We get a lot of people asking about multi-line long range cordless phones. The Nortel T7406 is commonly used on Nortel Norstar systems, but its range is sometimes limited by environmental factors (like concrete walls and the like). The Avaya TransTalk 9040 is a good model, but it is increasingly hard to find and is only available refurbished. So what's left?
There are long range cordless phones specially designed for use in office buildings. EnGenius and Voyager long range phones will both cover up to 12 stories in an office building and up to 6 miles in open areas. Again, keep in mind that environmental factors will affect the range you get. Expect to use an external antenna if you want the longest range from these models.
The EnGenius Durafon 4X system is the only multi-line long range cordless phone system. It does have its limitations though.
First of all, there is no way we know to have the Durafon 4X pick up MULTIPLE lines in a PBX environment. I spoke to EnGenius support about this issue today and they didn't have an answer as to how it could work. They said it MIGHT work in a Nortel environment, but it's not something they've tested.
If you're in a NON-PBX environment, you'll have more luck. Your lines would go directly into the base of the Durafon 4X (up to 4 lines). Then, if you're on the phone and a call comes in on another line, the Durafon 4X base will send a signal to the handset causing it to beep twice and print a message on the LCD display. Unfortunately, you can't take three calls at once on a single handset.
There are other business cordless phone options available, but the ones we've seen so far are quite expensive and require repeaters throughout the area you want to cover. As updates come in, I'll try to keep things posted.
