324 of 324 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Does the Job Well, 31 July 2008
This review is from: Panasonic KXTG8322 Colour DECT Digital Cordless Telephone Twin with Answer Machine - Black (Electronics)
I previously had a portable phone which, after many years, had started to have problems. I wanted something which looked good and did the basic job but also offered up to date features. I did quite a lot of research before buying and selected this Panasonic solution.
There is plenty of information around on the internet and so I'll try and focus on the things which were difficult to find.
As you would expect, the phone works straight out of the box. Being the typical male I didn't read the manual but still managed to get everything to work without much effort - the phone is quite intuitive to use.
The build quality is very good though for some reason home phones never seem to have the same solid feel as the average mobile phone. I guess some people might find the joystick (for navigating around the menus) a little difficult to use.
I originally wanted a phone which would also work with Skype but eventually decided against this I needed an answerphone (which is outside the standard Skype specification). The answerphone works well (maximum 40 mins) which you can also interrogate remotely.
To be honest the colour screen is a bit of a gimmick - I guess it looks quite good but doesn't offer much more than a mono screen (things like being able to change the background colour dependent on caller and set a background image). I wouldn't therefore let the colour screen influence your selection too much.
The phone book is good and stores names alongside numbers and you can group them into categories. I wish there wasn't such a restriction on the number of characters you can use for the name (I think it is about 15 which is normally enough). I especially like the facility to copy the phonebook between handsets which was really easy to do though, frustratingly, it does not copy the contact category with it.
The standby time and talk time appear to be very good though I leave the phones in their cradles for most of the time so I know where they are (thought there is a button you can push on the base station to find a phone that might have disappeared).
I bought two handsets so that I could have one upstairs and one downstairs. I believe you can have a maximum of 6. Both handsets linked up with the basestation without any effort.
Here are some other features which I wanted and the phone has but were not detailed in the item description above: call barring, mute button, night mode (ability to stop wrong numbers in the middle of the night while still allowing family to call), speed dial for frequently used contacts.
Hope this helps.
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66 of 66 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Nice job, very clear signal, 8 Sep 2008
This review is from: Panasonic KXTG8322 Colour DECT Digital Cordless Telephone Twin with Answer Machine - Black (Electronics)
Much has been said already in a very comprehensive review. I would like to add that the back light on the phone can be set to switch off when the phone is not being used - even if it is charging in the cradle.
Other good points: the phone fits nicely in the hand, the signal is very clear and I haven't had any problems with hums in the background. First cordless phone other than a mobile and I'm very pleased.
Also the instructions are helpful - yet it is quite an intuitive bit of kit to use if you are on the male "instructions only in an emergency" type of person.
EDIT: 16 Sept 2009 - One year on and no problems!
EDIT: 02 OCt 2010 - two years on from purchase and still working fine!
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64 of 64 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Much Better now I can turn the display off, 19 Sep 2008
This review is from: Panasonic KXTG8322 Colour DECT Digital Cordless Telephone Twin with Answer Machine - Black (Electronics)
This is my second Panasonic cordless phone. I bought a multiple handset this time to avoid racing around the house before the answer phone kicks in. (Almost everyone hangs up at this point).
I agree with the other reviews about the sound quality and the wireless range.
The annoying back light can be switched off by selecting "LCD Dimming = off". This allows the phone to be charged up in the bedroom without a weird glow keeping you awake.
Its a shame I couldn't transfer the old panasonic phonebook to the new phones but its quite easy to transfer the phonebook between all the new handsets.
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