I don't have experience with Ensemble,but I do own a Captel 840I. I previously owned a CapTel 800.
Some of my friends were a little pissed having to dial a routing number with the CapTel 800.
The CapTel 840I will caption both outgoing and incoming calls but I'm constantly pressing the captions button before each call. 840I also requires a high speed internet connection and registration with Ultratec (CapTel's parent company) in order to enable captions.
I would advise you to go to the websites for Ensemble,CapTel,CaptionCall,and other captioned telephones to see their educational videos to help you decide
what's best for you. They also have some of the videos on YouTube as well.
I'm very happy with my CapTel 840I. It has a built-in answering machine, speed dial potential (max. 3 #s for speed dial) , dialing from phone book,and customizable colors for captioning.
Some states offer captioned telephones on a 30 day loan to own program. That's how I got my 1st CapTel from VA Department of Deaf and HOH Services;the 2nd one (840I) I bought.
Even if you have to buy one,the price is discounted. My CapTel 840I is a $600
phone that I bought for $99,plus tax and shipping.
Hope you find something you like!
