You make the call

Home Office Computing, Jan, 1998 by Lyle Deixler

If a receptionist is out of your price range, YoYo is a neat little phone assistant device that can work as a surrogate. It screens calls, provides instant caller info onscreen, and sends alerts via pager and e-mail whenever messages are left at the office.

YoYo is a sleek device, smaller than most modems at about four inches long and three inches wide, and runs only with Windows 95 PCs. The back of the unit has three connections: a nine-pin serial cable that links to a PC and two RJ-11 phone jacks -- one for the phone line, the other for the phone. Easy to install and configure, we had one up and running in about 15 minutes.

To get the most out of YoYo, you'll need caller ID. A small window appeared on our PC when someone called; the software displayed the caller's number and the time and date. It also started a timer showing the duration of the call. All this info was recorded in YoYo's logbook -- great for billing clients for phone time, verifying calls, and referencing conversations.

When you get a call you don't want to answer, click the Ignore button and let your answering machine pick up. We also assigned different preprogrammed YoYo sounds to specific numbers, so when someone called, we knew who it was without having to look at our PC. (We liked the dolphin clicking noises the best.)

We're looking forward to the next version of YoYo, which will enable your personal information management (PIMs) or contact management programs to have client records pop up onscreen as calls come in.