GE 26958GE1 Corded Speakerphone Base and 900 MHz Cordless Telephone with Call Waiting/Caller ID

This phone works great...to a point. However, less than 8 weeks after we started using the phone, the Caller ID went out. The only way to get it to work was to unplug the phone and plug it back in, and not only did that mess up the time signature, it only works for a couple of hours before the phone displays "no data" again. GE Customer Support was completely unhelpful, as this phone is manufactured by Thomson, and they would do nothing on our behalf. Thomson will not exchange the phone without us sending it back in to them and waiting six weeks for a returned phone. Thomson has no customer support for this phone and its phone line is merely an automated system. This is inexcusable - I need a phone that works properly! It is great if you get a working one, admittedly...but if you don't, expect a long wait. (And Office Depot, who sells the phone, offers their own product replacement, but it has to be out of manufacturer warranty. So we're still hosed.)

I really like this phone, the way it looks, and the fact it has an extention cordless phone with it that only requires an AC outlet. And it's so cheap! However, it doesn't work. The ringer doesn't ring and you can't play your messages. What bothers me the most is that the seller won't respond to my requests to return it. Bad business. I won't ever buy from him again!

My desktop speakerphone died some time ago, and when my cordless phone bit the dust last week, I started shopping to replace them both. I also wanted a digital answering system, since I wanted to save the monthly charges and ditch phone company voice mail. This one unit took care of all three needs, and at a very reasonable price.Both the desktop phone and the cordless handset are very sturdily built and have straightforward operation. Sound quality is very good on the cordless, and the ability to access messages on the answering system from either the desktop unit or the handheld is very nice. The manual says the speakerphone is full duplex in its operation, though I haven't used it yet. If it really is, that would make this unit even more of a value for the price.It's simple to program names and numbers for speed dial, though I haven't decided yet if it's a pro or con that the desktop phone and handset have two separate memory banks (10 speed dial memories each). You can easily page through your speed dials in the LCD display on both the main unit and the cordless, in case you forget who is assigned to which speed dial number.The answering system is easy to set up and use, and has plenty of recording time. It allows for remote message retrieval access and has a toll-saver ringer setting. You can't change your greeting by calling in, though, or do anything else except listen to, save or delete messages. The audio time stamp works accurately.GE did a very good job of integrating the main unit and cordless. It's very easy to transfer calls back and forth between the two phones, and you can even screen callers as they leave messages from the handset - then pick up the line if you decide to take the call! You can also set up a conference call with one person on the main unit and one person on the cordless, as well as page and have intercom calls between the two phones.The LCD display on the base unit is clear and easy to read with adjustable contrast; the handheld's display is trickier, as it's only really clear from a certain angle. Looking straight down at the handset display doesn't work well - you have to tilt the phone slightly away from you (which, granted, is the angle you will probably use the phone with anyway). But for seeing caller ID info when the phone rings, it's a minor annoyance, though one I am getting used to.This unit is on the "no frills" side - there aren't a lot of speed dial memory slots, and there aren't any one-touch dedicated buttons for speed dialing. The answering system is perfectly adequate but doesn't have extra bells or whistles (being able to change your greeting or ring settings remotely would be nice, for instance). But I suspect that's how GE keeps the price down, and that's fine with me.A final note: GE is ambiguous as to whether this unit is 900 mhz digital or 900 mhz analog in its transmission. It has a "digital security system" designed to prevent unauthorized access, but I've seen this unit listed as both analog and digital on various merchant websites. I assume, given the price paid, that it's essentially an analog phone, so if the higher security of digital transmission is important, I'd suggest checking this out before buying.Overall, I'm quite happy with the phone, and recommend it without hesitation to anyone who needs 2 phones in one with an answering system thrown in. For those who don't need the answering system, GE makes a hightly-reviewed (and easier to find) version without the answerer for $80.

The 26958 met all the criteria I was looking for in a phone. It's well designed and sturdily built. Programming is simple and straightforward, even without refering to the manual. This feature was especially important to me, since I purchased the phone for someone who is technologically challenged.It has all the features you would want in a phone: cordless phone, digital answering machine, caller ID, and speakerphone. The combination of a corded base unit and separate cordless gives you an additional extension. More importantly, if there is a power failure or the battery dies, you still have a phone.The handset is larger and heavier than many of the cordless units available, but it doesn't seem to be a problem. The handset display is easier to read than many cordless phones, and it lights up when the phone is in use.

This phone does not have the option of only playing new messages. Either remotely or at the base station. You've got to listen to or skip each one individually.There is a virtually unnoticeable "message waiting" light on both the handset and the base. It is miniscule and it doesn't blink.It takes a few seconds for the dial tone to appear on the handset.The phone will only answer your remote code when you've finished listening to your outgoing message, which is incredibly annoying. But not as annoying as the fact that it plays your outgoing message REALLY LOUD when the machine picks up at the base. Why does it play your message at all? And then, if someone leaves a message, you can't hear him/her AT ALL. The sound is practically nil at home or from a remote location.I would have liked this machine very much in the 1970s, but come on GE, the technology has advanced just a tad since then.I'm taking mine back today.

I wish I could find another phone like this by another manufacturer. It's an OK phone, but the little things are really beginning to bug me (after 4 months): can't read main display at night (backlight only comes on when phone is in use or phone is ringing); cordless charge doesn't last very long (a couple of days off the charger, without a lot of use, and it needs to be reacharged again); answering machine doesn't play the announcement so you can hear whether or not the announcement is working (also, other answering machines we've had stop the announcement if the caller hangs up); no good way to just view the caller-id's of the "new" calls; no way to delete "old" caller-id calls. Phone works fine, just the little things really beginning to bother me.