Will Any Cordless Phone Work With Another Unit

I managed a company developing business phone systems over 30 years. As a result, I tin provide you with the following dependable guidance.

Q&A on privacy, health concerns, and usage of cordless telephones.

Photo by Glenn Stok

Q&A Nearly Landline Cordless Phones

The following is a series of questions and answers dealing with privacy, health concerns, and usage of cordless telephones.

Answers to your questions might be among the following queries received from my readers, and fifty-fifty some you did non know to ask.

Security and Privacy Hazard Concerns

Question:

How can I have my privacy while talking on a cordless phone without some other phone listening? Are cordless phones prone to eavesdropping?

Answer:

Privacy risks were a business organisation years ago when cordless telephones used analog radio signals between the base and the handsets, since another device could pick them up. However, today's technology uses DECT (Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications), which is safer for the reasons I'll explain.

There are various DECT versions for dissimilar countries that use alternate frequencies so that they don't interfere with other existing wireless equipment (such every bit cellular, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, baby monitors, etc.) in the respective countries.

DECT operates over ten different frequency channels in the 1880–1900 MHz ring. Every call originated by whatever handset will automatically cull one of the channels available to communicate with the base unit.

Audio is converted to digital signals to communicate with the base and is transmitted in packets of information. That allows multiple conversations to share each of the ten channels past breaking them into time slices.

DECT provides 24 timeslots per x-millisecond frame, and each frame can be carried over any of 12 duplex channels—allowing a total of 120 conversations. The information is coded then that each base of operations unit of measurement knows which data packets belong to its own transmissions. Therefore, the chance of another person beingness able to piece together ane's conversation is highly unlikely.

In addition, handsets will only create a connection with their assigned base by using a preset security code that must friction match. Therefore, the engineering prevents a nearby user with a like device from inadvertently eavesdropping on someone else's phone conversation.

Finally, DECT half-dozen.0 has the added reward of encrypting conversations. Handsets use 64-bit encryption so that no other device tin make sense of it, even if it were capable of overriding everything else I just mentioned.

Question:

Tin I silence the ringer on 1 handset and leave the other handsets ringing? I don't want the handset in my bedroom ringing at dark.

Respond:

Most cordless phone systems let you adjust the ringer book individually on each handset. Prepare the book to zero on the handset in your bedroom. Check your possessor'south manual for the programming details.

Question:

People cannot see my number when I call them. How can I turn on that feature, so they know information technology's me who's calling?

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Answer:

That is a feature provided by your service provider and is not a role of your telephone. If your number doesn't evidence up, and so you probably accept it blocked. Check that you don't accept privacy enabled.

Annotation that if you have a VoIP service, it may not send your Caller-ID information, but you demand to ask if they provide that feature.

Question:

My name does not show upwards on my sis'south phone when I call her, and sometimes she doesn't pick up because she doesn't recognize my number and thinks it'south a telemarketing call. Is the trouble on my phone or hers?

Answer:

Your phone company sends out the Caller-ID data, but nearly cellular services only transport the number and not your proper name.

If only your proper noun is missing, inquire if they tin include your proper noun with your number. If your sister is using a cell telephone, that will but testify the number. Ask her to add your proper name and number to her telephone's directory. And then it will display your name from the directory.

Question:

I can't get calls directly on my telephone. They all go to voicemail. Why?

Answer:

If all your calls go directly to voicemail, you probably enabled your service's "do not disturb" characteristic.

Voicemail is provided by your service provider, so you need to cheque that and set your options via your online phone service portal.

If yous can't find how to log on to information technology, call your service provider and ask them to reset it for you.

Question:

When I call a friend'southward cellphone, it automatically goes to her vocalism mail. All her other callers ring her phone. What is the problem?

Answer:

Your friend might accept your number blocked so that it goes direct to voicemail, or she programmed her cellphone to transport all unknown numbers and private callers to voicemail. If you are using the privacy mode, then you're hiding your Caller-ID.

Question:

When someone calls me, the Caller-ID only shows a number 1 through 9 instead of the name or phone number. How can I prepare this?

Answer:

Two reasons might relate to this.

All telephones that display Caller-ID show the data received from the phone visitor. That data is sent betwixt the offset and second ring. If yous programmed your name directory, and for some reason, you put single digits one through 9 in the name fields, the phone would replace the incoming Caller-ID with that.
Another reason is if you lot take your telephone on a PBX system. That might be sending just one digit to identify callers.

If you doubtable your service provider, call them and explicate the problem. If you take a PBX, contact the installer to determine if they can brand a programming alter to fix the problem.

Question:

I bought new cordless phones, and I want to recycle my old ones. Merely I want to erase my contacts beginning. The old handsets no longer can access the base of operations, and I tin can't admission the contacts. Is it safe to recycle without my contacts being attainable to others?

