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Netgear SPH200W WiFi Phone with Skype
	Manufacturer: Netgear Customer Rating:   List Price: $233.00 Sale Price: $279.95 Availibility: View Product Availability Buy Now
Product Description
Unlimited Free Wireless Calls to Skype Users, Without a PC. Make and receives Skype phone calls wherever you have Wi-Fi access. Works with most leading Wi-Fi hotspot providers including T-Mobile USA. Lets you talk for free to other Skype users without a PC. Calls any phone worldwide at low SkypeOut rates and NO MONTHLY FEES. Works with security protected home WiFi networks. The SPH200W is compatible with leading hotspot providers that support the WISPr (Wireless Internet Service Provider Roaming) protocol, including T-Mobile USA. A list of WISPr hotspots can be found at www.netgear.com/hotspots. NETGEAR neither operates nor guarantees the continual availability or compatibility of Wi-Fi hotspots. Subscription or usage fees may apply for Wi-Fi hotspot usage. Wi-Fi hot-spots requiring browser-based authentication are not supported. For calls made through Skype and/or the SkypeOut service. Terms and conditions of the Skype services are subject to change at any time in the sole discretion of Skype Limited. The Skype service is offered and operated solely by Skype, and NETGEAR does not guarantee Skype service availability, quality or pricing. No emergency calling¿emergency calls will need to be made by alternative methods. This phone will not function during a power failure or broadband outage. Use of Skype software, SkypeOut and/or SkypeIn is subject to Skype¿s terms of service and end user license agreement.
Product Details
Makes and receives Skype phone calls wherever you have WiFi access. Works with most leading Wi-Fi hotspot providers including T-Mobile USA¹ Lets you talk for free to other Skype users without a PC Calls any phone worldwide at low SkypeOut rates and NO MONTHLY FEES
Video Reviews
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Customer Reviews
Great phone, and here's some info for you   Review Date: June 16, 2008 Reviewer: Tom Chappell, Durham, NC, USA This review concerns only the SPH200W; I don't know anything about the earlier SPH101. I was hesitant to buy this product based on reviews, but I went ahead and got it, expecting to have to do some troubleshooting. The product has been completely satisfactory to me. The phone is adequately sturdy, battery life is quite long long (I power the phone down when I'm on the move to keep it from searching for networks, and I get 3-5 workdays of standby out of one charge), and call quality is fine. Incoming call clarity is superb; outgoing clarity isn't always great because of the mic placement and quality on this phone. Setting up the phone is easy and intuitive. The phone connects quickly and reliably to networks, and options for preferred networks, entering passphrases, etc., are many and easy. Making calls is very easy. As is clearly indicated on this product's box, there's no onboard web browser, so you can't authenticate on a network using a browser. If you just have to register hardware on a network you use (like I do at work), that's easy - use your computer to register, or just tell your IT person the MAC address of your phone, which is under the battery. You can charge the phone using the included cradle which receives a male USB mini-A plug, or you can plug a USB mini-A cable directly into the phone. Netgear supplies you with an AC adapter which plugs into the wall and terminates with mini-A, so you can charge this phone like you would any mobile phone. There's also an A- to mini-A USB cable in the box, so you can charge from your computer if you need to. Both methods work with either the cradle or without it. Very versatile charging options. Here's what I think will be useful to potential buyers - Netgear's support is mediocre at best, and I couldn't get any info. from them about compatible headsets or batteries. Don't buy this phone expecting excellent support from the manufacturer. I did some legwork, and much research later, I have answers: "Standard" headsets don't work with the SPH200W. You need a 4-pole plug, to start, and then not all headsets of this description will work. Nokia headsets have worked for me - I bought an HS-47 for peanuts, and it works great. This significantly improved outgoing call quality. Batteries. No help from Netgear on this one, I'm sad to say. The battery for the SPH200W is lithium, 3.7V, and has 900mAh capacity. If you search for batteries which are interchangeable with Nokia