Info and Answers | July 24, 2007 | by John Pike

Are telephones ever going to stop improving? Maybe someday they’ll be washing our gasoline-free cars? Maybe not. But now with better technology you can wave goodbye to the telephone guy who comes to put a landline phone jack in every room of your home.

One telephone jack is plenty to talk anywhere throughout your entire palace. A host of companies now sell telephones in groups of two, three or four, all for the same line, to place anywhere. They come with handsets that plug into the wall to keep the phones charged up.

These expandable phones can also transfer calls to other handsets and they can be used as intercom systems. If you want to speak to someone downstairs, simply pick up the phone and call the downstairs handset. You can also conference in people on multiple handsets and there’s a “line-in-use” button that flashes when someone is using the phone.

Companies peddling phones in multiple units include Vtech, General Electric, Panasonic, AT&T and Uniden.

Expanded Range for Home Phones
If you are seeking more range, less interference from wireless networks and better sound quality than the 5.8 GHz phones, Panasonic, Uniden, GE and Vtech all sell phones with a new technology called Digital Enhanced (formerly European) Cordless Telecommunications (DECT).

DECT uses a recently-available frequency band (1.9 GHz). Interference is avoided even when the spectrum usage increases and these phones will not interfere with your wireless network. DECT also provides high protection against wiretapping.

Landlines and Cellphones Come Together
Another advancement in home telephones includes answering your mobile phone calls with your landline cordless telephones.

With AT&T’s upcoming 5.8 GHz, Bluetooth-enabled, EP5632-2, you will be able to leave your mobile phone where it gets the best reception, then use your landline phone to talk through your mobile. The AT&T phone will offer two lines, thus avoiding the expense of an extra landline. The mobile phone can be the second line. 

Info and Answers | July 24, 2007 | by John Pike

Are telephones ever going to stop improving? Maybe someday they’ll be washing our gasoline-free cars? Maybe not. But now with better technology you can wave goodbye to the telephone guy who comes to put a landline phone jack in every room of your home.

One telephone jack is plenty to talk anywhere throughout your entire palace. A host of companies now sell telephones in groups of two, three or four, all for the same line, to place anywhere. They come with handsets that plug into the wall to keep the phones charged up.

These expandable phones can also transfer calls to other handsets and they can be used as intercom systems. If you want to speak to someone downstairs, simply pick up the phone and call the downstairs handset. You can also conference in people on multiple handsets and there’s a “line-in-use” button that flashes when someone is using the phone.

Companies peddling phones in multiple units include Vtech, General Electric, Panasonic, AT&T and Uniden.

Expanded Range for Home Phones
If you are seeking more range, less interference from wireless networks and better sound quality than the 5.8 GHz phones, Panasonic, Uniden, GE and Vtech all sell phones with a new technology called Digital Enhanced (formerly European) Cordless Telecommunications (DECT).

DECT uses a recently-available frequency band (1.9 GHz). Interference is avoided even when the spectrum usage increases and these phones will not interfere with your wireless network. DECT also provides high protection against wiretapping.

Landlines and Cellphones Come Together
Another advancement in home telephones includes answering your mobile phone calls with your landline cordless telephones.

With AT&T’s upcoming 5.8 GHz, Bluetooth-enabled, EP5632-2, you will be able to leave your mobile phone where it gets the best reception, then use your landline phone to talk through your mobile. The AT&T phone will offer two lines, thus avoiding the expense of an extra landline. The mobile phone can be the second line.