

Well, one of the things it offers is the ability to store up to255 names and numbers. I don't know that many people and I don't really see any situation where I would need all those slots, unless I added in every Chinese takeaway in the greater Nottingham area. However, it has (surprisingly) proved itself very useful. Shortly after purchasing this as a home phone, I lost my mobile, and it proved invaluable in recovering numbers that would otherwise have been lost. In addition to this, it can also read SIM cards, so storing numbers is as simple as placing your mobile SIM in the correct slot and letting the machine do its business.

In addition, you can also use this phone to send text messages, which, if like me you hate talking on the phone, is pretty useful. Typing is easy, and the handset does have a predictive text capability. All SMS sent and received come with a time/date stamp, so you know when each was sent and received, and there's a useful call timer so you can tell how long you've been on.

It also has hands-free options, which may seem kind of pointless, as you may think there is nothing similar to the danger of texting and driving in your own home. However, having washed 2 phones, flushed another, and microwaved one; it's nice to know it won't be in my hand while I am otherwise involved.

Naturally, it includes a secrecy function, so if mad aunt Bertha phones up, you can feel free to insult her as much as you like knowing that she won't hear you, and just in case she happened to mutter, there's an earpiece volume control... You can also lock the keypad, adjust the ringer volume, and choose between 8 polyphonic and 2 standard ring tones.

On the opposite end of the scale from secrecy, it includes loudspeakers, which I have to say are the most amazingly clear I have ever found on a cordless phone, and perfect for relaying dirty jokes to a large number of people.

This phone is capable of holding conference calls - obviously being a twin set, you get two handsets anyway, but call clarity is very good and you can conduct calls over long distances and in bad weather with ease. The ability to switch calls between handsets is also useful - I don't know about anyone else, but I always need to pee when someone phones up, so the ability to transfer the call to the handset in the bathroom rocks!

My BIG bugbear with cordless phones is that I forget to dock the phone quite often, resulting in the battery running out, and my calls cutting off just when things get interesting. This phone has 120 hours of standby time on it, and 12 hours talk time is excellent, and I've never had a call cut off through low battery life yet.

It has a fairly long range - 300m outdoor in ideal conditions, and I HAVE managed to walk around the corner to the shop whilst on the phone on more than one occasion Just in case you do stroll out of range, or run out of standby time, it does have a basic answering machine function, with up to 28 minutes recording time. The answer machine comes with a choice of pre-recorded outgoing messages, or you can record your own.

It also has automatic call screening, a memo function, and remote access.

Of course, the main function of a phone is to receive and make calls. This phone does both with ease, with lots of clarity and a simple one touch answering mechanism. It has never ince I have been using it had any problems with reception, and it has also withstood a large amount of chewing from my four year old daughter who believes everything is food!

Overall, It's a great phone, and I'd certainly recommend it , although I pid the more expensive price for it . I paid £93.99 for mine in red from http://www.cordless-phones.uk.com , although it is now available much cheaper on www.netelectrics.biz for £59.98. Although I wish I'd searched for a lower price, I cannot deny that this phone set has been worth every penny spent, and I would highly recommend it . Its a very reliable phone with a wide range of features, and I cannot reccomend it highly enough.

Thanks for reading 