tone length, dtmf settings

I had the same issues. Our office phone system requires you to dial in and then hit ** to access your voicemail. When i would do the ** it would not accept the tone as it was too long. It was quite frustrating. I think this is an issue with some iphones not all of them. Other associates have iphones and this works fine for them. I had to return my iphone and being just released in Canada i was quite disappointed to have to return it just for this one feature that didn’t work. I may have been the first person in Canada to return the iphone. lol....But if its a phone it should work properly as a phone first.

It didn’t work for me and there is no way to change the DTMF settings on the unit. Apple support was no help either as they never heard of people having this issue.

Hopefully one day they will resolve this, so i can pick one up again. Until then i am iphone less.

I'm having the same problem accessing my office voicemail system. It's a Norstar system and requires ** at prompt to get into voicemail. Evidently only one of the *'s is getting through so I can't even get to the mailbox/password prompt.

It will also be a deal killer for me if I can't get my work voicemails. If anyone has a fix, please let us know!! Thanks.

Yes we use a Nortel system at our office also. I find it really strange that alot of users do not have the same issue. Are you located in Canada or the US?

They should of made a way for you to modify the dtmf settings on the phone from long tones to short tones. Most phones have this.

Big dissapointment. I dont belive these I Phones have this issue.

I am having the exact same issue. I cannot access my office voicemail because the Nortel system used in my office (US) cannot recognize ** from the iPhone. I talked to an Apple genius in my local store. He had me try on his iPhone 2.5G and it worked repeatedly. I tried again on six 3Gs on display in the store without success. The genius suggested that I update the firmware to the latest build. After restore, it worked once or twice, but not again. How is it possible that for all the technology behind the iPhone, it cannot generate a proper telephone keypress??!?!? Is this a software bug that can be fixed, or is it a hardware "feature."

Here's what I just discovered. I had my home number programmed into my phone with a comma for pause and then a * and a code number. It always worked automatically where I would dial my number and the beeps would occur and I'd get my messages. Automatically.

Now on 3G Nothing happens! The number dials, the beeps don't beep. Now, since reading here, I shut off 3G and made the call to my home again. The beeps returned and I got my answer machine.

What does this mean??

I had been following this problem on another post where they also recommended disabling 3G. I tried it a few days ago and that didn't help. I tried it again last nite and this am and I am getting thru to my voice mail. Don't know what a few days differnce makes but it least I can now get me messages at the office! I just hope it keeps working... it shouldn't be this way.

Hi,
Found a workaround to the ** issue. Use your old cell phone, or buy a disposable one for $9.99 from RadioShack, put the speaker of the old cell phone directly up to the microphone on the bottom of the iPhone 3G (do NOT put the iPhone on speakerphone), when the prompt comes up, press ** on the your old cell phone. That will get you into the system, then use the iPhone to dial the rest of the numbers. Let me know if that works for you guys?

This leads me to beleive that pressing ** does not transmit any electronic signal it merely plays a split second audio file, and that on the iPhone 3G that sound is "off" key. Thoughts?

I have the same problem (I can't access voicemail by pressing ** - most of the times) with my iphone 3G.

Yesterday I was downtown Montreal and I tried repeatedly to access my voicemail without success(3G was available, 3G logo was showing on my phone).

This morning, at home, with WIFI activated, I tried again. Guess what: it worked! It is hard to believe that there is a link between 3G activated and DTMF transmission but it looks like there is.

Each * was short enough so that the voicemail could recognize that there was 2, not a very long one...

I Will get back to report other situations where I can access my office voicemail with my Iphone...

Nov 21 and I still have this problem after 2 software updates. Mentioned it to a floor person at the local apple store (Sherway Gardens Toronto) a couple of weeks back and they suggested I try the itunes store and see of someone has written an app to somehow play proper ringtones as a workaround for the extra long tones generated by the phone. I asked why I should have to search the app store for a fix apple should provide. It IS supposed to be a phone.

I've gotten so used to using pay phones to pick up voice mail at home and contact my wife's extension at work that I had forgotten I had this problem.

I have the same problem on my "original" iPhone (AT LEAST the 2.2 and 2.2.1 firmwares) so it's NOT limited to the 3G iPhones. I have had LIMITED success by letting the iPhone dial the phone number, then shifting to the keypad. Once the system answers, I hit the "*" key VERY BRIEFLY, wait a couple of seconds and hit it again VERY BRIEFLY. Getting about 90% success with this method. If I hold the "*" key too long - or if I let the iPhone send the tones automatically - the automated system (a NORTEL system) NEARLY ALWAYS hangs up.

Apple NEEDS to allow users to set the length of these tones.

Not done this much but I don't think it's to do with length per se but speed at which the tones can now be sent via phones.

Try inserting some pauses between tones to slow things down a little.

I have the same problem accessing voicemail via Nortel. I've tried putting a pause between each command sequence, and even between each individual command, but nothing works.

Seems that a lot of ppl are having this issue.

I've tried everything nothing helps

it works, kinda. only way to fix this is to turn 3g off, like was mentioned before. then dtmf tones are shortened. it now works when you hit * *, it will create short tones, not long