GE Slimline Phone: Remember To Add A Landline Phone To Your Hurricane/Emergency Supply Kit!

Well, Hurricane season is here…On June 1st those dreaded words were broadcast on every television station across South Florida as well as all the major news networks… The recovery efforts are still going on down here, with 17,000 people still living under damaged roofs, only protected by those blue tarps you see everywhere, a constant reminder that so many are in unsafe housing. Every time it rains more people are forced to leave their homes when part of their roof collapes. The folks in Louisiana and Mississippi are in worst shape, many still living in trailers or in the same haphazard living conditions they were in after Katrina hit, those that are still in their homes or home states.


It’s scary for many of us, even those of us who are still in our homes, especially if they still are in need of repair…And try to find repairmen, roofers or any licenced contracters these days..Not an easy task believe me... But, you can’t stop Mother Nature or the subsequent challenges she throws us every so often.


An off shoot of any natural disaster, regardless of what it is or where it strikes, is the fact that most likely you will lose your electricity...maybe for a few hours, days or even weeks. Just last week, for some strange reason, my power flickered 3 times in 2 days then went out for nearly 4 hours…I think it’s the fact that Florida Power and Light had such a major job of reinstating electric lines after the two big hurricanes hit here last year, Katrina and Wilma. Both caused power outages for everyone who lives here...Another factor is that they restored many of the lines on a temporary basis, sort of like with spit and glue. Hopefully all the outages we have been having are due to the reinforcement of those repairs.


Anyway, another major headache for all is the fact that without electricity, our phones go off line, at least those that rely on electricity for message machines and caller ID…If you only have that type of phone you can be sure you will lose your phone…also, after a major storm or disaster, cell phones go by the wayside. I’m not sure why but it has something to do with cells and relay towers I think. In any case, no matter how long you charge your phone, most likely you will not be able to use that phone either, at least for the first day or two after the electricity goes off.


Enter one of the most important items for your hurricane or emergency preparedness kit…a landline phone. Yes, old fashioned but at least it will keep you in touch with the world…that is, as long as the telephone system is working.


We purchased one last year and I don’t know why we waited so long. Our G.E Slimline was a lifesaver for us when we couldn’t reach anyone on their cells or other phones. Except for my daughter whose phone line was down for nearly a month, we were able to stay in touch with everyone we needed to be connected to.


This little phone was so useful and worked so well during the emergency with such a clear sound and useful features that we decided to keep it plugged in all year and now have it in our bedroom.

One problem I do have occasionally is that I sometimes forget I'm not on a cordless phone and tend to walk away with it, that is, until I feel that tug on the end of the cord.


Other than that, some of the better features of this phone are:

10 number memory dialing
Handset volume control
Easy touch Keypad,
Flash redial
50-name/number caller ID
Call waiting
New Call indicator
Tone or pulse dialing
Built in clock and date
Dial back function
Hearing aid compatible
Ringtone adjustable


This little black and silver beauty even came with a one-year warranty. All that for only $12.00!


The phone is lightweight with many of the features on top of the handset...Though those features are very efficient and easy to use I do find when I want to see who is calling me, when I’m talking to someone, it is a bit annoying to have to take the phone from my ear to look at the caller I.D. in order to see the name. But that’s just trivial and not too important, though I do keep a pair of my reading glasses nearby in order to see the name and number of the caller.


I also have to admit I haven’t programmed in the names of those I call often since I have that feature on my answering machine phone downstairs and many of those people call me so their names are kept in the caller ID feature which stores 50 names and numbers. Every few weeks or so I go through them and delete the names I don’t need to keep stored in there…Those 4 buttons are on the top of the head set, you just press one arrow button, either up or down then delete or options.. In the middle is a small button which says dial…so you can just find the number you want and voila, hit dial and you are in touch with whoever you need to be talking to.


Speed dialing is easy as pie since with our other phone programmed this phone uses that programming so I just hit that one number I need and then the plus button. Again, in touch with the world at all times, what a nifty notion. You never appreciate what you have until you don’t have it!


The phone does take 4 double AA batteries which go into the body and last quite a while…. so far I haven’t had to change them and it’s been 9 months since I bought the phone, put the batteries in, plugged this handy dandy little phone into the jack and was connected to the world once again.


All in all I recommend this G.E Slimline Telephone very highly. It does the job it’s supposed to do with quite a lot of little extras, the sound quality is good with no static and the fact that you can adjust the hearing and the ring tone is another plus…So for anyone who lives in an area where Mother Nature may come calling and leaves behind a calling card of inconvenience do think of adding a landline phone to your emergency kits, for me, this phone really does the job


Oh, by the way, as I was writing this review my electricity cut off twice, only for a second each time but enough to shut my computer down, each time causing a knot in my stomach…I was hoping to write two reviews today since I’ll be going on a short vacation tomorrow but now I will be lucky if I can get on line to post this...Wish me luck…wish everyone luck who might be in the path of a storm this year.