Radio Shack ET-557 User manual

Cat. No. 43-1057
OWNER’S MANUAL
25-Channel Cordless Telephone with
Please read before using this equipment.
ET-557
3 Priority and 10 Speed-Dial Memories
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2
FEATURES
© 1995 Tandy Corporation.
All Rights Reserved.
COM-LOK and Radio Shack are registered trademarks used by Tandy Corporation.
Your ET-557 25-Channel Cordless
Telephone with 3 Priority and 10
Speed Dial Memories is designed to
exacting standards that ensure reliabil-
ity, long life, and outstanding perfor-
mance.
Its features include:
25 Channels — so you can switch to
the one that provides the least interfer-
ence
Super CCT Noise-Reduction Cir-
cuitr
y
— provides clear telephone
conversations, giving you sound clarity
comparable to that of a corded phone.
Securit
y
Access-Protection Code —
automatically sets the first time you
use your phone to prevent other cord-
less phone users from using your
phone line while the handset is off the
cradle.
COM-LOK®— ensures that other
cordless phone users cannot use your
phone line when the handset is on the
cradle.
Pa
g
e— lets you send a paging signal
from the base to the handset to page
someone or locate the handset if you
misplace it.
13-Memor
y
Automatic Dialin
g
— lets
you store frequently called numbers
then dial them with the touch of a but-
ton (from three priority dialing memo-
ries), or by entering one of 10 speed-
dial memory location numbers.
Redial — lets you quickly redial the
last number dialed by touching a single
button.
Flash — sends an electronic switch-
hook signal for use with special phone
services, such as call waiting.
Volume Control — lets you adjust the
volume of the handset’s ringer/paging
tone and your telephone conversa-
tions.
Tone/Pulse Dialin
g
— lets you use
your phone with tone or pulse service.
Hearin
g
-Aid Compatibilit
y
— lets
you use your phone with hearing aids
that have a T (telephone) switch.
This telephone has been tested and
found to comply with all applicable UL
and FCC standards.
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Important Note: Cordless phones
such as this one require AC power to
operate. When the AC power is off,
you cannot dial out or receive incoming
calls using your ET-557. To be safe,
you should also have a phone that
does not need AC power to operate
(not a cordless phone) so you can still
make and receive calls if there is an
AC power failure.
For your records, we urge you to
record the serial number of your phone
in the space below. The serial number
is located on the bottom panel of the
base.
Serial Number: __________________
Warning: To prevent fire or shock haz-
ard, do not expose this product to rain
or moisture.
This symbol is intended to alert you
to the presence of uninsulated dan-
gerous voltage within the product’s
enclosure that might be of sufficient
magnitude to constitute a risk of
electric shock. Do not open the
product’s case.
This symbol is intended to inform
you that important operating and
maintenance instructions are in-
cluded in the literature accompany-
ing this product.
RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK.
DO NOT OPEN.
CAUTION: TO REDUCE THE RISK OF
ELECTRIC SHOCK, DO NOT REMOVE
COVER OR BACK. NO USER-SERVICE-
ABLE PARTS INSIDE. REFER SERVIC-
ING TO QUALIFIED PERSONNEL.
CAUTION
!
!
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READ THIS BEFORE INSTALLATION
Each device that you connect to the
phone line draws power from the
phone line. We refer to this power draw
as the device’s Ringer Equivalence
Number, or REN. The REN is shown
on the bottom of the base.
If you are using more than one phone
or other device on the line, add up all
the RENs. If the total is more than five,
your phones might not ring. In rural ar-
eas, a total REN of three might impair
ringer operation. If ringer operation is
impaired, remove a device from the
line.
FCC STATEMENT
This telephone complies with Part 68
of
FCC Rules
. You must, upon re-
quest, provide the FCC Registration
Number and the REN to your phone
company. These numbers are located
on the bottom panel of the base.
