Using The Ooma Telo Handset For Home Phone Calls
August 27th, 2010 . by Learn For FreeThe Ooma Telo handset is a device that goes with the Ooma base station. Its purpose is for allowing customers of the Ooma voice over IP system to take their conversations in and around the home. Although not perfect, this gadget complements the system quite well.
The handset retails for about $50 in most areas. It is about par with other handsets considering the price, but also has unique features you won’t find with other handsets. It’s these features that offset some of the shortcomings of the device. Some, like the one-touch voicemail button, can save a lot of time in using the phone system.
Another feature available only to the Ooma headset is the instant syncing feature. This feature allows you to add contacts to your online phone book in your Ooma panel, press one button, and have all of the contacts downloaded to your phone. It’s not an instant transfer, and it does take some time, but it’s a lot better than adding a hundred contacts the old fashioned way!
Having a phone is great, but when the phone can be more than just one device, you are getting more for your buck. The Ooma headset doesn’t disappoint here, since it is actually three things in one: a baby monitor, an intercom, and then of course the phone it was built for. Baby monitors and intercoms are very useful for keeping track of family members and is especially useful for when you need to contact family in a large house.
The speed of the device is likely the worst thing about the headset. It just doesn’t feel so responsive like a phone should. When cycling through contacts or features in the phone, you will notice that the lag period between pushing a button and seeing the phone react can be easily noticed. It doesn’t kill the phone entirely, but it’s definitely something the Ooma team should have seen and fixed before releasing the headset to the public.
When it comes to design, the Ooma again pleases. Another gripe would be that the LED on the base of the phone is always on, so long as the phone is charging. The LED is unnaturally bright and most users have mentioned they had to cover it up. Again, this is something the Ooma team should have seen and fixed beforehand. This also is not a game ender for the Ooma headset, but can still be frustrating to deal with.
Final Thoughts
Ooma will be releasing a next generation phone sometime in the future- and it’s going to definitely be exciting. There are many that speculate the new phone will have features like picture ID and messaging features enabled.
Learn more about ooma phone review and ooma reviews.