VTech 2121 User Manual

Introduction

2121

Parts Check List:

1. Handset

2. Base Unit

3. Telephone line cord

4. Battery

5. Power Adapter

6. User’s Manual

To purchase replacement batteries,

call VTech Communications at 1-800-

595-9511. In Canada, call VTech

Telecommunications Canada Ltd. at

1-800-267-7377.

Important Safety Instructions

When using your telephone equipment, basic safety precautions should always
be followed to reduce the risk of fire,electric shock and injury, including the following:

1. Read and understand all instructions.

2. Follow all warnings and instructions marked on the product.

3. Unplug this product from the wall outlet before cleaning. Do not use liquid or
aerosol cleaners. Use a damp cloth for cleaning.

4. Do not use this product near water (for example, near a bath tub, kitchen sink
or swimming pool).

5. Do not place this product on an unstable surface, such as a table, shelf or
stand. The product may fall, causing serious damage.

6. Slots and openings in the back or bottom of the base unit and handset are
provided for ventilation. To protect them from overheating, these openings
must not be blocked by placing the product on a soft surface such as a bed,
sofa or rug. This product should never be placed near or over a radiator or heat
register. This product should not be placed in any area where proper ventilation
is not provided.

7. This product should be operated only from the type of power source indicated
on the marking label. If you are not sure of the type of power supply in your
home, consult your dealer or local power company.

8. Do not allow anything to rest on the power cord. Do not install this product
where the cord may have anyone walking on it.

9. Never push objects of any kind into this product through slots in the base or
handset as they may touch dangerous voltage points or short out parts that
could result in a risk of fire or electric shock. Never spill liquid of any kind on the
product.

10. To reduce the risk of electric shock, do not disassemble this product, but take
it to an authorized service facility. Opening or removing parts of the base or
handset other than specified access doors may expose you to dangerous
voltages or other risks. Incorrect reassembling can cause electric shock when
the product is subsequently used.

11. Do not overload wall outlets and extension cords as this can result in the risk of
fire or electric shock.

12. Unplug this product from the wall outlet and refer servicing to an authorized
service facility under the following conditions:
A. When the power supply cord or plug is damaged or frayed.
B. If liquid has been spilled into the product.
C. If the product has been exposed to rain or water.
D. If the product does not operate normally by following the operating

instructions. Adjust only those controls that are covered by the operating
instructions, as improper adjustment of other controls may result in
damage and often requires extensive work by an authorized technician
to restore the product to normal operation.

E. If the product has been dropped and the base and/or handset has been

damaged.

F. If the product exhibits a distinct change in performance.

13 . Avoid using a telephone (other than cordless) during an electrical storm. There

is a remote risk of electric shock from lightning.

14. Do not use the telephone to report a gas leak in the vicinity of the leak.

15 . Only put the handset of your telephone next to your ear when it is in normal talk

mode.

1

Installing/Replacing the Battery

1. Slide the battery cover off by gently
pressing on the recessed area with
a downward motion.

2. Unplug and remove the old battery.
Don't put the old battery in a trash
compactor or a fire - it could burst.

3. With the red and black wires at the
bottom of the battery, angle the top
of the battery into the compartment,
under the claws. Next, press the
lower end of the battery down, so it
is held in place by the lower claw.
Now, plug the connector into the
socket, located below the battery.
Slip the battery wires into the guide,
located below and to the left of the
socket.

4. Replace the battery cover by sliding
it into place.

5. The new battery must be charged

before using your telephone. Place the handset in the base unit to allow it to
charge for 15 hours. Maximum battery life between charges is approximately

3.75 hours of talk time or 3.75 days of standby.

CAUTION: To reduce the risk of fire or injury, read and follow these instructions:

1. Use only the VTech battery supplied, or equivalent.

2. Do not open or mutilate the battery. Released electrolyte is corrosive and
may cause damage to the eyes or skin. It may be toxic if swallowed.