Note: You must not connect your
phone to any of the following:
• coin-operated systems
• party-line systems
• most electronic key phone sys-
tems
Some cordless telephones operate on
frequencies that may cause interfer-
fence to nearby TVs and VCRs. To
minimize or prevent such interference,
the base of the cordless telephone
should not be placed near or on top of
TVs or VCRs. If interference is experi-
enced, moving the cordless telephone
farther away from the TV or VCR will
often reduce or eliminate the interfer-
ence.
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Installation ............................................................................................................ 6
Selecting a Location ........................................................................................ 6
Placing the Base on a Desk Top................................................................ 6
Mounting the Base on a Wall Plate............................................................ 7
Mounting the Base Directly on the Wall......................................................8
Installing and Charging the Battery ................................................................. 9
Setting the Dialing Mode ............................................................................... 11
Setting the Handset’s Volume ....................................................................... 11
Setting the Ringer Tone ................................................................................ 11
Using RINGER ON/OFF ................................................................................ 12
Operation ............................................................................................................ 13
Making and Receiving Calls .......................................................................... 13
Selecting the Channel ................................................................................... 13
Using Redial .................................................................................................. 13
Using Flash ................................................................................................... 14
Using Tone Services on a Pulse Line ........................................................... 14
Paging ........................................................................................................... 15
Memory Dialing ............................................................................................. 15
Storing a Number in Memory .................................................................. 15
Storing a Tone Entry with a Memory Number.......................................... 16
Entering a Pause .................................................................................... 16
Dialing a Memory Number ...................................................................... 16
Chain-Dialing Service Numbers ............................................................. 17
Testing Stored Emergency Numbers ............................................................ 17
Troubleshooting ................................................................................................ 18
Care and Maintenance ...................................................................................... 21
Replacing the Battery......................................................................................22
The FCC Wants You to Know .........................................................................23
Lightning ....................................................................................................... 23
CONTENTS
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INSTALLATION
SELECTING A LOCATION
You can place the phone on a desktop
or table, or mount it on a wall. Select a
location that is:
• near an AC outlet
• near a telephone line jack
• out of the way of normal activities
• away from electrical machinery,
electrical appliances, metal walls
or filing cabinets, wireless inter-
coms, alarms, and room monitors
• away from other cordless phones
The base’s location affects the hand-
set’s range. If you have a choice of
several locations, try each to see
which provides the best performance.
Notes:
• Your telephone connects directly
to a modular telephone line jack. If
your phone line jack is not a mod-
ular jack, you can update the wir-
ing yourself, using jacks and
adapters available at your local
Radio Shack store. Or, you can let
the phone company update the
wiring for you.
• The phone company will charge
you for the installation of neces-
sary jacks.
• The USOC number of the jack to
be installed is RJ11C (RJ11W if
you want to mount it on a wall
plate).
Placing the Base on a Desk
Top
Follow these steps when you
place the base on a desk, shelf, or
table.
1. Plug one end of the supplied mod-
ular cord into the TEL. LINE jack
on the back of the base.
2. Plug the modular cord’s other end
into a modular phone line jack.
3. Insert the supplied AC adapter’s
barrel plug into the DC IN 9V jack
on the back of the base.
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4. Route the adapter’s cord through
the strain relief slot on top of the
base.
5. Plug the adapter into a standard
AC outlet.
6. Fully extend the base’s antenna
and place it in a vertical position.
Mounting the Base on a Wall
Plate
1. Plug one end of the supplied mod-
ular cord into the TEL. LINE jack
on the back of the base.
2. Route the modular cord through
the groove on the bottom of the
base.
3. Plug the cord’s other end into a
modular phone line jack.
4. Insert the supplied AC adapter’s
barrel plug into the DC IN 9V jack
on the back of the base.
5. Route the adapter’s cord through
the strain relief slot on top of the
base and through the groove on
the bottom of the base.
6. Plug the adapter into a standard
AC outlet.
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7. Align the base’s keyhole slots with
the wall plate studs and slide the
base downward to secure it.
8. Press and lift out the handset
holder, rotate it 180°, then snap it
back into place so it holds the
handset.
9. Fully extend the base’s antenna
and place it in a vertical position.
