BT Paragon 550 Corded Telephone Answering Machine – White

BT Paragon 550 Corded Telephone Answering Machine – White

I purchased this from Amazon after searching through BT products on their own website. Amazon was cheaper. I chose this model as I am tired of the BT Answering Machine going wrong after only just out of guarantee. This telephone I find attractive, but found it very difficult indeed to understand the instructions and negotiate recording my message. It must have taken me over 20 attempts. The ringing tones are not exactly what I want, but I have heard worse in the High Street from mobiles. I understand this model should help the hard of hearing but I am not convinced. Once set up, I am absolutely delighted with it and would recommend purchase, with the proviso that a whole evening will have to be taken up in trying to understand the instructions and then recording your message.
Rating: 4 / 5

As this phone replaces the 500 which became faulty I might not be the best judge of this type of equipment, but having been asked to give a review, then so far everything is working well,if not better than the previous model, my wife found a dial tone that she can live with, so far so good, Our only complaint is with BT for not giving us feedback regards the older model which sometimes worked and then sometimes became faulty, and we were left trying to find out what part of our wiring set-up was to blame. As it was manufactured by them we had hoped that they could have sent a qualified person to check the telephone and thereby save a lot of time and expense.
Rating: 4 / 5

I bought the Paragon 550 for a small home office. It is a robust phone and the sound is super. However the ringtones are terrible (like somthing you would find on a wee girls mobile). Only one sounds remotely like a standard phone. The phone is very slow to “think” and there are noticeable delays in it ringing or actioning any function you ask it to do. The phone book is dated and clunky. If I had been allowed to test the phone for a day I would have returned it.
Rating: 3 / 5

I was having problems hearing callers on our cordless answerphone machine, also from BT. Now, BT do not list this phone as for the hard of hearing. I had to reaserch and was recommended to a site that listed units for hard of hearing people. This was one phone hightlighted.

I must say that it is sufficient for my needs. The volume control in the handset works and I can clearly hear callers and do not have to ask ‘What was that’ or ‘can you spell that.’

It may be that it is also a corded phone. I wished BT had slected it as it wouldn’t have taken several days research to find one.
Rating: 4 / 5

I am very pleased with this phone. Two small niggles: the ringtones are dreadful. I switched them off and rely on the other phone in house. Sometimes (not always) when someone is leaving a message the volume fades so you can’t monitor who is calling. Otherwise, it’s fine for us.
Rating: 4 / 5