Panasonic KX-TG6545B DECT 6.0 PLUS Expandable Digital Cordless Answering System with 5 Handsets
Just to qualify - I rely HEAVILY on my phones for constant daily use in work / business calls and I use the headset feature a lot as well as speakerphone. I've been using similar types of phones for about 5 years now and have owned Uniden TRU8885, Uniden TRU9485, Uniden DECT2085-3, and Panasonic KX-TG1033S.
I've been using this new set of Panasonic KX-TG6545B DECT 6.0 for about 32 days (as of the time of this review) and so far these are the best out of the bunch.
LIKES:
- Handsets are lightweight and comfortable
- VERY EASY TO SET UP AND GET RUNNING
- Sound is clear on handset AND HEADSET (optional separate purchase), the latter of which is really important to me
- Almost no crackling noise when I accidentally shift the headset connector around
- Talking Caller ID actually works! It's not perfect at pronouncing some words, but you definitely know who is calling without looking
- Very full array of features!
- Buttons are big enough for people like me with big hands, and the spacing between the buttons really helps avoid wrong presses
- Battery life is excellent AND they take standard NiMH AAA rechargeables, so NO MORE PROPRIETARY BATTERY REPLACEMENT HASSLES! BIG PLUS!
- Lots of redial and caller ID memory
- Phonebook groups for easy lookup and dial quickly
- AUTOMATICALLY copies your phonebooks to all handsets just by saving an entry on one handset
DISLIKES:
- The speaker phone on the handsets is a tiny bit too susceptible to background noise, but still acceptable
- Still, as with all others like these, on rare occasion the sound drops out or phone says no signal even 2-feet away from base. (HOWEVER, this problem occurs less than with any of the other 4 or 5 brands/models I've tried)
- There is some lag (delay) when answering a new call or flashing to another incoming call. Have to wait a couple seconds for the other party to hear you pick up.
OVERALL IMPRESSION:
I'm much more satisfied with this set than any of the others I've tried in this price-range. It's not perfect, but definitely 4-Star worthy and I would recommend trying this set if you need a multi-handest DECT 6 solution to cover the whole house.
UPDATE - MARCH 7, 2011
I've now been using this KX-TG6545B set daily for over 6 months, and I still love it. It is undoubtedly better (in my opinion) then all of the other sets I tried and listed in the beginning of my review. The headset jacks on the handsets still sound perfectly clean with no crackling (whereas almost all the other sets had headset jack noise issues) and the phones hold a charge for far longer than I expected. The features are fantastic and easy to customize. And even on 3 different floors of the house including the basement I can only recall losing signal / range twice since I wrote the original review. Best in class, in my opinion, and I would definitely recommend this set over any of the others I mentioned! If you depend on your phones daily for heavy use and important calls, but you don't have a thousand bucks to spend, this set is affordable, reliable, easy, and feature-rich. Panasonic KX-TG6545B DECT 6.0 PLUS Expandable Digital Cordless Phone with Answering System and 5 Handsets
When I need a cordless telephone, I only look at one brand: "Panasonic". I've tried many brands and was never completely satisfied like I am with a Panasonic. In fact I have returned every other brand of cordless phone that I have ever purchased. They're just not as good as Panasonic.
The sound quality is outstanding and the ease of use is unbelievable. The only thing that I am dissatisfied with in this newest handset design is that Panasonic changed the "message waiting indicator light" on the top of the handset. The light no longer wraps around to the front and back of the phone. It is now mounted flush on the top of the handset. If you are at eye level with the phone you cannot see that the message waiting light is flashing. A very poor design. The handset does however display that a voice message is waiting on the front LCD screen, but it does not attract your attention like a flashing light.
Speaking of the LCD screen, this has got to be the best LCD screen that I have ever seen in my entire life. The print is very large and super easy to read. The white back-lighting is phenomenal with a very high contrast. You will love it!
The illuminated keypad is one of the main reason I purchased this phone. I had an older Panasonic that still works like a champ, but I wanted the illuminated keypad feature which my old unit did not have.
Talking caller ID is another big selling point. It's so nice not to get up to read the information off of the screen when the phone rings. All of the handsets plus the base unit announce who is calling in a very clear and easy to hear and understand voice. Nice job Panasonic!
This phone was so easy to set up that I did not even open the instruction manual. Everything was intuitive.
Lastly, when you buy Panasonic, you know you are going to get a quality product. I own their Plasma TV's, Technics Turntables, Electric Razors just to name a few. All state of the art technology and quality!
The Panasonic KX-TG6545B set is our second such system. We've been wanting to replace our approximately 5 year old 5.8 GHz Motorola system due to extreme aggravation with that product's battery replacement costs after the first few years. It took me a long time to commit to a new phone system because of one feature that the old system had--the ability to select a custom ringtone for individual callers from one's phone book.
