I have been using the ET-400TS for over a week. First, I need to comment on an amazingly fast and smooth delivery by Amazon (via DHL) to China the product was at my door within the same week which I have never had happen before.First impressions of the unit are very positive, especially when compared to a budget remote training collar I originally purchased and promptly returned. The receiver is a nice and compact size and fits well on my Beagle it feels rock solid in terms of build quality and even after being vigorously put through its paces by my Beagle in a forest and scratching at it once in a while, there is not a scratch or dent to be seen.
The LED lighting on the receiver, which is activated remotely, is very effective and ensures my Beagle is always clearly visible at night whether I am walking with her in the city or in woodland. Very few competing products offer this and it is a useful addition.
The transmitter is a very refreshing design which happens to be highly functional and comfortable too. The flexibility of the momentary, continuous or mixed modes including a user-defined boost, is very useful and was one of the deciding factors in me buying the Einstein. The only niggle would be that I would prefer it in a more subtle color (such as the black ET-800TS), but bright yellow makes it difficult to lose if dropped (although there is already a lost transmitter function).
Note that this unit has a vibration function while the similarly-priced ET-500 has a tone function I was a little torn in deciding between the two, but the ET-400 has a smaller receiver which made me go for this one. My Beagle is stubborn and doesn't respond that much to the vibration, despite it being quite strong although after more use and conditioning, I am using it as a subtle way to get her attention and this appears to be working, lessing the need for any stimulation. A tone may prove similarly ineffective for some dogs/breeds. Ideally, the unit would have tone AND vibration options in addition to the stimulation, making the choice a little easier, although this is just a niggle.
In terms of stimulation levels, I have been using level 10-20 (out of 100) with my Beagle and this seems to be more than enough, with the use of a boost very rarely when her prey drive kicks in and goes "all nose". However, after just a week, I am using it on about a level 10 and very infrequently.
My primary challenge was fitting since my beagle has very loose skin around her neck if the receiver is not attached correctly (ie; snugly), the stimulation may not also be delivered properly. Since both overtightening and undertightening are a concern, my advice is to take your time (and some research via instructions and internet) in fitting it correctly. Once you have the correct fitting, I suggest you mark the collar so it can be consistently re-attached with the same tightness.
Since using the unit, my Beagle's off-leash behaviour has changed significantly (she would previously play very frustrating "catch me" games when off leash) and I am now primarily using the vibration function and issuing a command to get her attention. I did not use the "escape conditioning" technique but primarily used the collar to correct misbehaviour (running away, eating discarded food, etc.).
In addition to my positive experience with the product, I also received very good support and feedback after sending E-Collars an email with a few questions.
I can therefore highly recommend the product and the company behind it, who really do appear to be committed to customer satisfaction.
PROS:
My dog feels the stimulation at setting level 8. It causes her to shake her head and respond right away. I used the +30 emergency button once when she tried to chase a cat which caused her to let out a loud yelp (felt so bad doing it!). I think +30 is way too much of a boost for my puppy but I can see it coming in handy for real emergencies (running into traffic, etc.).
The light built into the collar is the BEST feature. I have it set on the blinking mode and it allows my dog to be visible at night from a distance. When walking my dog by a street, I leave it on the constant on mode so that people driving will be able to take notice easily as well. The white LED in the receiver is actually pretty bright as well which is a big plus.
The vibration mode confuses my dog at the moment. She doesn't know how to respond to it. I haven't been able to use the collar on her much, but I'm fairly certain that she'll learn that it's a warning eventually. Would've been nice to have an audible tone feature to use as a reward tone to compliment my use of the vibration feature as a warning sign.
I love the way the two components charge. Very straightforward. Pull out the rubber plugs and stick the power cables in to charge them. To turn the device on, you just align two red dots until you see the receiver blinking green. I see this as a positive feature as I'm assuming* this method is used to pair/sync the collar and remote to each other. I'm sure you don't want other people's remotes setting off your dogs collar!
CONS:
There are only a few things that I'm not satisfied about the product. I noticed that the stimulation buttons were not stimulating the dog on quite a few occasions using the smaller contact prongs. I switched them over to the longer prongs and the issue still persisted. The success rate is about 60%, meaning only 6 button presses worked out of 10. I didn't take a star off the review because my double coated puppy does have a lot of fur causing difficulty for the prongs to make skin contact. I cant tighten the collar any further as it causes my puppy too much discomfort (long prongs pushing into her throat). Would be great if there was someway to get the receiver to stay in place on the back of my dog's neck but it will always find itself back under her throat.
The strap that came with the unit is very heavy duty and has a lot of extra slack to make it usable on even very big dogs however it's not very friendly, in my opinion, for smaller dogs. It's a very stiff, rubbery feeling strap. An adjustable nylon collar would work much better for smaller dogs. However, the stiff and rugged strap is ideal and I can see it working perfectly for medium/large size dogs.
I'm a bit worried about the battery life due to the other review here. I will be taking my dog hiking this Sunday at and will get to see whether or not the collar will last me the entire day or not. Will revise the review if I find it to be an issue. Not too worried since Amazon has one of the best return policies to boot.
CONCLUSION:
Overall, I feel that this product is very well built and thought out. The design of the transmitter feels very ergonomic despite it being a perfect circle. Feels like I'm holding a children's walkie talkie device with the buttons placed in the right places (thumb on vibrate, middle on stimulate, ring finger on +30 boost). The receiver is also a good size for my small dog (8.5" neck, 7lbs.) although I have seen smaller receivers on the market. I almost went with a much cheaper electronic collar but I decided to spend more money on one with the right set of features, warranty, reviews, and reputation. Compared to Dogtra and Tri-tronics, I feel that the Einstein products are much better designed, priced better, and just as reliable. I have no qualms about recommending this product to my friends and family.
Buy Einstein ET-400TS E-Collar 3/4 Mile Remote Dog Trainer Now
The battery life is exceptionally poor on this unit. If we put it on our dog in the AM, work, then to kennel for a few hours, then back to work the collar will be dead before our day is done.We charged it for 18 hours to start.
Another complaint is to shut it off you have to line up the red dots. You have to have them really close to shut off and it is difficult to do if your dog is still in the training phase and not exactly cooperative.
The strength of the unit was not great for our dog but she does have a winter coat on. The longer points may make it much more effective.
I also do not think the collar is for all sizes of dogs. Although we can get the collar small enough it means there is about 8" of collar flapping around which is a distraction. We did not want to cut it off in case we wanted to use it on a larger dog later.
I would not recommend this collar at all.
Read Best Reviews of Einstein ET-400TS E-Collar 3/4 Mile Remote Dog Trainer Here
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