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(More customer reviews)I think Panasonic finally got it right with this one, and I only have one (very small) issue with the phone. All in all, this is without a doubt the best cordless phone system I have ever used.
I had a previous Panasonic 5.8 gHz phone and loved it. One day after about 2 years of use, the base abruptly died, and none of the handsets would connect. I think it's a sign of a strong manufacturer, though, that when one product dies the only brand that I would even consider again is the same one.
With the previous model, I had only a couple of small complaints: 1) when you received a call on one handset, it would still show "missed call" on all of the other handsets, and 2) you had to clear the missed call list individually on all handsets. Both issues have been corrected with this phone. All handsets now synchronize automatically when you review the call list, and only calls that you truly don't answer show as missed calls. And there's no more having to copy the phone book from one receiver to another, either. Changes on one phone are mirrored on all of the others.
The large display on this phone really sets it apart from others as well. When you program the time on the phone, the display acts as a second clock. And it's readable from aross the room!
Speaking of readable, the large display also makes it very easy to see who's calling. The phone does offer the talking caller ID feature found on other Panasonic phones, but we find it to be annoying. Thankfully, you can turn the feature off in the menu system.
And that leads me to my only complaint about this phone, albeit an extremely minor one. When you get into various menus, I haven't found a way to go back one screen. For example, if I click into the caller list and then click on the individual entry, I can't figure out how to go back to the caller list. I have to go all the way out to the main phone screen and then go back into the caller list. If there was just a simple "back" button, this phone would be perfect in every way.
Of course the purpose of a phone is to allow you to communicate clearly, and this one excels in that department. Connections are clear, and it is very easy to hear the other end. The previous phone had a "voice enhancer" technology that I found to be unnatural and annoying, and that (thankfully) is not present here. But it's not missed.
I've had the phone down the street about 7 or 8 houses away, and the connection is still rock solid. We live in a typical suburban setting, and I've heard no interference or static at any time.
Also, the DECT 6 technology, operating on a lower frequency, does not interfere with our wireless computer network at all. And I've never heard any static from the microwave or any other electronic device, for that matter.
The real selling feature of this phone to me was the visual voicemail list. Since the base doesn't have any kind of indicator as to how many messages are stored, the handset serves as an excellent way to navigate the messages. And you can listen to messages in any order, and you can save or delete them one by one as well. The fact that the messages are tagged with the caller ID info is great, too!
Oh, one other feature that I haven't seen mentioned is that the keypad is lit. That makes for calling in a dark room to be painless.
All in all, this one is very deserving of the 5-star rating.
Likes: the large, well lit display; the message list (choicemail); automatic syncing of all handsets.
Dislikes: The lack of a "back" button in the menu screens.
[EDIT: Someone pointed out that you can indeed go back one screen in the menus. You just have to push the little joystick controller any direction, and the phone will return to the previous screen. Now the phone is perfect! Thanks for the tip!!]
[UPDATE: 5/2/10]
After using the phones for one year, I still stand behind the original review. These things are still working like champs. We had one of the 4 handsets lose a screen after a fall from the kitchen counter (must have landed *just* right that day, as they have taken a few tumbles in the year). That screen is now covered with leaked black LCD gunk, and we have that handset placed in the least used spot in the house.
The only other issue is that a bit of the black paint on the face of the units around the buttons has become worn around the edges, and the silver color of the underlying rubber / plastic is showing through. None of the necessary parts of the buttons themselves have worn off, and it's just a cosmetic thing. Frankly, with the use the phones get, this is a minor issue at most.
Battery life is still good from the original rechargables, but we hang up most of the phones after each use back into the recharging cradles. The one handset that gets most of the use shows some signs of dimished battery life, but it's used at least 3 hours a day, and it doesn't always get put back on the charger. It now loses its charge after about 3 days like this.
Otherwise, I'm as happy now as I was when I wrote the original review. Revised rating: 5 stars.
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