Anyone know why ThingFling would charge my credit card on the 23rd of May, the sale date, then not provide any other information?

I have tried contacting them by email and by trouble ticket, but there has been a surprisingly complete lack of response.

I sincerely hope that this is not indicative of the typical standards of this company. Would any of you be able to shed some light on this situation?

Ok, been using two of these since the last time (or the time before) these came around. Believe it or not, we're actually using VoIP and VoIP for the meantime, and getting decent results, though getting a landline to replace MagicJack as our primary phone service as MJ is still a bit flaky.

The idea is, plug the base unit into a phone jack, and you have a VERY good cordless phone. These are the new DECT 6.0 standard which won't interfere with wireless networks, and calls are very clear.. none of that buzzing, or faint radio reception, etc. in the background. DECT 6.0 phones without the dual mode generally cost a LOT more than what TF is offering this unit for.

But, take the USB port on the base unit, plug it into your PC (Win2k/XP only, not Vista) install the software/Skype and you can make VoIP calls to other Skype users anywhere around the world for free. The handset is nicer than most PC headsets which tether you to your computer. Yes, there is a standard headset jack on the handset, but headset/beltclip isn't included. I bought a headset/beltclip set at Best Buy for my DH for about $25 I believe, and it works just fine.

Now, if you really want to take advantage of VoIP. Then cancel any long distance service plan you may have with your local telephone company. You'll probably end up with AT&T's no monthly fee basic LD package with all LD minutes at $0.20 each or something. But then sign up for "Skype " for $2.95 a month or 2.1 cents a minute depending on how much LD calling you typically make. Then just use the "Skype Out" button on the phone and you've got cheap long distance with quality nearly as good as POTS (Plain old telephone service) and much better than most cell phones.

Now as to why I bought a third phone: I only use one base unit. AUVI is long out of business, but they've still got a slick website up (www.auviworld.com) where you could theoretically order expansion handsets (PHIP651) for $50 each. But after going through the manual, finding things not matching precisely as described and doing a little experimenting, I found I could get both handsets (from my first order of two full systems) to work with one base unit. Essentially get to the "Advanced Set - Registration" Press "Ok" then press and hold the button on the base unit until you hear the chirp on the handset. The unit supports up to 4 handsets, and our daughter is moving back in with us for a while, so we're getting another handset for her as well.

Bottom line on the downside, the phone isn't the most intuitive I've used -- The menus are somewhat clunky. And if you want to use Skype, then you'll need to keep it attached to a PC with XP which must be turned on to make the Skype call. And finally you're dealing with orphan products from a company that went belly up. But on the positive, it's a very affordable high-quality cordless phone that will handle any landline calls you need to make without a fuss. (PC not requred) Plus it uses 2 standard NiMH rechargeable AAA batteries. So you'll never have to worry about finding replacement batteries when that time comes.

My rating: 7 out of 10

was this the yahoo phone? If so I still have mine still unopened