BL-5C, you'll find one which will work. The Netgear battery is the shape of the BL-5C, and many BL-5C replacements are 3.7V (vs. 3.6) and some are higher capacity than the stock one (Lenmar makes one which is readily available and works very well with this phone). If you absolutely must have tons of battery life out of this appliance, get an extra battery and you'll be good to go for a long long time. Other complaints of others: 1) "the speakerphone isn't hi-fi." It's true. Have you heard high-quality sound from a mobile phone's speaker? I never have. This works just fine; I can understand what callers are saying when I use the speaker. I don't listen to lossless audio playback on my phone. 2) "outgoing call quality is poor." Not quite true, though this is the SPH200W's weak point. It's often just as clear as a digital/cell connection, but sometimes it's obscured enough to be annoying. If you want to upgrade, spend a few bucks and get a good headset. If this still doesn't satisfy you, wait for the next generation of wi-fi phone technology. 3) "battery life is terrible." Not true. If "less than 9 days of standby" is "terrible," then I guess I can see what folks are saying here. You get plenty of talk/standby time out of this battery, and it's very easy to keep it charged up with all the options you have. Extra batteries are also easy to come by. I'm glad Netgear is producing VoIP equipment. This is a good piece, and I recommend it to anyone who is weaning him/herself from a 2-year wireless contract. Works as advertised for me.   Review Date: May 29, 2008 Reviewer: J. Kelley, Orange County, CA I bought this Skype phone because it works specifically with T-Mobile's HotSpots. I've logged in at the Red Carpet Clubs at LAX and John Wayne Airport. The sound quality is excellent. At home, I used it nightly with a friend who is moving to Hawaii. His cell plan didn't cover Hawaii and his last visit cost him over $300. This time we talked for hours over Skype. He used his laptop and I used my Netgear phone. There's three heavy hitting wireless users sharing a single Apple Airport Extreme. We have Roadrunner Extreme Cable Modem service. So, we're well equipt at home for using the Netgear Skype phone. I also use the phone using a portable Apple Airport connected to a hotel's inhouse wired Internet access. It works flawlessly. Netgear SPH200W Skype wifi phone   Review Date: June 13, 2008 Reviewer: P. Lee, Valley Park, MO United States Great product. It's limitation is the availability of free wifi access but that is not something any product can overcome. I was able to enter in the WEP Passcode at some cafes and that is a big plus. Due to it's size, I would recommend bringing a mini headphone/mic set. That fixed the problem I had. Surprised it works so well   Review Date: March 8, 2009 Reviewer: Nasha, PA The Negatives: The phone looks and feels cheap. I am not sure abotu longevity with the item and some of the menu options are not logical. The Positives: It works! With a strong wireless connection you can make very clear Skype calls, even if dialing to a landline or cell phone (which I do a lot) It works in many ways better than my microphone attached to my laptop. For the price, I feel that it is easily worth it for travelers who may go to other countries and wish to have a dedicated and reliable way to phone home or to stay in contact with people in other countries cheaply. AWESOME! Great Device - Update   Review Date: May 18, 2009 Reviewer: J. McClain, First I bought the Belkin Skype phone and can I tell you that it was THE worst. I should've read the reviews before getting it. Plug-n-play... not even close. Would not connect to my LinkSys router even with my settings as wide open as Lindsay Lohan. The user interface is clumsy and the tech support was a joke. When I started asking some tough questions about the device, the poor guy on the other line I think started to cry. Anyway, I bought the NetGear SPH200w and it worked right out of the box. Excellent job, nicely done. User interface was intuitive and setup was a piece of cake. I am an IT guy and I probably could've forced the Belkin device to work but that was not the point... the point was that Belkin represents their product as something my technophobiac parents could use and that is simply just not true. Again, if you are deciding between the two... get this one, the NetGear. ** Update ** The charging cradle does not work so I must now go back to the store yet a THIRD time... however, I will just be getting another NetGear phone.

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