The Panasonic KX-TG6545B does not, alas, perfectly replicate that function of my Motorola units. It does, however, allow one to create up to 9 subsets called "Groups" within the system's phonebook, and each Group can be assigned a unique ringtone. This lets my young children continue to have the privilege of answering the telephone themselves, but only if they recognize the ringtone as the one I've assigned to family members. Some (my husband) would argue that the talking caller ID replaces this functionality, but I still prefer the unique ringtone concept. 1) The ringer sounds a few seconds before the caller ID starts talking. 2) Phonebook entries are written as first and last names, but the children would better recognize "grandma" over "Jane Doe cell." 3) The talking caller ID does mangle some otherwise well-known family friends' names, and I don't want to rely upon the kids' figuring out what the digital voice is saying. I was prepared for this negative as I've been researching a new phone system for well over a year, but I mention it because it is a minor bummer every single day.
The only other missing feature my old system had was a baby monitor option, which this Panasonic set does not have. I used it occasionally, but don't really miss it.
The only other significant drawback I've found over my old set was the ability to customize for each handset what action to take when using the system's intercom. On my Motorolas, I could set the Kitchen and Dining Room handsets to auto-answer an incoming intercom call, thus letting me answer hands-free. I always made the Bedroom set require physically pushing a button before the handset would pick up, for privacy. The Panasonic KX-TG6545B system treats the intercom function just as an incoming phone call--you have to "answer" an intercom page. With no settings to change, this is the obvious default choice, but it was fantastic to have the option to make some "public" rooms capable of auto-answering a page.
Features the Panasonic KX-TG6545B includes that are important to me are:
* Ability to assign a name to each handset instead of just sequential numbers. (Yes, sometimes the handsets move around, but eventually they go back where they belong, and the intercom is useless without this feature.)
* Shared phonebook between all sets. (This is much easier than our old system where I had to program each handset, though a family with older kids or teens might enjoy each having their own 50 phonebook slots to populate individually.)
* Handset design. (These are much lighter and the bases are smaller, too.)
* Batteries are rechargeable AAA, easily replaceable. (Opinions seem to differ on this, but our old set used proprietary batteries that cost $16 each at our local big-chain electronics store. I never successfully ordered the correct replacement battery online, either. The original batteries lasted a few years, but replacement batteries seemed to die within a few months.)
* Speakerphone and dial pad in the base unit. (I didn't have this before, and can live without it, but my husband leaves the handsets all over the house, so this is one location I can run to and know for a fact I can answer the phone. Effectively, it is like getting seven phones instead of just six.)
* Expandability to 6 (six) handsets. (I ordered one extra handset at the same time I got this set because I always meant to do so with my last set and didn't get around to it until that model became hard to find. Since you only need an electrical socket, it is really easy to find one more place to put a handset, especially nice since it adds an "intercom" to inconvenient spots like the attic or basement, even if just in my pocket while working up/down there.)
* Easy to set up additional handset. (My extra--purchased separately that same day on Amazon--handset arrived here a day before the set. I plugged it in and charged it overnight, as instructed, before the other parts arrived. Next day, after unpacking and plugging in all the parts of the Panasonic KX-TG6545B set, I followed the trivially easy instructions and paired the 6th handset to the base unit. I am technically adept, but no skills were needed for this process beyond reading a sentence on the instruction card and following the simple instructions.)
* Base unit is wall-mountable with no extra parts to buy. (I find the wall mount a little loose, but it is in a protected location above a counter in the kitchen, and I am happy to have those square inches of kitchen counter space back.)
* Screen readability is just okay. (My Motorola had a brighter display, and I could hit a button while the phone was on its charger and it would light up so I could read the time. The Panasonic handsets display "Please lift up and try again" for several seconds if I push a button to illuminate the screen, though after that long-feeling pause I can see the time before it goes dark again.)
* Silent Mode is handy. (The Panasonic system allows you to set specific hours during which a given handset will be in Silent Mode. That handset won't ring and the keys don't beep either. This is nice for a handset near the kids' sleep area.)
I have never had a call reception or home Wifi interference problem with these phones, but neither did the 5.8 GHz Motorola set or the several individual old cordless phones before that. Making phone calls and receiving them worked just fine in all cases. As long as I keep a landline phone, I will continue to use an expandable-from-one-base system in our old house with minimal phone jacks, but I encourage new buyers to really research the calling and phonebook features on these phone sets because that is where the differences really are. My mother's highest priority was a set that would play Christmas carols for a ringtone. My in-laws needed to research which set had a screen light/bright enough for them to read. For me, incoming call ringtones and naming the handsets are top priorities. What matters most to you? - Cordless Phone - Answering Machine - Cordless Phones - Dect Phone'
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