AT&T Trimline 210 Corded Phone - Power out? Who ya gonna call?

I hate corded phones. It seems that the cord, no matter how long, is always shorter than I need it to be. I end up trapped near the phone so I can't keep an eye on my sons, or anything else for that matter. Plus, it is constantly getting tangled around itself, tangled around anyone nearby, or getting in the way.

When we lived in California, the area that we were in seldom had storms. It wasn't until we moved to Virginia that we had storms or rain on a regular basis. It was when we moved here that I learned that every home should have at least one corded phone.

Maybe it's just because I'm blonde, but it never dawned on me that the cordless phones wouldn't work when the power was out. We hadn't lived in Virginia very long when we had a power outage. I picked up the phone to call Housing to see what was going on (they don't always get the work out when they shut the power off for construction) and there was no dial tone. At first I thought maybe it was the phone, so I tried a different cordless in a different room. Nope. It didn't work, either. Then I saw the outlet that the phone was plugged in to. DUH! No power = no phone!

When we went to Wal-Mart for a corded phone, I wanted whatever was cheap. We knew we would only use it during a power outage, so we didn't need it to have all of the bells and whistles that our cordless phones have. While the AT&T Trimline 210 Corded Phone didn't end up being the cheapest they had, it was the second lowest in price.

The AT&T Trimline 210 Corded Phone that we chose is black. It's only 8 1/2" long, 3 1/2" wide and 2 1/2" deep. It has some decent features, especially for the price.

~Lighted Keypad
~Handset Volume Control (Low, Medium, High)
~One Touch Memory Buttons (Fire, Police, Ambulance)
~Flash (To change from one call to another for call waiting)
~Ringer Volume Control (Off, Low, High)
~Desk and Wall Convertible
~Redial
~10 Speed Dial Numbers
~Mute
~Three ringer tones to choose from.
~7 foot line cord

Except for the handset volume control, which is found toward the top on the left side of the base, all of the buttons are located around the number pad. The lighted keypad is nice in case the power is out and it's during the evening or night. It's a soft light. Enough to see the keys, but not enough to hurt your eyes or blind you.

The cord from the phone to the handset is only 15-16" when not stretched out. It really doesn't reach much farther, either, when you pull. I don't try to hard to move when talking so that the cord doesn't come out of the bottom of the phone. It's held in place with a clip, so you could buy a longer cord, but we seldom use it. It's in the kitchen hanging on the wall, I left the short cord so that it doesn't get in my way.

On the base, hidden under the handset, you'll find a directory card where you can list what numbers you have programmed into the speed dial features. We haven't programmed any numbers into our phone, so I'm not sure exactly how hard it would be to do. The directions that came in the box are very detailed, including pictures, so it isn't hard to figure out any of the features if you chose to use them.

We also haven't changed the ringer tones. Since we have 3 other phones, the AT&T Trimline 210 Corded Phone gets drowned out, anyway. It's loud enough to hear, however, when the power is out since it's so quiet in our house without the TV and such going. Even on high it isn't a loud ringer, but it's enough we can hear it, especially since our townhouse has no carpet, we have fake hardwood flooring, and has an open floor plan. The sound easily echoes thru the entire house.

There is a two year limited warranty with the AT&T Trimline 210 Corded Phone, but for less than $10, I'd just buy a new phone. From what I can tell, they will repair or replace your AT&T Trimline 210 Corded Phone if there are defects in the materials or workmanship of the phone. They want you to allow up to 30 days for repair or replacement. Unless someone got hurt using the phone, I, personally, wouldn't even mess with it.

If you want or need a phone just to get you thru a power outage, this would be a great choice! It has enough options to get you thru without being overkill. I wouldn't, however, count on it as your regular home. It has a "cheap plastic" feel to it and I wouldn't be surprised if it broke if it was accidentally dropped.

*Warning. Avoid using your telephone during a thunderstorm as there may be a slight chance of electric shock from lightning.