Wireless Wandering

Installing a second phone line in a small office can be a huge hassle. First, there's the price: It costs close to $1,500 to buy a new desktop station and add wiring. There's also the loss of mobility: You traditionally can't connect a cordless phone to multiline Centrex systems and thus remain tethered to your desk. For some lucky entrepreneurs, things are changing.

Siemens CommunicationDevices in Richardson, Texas, markets a cordless, multiuser phone system that enables entrepreneurs to wander around their offices with a cordless handset, leaving them free to oversee employee progress and remain available for customer calls. What's more, up to eight employees, using cordless handsets with their own extension numbers, can make calls on the wireless system.