Followup remarks on the EnGenius SN-920
copyright Eric Geilker geilker5@aol.com
"Indispensable. Unparalleled. Imperfect."
Three years after purchasing and installing my EnGenius system, I rely on it every day. It has provided a solution to my need for an ultra-long range cordless phone and has become indispensable. Three years later, there is nothing else on the legal market to beat it. However, the EnGenius is imperfect.
Here are some gripes:
1) Handset lifespan is around a year. I am on my fourth handset, having worn out the other three during hard day-to-day use. EnGenius has doubled its warranty to two years, which is nice, but see remarks below on warranty "repairs".
2) Range and sound quality vary from handset to handset. My first handset could reach to an apartment I own and manage about a half mile away; the second one could not. The third one could, but scratchy. The fourth and current handset reaches there no problem and with excellent sound quality!
3) When my phone didn't work right, EnGenius gave me an RMA# and I returned it for a replacement. Great. Except that the phone they sent me (refurbished) had another DIFFERENT subtle problem of its own. In the future I skipped the warranty hassle and just bought a new freaking handset when mine wore out--even though it was still under warranty!
4) Range is severely limited by terrain. Houses and trees aren't that bad on range, but hills and valleys are a killer. If you don't have line of sight to the antenna because of terrain, you probably won't be able to connect.
5) I have saved my biggest gripe for last. This is a very serious gripe, so listen up! When I answer about every tenth incoming call, I can hear the caller, but they cannot hear me. Assertive callers simply hang up and redial, and the EnGenius has always worked on the second try. However, I have lost untold calls in three years in the most frustrating manner...with all FOUR HANDSETS I have owned! EnGenius tech support denies this is a common problem every time I bugged them about it. Am I the only one? Is it my base station? Finally, two years after my base station warranty expired, I called EnGenius to complain again. Just last week, they agreed to advance ship me a brand new base station free of charge! Thank you! I have high hopes for a fix, especially considering the very early serial number of my first base station.
5) Followup 10/27/03: At no charge, EnGenius sent me a new base station and my big gripe is fixed! No dropped calls anymore! My base station must have been to blame all this time. Thank you EnGenius. Now my phone experience is very near perfect.
I almost feel guilty ragging on EnGenius with these remarks. They have answered my dream for a long range phone with an unbelievably good product which has become indispensable in the three years I have used it, and is still unparalleled. However, the EnGenius phone is imperfect. Then again, so am I, and so is everything else on this planet, so go ahead and get one anyway.
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
8) Conclusions about the EnGenius SN-920
9) Three years later...
10) Ten years later, the Project Ends
