DECT phones - any recommendations?

[charlesr]

My panasonic is giving up the ghost - the buttons have to be pressed really hard. It's lasted for ages though and has excellent sound quality.

Anyone bought any recently that they are chuffed with?

Ideally it needs a handsfree option (via headphone cable or whatever) plus a speaker phone, but I don't need an answering machine.

[merf]

i did quite a bit of research on this the other week, basic idea seems to be Panasonic and Siemens rule the roost

I got a great Siemens phone with built in bluetooth off this lot

https://www.pmctelecom.co.uk/

next day delivery, good advice on the phone and a free bluetooth usb dongle

[Womble9]

This may prove helpful :)

http://www.which.co.uk/reviews/cordless-phones/best-buy/table/

[eASY aDDICT]

I'm also in the market for a new DECT phone. I have some Philips handsets at present which are utter shite.

I have looked into a DECT with Skype like the Siemens and Netgear as my parents spend a lot of time at their house in Spain so would help keep call charges down. Anyone have any views or experience?

[merf]

can't stress enough how important research is, read the online review sites (amazon is quite useful).

there are literally hundreds of models out there and some companies seem incapable of making a decent handset

I also found this place a source of lots of good info and reviews

http://www.cordless-phones.uk.com/cordless-phones/

[charlesr]

This may prove helpful :)

http://www.which.co.uk/reviews/cordless-phones/best-buy/table/

Am I supposed to be able to see stuff on this page without signing up?

[Spagoli]

My DECt phone went up the spout, decided to get BT home hub with free phone, job done. £0 and works OK, I'm sure you can buy better but prob not for £0 :)

[Brats]

I bought a new set recently, a pair of Panasonics. They were supposed to be piano black, but upon opening they turn out to be a gun metal colour, which I actually prefer (might sound crap but they look great).

I did a lot of research (I hate buying something and then wishing I bought something else). The thing I found was that phone reviews overlooked how well they fitted in the cradle. A lot of phones (particuarly Philips) seems very unstable and would fall out of the cradle if someone so much as farted near them. Other phones had to be lined up exactly or they wouldn't connect.

But I know what I'm like. I just to be able to lob the phone in the direction of the cradle and for it to fit snugly in place. If a phone falls off, it'll fall down the back of the table it's on or worse crack open on the wooden floors.

This is the set I ended up with (except a different colour):

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Panasonic-KXTG8322-Digital-Cordless-Telephone/dp/B0019HGOV2/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1234307005&sr=8-2

There are sexier phones, but functionality wise I can't fault it.

EDIT: It is a speaker phone and each handset has a handsfree socket.

[charlesr]

I was looking at those ones. I'm with you on the cradle thing.

Are there any that connect to your PC and outlook contacts etc? Tapping them in again will be a right pain.

[charlesr]

Just found this siemens:
http://www.cordless-phones.uk.com/cordless-phones/digital-cordless-phones/review/siemens-gigaset-sl560-phone
(good link merf)

It's got bluetooth for handsfree (buy separate headset though) and links to the PC for data sync. Now to hunt for reviews.

[smouty]

As a family we have a load of different numbers so was looking for a phone that allows contacts to be synced across all phones. It looks as though the Siemens gigaset support this and as the current Phillips, which I had no problems with, have started to need new batteries these look like the ones for me.
The new SL785 (http://www.cordless-phones.uk.com/blog/ligo/info/siemens-gigaset-sl785-prerelease-images-video.htm) looks lovely.

[charlesr]

Yeah, pricetastic though.

I'm veering towards the S680. It looks more robust (child proof) than the more expensive ones and the docking station looks more useful. £60
http://www.cordless-phones.uk.com/cordless-phones/digital-cordless-phones/siemens-gigaset-s680-phone
Plus a £20 bluetooth headset.

[smouty]

What I'm thinking of is two or three similar to the S680 and adding a 785 when available for the 'adults' sole use :)

[charlesr]

How big is your house :o Good plan with the 785. In theory ;)

I could use one upstairs I suppose, but I can also use my legs.

[smouty]

Honestly, my kids leave the phones all over the place that even that would not be enough.
Still end up using the fixed one which I don't like as I can't see who is calling.

[eASY aDDICT]

Stopped by Tesco's on the way home and picked up a pair of the Panasonics that Brats recommended!

5p more than Amazon at £59.95

Very pleased with them so far and as I use a Panasonic DECT at work all day I am familiar with all the menus.

They are so much better than the Philips that I have had for the past few years.