3. Exercise care in handling battery in order not to short the battery with
conducting materials such as rings, bracelets, and keys. The battery or
conductor may overheat and cause burns.

4. Do not dispose of the battery in a fire. The cell may explode.

SAVE THESE INSTRUCTIONS

2

Getting Started

Setting Up Your 2121

1. Choose an area near an electrical outlet and a telephone wall jack.

2. Plug the AC power adapter into an electrical outlet and the DC connector to
the power jack on the bottom of the base unit. Insert the cord in the channel
guide.

CAUTION: Use only the AC adapter shipped with your 2121. It is specifically

designed for this product.

NOTE: Connect power to the base unit before placing the handset in the

base.

3. CHARGE THE HANDSET BATTERY BEFORE USE. The battery recharges automatically whenever the handset is in the base unit. The battery must be charged for 15 hours before using your phone for the first time.

4. Connect the telephone line cord. Insert one end of the telephone line cord
into the phone jack on the bottom of the base unit. Plug the other end into
a telephone wall jack. Make sure the plugs snap securely into place. Insert
the cord in the channel guide.

5. CHECK FOR A DIAL TONE. After the battery is charged, pick up the handset and press the ON key. You should hear a dial tone. If not, see IN

CASE OF DIFFICULTY.

Handset Features

ON/ FLASH KEY

• Press the ON key to make a call.

• If you are currently on a call, and
hear a call waiting tone, press
FLASH to switch to the second
call. Press FLASH again to return
to the original call.

VOLUME CONTROL

• Adjust the volume of what you hear
through the handset.

• While on a call, press the

key to adjust the listening
volume. The handset will emit a
double beep when the maximum
or minimum volume level has been
reached.

CID AND PHONEBOOK KEY

• When phone is not in use, press
( ) to display Caller ID

information.

• When phone is not in use, press
( ) to display directory entries.

OFF KEY

• Press the OFF key to end a call

or exit all modes of operation.

or

3

REDIAL / PAUSE KEY

• When you hear the dial tone,

press REDIAL to call the last
number dialed on your phone.

• It can also be used to store the
last number dialed into speed dial
memory. See Storing a Redial
Number into Speed Dial for
details.

• You can store pauses into your
speed dial numbers. See Storing

Pauses in Memory for details.

CHAN/DELETE KEY

• Pressing the CHAN key when the
handset is in use will activate a
channel change to the next free
channel.

• This is used if you are experienc­ing noise or interference on the
current channel.

• When viewing the call log, press
to delete the current record
displayed.

• With the handset in idle mode,
press and hold to delete all
records in the call log.

PROG/SELECT KEY

• Press PROG/SELCET to enter
programming mode. See

Programming Speed Dial
Numbers for more details.

• Press to begin a programming or
store a programming option, or to
store a directory entry.

TONE/ * KEY

• In PULSE dialing mode, this key
is used to switch to temporary
TONE dialing mode.

4

5

Handset Features

Base Unit Features

Operating Instructions

Message Waiting Indication

• If you subscribe to telephone

company voice mail with a

visual message signal, when

you have voice mail waiting, the

handset screen will display:

MESSAGES WAITING

PAGE KEY

• Press the PAGE key to page the

handset.

• Press it second time to cancel a
page.

• The base will ring the handset for
one minute before ending the page
automatically.

• The handset can also cancel the
page by pressing the OFF key.

6

Making Calls

Pick up the handset and press ON.
When you hear a dial tone, dial the
number. The LED will display
PHONE ON while the handset is in
use.
If you make a mistake when dialing,
press OFF to hang up, then press
ON to get the dial tone again.
You must always press ON before
you can dial a call on the handset.

Answering Calls

When an incoming call is ringing. You
will hear ring tone.
To answer a call just press any key
on the handset (except OFF).

Disconnecting

To end a call, either place the handset
in the base, or press OFF on the
handset.

Changing Channels

If you notice interference when using
your handset, press CHAN to switch
to a clear channel. This function is
only available when you are on a call.