Mounting the Base Directly
on the Wall
For this mounting method, you need
two wood screws (not supplied) with
heads that fit into the keyhole slots on
the bottom of the base.
1. Drill two holes 315/16
inches apart. Then
thread a screw into
each hole, letting the
heads extend about
1/5inch from the wall.
2. Plug one end of the supplied mod-
ular cord into the TEL. LINE jack
on the back of the base.
3. Route the modular cord through
the groove on the bottom of the
base.
4. Plug the cord’s other end into a
modular phone line jack.
5. Insert the supplied AC adapter’s
barrel plug into the DC IN 9V jack
on the back of the base.
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6. Route the adapter’s cord through
the strain relief slot on top of the
base and through the groove on
the bottom of the base.
7. Plug the adapter into a standard
AC outlet.
8. Align the keyhole slots with the
mounting screws and slide the
base downward to secure it.
9. Press and lift out the handset
holder, rotate it 180°, then snap it
back into place so it holds the
handset.
10. Fully extend the base’s antenna
and place it in a vertical position.
INSTALLING AND
CHARGING THE
BATTERY
The ET-557 comes with a recharge-
able nickel-cadmium battery. Before
using your phone, you must install the
battery and then charge it for 15-24
hours.
1. Press down and slide off the
handset’s battery compartment
cover in the direction of the arrow.
2. Align the battery pack’s plastic
connector with its socket and plug
it in with the tab up. The plug fits
only one way.
3. Place the battery inside the com-
partment.
4. Replace the cover.
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To charge the battery, place the hand-
set on the base in either of two ways:
Upright
Face Down
The CHARGE indicator lights.
Recharge the battery when the TALK/
BATT LOW indicator flashes.
Notes:
• If the CHARGE indicator does not
light when you place the handset
on the base, be sure the battery
and AC adapter are correctly and
securely connected. Also, check
the charging contacts on the
handset and the base. If the con-
tacts are dirty or tarnished, clean
them with a pencil eraser.
• When you first use the phone after
charging or recharging the battery,
the phone might not work and you
might hear an error tone. If this
happens, return the handset to
the base for 5 seconds.
• About once a month, fully dis-
charge the battery by keeping the
handset off the base until the
TALK/BATT LOW indicator lights.
Otherwise, the battery loses its
ability to fully recharge.
• If the TALK/BATT LOW indicator
does not light, but the phone does
not work, recharge the battery.
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• The supplied battery should last
for about a year. When the battery
loses its ability to fully recharge,
order a replacement battery from
your local Radio Shack store (see
“Replacing the Battery”).
SETTING THE DIALING
MODE
Set TONE/PULSE on the back of the
base for the type of service you have.
If you are not sure which type you
have, do this test.
1. Set TONE/PULSE to TONE.
2. Lift the handset and listen for a
dial tone.
3. Press any number other than 0.
Note: If your phone system
requires that you dial an access
code (9, for example) before you
dial an outside number, do not
press the access code.
If the dial tone stops, you have
touch-tone service. Leave TONE/
PULSE set to TONE.
If the dial tone continues, you
have pulse service. Set TONE/
PULSE to PULSE.
SETTING THE
HANDSET’S VOLUME
To adjust the handset’s ringer volume,
press R.VOL. while the phone is not in
use. To adjust the volume of your tele-
phone conversation, press R.VOL.
while the call is in progress.
SETTING THE RINGER
TONE
You can select one of the two different
ringer tones when the phone is not in
use. Press R.TONE to switch between
a “chirping” and a “warbling” ringer
tone.
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USING RINGER ON/OFF
To turn off the handset’s ringer so you
will not be disturbed by a telephone
call, set RINGER ON/OFF to OFF. This
setting also saves battery power.
When a call comes in, the ringer does
not sound, but other telephones con-
nected to the same line still ring. You
can answer the call as usual. See
“Making and Receiving Calls.”
Note: The page function does not work
when the ringer is off.
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OPERATION
MAKING AND
RECEIVING CALLS
To make a call, lift the handset and
press TALK. To answer a call, just lift
the handset. Or, if the handset is away
from the cradle, simply press TALK.