Answer:

If you sell or requite your phone arrangement to someone else, they will accept access to your contacts (names and numbers).

Some cordless phones store the directory in the base unit of measurement, and others have individual storage in each handset.

Cordless systems normally accept functions on the base of operations unit that you tin can use to delete everything from its retentiveness.

If your arrangement stores individual directories in each handset rather than in the base unit, then you need to check each handset.

Cordless Phone Usage Questions

Question:

My telephone keeps beeping three times during conversation at different intervals. What is causing the trouble?

Answer:

There are two reasons for hearing beeping sounds.

Most cordless phones have a alarm beep when the battery is depression and will soon cut off. If y'all have a power indicator, commonly a small-scale icon that looks like a battery, it shows the power remaining since the last charge. If it'southward down to 1 bar, your bombardment is too weak. Also, they might not be holding a charge whatever longer and need to exist replaced. You need to replace them with the same rechargeable type.
Another reason for beeping is Phone call-Waiting. If you take that enabled from your service provider, you'll hear beeps to indicate another caller when someone else calls while you're talking. If you besides have Caller-ID, that caller'due south name and the number will be displayed.

Question:

While talking on my phone, it shuts off afterward a while. How can I terminate this from happening?

Answer:

Your battery is probably likewise weak and not holding a charge long enough to last the entire length of your phone call. You should have heard a warning beep when the power gets low.

If you have non placed the handset back in the base or charger between calls that last a long time, that could exist the problem. Endeavour to get used to doing that to keep the batteries charged and ready for the next long phone call.

If this continues to happen, replace the batteries with the same rechargeable type used in the phone.

Handset showing "charging" status. — Handset showing "charging" condition.

Photograph © Glenn Stok

Question:

How long do the rechargeable batteries concluding for talk time, and practise they ever demand to be replaced?

Reply:

The talk time yous get on a single charge depends on the type of rechargeable batteries used. I had to replace mine after several years.

The original batteries gave almost 1000 charge/discharge cycles earlier I needed to supercede them. That means you should become up to five years before you need to supplant them.

Phone manufacturers use various types of batteries, but every bit an example, I am using two AAA 1.2-volt nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) rechargeable batteries rated at 800 mAh each in my Panasonic telephone handsets. NiMH gives more talk time than NiCad batteries simply may take a slightly shorter lifespan.

I can talk for iii hours on a unmarried accuse. I have also left the phone off the charger for several days without using it. The standby fourth dimension is several days when not on the charger.

It's important to understand that battery efficiency is dependent on the temperature of the room. Information technology's all-time within a range of 50°F to 86°F (ten°C to xxx°C). In addition, if your telephone is left in temperatures above 104°F (40°C), the charging procedure can be affected, and the batteries tin can deteriorate and damage the phone.

Question:

The date and time data stopped displaying on my phone but reappears when a phone call comes in. Every night I disconnect my calculator and telephones from their electric outlets to avert potential electrical surges. Do the rechargeable batteries need to be replaced?

Answer:

The date and time get reset automatically when a call comes in. The phone company sends that with each phone call. The bombardment keeps the time electric current if you don't have power.

Since you always unplug the power, y'all have put more load on the batteries, and this may accept caused them to die prematurely.

Rechargeable batteries don't last forever. The more often they are recycled between full charges, the sooner they will die. Reaching 1,800 cycles is about right, which is five years. I had to replace mine once. You tin can find the right replacement at Best Buy or on Amazon.

Question:

I bought a 2nd cordless telephone with a base for my kitchen, but I only want to use the handset as an extra. However, it does non have a dial tone. Both phones are the same model, shouldn't they work together?

Reply:

Since you purchased a complete system with a base of operations station, the handset volition but communicate with its own base. And then if you just want to add some other handset for the kitchen, you lot don't need some other complete system. Just get another handset that'southward compatible with the base you already accept.

You lot'll need to annals the new handset with the base yous're using. Wait in the phone's user guide for instructions. If it's a Panasonic phone, and then follow these steps:

Press the MENU push button, so punch #130.
Press and hold the locator button on the base of operations until you hear a tone.
If the handsets ring, you didn't hold it. Starting time over. Remember, you demand to wait for the tone.
Once yous hear the tone, press OK on the handset.
When you hear a completion tone on the handset, printing the "Off" push to stop.

Question:

When I am on the phone, a new caller just hears continuous ringing, and the answering machine never kicks in. That is weird because the caller doesn't get a decorated signal. How exercise I ready this?

Answer:

When your line is decorated because you are talking, another caller cannot get through. Therefore, your answering machine volition never get the call.

