AT&T Expandable Cordless Phone & Answering Machine

At one time, if you wanted to talk on the phone, you needed a landline. Then cell phones came along, making it possible to leave home without missing a single call. However, that doesn’t mean home phones have gone away completely. In fact, 45.9 percent of U.S. households have a landline, with 6.5 percent shunning cellphones altogether in favor of being landline only.

There are many benefits to having a home phone. If you have small children in the house, you’ll likely gravitate toward a landline to give your youngest family members a way to talk to their friends until they’re old enough for phones of their own. You’ll also have the benefit of having your number easily traceable by emergency service dispatchers if you someday need to call 911. It’s also hard to ignore the generally far superior call quality you get with a landline versus a cellphone.

But landlines have come a long way since their heyday. Today’s cordless phones bring a variety of features, including the ability to link up your cell phones so that you can receive and make cell phone-based phone calls from your landline while you’re at home. Why would you want to do this? Because it gives you the call clarity and convenience of using your home’s cordless while also keeping you in touch with everyone you normally speak to through your cellphone.

As you’re shopping for a cordless phone, you’ll likely notice that some advertise that they include answering machines. Yes, you can sign up for voicemail through your phone company, but you may simply prefer to have it with your phone. If so, you may want to check with your landline service provider to make sure you can permanently disable your voicemail. Otherwise, you might find your voicemail is picking up, bypassing your answering machine every time.

• Although landlines are usually clearer than the average cellphone, call quality can vary widely from one phone to another. The AT&T Expandable Cordless Phone uses DECT 6.0 digital technology for clear calls and voicemails. The Motorola Cordless Phone & Answering Machine has clear call quality, but it can be quieter than comparable phones.
• If you wear a hearing aid, look for a phone that meets the Telecommunications Industry Association’s standards for hearing aid wearers. TIA-1083 compliance means that you’ll have a significant reduction in interference if you’re wearing your hearing aids while using it. The Panasonic Expandable Cordless Phone is TIA-1083 compliant.
• Cordless phones rely heavily on their batteries. The Panasonic Expandable Cordless Phone combines the shortest time to charge with the longest time on standby before needing a recharge.
• Busy families need more than one handset. In the pre-cellphone era, you had to buy a separate handset for each room. But the Panasonic Expandable Cordless Phone comes with three handsets, all of which connect to the main phone. That means you can set up the handsets in three different locations for your family’s convenience.
• With your cell phone, voicemail comes from the phone company. The same goes for a landline. However, some cell phones come equipped with their own dedicated answering machines built-in. If this is a priority for you, the AT&T Expandable Cordless Phone should top your list.
• A major difference between today’s landline-based phones and those of the past is app connectivity. Some models include a feature called Connect to Cell, which lets you take incoming calls from your cellphone, as well as make calls through your cellphone plan. If your cell phone gets a text, your landline phone will alert you. There are models that will let you add up to two smartphones so that you can make and receive calls. This feature means you can seamlessly switch to your landline when you’re at home, enjoying the call clarity and comfort of speaking using your home phone’s handset.