The TALK/BATT LOW indicator lights.
Note: If you lift the handset to answer
a call and press TALK after 2.5 sec-
onds, you might disconnect the caller.
To end a call, place the handset on the
cradle or press the handset’s TALK
button until its indicator turns off.
Note: When you press TALK to hang
up the phone, you might get an error
tone and the phone might not discon-
nect. If this happens, place the hand-
set on the cradle or press TALK again
while holding the handset closer to the
base.
SELECTING THE
CHANNEL
Your telephone can communicate be-
tween the base and the handset on
any of 25 channels. If you hear other
conversations or excessive noise dur-
ing a call, press CHANNEL on the
handset to select a different channel.
You hear a click, then a brief pause as
your phone searches for a clear chan-
nel.
Note: If the handset is too far from the
base, the channel might not change.
Move closer to the base.
USING REDIAL
Redial lets you quickly dial the last
number dialed. When you hear a dial
tone, simply press REDIAL.
Notes:
• The redial memory holds up to 32
digits, so you can redial long-dis-
tance as well as local numbers.
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• The redial memory also holds
PAUSE entries. See “Entering a
Pause” under “Memory Dialing.”
• The redial memory does not store
a FLASH entry or any digits you
press after FLASH (see “Using
Flash”).
USING FLASH
FLASH performs the electronic equiva-
lent of a switchhook operation for spe-
cial services, such as call waiting.
For example, if you have call waiting,
press FLASH to answer an incoming
call without disconnecting the current
call. Press FLASH again to return to the
first call.
Note: If you do not have any special
phone services, pressing FLASH might
disconnect the current call.
USING TONE SERVICES
ON A PULSE LINE
Some special services, such as bank-
by-phone, require tone signals. If you
have pulse service, you can still use
these special tone services by follow-
ing these steps.
1. Be sure TONE/PULSE is set to
PULSE.
2. Dial the service’s main number.
3. When the service answers, press
TONE. Then dial the additional
numbers. The phone uses touch-
tone dialing to dial these numbers.
4. After you complete the call, return
the handset to the cradle or press
TALK. The phone automatically
resets to the pulse mode.
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PAGING
To page the person who has the hand-
set or to locate the handset when the
phone is not in use, press PAGE on the
base. The handset beeps five times.
Note: The handset does not beep
when the ringer is off.
MEMORY DIALING
This phone has three priority dialing
memories. You can dial a number
stored in any of these memories by
pressing a single button. In addition,
you can store up to 10 telephone num-
bers in speed-dial memory, then dial a
stored number by pressing a one-digit
memory-location number.
Note: Each number you store can be
up to 16 digits long.
Storing a Number in Memory
Note: An error tone sounds and the
phone exits the programming mode if
you wait more than 20 seconds be-
tween each keypress.
1. Lift the handset and press MEMO.
The TALK/BATT LOW indicator
blinks.
2. Enter the number and any TONE
and PAUSE entries. See “Storing a
Tone Entry on a Pulse Line” and
“Entering a Pause.”
Note: Each TONE or PAUSE entry
uses one digit of memory.
3. If you want to store the number in
priority dialing memory, press
MEMO, then press a priority dial-
ing button (P1-P3).
If you want to store the number in
a speed-dial memory, press
MEMO, then enter the memory
location number (0-9).
A tone sounds to indicate that the
number is stored.
4. To store more numbers, repeat
Steps 1-3.
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5. For each stored number, write the
person’s or company’s name next
to the appropriate location number
on the supplied MEMORY direc-
tory sticker. Use a pencil in case
you need to change the number
later. Attach the sticker to the
phone.
Note: To erase a number previously
stored, simply store a new number in
its place. Or, lift the handset and press
MEMO twice, then press the priority di-
aling button or the speed-dial memory
location number (0-9) you want to
clear. A tone sounds.
Storing a Tone Entry with a
Memory Number
If your phone is set for pulse dialing,
you can store a tone entry so you can
easily access special services that re-
quire tone signals.
