So anyway, about the phone. Even though we couldn't get the top level menus to talk we all decided we were going to get the phones. The people I was with here Cingular customers and they wanted to port their numbers over. In order to do that though they needed to have their actual account number. So, while they were working on getting that information, the guy started with my phone. He got me set up easily, and my battery had plenty of charge, so I started playing. He'd turned on the speech for me before giving me the phone, so I was able to jump right in. The first thing I noticed was that on my phone, the main menu was spoken just fine. So, that little problem was pretty much solved. I just started exploring the menus then. The first thing I always like to do when looking at a new phone is to see what ring tones it has to offer. It's got actual Midi files on the phone, not just the traditional polyphonic tones, so I was really excited about that. From there I decided that I was going to see if I could add a contact. To do this you need to know the letters that correspond to the numbers, and be at least fairly comfortable with them. The reason for this is because this is one area that doesn't speak. However, once you've entered the name and press OK, the name is read back to you. So if you make a mistake you can press Okay again which takes you back into edit mode, hit backspace, and fix your entry problem. The first number I wanted to put in was my home number. I had a little trouble with the text entry the first time, but that was due mostly to my unfamiliarity with the keypad. I was able to enter the name and number, and then later set it as a speed dial number. There's a ton of stuff that this phone can do that just blows me away. I've created an audio file that runs for about 41 minutes that lets you hear the phone, and shows you how many of the features works. Once it's finished saving I'll upload it and give the link. It's not perfect, but I think I got rid of most of my ums and brain dead pauses. So, feel free to download it and have a listen, and then if you'd like, comment back here and let me know what you think of the phone. Oh, and sorry about the very low-level hum that is present throughout the recording. My microphone is actually being routed through a switch box that allows me to have both my phone and computer going to one headset, and the box seems to give just a little bit of interference. But, I think it works.
Well, the file should almost be uploaded, so hopefully I'll be able to get the link soon so that I can end this entry and go to bed. I'm tired tonight!
Okay, it's finally uploaded. So, here's the link. Enjoy! The annoying thing, at least in my case, is that it's automatically playing rather than allowing it to be saved. I'm too tired tonight though do work on it. Maybe I'll keep working on it in the morning.
And now, I'm going to go to bed.