Cortelco ITT-2500-MD-BK Single Line Desk Telephone - Classic Black Office Phone for Home & Business Use

You can not expect to buy a phone built like the old Western Electric ( or licensed copy ) 2500 series for this price. If you could buy one built as the originals were you would have to pay well over $100. In appearance this one comes close but that is where the similarity stops.As shipped, in a plain white box, minor final assembly is required by the recipient. The handset has to be connected to the phone with the supplied plug in coil cord as well as the wire going from the phone to your telephone jack. Not a big deal as it is all plug in connections. A nice feature is a second line plug on the back of the phone for plugging in another device such as an answering machine, fax etc.The outer shell of the phone seems similar to the original as far as thickness and durability under " normal " or " average " use. The metal base of the phone is similar to the later models manufactured by Western Electric concerning thickness of the metal and the holes and cutouts. The handset differs from the originals in that it does not appear to have the carbon type microphone and the receiver ( earpiece ) is different. Both are soldered to the wires in the handset, unlike the originals. The handset contains a 3 position switch volume control. The supplied coiled cord seems reasonably similar to the originals and should wear well under somewhat " normal " conditions. Overstretching it may possibly accelerate wear.Now for the real difference between this phone and the original Western Electric ( phone company ) phones is in the internal components. The originals were more electrical with components and circuitry built to last for decades under normal use. Instead of a leaf blade type hook switch, the Cortelco uses an enclosed fast action switch ( similar to commonly referred to " Micro Switch " . Instead of a potted network the Cortelco uses an electronic circuit board with what appears to be two integrated circuits, a bridge rectifier and other sophisticated electronic components. The push button touch tone type dial although resembles the original on the outside appears as though it is contact wipers that make contact with a circuit board although I have not dissasembled it for an actual look. The ringers are two separate self contained bells each of a different tone. The ring will not sound the same as the original Western Electric phone company phones. There is a two position slide switch on the bottom of the phone for selecting loud and soft ring. There is no provision for shutting off the ringer. It would have been nice if the ringer switch had a third position to turn off the ringer.One concern I have of the " electronic " circuitry of this phone is that it might be more prone to high transient voltage spikes, especially if you are using it on traditional copper phone lines. A nearby lightning strike might very well put this phone out of order where the originals were not too affected by a nearby lightning strike. As far as I know, most if not all phones being made these days use similar electronic circuits and not the old traditional electrical network.One major disapointment I have with this phone is the " sidetone " ( hearing your voice in the earpiece ) is about twice as loud as it should be. Eventually I will figure out how to reduce this ( I know if you tamper with the phone it may void the warranty but for the price I'm not worried ). I'll use it as is for a few months and see how it goes. Test calls I made with this phone, friends that I spoke with using this phone gave me good reports on speech quality.The line cord going from the phone to your phone jack although generous in length could be a bit more durable. As long as you dont constantly move the phone around, crush or walk on the cord etc. most likely it will last a long time. You are not going to get original " phone company " quality at this price.Overall and in consideration of the price it's not a bad phone for the price other than the overly loud sidetone when speaking. I am using this phone with Verizon Fios landline phone service. Your experience may vary depending on what kind of phone service you are using.Concerning reliability and longevity of this phone I can only say that time will tell. I have only been giving this phone light use since getting it a few weeks ago. If it were not for the loud sidetone in the earpiece I would have given it 5 stars but in those 5 stars or even 4 stars you have to keep it in mind the low cost of this phone. As another reviewer stated and I will agree if you want " The Real Thing " check out flea markets, tag sales and old phone suppliers where you can buy used as is or completely refurbished and guaranteed but then again you might be paying more. There are places that will give you a full restoration on old phones and guarantee their work, at a price.I was a bit skeptical when I first bought this phone and maybe even a bit more skeptical after giving it an internal and external examination to see what makes it tick. After a few weeks use, I " kind of " like it and may just buy another one.This Cortelco 2500 phone looks close to the original Western Electric models. This is a phone at its simplest. Here are some of the features:-Mechanical bell ringer with 2 volume options.-Corded handset with 3 volume options. (The manual makes sure to tell you that volume options are implemented only because of government regulation, just so you don't think you're being pampered.)