Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Panasonic makes very good cordless phones in my experience, but they do tend to make a highly confusing number of models. If you are really into finding the best fit, a reasonable thing to do is call Panasonic's online store at #1-888-449-0444. They are very helpful in walking you through the maze of models. Then come back to Amazon for a cheaper price. Here is my understanding: Panasonic's DECT 6 Plus line of phones runs at 1.9 ghz (DECT is actually not a Panasonic name, its the name for phones that use this frequency), which is reserved for cordless phones with technology to avoid interfering with each other. It is, generally speaking, a high range & good battery life line of phones. 1.9 ghz is fairly good at penetrating obstacles such as floors/ceilings/walls. If you somehow happen to have a lot of interference at 1.9 ghz -- and I'm not even sure how that happens given that 1.9 is reserved for cordless phones -- Panasonic still makes a line of 5.8 ghz phones that may theoretically work better for you. However, 5.8 ghz is not as good at penetrating obstacles (walls) and you may get less range if your going through walls. Thus, for most people, the DECT 6 line of phones is the first choice. Within the DECT 6 line, they have: (1) phones with bluetooth, if you want to link with a cell phone; (2) phones systems that can accommodate two different phone numbers (for people with two different phone lines); (3) and systems without one of those two features that vary by whether they have an answering machine; and (4) hearing impaired models. Panasonic throws in a number at the end for the number of phones that the model ships with, and a letter at the end for the color, so the KX-TG6843B ships with 3 phones and is black, but if there is a KX-TG6844W, it would be the exact same phone system, but shipping with 4 phones, and in white. The models that ship with 3 phones all seem expandable up to 6 phones. You may get a better deal buying one that ships with all the phones you need now, although you can add extra phones (up to the max of 6 for most models) later for a small premium. This is one of their DECT 6 phones without two lines and without bluetooth, but with an answering machine. It comes with 3 phones, in black, but you can vary at least the number of phones it comes with, up to the max of 6. (Not sure if you can get white phones -- search for the model # with a "W" at the end). It has fantastic, whole house (and even yard!) range, and the battery life seems pretty good as well. It uses tripple AAA size rechargeables, which is a definite plus given that you wont need to pay $30 bucks for a specialized battery when they need replacement. Whether they last as many years as the bigger dedicated batteries that some cordless phones use, I dont know, I suppose its doubtful, but the talk time and standby life is good, so it seems a worthwhile trade. If you spend hours and hours on the phone and are sloppy about charging, my guess it that you can get better battery life from a different model phone with a specialized (and larger) battery, but for 99% of folks, the battery life with the AAA rechargeables in this phone is probably just fine. The phones look and feel pretty much like prior generations of Panasonic's cordless phones -- decent size buttons, good volume on the handsets and the speakerphone, no interference (in our house anyway). Assuming you do in fact want a DECT 6, no bluetooth, no 2 lines, with answering machine, coming with 3 phones, this seems to be a current model, and from Panasonic's web site, it actually seems like the high end model at the moment. (Not sure about that, but that is the way it seems.) It has lots of features people are liking, like the ability to block 250 numbers, including all 800 or 888 numbers, and you can have it do a special ring for them as well. I dont tend to get that deep into the fancy features, but if you are prepared to spend time with the manual, there is a lot here. One feature that seems unique to this model, and may be a new feature for Panasonic is talking caller id. Its not clear that its worth the effort to use this feature -- you have to program each name in, or it says something of questionable utility such as "cell phone MA" for a call from a Massachusetts. If you program it, it says what you want. Unfortunately, its a bit hard to understand, and not even as "good" as a modern GPS struggling with street names. Its not terrible, but you may not be able to understand it with certain names, particularly from another room. You might get some value from this feature, but some could find it more trouble than its worth.