Mobile Services/Answering Machines That Don't Treat Callers and Owner Like Idiots?

[RatherAnOddball]

Every answering machine I've bought since the old cassette-tape models, and every cell phone message service I've called into or witnessed someone else call into, whether leaving a message or receiving them, deems it necessary to precede every step of the process with about a minute of either fragmented operator recordings or synthesized Speak-and-Spell-style speech giving mindless instructions or useless information.

"The person you are calling is not available. To leave a message, wait until the beep, then, using your mouth, lips and tongue, speak your message. When you are finished, please hang up or use your touch-tone phone to press pound, or press star to page them, the time is...SIX...FIFTEEN...PM...MONDAY...APRIL...11th...2007...COMMON ERA...CHINESE YEAR 4607..." and on, and on, and on.

It needn't be anymore complicated then recording, beep, recording, beep, etc., etc., and that's exactly what I'm after. Can anyone recommend any cell phone plans or answering machines of relatively recent manufacture and/or decent technical quality that don't needlessly complicate the process?

Thanks much.

 

[dusty]

The worst, the worst, is when you press '1' to get straight to the beep, but instead you get 'I do not understand that option.' This always results in me hanging up immediately.

 

[Kent Wang]

Voicemail prompts.

 

[Tarmac]

you will never get a short VM answer because making it very long will better eat up your precious minutes and make you upgrade.