BT Glide Bluetooth Cordless Home Phone review

Do you really need Bluetooth on your home phone?

30 October 2006 0:06 GMT / By Stuart Miles

Who says Bluetooth is just for your mobile? BT don't think that either and have launched a new landline phone with Bluetooth built-in. But do we really need it? We get phoning to find out.

The BT Glide is a landline phone that seems to have it all. Colour screen, text messaging capabilities, 200 name and number phonebook, caller display with a log of up to 50 numbers received and missed, 20 last number redial, a headset port with included wired earpiece, and oh yes, Bluetooth.

Why Bluetooth? Well so you can easily transfer over your contacts to and from the phone as well as, more importantly use a Bluetooth headset so you don't have to hold the phone anymore.

It's a good job too, as the phone compared to your regular mobile phone is incredibly bulky. The "Glide" in the title refers to the unit's slider design, but what we are most puzzled at, is that even though this has less features than the Nokia N70 for example, it's still twice the size.

The design, unless you live in a room that has been turned in to the "Future Zone" in the Crystal Maze by the Changing Room team in the mid-90s is very garish, with a strong penchant for silver and blue buttons gleaming through making it more like something off the set of a sci-fi movie than something you'll want in your house.

That said, we can't complain about the feature set or the phone's quality when it comes to making a call. The DECT reception was clear around our house and testing it with the Jabra BT 500v Bluetooth headset (no connection) the Bluetooth feature was easy to use and pair.

Verdict

BT has tried to up the ante here by introducing Bluetooth into your home phone. But the cost, is not only the price, but that we can't see why you would want to walk around your house using a headset. It's one thing to look like a dork in your car (it’s the law after all) but to do it at home seems a bit pointless to us - but then perhaps we are missing the point. As for the style, it comes down to personal preference, however for us we would rather hang those interactive paintings with the flowing waterfalls on them that you find in Indian restaurants than have this sitting anywhere near our telephone stand. A good solid performance on the technology front let down by a tacky design and the actual question of why you need to connect a Bluetooth headset to your phone in the first place.

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Review Recap

Made by: BT
Price as reviewed: £200
The good: Bluetooth, plenty of phone features including the ability to text
The bad: Tacky design, expensive
Quick verdict: A good solid performance on the technology front let down by a tacky design and the actual question of why you need to connect a Bluetooth headset to your phone in the first place
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