-No caller ID. Every call is an adventure!-12 Grey buttons!-Little slot where you can write a single phone number (presumably your own.) Use the pen of your choice!-Line out, for fax.This phone would look great at grandma's house, or perhaps on an office desk for a throwback motif. It'll work during a power outage. It's comfortable to use, and the handset feels quite luxurious after years of using flat cell phones. It has all your old-timey phone quirks, too! You can unscrew the handset caps to bug the phone like Watergate, and tap out numbers using the hang-up button to impress your girlfriend/boyfriend. What fun!With all that said, build quality isn't the same as the old '70s - '80s models of yore. Though the handset feels sturdy, the base is quite light, and and will move around if you wander too far. I remedied this by opening the unit up and putting a bag of rocks inside to weigh it down. Incidentally, while I was in there, I noticed that the electronics inside this unit were pretty simplistic; some bells wired to a circuit board was about all there was to see. You can't expect much wizardry for $30, but the phone still works quite well. The bell also doesn't sound quite the same as the iconic older ring that's ingrained into your brain.Surprisingly, the buttons still have double-shot legends. This means that they're not merely printed on, but are instead a second colored plastic molded into the main button. This is a high quality legend printing method that is relatively rare on electronics these days, much less bargain basement ones. For you, it means that the legends should never wear off of the phone. It's a nice detail.By the way, the unit I received was NOT made in the USA like the one pictured. It was manufactured in China, just like everything else is. That isn't something that makes the phone better or worse, but it should be noted because the accompanying picture shows a Made in USA sticker, and that is false advertising.Buy this product if you want a cheap, neat looking desk phone or a trip down memory lane. If the build quality isn't up to your standards, visit your local antique shop for the real deal.Este telefono es excelenteLast week I bought two new phones for the house. Previously, we've had a couple cordless phones and they were handy in that you could walk around as you talked, but how often do you do that? With me, not often. Then there was the problem with needing new batteries in that they cost so much. Then there was the problem with the newer phones being basically ugly. Then there was the problem with people leaving messages whereas I'd much rather that they'd just call back later. Then there was always another on-going problem of misplacing the phone and not being able to find the handset while the phone was ringing. Very aggrevating! All in all, a switch back to a standard desk phone seemed in order. I chose a couple and one of them was the Cortelco Black Single Line Desk Telephone. It sits on my desk right here by my computer and looks very appropriate.This new Cortelco phone seems to work real well. The voice tone is excellent, much better than my other new phone. The push buttons work well and sound fine while being operated. About the only problem I've noted is that the volume switch on the ringer doesn't seem to work. It's always on low no matter what the switch position indicates. Well, I don't really need the high, but I'd like to have it when it rings and I'm in the another room. It seems nothing totally works these days. In any case, it's very nice looking, works well (except the bell thingy), and was inexpensive.Gary PetersonLIke the look, but it's way too loud even on the lower sound setting. Also, the 2 buttons that get pushed down when you hang up (I don't know what they're called, you know what I mean...) and then are supposed to pop up when you lift the receiver, stick down every time I put the receiver on them and I have to manually pull them up.As a low cost, replica phone, it does the job very well. It looks very similar to the original 2500 phones which were popular in the United States and Canada from the 1960s through the 1980s. The sound quality is good and it looks great. This is a replica. If you are searching for the real thing, you will pay a lot more for a refurbished phone from this era. My only complaint about this model is that the bell can not be turned off.Better than what I expected !Yeah, its not an original Western Electric 2500. This telephone is made in China and it's lighter in weight. But It's not a "toy" either. Work perfectly with my VOIP ATA Module.Bien meilleur que mes attentes !Oui c'est vrai ce n'est pas un Western Electric 2500 d'origine. Ce téléphone est beaucoup plus léger et il est assemblé en Chine. Mais je vais en rassurer plusieurs, ce n'est pas un "jouet" non plus. Il fonctionne parfaitement avec un module VOIP (le mien du moins).Je recommande pour ceux qui veulent un téléphone minimaliste au design indémodable.It just works, and it'll probably last for years. Even if something breaks, they phone's modular and can easily be fixed. If you want some retro flash at home or at your desk, pick on of these up and flash back to a simpler time when things works and worked well.This is just what I was looking for...it has a good loud ringer. I bought it so I could hear an incoming call when the hydro goes out...that hasn't happened yet but as it is not an electronic ringer it should work just fine. I like the retro look of the phone as well.