TONE/PULSE Setting

To switch between tone and pulse
settings, press PROG/SELECT. Use

/ ) keys to make your

the(
selection.

Press PROG/SELECT to confirm. To

exit without making a change,

press OFF.

NOTE: Your 2121 is preset at the
factory for TONE dialing.

7

Operating Instructions

Temporary Tone

If you have a rotary (pulse) telephone
service, (TONE/PULSE setting is set
to PULSE), this feature allows you to
enter special codes and tones to
operate answering machines,
electronic banking services, or other
special services.
First, dial the call normally. Then
activate the temporary tone feature
by pressing TONE (the * key). You
can then press the numbers or
symbols you need, and your phone
will send the proper signals.
To end the call, press OFF or place
the handset in the base. The phone
will automatically go back to rotary
(pulse) service.

Programming The Ringer Type

The handset ringer is capable of four
different types of ring tones. To
change the ring tones or to turn the
ringer off, make sure the handset is
OFF.

• Press PROG/SELECT.

• Presse

or to scroll to

RINGER: current setting. Press
PROG/SELECT to select
RINGER: 1, 2, 3, 4 or OFF. You

will hear a sample of each ring.

• Press the PROG/SELECT to

choose the displayed ringer

Memory Dialing

You can store up to nine numbers with
names (up to 15 characters and 24 dig­its in each location) you dial frequently
into the speed dial memory locations you
assign (1 through 9) in each handset.
You can also store telephone numbers
with names alphabetically in the direc­tory. See Telephone Directory for in­structions.

NOTES:

• The entries you stored in speed dial

• Press OFF at any time to exit

Store a Number/Name in Memory:

1. Press PROG/SELECT on the

2. Press or until the screen

3. Press SEL. The screen displays

NOTE: When memory is full the
screen displays MEMORY FULL, an
error tone sounds, and you cannot
store a new number until you delete a
record in speed dial memory or tele­phone directory.

4. Press the key (1 through 9) for

NOTE: If the location is not empty,
your new entry will be stored in place
of the old and the first entry will be
deleted. Take caution to not save over
entries you do not wish to delete from
memory.

5. Enter up to 15 characters for the

6. When you finish entering the name,

7. Enter the telephone number. Use

8

memory will be marked with 01
through 09 in the telephone
directory.

memory dial mode.

handset.

displays SPEED DIAL.

ENTER 1-9.

the memory location where you
want to store this entry. If the se
lected location is empty, the
screen displays ENTER NAME.

name you’re storing with the
number. Use to backspace
and make corrections; use to
advance and add a space.

press SELECT or PROG. The
screen displays ENTER
NUMBER.

to backspace and make cor

rections. Press REDIAL/PAUSE
to store a pause in the dialing se
quence.

Operating Instruction

-OR-

Press REDIAL/PAUSE to
display the last number dialed
from this phone.

8. Press SELECT or PROG to store

your entry. The screen displays
DISTINCT RING? and the
current setting.

9. Press or to change the

setting. Choose Y (for yes) if you
wish the phone to alert you to calls
from this number by changing to
a distinctive ringing pattern after
the first ring. Choose N for a
normal ringing pattern.

10. Press SELECT or PROG to

confirm your selection. If you
chose Y, a Dwill be displayed
with the directory entry.

Edit a Number/Name Stored in
Memory

1. Press and hold the memory
location key (1 through 9) of the
entry you wish to edit.

2. When the screen displays the
entry you want to edit, press

SELECT. Then press or until
EDIT flashes.

3. Press SELECT. The screen

displays the name and number.
The cursor appears at the end
of the name. Use , and the
dial pad keys to edit the name.
Press SELECT to move on to
edit the number. Use to
backspace and make
corrections. Press SELECT to
move to edit the distinctive ring
setting.

