Aiptek 2000T Video Phone

Rating:
Summary: Aiptek 2000T - Outstanding Product Value
Review: I purchased this product so that distant grandparents in NY can see their new granddaughter. After researching and testing all of the vendors (Starview, Motion Media, Metaeye, Infoview and Aiptek) I purchased this product. It is extremely easy to use and my computer illiterate parents had no trouble getting this hooked up. Here is the scoop on picture quality: All of the competing products are going to display the video at about the same speed. Since a standard telephone line is used for 2-way communication with video, a 33.6Kbps modem is all that is needed. Don't get fooled by the marketing gimmicks of 56K modems since they can only transmit at this speed in one direction and this is too much bandwidth for a standard telephone line. Picture quality of a TV broadcast is around 30 frames per second (fps). All of the products I tested broadcast at 15fps maximum and this quality looks good and is very clear (I was surprised!!). I could easily see my parents and the delay was only very slight. The key with this is, if you use the smallest picture size the video will transfer very fast and you wont notice any delay. I use the middle size and it works fine. Although the screen is 4" in diameter, you really can see a lot. Of all of the products I tried, the AIPTEK was the easiest to use and again picture quality was great for all of these products. Cost for AIPTEK was lower than some of the other units.
Bottom line: This product and concept is amazing and it makes my parents feel so much better when they can see their kids and grandkids 3000 miles away on the videophone versus just a phone call. I was a skeptic at first but now I am sold and will be buying more.!!!
PS. After having used this product for several months the item that I did not note was that the AIPTEKs do not have external video jacks which would be used for hooking up external videocameras / vcrs ... I would never use this feature but if you are looking for remote video surveilence this probably is not the best choice. The meta-eye ..., televyou ... and the tele-eye are probably your best choice for this type of operation. I am still amazed that more people have not purchased these products - we are having a lot of fun talking with relatives.

Rating:
Summary: Aiptek 2000T - Outstanding Product Value
Review: I was deployed for a year to Bosnia as a civilian contractor and I wanted a way to stay close with my wife and children. I bought two of these phones without knowing how they'd work over the terrible telephone lines in Bosnia. I'm happy to say it was the best thousand bucks I ever spent. It took me a time or two to connect sometimes but once we connected the video and sound quality rocked! The picture was very small (4 inches square), but after being deployed for a year, it was the best 4 inch picture I ever saw! It's a great phone!

Rating:
Summary: This phone is tops with me!
Review: I was deployed for a year to Bosnia as a civilian contractor and I wanted a way to stay close with my wife and children. I bought two of these phones without knowing how they'd work over the terrible telephone lines in Bosnia. I'm happy to say it was the best thousand bucks I ever spent. It took me a time or two to connect sometimes but once we connected the video and sound quality rocked! The picture was very small (4 inches square), but after being deployed for a year, it was the best 4 inch picture I ever saw! It's a great phone!

Rating:
Summary: EASY TO USE! A MUST HAVE FOR FAR AWAY FRIENDS & RELATIVES!
Review: This easy setup video phone is as easy as 1,2,3. It works very well and it is always nice to see friends and family up close. A must have for far away friend and relatives.

Rating:
Summary: The Ace Aiptek!
Review: Upon receiving an Aiptek 2000T video phone from my grandmother for her birthday, my mother decided that it was an impossible item to use, but I took it under my wing and rigged it up in my bedroom. It is a source of much enjoyment, even though I only know a couple of people with video phones it is a great experience watching people talk to you! I have to wholly recommend the 2000T video phone to anyone, not just people who want to be at the cutting edge of technology!

Rating:
Summary: Incredible--Perfect for Family and Older users --- Superb
Review: Was skeptical at spending this much on a phone where I was not sure of the quality of the transmission. Other than a poor instruction booklet (basically plug in phone and go) this phone smashed my expectations.

Called friends all over world, and connection was great.

While computer cams are cheaper, we all know that there is no chance of having our relatives or Parents use them due to complexity. This phone offers the perfect solution, just plug it in.

Just ordered several more.

Rating:
Summary: Incredible--Perfect for Family and Older users --- Superb
Review: Was skeptical at spending this much on a phone where I was not sure of the quality of the transmission. Other than a poor instruction booklet (basically plug in phone and go) this phone smashed my expectations.

Called friends all over world, and connection was great.

While computer cams are cheaper, we all know that there is no chance of having our relatives or Parents use them due to complexity. This phone offers the perfect solution, just plug it in.

Just ordered several more.

Rating:
Summary: Why doesn't everyone have one of these?!?
Review: Wow. I'm a computer geek for a living, and I'm really impressed with this product. I bought two, one for the house and one to use on the road while I'm out travelling for business. The image quality is about the same as any other low-res camera, but what is great is that there is no delay. The audio is right with the video. This is one of the great features of H.324. Compared to NetMeeting or the like, this product is great.

Because of the simplicity of use, this is a great product for your non-technical family. I could never get my family to use NetMeeting because it just wasn't as easy as using the telephone. This product IS a telephone. You dial, talk for a minute, then hit #1 to start the video. About 20 seconds later, you are in a two-way video conference call.

If you've used video conferencing over an ISDN or T1, you may be disappointed in the quality. Otherwise, you'll love how easy it is to use and how reliable the unit is. The only problem I've had is that my two year-old can't hold still. She is SCREAMING at the phone with excitement. It's nice to see the family each night!

I've also bought an Aiptek 2000C unit, which is the same as the 2000T but without the built-in phone. This should make the unit easier to pack in my suitcase. Check these units out. Aiptek has a winner with this product line.