1719 Digital Answering Machine

I've had answering machines for decades and this is the best inexpensive unit I've found. It's perfect for my basic needs.

Before buying this unit more than a month ago, I read a lot of reviews. I simply cannot understand why anyone had anything negative to say about this unit (and some did).

It doesn't need a battery to maintain the memory in a power failure. Your outgoing message and all incoming messages are protected against loss of power, as are your optional settings. (But, like most other inexpensive units, you will need to reset the time and date.)

Setting up (programming) the unit is easy and there is a built-in voice help system to tell you what each option is .. and the LCD indicator in the Message Window clearly shows how you have set each option.

Single line, single "mailbox" makes it easy for your callers to leave their message if you have just one phone line you want to serve. Callers can leave messages up to 3 minutes in length, and the unit automatically disconnects if there is a 7 second silence to maximize available memory. A total of approximately 19 minutes of messages (including your outgoing message) — up to 100 total messages — can be stored.

Contrary to some reviews, I've found the audio quality of both outgoing and incoming messages in excellent. However, as with any "live" phone call or answering machine - callers using a cell phone can sometimes sound garbled. This is not the fault of the AT&T 1719.

The optional Audible Message Alert offers a low-volume (non-adjustable) beep every 15 seconds to let you know a message has been recorded. The indicator light blinks to indicate messages, too .. one blink for each new message. Messages can be deleted or left as desired.

Yes, you must "scroll" through all the options to reach the desired one to change it, but you don't need to listen to each option in its entirety.. just jump ahead (or back) through the options until you reach the one you want to change. Messages can be reviewed easily, and listened to at half or 2x speed.

There is an extensive list of remote options (17) to access, operate and change the settings of the unit from a remote touch tone phone.

Two potential inconveniences are: 1)the phone cord is permanently attached to the unit and must be plugged into a phone jack or extension of some kind, where most other answering machines have a jack in the back into which you plug a phone cable, and 2) There is no place to plug a phone. I solved this problem by installing a dual jack adapter into a phone, then plugged the answering machine into one jack and the phone cord into the other -- no problem! Radio Shack and other stores are sure to have whatever kind of adapters you might need.

There are more features, but I think the ones above should tell you what you need to know to make a decision on whether the AT&T 1719 is right for you. The full content of the User's Manual is available at the AT&T website, www.telephones.att.com.

Hope this helps.