4. Press SELECT to save.

D

9

Delete a Number/Name Stored in
Memory

1. Press and hold the memory
location key (1 through 9) of the
entry you wish to delete.

2. When the screen displays the
entry you want to delete, press
SELECT. Then press or
until ERASE flashes.

3. Press SELECT. The screen
displays ERASE NO YES and the
number.

4. Press or until YES flashes.

5. Press SELECT. You’ll hear a
confirmation beep.

Dial a Memory Number

1. Press and hold the memory
location key (1 through 9) of the
entry you wish to dial.

2. Press PHONE to dial the
displayed memory number.

Reassign Locations in
Memory

1. Press and hold the memory lo­cation key (1 through 9) of the
entry you wish to reassign.

2. When the screen displays
the entry you want to reas­sign, press SELECT. Then
press or until SPEED
flashes.

3. Press SELECT. The screen dis­plays ENTER 1-9.

4. Press the keys (1 through 9) to
reassign this entry into another
memory location. You’ll hear a
confirmation beep.

Telephone Directory

Your 2121 can store 12 (including the nine speed dial entries) numbers with names
(up to 15 characters for the name and 24 digits for the number).

NOTE: Press OFF at any time to exit directory.

Store a Number/Name in the Directory

1. Press PROG. The screen displays DIRECTORY.

2. Press SELECT. The screen displays ENTER NAME.

3. Using the chart below, enter up to 15 characters for the name you’re
storing with the number. Use to backspace and make corrections;
use to advance and add a space.

Presses

Dial Key 1 2 3 4 5 6

1: 1
2: ABC2
3: DEF 3
4: GHI 4
5: JKL5
6: MNO6
7: PQRS7
8: TUV8
9: WX Y Z 9
0: 0
*: *
#:

4. When you finish entering the name, press PROG/SELECT. The screen
displays ENTER NUMBER.

5. Enter the telephone number. Use to backspace and make corrections.
Press REDIAL/PAUSE to store a pause in the dialing sequence.

-OR-

Press REDIAL/PAUSE to display the last number dialed from this phone.

6. Press PROG/SELECT. The screen displays DISTINCT RING? and the
current setting.

7. Press or to change the setting. Choose Y (for yes) if you wish the
phone to alert you to calls from this number by changing to a distinctive
ringing pattern after the first ring. Choose N for a normal ringing pattern.

8. Press PROG/SELECT to confirm your selection. If you chose Y, a D
will be displayed with the directory entry.

& ’ ,-.#

10

Caller ID/Call Waiting ID

NOTE: Caller ID and call waiting ID are subscription

services, provided by your regional phone company.
You must subscribe to these services in order to
benefit from the caller ID features of your 2121.
Contact your regional phone service provider for
details.

Receiving and Storing Calls

As new caller ID/call waiting ID records are received,
NEW followed by the number of new caller ID records
received will be displayed on the handset.

Your 2121 will store the most current 60 caller ID and
call waiting ID records. When caller ID information
comes in with the inbound ring, it is displayed until the
call is answered. When call waiting ID information comes
in, it is displayed for approximately 15 seconds.

About Caller ID

This phone assigns each incoming call a number from 1 to 60. The most recent call
will have the highest number. When the memory is full, the oldest call information is
deleted to make room for new incoming call information. Therefore, you do not have
to delete caller ID records manually.
For each call that comes in, the screen displays the following information between
the first and second rings:

• The caller’s name (15 letters are sent by your telephone company);

• The caller’s area code and telephone number;

• The time and date of the call. If you answer a call before the information appears

on the screen, it will not be in the call history.

NOTE: Press OFF at any time to exit caller ID review mode.

Review Caller ID

1. Press

2. Use

Delete a Specific Call

1. Press to view caller ID.

2. Use or to locate the records you want to delete.

3. Press DELETE. You'll hear confirmation beeps.

Delete All Calls

1. With the handset in idle (off) mode, press and hold CHAN/DELETE. The

D

2. Press

3. Press SELECT. You'll hear confirmation beeps.

to view caller ID.

and to scroll through records in call history.

screen displays ERASE ALL NO YES. The
current choice flashes.

until YES flashes.

11