Models with an overall score of 70% or above and a sound quality receiving score of 75% or above are recommended.

This overall score is made up of receiving and sending sound quality (40%), ease of use (40%) and battery life (20%). Answering machine performance is scored but doesn't contribute to the overall score. 

This score reflects the quality of the phone call sound when listening on the tested model's handset.

A panel of users make calls in a moderately noisy environment and assess speech clarity, speech loudness, line noise and background noise reduction on each model.

We consider factors such as the quality of the instruction manual, the feel and comfort of the handset, whether the screen is easy to read, and any other special features.

After fully charging each phone’s battery, our testers set the phones to talk, and record how long each takes to be discharged. A perfect score of 100% is awarded to a model operating after 24 hours.

We look at ease of use and set up when creating a message and managing calls, as well as sound clarity and quality for the machine message and the caller message.

We time how long each phone takes to run out of charge while talking.

'Tested model' means you should to be able to find this model in stores, while 'discontinued' models may still be available in second-hand shops. We check availability every time we test, which is about one or two times a year.

Recommended retail price at the time of testing but you should be able to find a better price if you shop around.

Text to speech uses speech synthesis to convert texts into a spoken voice output. The feature was originally developed to help the visually impaired by reading text with the use of a computer-generated voice. 'N/A' means we don't have this data for discontinued models.

Cordless phones being the only option in the home is a concern for some home owners, because a power outage means you can't make an emergency call for help. Unfortunately, the arrival of the NBN has confused the situation somewhat for many owners of home telephones. You may be able to power your cordless phone when using the NBN but it still may not allow you to make a phone call as the connection depends on the NBN modem and router working. Check out our NBN FAQ for more information.

GAP compatibility means you can add additional handsets to your home cordless phone from different brands with the same feature and still make and take calls. 

Night mode makes the phone automatically switch to the answering machine if you get a call in the middle of the night.

Can the phone or base unit connect to a hearing aid?

Some home telephone kits have a multiple handset set-up where the main phone has a cord connecting the earpiece to the base unit (as in a traditional corded telephone) and an additional cordless handset allowing you to talk and move freely around the home.

Does the phone support hands-free use?

For the Uniden XDECT 8155 +1, 8355+1 and several other Uniden DECT and XDECT models the base station is wall mountable, but the additional phone handset dock is not.