You might be confused virtually that considering the second caller is not getting a busy indicate. There are several reasons for this:

That tin can happen if your service provider has the option for voice postal service and you do not enable it.
Yous specified a big number of rings before going to voice mail.
You have call waiting enabled, and you are ignoring the beep tones.

I recommend that you lot stop using a premises-attached answering machine and apply phonation mail instead. That's the only mode to let your callers exit a message while talking to someone else. Almost phone providers include voice mail service service as an boosted option these days.

Question:

When I am on a call with my Automated Phone Banking and enter a number (like choosing choice #ane or entering numerical information), the organization doesn't respond to my choices. The buttons work fine to dial out. I accept the aforementioned problem with all the handsets on my system.

Reply:

Bear upon-tone is sent from the base of operations unit, not from the individual handsets. That's why it's happening with all your handsets.

The start thing to dominion out is to make up one's mind if your cordless arrangement is indeed sending a touch-tone. Maybe it got switched to the old-fashioned pulse-dialing fashion. You tin can test this past calling a friend or your mobile phone. Press some keys and listen if the tones are heard on the other end.

If y'all practice hear tones rather than pulses, your telephone'due south base unit may be sending the tones in brusque spurts—also brusque to be detected on the other end.

Your user manual might reveal if your cordless arrangement has a setting to lengthen the tones' duration.

Another outcome is that the touch-tone might not be loud plenty to be detected. Discuss this with your service provider to come across if they take a solution. Their network might be reducing the volume of the tones. You might have to talk with a rep that understands these technical issues.

Question:

Why are my phones muting? I cannot hear the caller, merely they always hear me. I just bought new phones, and the same thing is happening.

Answer:

Since you can't hear the caller, but they can hear yous, your phone is non muting yous as you thought. I would suspect that your caller has their mute enabled.

If this is happening with other people y'all speak with, you'll need to do some investigating. Since information technology happens with your new phones too, it could be a problem with your service provider or the other party's provider. Endeavor to find out if all the people you have this problem with are using the same provider. If not, and so that narrows it downwardly to your provider.

What kind of service do yous accept? Is it VoIP? If and then, they might be having network issues that need to be addressed, such equally incompatibility with your modem or a required software update to their network interface.

Question:

Tin can cordless phones be used equally intercoms?

Answer:

Some cordless telephones include an intercom mode, ordinarily indicated as INT. That lets yous call from i handset to some other internally.

Every manufacturer makes this work differently. In general, look for a button with INT (for intercom). It might exist a soft button establish nether the bill of fare options, every bit shown in the image below.

When you press the INT button, you will be able to select the handset assigned to the same base of operations unit that yous want to call.

Press INT and then select the handset you want to call. — Press INT and and then select the handset you want to call.

Photograph © Glenn Stok

Question:

Will a cordless phone piece of work in a power outage?

Reply:

The base of operations needs to be connected to a power outlet, so if yous lose power, information technology will not role.

If yous are concerned nearly this, yous can buy an Uninterruptable Power System (UPS) to provide electrical power during an outage.

If your telephone service is provided past your cablevision company, you should also connect your modem to the UPS.

Questions About Answering Machines

Question:

The answering machine will not pick up when I am using the phone. I find this extremely frustrating! Does any cordless phone accept the ability to answer calls if information technology's in use?

Answer:

No answering machine volition exist able to answer while you are on the line. That's incommunicable.

You might exist thinking of call waiting, which lets you see the caller ID of the 2d caller. In that case, yous tin can press flash to switch to the other caller. An answering machine would not practise that. If it could, you'd lose the connection to the commencement caller.

The but mode to have a system that answers calls and takes messages while you are on the line is to use the telephone company's voicemail. Calls will go to your voicemail when your line is busy.

Notation that if you have Call-Waiting, there will be a delay going to voicemail if you lot don't take the call. That gives y'all time to put the present call on hold by pressing the flash button to take the side by side caller.

You volition non need an answering auto if you decide to employ voicemail since it will answer, play your greeting, and have a message.

If this is important to you, talk to your service provider about getting their voicemail feature added to your service, and discontinue using your in-firm answering car.

Question:

If I don't desire to apply my Verizon Voicemail, is at that place a way my cordless phone can take messages when talking to someone? If not, is there any hardware I might use if I have Call-Waiting enabled?

Respond:

The advantage of using a voicemail service is that it can accept messages while yous are busy with some other caller. Since your phone line is agile when continued to a caller, it's not possible for any equipment at your end to take letters. The caller will but go a busy signal.

Telephone call Waiting won't work either because the answering machine won't have that call while you are on the line.

At that place is a solution, but it requires a second telephone line. First, you lot would need to prepare forwarding-on-busy from the chief line to the second. Then y'all can attach an answering machine to the 2nd line to have calls while you are talking.

Question:

How tin I hear the newest letters first when I have several messages stored on my cordless phone?

