BeoTalk 1200
| Product : | BeoTalk 1200 |
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| Produced from : | 2001 - 2006 | |
| Designed by : | Henrik Sorig Thomsen | |
| Finish : | Aluminium | |
| Desirability : | 3 |
The BeoTalk 1200 answerphone was fitted with Caller ID and a clock with which to date- and time-stamp incoming messages. Further, the BeoTalk 1100 could differentiate between incoming calls and, depending on what the user had programmed the machine to do, it would either accept the calls, else reject them. One of the functions of the Beotalk 1100 was that if the user had previously input telephone numbers from individuals who did not wish to be talked to, when the machine recognised one of these numbers all they would hear was a dead tone. So the Beotalk 1200 owner never even had to hear their voice!
The BeoTalk 1200 also stored the 50 last numbers that have been used and could ‘verbally’ inform the user who was telephoning before the telephone was picked up. Four different outgoing messages could be made: one for announcements, a general one or, by programming numbers in, ones for friends (maximum 30) or family (maximum three). So the user could leave messages for people that were to be met (“we’re down the pub”), leave a forwarding number for friends without fear that all and sundry will hear it, and visiting relatives could be avoided with “we’re away” messages. Family and partners could get soppy messages just for them. This “call managing” was the real appeal of the machine.
The BeoTalk 1200 had down sides too, so all was not perfect. Setting it up could sometimes drive its user to tears. Remote access was possible but tricky. And many of the machine’s functions were reliant on it being able to recognise the telephone number. The phonebook too could not be shared with other phones (like the BeoCom 6000, for example). But for the Bang & Olufsen purchaser who loved gadgets and technology in general, then this was the machine for them!
There was a total speaking time of 15 minutes which was sufficient for most purposes, as well as an indicator for ‘line busy’. A further indicator could show unanswered calls. Further, the machine had a contrast adjustable LCD display and an adjustable volume control as well as listening-in capabilities.
The machine, although difficult to use, was a good all-rounder, and in its coat of laquered aluminium looked good in almost every circumstance. It could be used on a table top or mounted on the wall.
BeoTalk 1200 replaced the earlier BeoTalk 1100. This newer version was very similar to its predecessor but with a couple of small differences:
- BeoTalk 1200 was fitted with a 50% larger memory for recording both incoming and outgoing calls. At 15 minutes, this was five minutes longer than the memory fitted within BeoTalk 1100
- Whereas the BeoTalk 1100 had a message compression system to save space, this was not present within the BeoTalk 1200 making the messages clearer
- A ‘voice announcement system’ was incorporated within the BeoTalk 1200 which was able to inform verbally just who was calling. This was dependant on whether a particular telephone number had been programmed beforehand with the user’s voice.
BeoTalk 1200 types:
