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Conair Corp Model SW2518 “Metropolis” (Modern Princess Copy)

Started by AE_Collector, January 05, 2018, 09:13:43 PM

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AE_Collector

This is made by Conair Corporation and it a modern copy of the Princess Phone. This one is chrome plated plastic and has a rotary looking Touchtone Dial. I like the Finger Stop that they put on just for looks. It is a separate metal piece rather than just a bit molded into the plastic case.

Under the base is a Ringer On-Off slide switch, a Volume Lo-Hi slide switch (which turns out to be a handset receiver volume not the ringer volume) & a Pulse-Tone slide switch. The ringer is actually a mechanical ringer not an electronic ringer.

I assume the manufacture date is 04-04 from the sticker on the base. That's the only sequence of numbers that seems to add up to a likly date to me.

Inside is full of electronic stuff of course, note the big heavy hunk of steel in there to keep the phone sitting on the desk rather than the floor if you try to extend the handset a few inches away from the base. Also note the receiver and transmitters. Both are inside with what looks like conventional screw off caps BUT, no screwing these caps off, they are bayonette twist on/off with the actual electronic bits glued into the cap.

The strangest thing to me is that the receiver cap twists on/off in the expected direction but the transmitter cap is conveniently BACKWARDS. That sort of matches their choice of cord/jack colors for the transmit and receive functions...BY for transmit and GR for Receive? How can they make something that looks so much like a Princess yet they haven't a clue about standard wire colour code?

That's about it for my report on this phone. Found it here in a box of other phone stuff and I think the 1960's/70's antique store near here might like this.

Terry

AL_as_needed

That's an interesting find. They seem to have done a fair job at making the plastic look like brushed metal, giving it that heavy look. Also a nice touch that they went with a mechanical bell not too unlike the originals. Never would have guessed Conair would be making something like phones though, never seen one before so maybe this was a commercial flop?

Would be cool to have a real princess in metal after seeing this, like the polished up 302s.
TWinbrook7

Jim Stettler

I saw a WE copper plated 2 line princess phone on ebay long ago.
Jim S.
You live, You learn,
You die, you forget it all.

Babybearjs

I saw the phone being sold through Target a few years ago.... I hate the classic repros... they mock the originals... plus, al these "New" phones don't last nearly as long as the originals.... totally disposable.... I had a GE 2 line home phone and the keypad went bad about 5 years after I had bought it. just shows were America has gone these last few decades....
John