Answer:

The answering machine built into the base unit of measurement is like any other. It plays messages in the order received. Most units provide options to skip to the previous or next message. So with that, yous tin skip frontward until you achieve the last message.

If you are using voicemail, it's even more attainable. Most voicemail services can forward each message to your email as an attached WAV (audio) file. If you utilise that, you can select whatsoever message to play in whatever order you adopt. Those emails usually have the calling party'southward phone number in the subject line for easy identification.

Question:

When my answering machine answers and the caller disconnects, my unit does not hang up. Why?

Respond:

Most answering machines will cease the call when information technology times out, but if you take 1 that can record a long fourth dimension, it disconnects from the line when it receives a disconnect lawmaking from the carrier.

If you have a remote service connection via a transponder or a VoIP service, your carrier might not exist sending the appropriate disconnect lawmaking. That is not a malfunction of the phone or answering motorcar. You'll need to contact your carrier for support.

RF Radiations Health Concerns

Question:

Is the RF radiation from cordless phones dangerous to your health?

Answer:

When I search the Internet to enquiry the dangers of radiation from cordless phones, I observe many negative reviews claiming that it'due south dangerous because it can cause cancer and other health issues.

Still, when I examine these articles closer, I notice no reference to a real-life writer or only a starting time name. I too encounter many spelling errors, which signal depression-quality content written by non-professionals.

Cordless phones utilize much less power than cellular phones because they have a limited range and need to be almost the base of operations. Then if there is any concern, it would be more about cellular mobile usage and not cordless phones used in the home.

Just if you are still concerned and want to apply a cordless phone to move around while talking, get one with an economy setting.

"Economy" is an automatic mode that emits less RF radiation when the handset is close to the base. It's usually indicated with "ECO" on the display. The reduced power requirement also extends battery life, extending talk time per charge.

Question:

Is there a real danger from radio-frequency radiation, and what are the EMF risks with cordless phones?

Answer:

EMF refers to the magnetic fields effectually powerlines. That is dissimilar from RF (radio-frequency) radiations. Strong magnetic fields are known to cause cell impairment and other health disorders. Only that is not a concern with cordless phones since they apply RF and do not emit EMF.

Numerous studies find the biological effects of RF radiation in humans is with heating. However, the reviews do not detect sufficient bear witness that it measurably increases body temperature. The determination stated past the National Cancer Constitute is that there are no other established effects on the human body from radio-frequency radiation.¹

Question:

Is the radiation danger with cordless phones just fiction to scare people?

Answer:

For a trustworthy answer to this question, I recommend reading the Electromagnetic Fields Fact Sheet on the Website of the National Cancer Institute based on studies conducted past NCI. That's the about accurate information you'll e'er notice, in my opinion, merely keep in mind that most of information technology is related to jail cell phones and non low-powered cordless telephones.²

Question:

Are the cancer risks of cordless phones legitimate?

Answer:

The business is mostly about cellular phones. Merely to put your mind at ease, based on the latest studies, cell phones and cordless phones emit radiation far below the protection threshold of 10 watts per squared meter that is specified past the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation.^three

References

"Prison cell Phones and Cancer Gamble." National Cancer Constitute. world wide web.cancer.gov
"Electromagnetic Fields and Cancer Fact Sheet." (Updated Jan 3, 2019). National Cancer Institute. www.cancer.gov
"International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiations Protection. Guidelines for limiting exposure to time-varying electrical and magnetic fields (1 Hz to 100 kHz)." Health Physics 2010; 99(six):818-36. (2010)

This content is accurate and truthful to the all-time of the author'south knowledge and is not meant to substitute for formal and individualized communication from a qualified professional.

Dora Weithers from The Caribbean area on July 14, 2020:

Very helpful. You even answered questions I did not know to ask. So I learned a few things. Cheers.

Umesh Chandra Bhatt from Kharghar, Navi Bombay, Bharat on July 12, 2020:

Very informative and useful.

Glenn Stok (author) from Long Island, NY on July 10, 2020:

Abby Slutsky - I'm glad to hear I covered so many issues that you found things to relate to with it. That was my intention. Thanks for letting me know.

Abby Slutsky from America on July 10, 2020:

Wow! I didn't think this article was going to appeal to me because I am not that technological. (My husband gets to deal with all that.) However, I think yous touched on every phone problem I've ever had and shared a helpful answer. Your question and respond format for this commodity was terrific.

manatita44 from london on July 09, 2020:

Very informative and a dandy reference point. Thank you so much!!

Pamela Oglesby from Sunny Florida on July 09, 2020:

This is a well-written article that answers every question I could always remember of virtually the cordless phone. We just got rid of our landline considering it seemed all nosotros got on information technology was sales calls. I would have liked this data dorsum when we had those phones.