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Running a small business by yourself or with a small staff oftenmeans you have to cover a lot of ground around the office. Takingalong a cordless phone ensures you don't miss importantcalls--until you walk out of range or get static on the line. Lackof clarity, restricted range and interference are among the mostfrequent complaints about cordless phones. It isn't unusual toeven hear other people's conversations or phones ringing onyour line. Frustrated with these limitations, some businesspeoplehave resorted to installing phone extensions everywhere, a costlysolution.
Fortunately, the latest cordless phones have moved to the nextlevel, where static has been virtually eliminated and range greatlyextended, thanks to digital technology and powerful frequencybands. Digital cordless phones have much wider bands to accommodatemore channels, resulting in almost static-free transmissions. Forexample, Lucent Technologies' phones, the bestselling phones onthe market (formerly sold under the AT&T logo), provide userswith 173 channels. Thomson Consumer Electronics' digitalcordless phone (sold under the General Electric logo) provides 100channels.
All digital cordless phones in our chart are on the 900 MHzradio band frequency, providing ranges of up to 4,000 feet (aboutthree-quarters of a mile) and high-quality voice clarity. Standardcordless phones use the 43 to 46 MHz frequency and have a range ofup to 500 feet. Don't judge a phone only by its range, though;buildings, weather and terrain can affect sound quality andreception. A longer range, however, means you can move farther awayand receive a clearer signal as the phone automatically switches toa better channel on the band.
Digital technology also means more security. Digital phones havea microchip that encrypts signals and scrambles them across a widespectrum to help protect against eavesdropping--important if youhave security-sensitive phone conversations. Sanyo's QuietLinemodel protects signals with 16 million security codes to preventunauthorized use of your phone line by other cordless phone users(if someone is using a similar phone nearby, he or she could latchonto your channel, and you'd be billed for the call) and toguard against false rings from other cordless phones. One model,Uniden's EXI 960, offers call waiting ID and provides newcaller alert, a beep that tells you when you have another call.
Many new cordless phone systems employ tapeless voice mailtechnology, allowing users to do away with their answeringmachines. Although these phone systems have greater timerestrictions and some cannot save as many messages as standardanswering machines, they provide three conveniences in one package:cordless phone, base unit and voice mail. Other features on the newphones include time and date stamp. Panasonic's model, forinstance, uses a synthesized voice to inform users of the time anddate each message was received.
Some of the new cordless phones have standby modes that allowthe handset to function away from the base unit for several days,but you may have to switch off the ringer or other features to getthe benefit. If you need a two-line phone, check out Sony'smodel SPP-M920, which has three-way conference capability so userscan talk simultaneously on two lines with separate outsideparties.
Most digital cordless phones can be plugged into a wall jack.Toshiba's phones are the exception; they can only be used withthe company's own $350 to $500 Strata DK8 digital key phonesystem.
Feature Facts
Deciding what you need before you shop can save money. Here is alist of the most popular features:
Auto scan channel-hopping: This feature automaticallyscans various frequencies for the channel with the greatestclarity.
Call log: This feature stores the last few numbers dialedon the handset so the user can scroll through if necessary.
Call waiting ID: If you want to know who's calling oncall waiting, the screen identifies the caller's phone numberand, on some models, the name of the caller.
Channels: Cordless phones using the 900 MHz radio bandautomatically monitor a variety of transmission channels and selectthe clearest one. Lots of channels means your phone has a greaterchance of switching to another one if you encounterinterference.
Digital security codes: These help prevent unauthorizeduse of your phone line and protect against false rings from othercordless phones in the area.
Memory telephone numbers: This feature allows you tostore telephone numbers in memory.
Out-of-range alert: This beep lets you know you'vewalked out of frequency range while using the phone, and you needto move closer to the base unit.
Page find: Some phones have a one-way paging system tohelp you locate the phone if you misplace it; other phones havetwo-way paging to alert either party that the other is looking forthem.
Range: If your work area is small, a short range may beall you need; if you wander more than 1,000 feet from your desk,look for a long-range model.
Standby time: This is the number of minutes, hours ordays the phone handset can function away from the base unit withoutbeing recharged.
Time and date stamp: Some phones display this on screen;others use a digitized voice.
Jill Amadio is a writer in Newport Beach, California.
