Cordless telephones

The only phone-jack in my house is in a bedroom so is that where the base-unit (with answering machine) must be located?

Does the base-unit need a handset or can I buy a cordless handset to use in my kitchen and a cordless handset to use in my den?

Reply to
Bob
Loading thread data ...

Probably. Unless you want to install another jack somewhere.

It would be almost impossible to find a base without either a wired or cordless handset. And don't you want a phone in your bedroom anyhow?

You can turn off its bell and still adjust the bell in another room so that you hear it when awake but not when asleep.

Uniden makes nice phones, with a base station and 2 or 3 wireless extensions. You can even add more, up to 8 iirc.

Reply to
micky

Can I plug the base-unit into the phone-jack and use its handset in a different room? Can I can buy only a charger for that handset?

Reply to
Bob

There are many variations available. We have an ATT set with one base and 4 portables.

formatting link

formatting link

Works well, the sound is clear and if off the charger it will last a couple of days. If I needed to do it over, I'd get the same setup with no hesitation.

Many of the others on the market are bit cheaper but the sound quality is just not up to par.

Reply to
Ed Pawlowski

Can I plug the base-unit into the phone-jack and use its cordless handset in a different room? Can I can buy only a charger for that cordless handset?

Reply to
Bob

You could, but it would probably be cheaper to buy a unit with three handsets and two auxiliary charging stands.

Reply to
Stormin' Norman

Lot's of good, 3 handset options, through Amazon.

See:

formatting link

Reply to
Stormin' Norman

I agree. Probably cheaper.

I wanted a base and 3 extensions and I bought two sets, one a base with a cordless phone and 1 extensions and a base with a corded phone and 2 extensions

If the base ever fails I have another base.

After about 6 years, I had to replace one of the batteries in the phone I use the most. After about 8 years, the Answer button on that same cordless phone has to be pushed hard**. I don't want to have to start all over if a phone fails, so by this time extensions were available on ebay, and I bought 2 more phones with chargers.

I had to make sure my two original purchases and the later phones were compatible with each other. Uniden has a list online, so that was not very hard. There are two kinds of phones, with two different shapes, so there are two different chargers and they won't fit into the wrong charger, but the charger is unlikely to break and if it does, I can fix it with parts, from another charger if no place else. So that's not a problem.

** After about 31 years, the on/off button on my expensive KLH table radio doesn't always work. Prior to that was a stage where it worked twice when I was trying for once. The 60-minute sleep button still works well, but if it fails, I expect that cleaning the switches will be difficult.
Reply to
micky

The handheld will ring wherever you are at within range. Stow it on the charger when low.

Reply to
Thomas

Yes. One thing you might want to check though is how you check for and pick up messages. I've always used the main base station to listen to them on the speakerphone. You may be able to retrieve them from the other handsets too, seems logical, but I'd check the features/ instructions for whatever you decide to buy. Probably a lot of choices on Ebay too.

Probably, but the typical gear is sold as a set of about 4 phones with chargers. Costco for example always has several or more choices for ~$45.

Reply to
trader_4

Yes, that's one of the best features of the Uniden I have. No point in giving the model number. It's old. (Though except for the one button and two batteries it works just as well as ~10 years ago.) I can play my messages from any extension. I don't have to go upstairs where the base is. I can do just about anything else from the extensions and just about anything when calling in from another phone.

When I was on my long trip this spring, I called in using Skype and I was supposed to be able to interrupt my outgoing message to play my incoming ones, delete them, and make room for more. But I never got a return beep or instruction (I think it gives instructions in English, rather than beeps). I think the problem was using Skype and it would work with a standard domestic phone call but I haven't checked.

By this time, a friend checked for me and found it didn't even play my message, only a beep, becuase it was full. All the more reason for me to delete messages, but I couldn't, and this was only 3 weeks into a 3 months trip.

When I got home I had about 28 messages adn 18 were from one spammer, 8 were from other spammers and only 1 or 2 had any value. Who knows who called in the remaining 8 weeks, cause it didn't asnwer.

The one advantage of this was that the number of spam calls I get now is markedly lower than before my trip. I think I've only gotten 1 in the last 2 or 3 weeks but before the trip the same place called every day, and others called to.

Reply to
micky

Generallt speaking yes on both counts, bur why not get one with one or more wireless extensions - then you get the chargrs with them.

We have a wireless base on the wall in the kitchen with answering machine built in, and I have another wireless base on my desk in the basement with 2 remotes - o0ne in the living room and one in the bedroom. We have both bases and the IP Phone system on UPS units.

Reply to
clare

Speaking of spammers, the Panasonic models have a memory for spam numbers. When you get a call, (you need caller ID) and you determine it's a spammer, you then put the numbers in the spam memory. Future calls from that number are then blocked.

Reply to
Art Todesco

Would be nice but the spammers change caller id numbers every few hours.

Reply to
Ed Pawlowski

Our primary land line (VoIP) is serviced by Google Voice (completely free service), we have been using this for at least four years now.

Google does a fantastic job of indexing and blocking spam calls, it does not require any interaction from us.

Can't remember the last time we got a call from a telemarketer. Google simply intercepts and disposes of the call.

Reply to
Stormin' Norman

I wanted more handsets for my phone (up to 10 were allowed). when I found out the price for those additional handsets, I found it was cheaper to buy another cordless phone and use those handsets (and get a "free" additional base for when the first one failed).

Reply to
Mark Lloyd
[span]

I have one of those, and the number blocking does help reduce calls (and if I couldn't have caller ID, I'd have to never answer the phone).

For awhile I could really have used blocking by NAME. When every day there were a dozen of more junk calls from different numbers, but all with the name of "TOLL FREE CALL". Now it's "Out Of Area" (an obvious lie, since a number IS provided).

Reply to
Mark Lloyd

Although they do use the same number for awhile, so blocking helps some. I wonder what happens when that block list gets full. It would be nice to have the oldest entries auto-deleted, but that could be too much to hope for. It looks likes there's also no mass delete feature.

Reply to
Mark Lloyd

My OOMA system traps a whole lot of spam, but not nearly all

Reply to
clare

Ed Pawlowski posted for all of us...

My Panasonic has 3000 spam slots. I have used less than 800 of them. Press one button press the accept and they are history. No more Rachael from card services, MS support, or politicos. If I have time I play with them until the want info then all of a sudden GONE. My record is 17 minutes. I like it when females call...

Reply to
Tekkie®

HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.