Review on 📞 Enhanced Communication: Clarity Dect 6 Amplified Cordless Big Button Speakerphone with Talking Caller ID - Clarity-xlc2 by Tiffany Allan

I'm giving this phone 4 stars but that's because I don't think there's anything better based on what I've found over several nights of searching . Needed to replace my mother's existing cordless boosted phone due to battery failure. In any case, it had a fatal design flaw. They placed the volume buttons right where a person would normally hold a phone. My mother kept turning down the volume on her old phone and couldn't understand why she couldn't hear anyone on the phone. Confused them and wondered if they ever tested the phone with real people. Either way, it's time for a new phone, the Clarity XLC2. Mostly good reviews and nothing else can match the same specs. Here are my impressions after installing it for a few weeks and communicating daily with my mother. 1) It has an adequate volume for a person with a severe hearing impairment. My mother has bad hearing. Hearing loss in one ear and partially in the other. She uses a phone without a hearing aid and often tells me it's too loud. good problem to have. 2) The volume control is a wheel on the side of the phone that can theoretically be adjusted during a call. She can't, but I think most people can. 3) By setting the switch on the base, the handset can automatically return to power mode when someone else is using the phone in normal mode. It's great for me when I'm visiting, using my phone and forgetting to put it back on boost. There was a problem with the old phone. This is a great feature. The talk button will also turn red to indicate that the boost is on. Green indicates normal. This is necessary as the boost is only one button, so you need a way to tell. 4) The speakerphone actually works well enough for my mom to hear. We know this because when she first answered the phone, she accidentally hit the speakerphone button. I spoke to her for 15 minutes before we realized she was on speakerphone. She noticed this because she couldn't hear her own voice well. The speaker on the back of the phone was loud enough for her to hear me. The downside is that she did it by accident. I don't know if that applies to other older users, but my mother insists on holding the phone to her face. When she does, the buttons are easy to press. It could be a speaker button, number 1 is common, and other buttons that I can't identify other than hissing or clippings that I can hear. I'm trying to teach her to keep the phone away from her face, but after so many years, it's hard to unlearn her. I wish they had placed the speaker button somewhere else. It seems that this is exactly the place where you can accidentally hit. TIP: There is a setting on the base unit to turn off the talking keyboard, this reduces the annoying factor a bit. 5) This model is pretty light. No complaints from her that it's too heavy. 6) DECT 6.0 works as it should, great. All in all this is a good phone and I am very happy that Clarity offers a good and reliable product for people with hearing problems. I think it would be better if some of the keys were relocated, making them less prone to accidental presses on face contact, and finally, the keyboard contrast isn't great for those with low vision. The numbers should be bolder so they stand out better on dark pads. Unfortunately, poor hearing and poor vision go hand in hand with age. UPDATE (2/10/13): After using this phone for some time, I decided to add a few observations. The problem with accidentally pressing the button still persists. I ended up having to cut a piece off the back of the 8-1/2 x 11 tablet and tape it along the side of the phone on rollers so Mom wouldn't press the buttons with her cheek. It works like a fence. I also locked the volume wheel in the full on position so she doesn't accidentally turn it down while holding the phone. The challenge for phone designers is to place all controls in a way that is easy to use but not intrusive. I really think Plantronics needs to rethink the external configuration of this phone to bring well-made electronic components together. There's no reason the boost button should be where it is. The volume wheel may have detents to make it less prone to accidental adjustment. The ear cushion could be slid outward or tilted to a different angle to keep the keyboard away from the user's face. A few thoughts for Plantronics/Clarity if they ever read these reviews.