A review of the EnGenius SN-920 by a user, 1/15/2001
Why spend eight hundred dollars (phone, antenna, & antenna installation) on a cordless phone?
Well, a simple reason might be because it's there, and you like it. Maybe you drive a Humvee because it's the biggest baddest piece of machinery on the road, and you just like the idea of having the cordless phone equivalent of the Humvee--which the EnGenius certainly is. It is COOL.
Another reason why you might purchase and take the time to install the EnGenius 920 is necessity. Maybe you live in an isolated area, across a river, or somewhere that the existing phone lines are close, but not available. You could install the base unit in a neighbor's house a mile away where there IS a phone line, and keep the handset at your cabin.
Here's my answer to the "why" question. I am a landlord who personally manages the properties I own. All of my properties are within a 3/4 mile radius from my house, which I use as a home office. For years I have thought, "Wouldn't it be cool if I could modify a cordless phone and make it a super-phone that would reach to all my apartments?" When I saw the advertising hype for the EnGenius with its "one mile" range, I thought my prayers had been answered! Now that I have the phone and the outdoor antenna installed, it works at 85% of my rental units--the other 15% are just beyond an intervening hill. I hope not to miss those all important rental calls. Like the visiting professor (perfect tenant!) who is in town for one day and would love to look at the exact apartment I am over repainting at that time. I hope I can tune the EnGenius so as to reach the last few apartments. Anybody out there got any great ideas?
Email those great ideas to me at copyright Eric Geilker geilker5@aol.com and let me know whether or not its okay to post them here on this site. I'd love to add a section on tips to improve performance from those of you with more experience and expertise in this area than me.
EnGenius SN-920 User Review Home Page
1) Purchasing the EnGenius SN-920
2) Installation Without Outdoor Antenna
3) Testing the Range Without the Outdoor Antenna
4) Installation With the Outdoor Antenna
5) Testing the Range With the Outdoor Antenna
6) Technical Details and Miscellaneous Observations
7) WHY?
8) Conclusions about the EnGenius 920
10) Ten years later, the Project Ends
copyright Eric Geilker geilker5@aol.com