A range of digital cordless phones manufactured for BT in the UK.

I have a Synergy 2110 base station and two handsets. It is useful in that it allows several handsets to be used with one base station, meaning you can scatter the things about your abode with reckless abandon. They operate digitally meaning clearer calls, and in practice will allow 4-5 hours of talk-time between recharges (extra charging units can be purchased seperately). Best of all, the caller-ID means you can avoid talking to inconvenient people by cunningly pretending you're not home, you wily fox!

However on the flip-side of the coin, it's not so useful in that the ringer is barely audible, the signal continually drops between handset and base station, and most irritatingly that the fucking thing never stops beeping! Even the slightest misdemeanour, say entering an overlong number, will result in a shrieking tone that seems to last for hours. Also, it seems bizarre to me that I can buy a mobile phone with an intuitive menu system for £40, yet this £90 wonder requires a veritable marathon of finger-numbing button sequences to manage even a speed-dial.

I thought I'd never be sad to see the back of our old, massive, crackly analogue cordless phone. But using this appliance makes me regret the day it met its high-velocity end against the living-room wall. Oh, and it's ugly. Avoid at all costs.