1. Lift the handset and press MEMO.
The TALK/BATT LOW indicator
blinks.
2. Enter the phone number for the
service you want to call.
3. Press TONE.
4. Enter the next number (the one
that should be sent as tone sig-
nals).
5. Press MEMO, then press the
desired priority dialing button (P1,
P2, or P3) or enter the desired
speed-dial memory location (0-9).
A tone indicates that the entire
number is stored.
Entering a Pause
In some telephone systems, you must
dial an access code (9, for example)
and wait for a second dial tone before
you can dial an outside number. You
can store the access code with the
phone number. However, you must
also store a pause after the access
code to allow the outside line time to
connect. To do so, press REDIAL.
Each press enters a 4-second pause.
For a longer pause, press REDIAL ad-
ditional times.
Dialing a Memory Number
Follow these steps to dial a number
stored in memory.
1. Lift the handset or press TALK.
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2. When you hear a dial tone, press
the priority dialing button, or press
MEMO and enter the speed-dial
memory location number for the
number you want to dial.
Chain-Dialing Service
Numbers
When calling special services (such as
alternate long distance or bank by
phone), dial the service’s main number
first. Then, at the appropriate place in
the call, press MEMO and the number
for the location where the additional in-
formation is stored.
TESTING STORED
EMERGENCY NUMBERS
If you store an emergency service’s
number (police department, fire de-
partment, ambulance) and you choose
to test the stored number, make the
test call during the late evening or early
morning hours to avoid peak demand
periods. Also, remain on the line to ex-
plain the reason for your call.
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TROUBLESHOOTING
We do not expect you to have any problems with your phone, but if you do, the fol-
lowing guidelines might help. If you still have problems, take the phone to your local
Radio Shack store for assistance.
Problem Remedy
Low volume or unusual sounds. Someone has picked up another phone
on the same line. Hang up the other
phone.
Severe noise interference. • Press CHANNEL to change the
channel.
• Keep the handset away from com-
puters, remote control toys, wire-
less microphones, alarm systems,
intercoms, room monitors, fluores-
cent lights, and electrical appli-
ances.
• Move to another location or turn off
the source of interference.
The phone cannot be operated at a
useful distance from the base
because the signal becomes weak or
noisy (handset’s range has
decreased).
• Fully extend the base’s antenna in
a fully vertical position.
• Return the handset to the cradle,
and recharge the battery.
• Be sure neither antenna is touching
a metal surface.
The phone does not work or works
poorly. • Be sure the base’s phone line cord and AC adapter are correctly and
securely connected, and the bat-
tery is charged.
The handset battery does not charge. • Check the charging contacts on the
handset and base. If they are dirty,
clean them with a pencil eraser.
• Be sure the battery is connected
correctly.
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Problem Remedy
Handset doesn’t ring or receive a
page. • The battery pack might be weak. Charge the battery on the base for
15-24 hours.
•Set
RINGER ON/OFF on the hand-
set to ON.
• Extend the base’s antenna verti-
cally.
• Move closer to the base.
• Place the base away from noise
sources.
• Return the handset to the cradle to
reset it.
The handset stops working or works
poorly during a call. • Move the handset closer to the base.
• Be sure the handset’s battery is
charged. (If the battery power is too
low, it does not have enough power
to light the TALK/BATT LOW indi-
cator.)
• Fully extend the base’s antenna,
and place it in a fully vertical posi-
tion.
• Make sure that the charging con-
tacts on the handset and base are
clean.
The call is too noisy. Change channels or hang up and redial
the number.
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If you still have problems, disconnect the phone. If other phones on the same line
work properly, the fault is in this phone or its installation. If you cannot find the prob-
lem, take your phone to your local Radio Shack store for assistance.
Problem Remedy
If the base loses power for over an
hour while the handset is off of it, the
code might change.
Re-establish communication between
the handset and the base. Remove the
handset from the base (if it is on the
base). Restore power to the base, then
place the handset back on the base.
The CHARGE indicator lights, indicat-
ing that the code is set again.
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