Rating: 
Summary: Pretty good
Review: I've had the 8825 and two handsets for a few weeks, works great for me in my house and surrounding yard. Haven't had any coverage issues.Have had two minor problems, the deskstation speakerphone cuts out the remote party. Seems to be feedback from the speaker activating squelch (if you mute the microphone can hear fine). This problem occured on two base stations I have and another user complained about the same. Second problem was fixed with second phone, it wouldn't sense that another extension had a line off-hook. In other words, if I used "line 1" from a different non-Siemmens phone, the first 8825 wouldn't sense it was off-hook. After exchanging the first 8825, the new one does sense an "external" call on one of the lines and gives you the option to join the call or use the other line. Someone had written a review that you couldn't grab a line in use (forcing people to "transfer" calls). That doesn't seem to be the case, there is a setting for "line privacy", maybe they had that setting wrong. In my house, I really appreciate the intercom aspect. No problems with the battery. In general, very happy with the phone.
Rating: 
Summary: Definitely a high-end phone system
Review: I agree with the Philadelphia PA review below. This is a great phone system. The majority of the features are ready to work right out of the box. However, this is NOT a system for anyone challenged beyond very basic plug and play. The phone menu's are, in my opinion, very easy to use. Most frequently used features are available from dedicated buttons on the base unit and the handsets. If you use a modern Nokia cell phone, you will have no problem using this phone. The biggest complaints about this and other cordless phone systems have been range from base unit to handset. I was worried about this myself before buying the 8825 phone system due to the complaints contained in other reviews. However, I was very pleased to find that the phone works exceptionally well throughout my home (bathrooms, closets, attic, I mean EVERYWHERE) and is very satisfactory within 150 feet outside of my home. I have purchased an additional handset for my shop and it works very well. My home is typical suburban residential 2-story construction in the Southwest with masonry exterior, 2X4 interior/exterior walls, gypsum wallboard, tile floors and carpet. Nothing special from a materials point of view. The base unit is right next to my computer, which doesn't seem to affect range one way or the other. The absolute worst problem is a popping sound when the microwave is running and a handset is within 10 to 15 feet of the microwave, so keep that in mind if you plan to place a handset in the kitchen. Sound quality is slightly less than a wired phone. But the convenience of cordless operation makes this a non-issue. LCD displays are good contrast and easy to read. The speaker phone feature on both the base unit and handset work very well. As with any speaker phone, you have to be careful with background noise (TV, Stereo, Children, etc.) or you will not get satisfactory results. I would definitely make this purchase again. Now for the nitpicks, because nothing is perfect: I bought the basic package and two additional handsets. Everything was packed in a highly professional way. The phones were beautiful. "This is commercial quality, top of the line equipment", I said to myself. And then I unpacked these cheapo rechargable batteries that shipped with the unit. I got over it pretty quickly, but it made me feel uneasy for a few minutes. The user interface style, options, and terminology are slightly different between the base unit and the handset. Not enough to cause confusion but enough to make you wonder if two different software engineering teams worked on the 8825 system. The menu buttons on the handset work differently from anything I have ever seen before. Two short but wide buttons that you operate by pressing down on the left or right edge in order to navigate through the menus. They look like one button that you just press down on, but they are actually two-buttons-in-one that you rock to the right or left. Very strange. They are a little difficult to use of you have big fingers (like me) but they seem to get the job done. I am an engineer that likes things done a certain way and this next nitpick really bugs me. The base unit has two buttons for controlling the base unit volume. These buttons are labeled '+' and '-'. The '+' key is on the left, and the '-' key is on the right. When you press the '+' key, the base unit LCD display confirms that the volume is increasing by growing a bar graph on the display towards the right. When you press the '-' key, the base unit LCD confirms that the volume is decreasing by shrinking a bar graph on the display towards the left. This is backwards and very awkward when you look at the screen. If you are "user interface design" inclined, this will make you grind your teeth loud enough to garner concerned looks from your significant other. The handset instructions don't mention anything about what looks to be a belt clip included in the package. At least I think it's a belt clip. These are just nitpicks. They should not discourage you from purchasing what I believe is a well designed and very well built high-end home office or family phone system.
Rating: 
Summary: Siemens has almost got it right!
Review: Years ago when Siemens came out with their first cordless phones I was the first to get one and I was probably the first to take it back. Poor reception was my biggest beef. Now comes the 8825 and the reception is fantastic. After a couple of months of using the unit I've found a few problems with the system that are again making me think about getting rid of it. The first is the speaker phone on the base, when I'm talking people on the other end can hear me just fine but I can't hear them worth a darn. The sound is choppy and I thought maybe it was because Siemans put the speaker underneath the handset (very strange) but removing the handset and trying the speaker phone without the handset in the way didn't yield any better results. A call to Siemens customer service didn't help, they told me to reset the base. Also the volume on the base speaker phone just isn't enough. My other complaint is when pushing the buttons on the base and the cordless handset their's that dreadful delay. I use the a speakerphone alot and this may be the reason I get rid of the phone. One other strange problem is the absence of a flash button on the cordless handset. Siemens has you using the talk button to switch between the calls which I found not working right a good part of the time. The base however does have a flash button and it works just fine in switching between calls. On the good side the cordless handset is wonderful, good volume and even better volume using it's speaker phone. Menu is well laid out and the display is easy to read. The corded phone (except for the speaker phone) works well. I was hoping for the perfect phone from Siemems but I guess I still haven't found it.
Rating: 
Summary: Great phone but not for my situation...reception problem
Review: Very cool phone system which works flawlessly, as stated in marketing literature, with the exception of allowable distance between base unit and handsets. The literature states that one could achieve a max inside distance of 150 feet between base and handset. I lose reception when I am on the next floor up or down from the base unit even while standing directly in-line with the base, which cannot be more than 15 feet. I called Siemens customer support (very short hold time) and they told me that building materials cause problems as I am describing (wish they would have been clearer about this in their marketing). I have a newly built home where I put insulation in all interior walls and floors for sound damping and I suspect this is what is causing my problems. Customer support also indicated that marble or tile floors could cause problems as well. I am disappointed because I can't find anything even remotely as awesome to replace it with. Hope no one else has the same experience I did. Save the boxes and receipts just in case.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent PLUS
Review: The features and quality of this phone are excellent! This is a wonderful piece of engineering and technology. With any high tech device that has as many features at the 8825 you are going to have to read what is available and decide what you wish to use but the programing is very clear and easy. If you get stuck their customer service folks are great! They want you to get the most out of your investment as much as you do. As far as the negative reviews.....so there was a defective unti. That happens with everything. Rechargeable batteries HAVE TO be charged all the way up the first time. It is beneficial to run them all the way down and charge them to 100% the first few times. It has 2 standard AA rechargeable batteries so when you do have to replace them it's a cinch! If you want a phone that your going to plug in and use this is NOT the one for you and anyone that bought this 8825 expecting that didn't research zip before they bought this phone. Also, I have a full wireless computer network and this phone has no bad effects at all. This is a wonderful piece of thecnology and well worth the investment!
Rating: 
Summary: Siemens 8825 - Poor Quality
Review: I have purchased 3 sets, yes, THREE! Two of which I had to return because both units were defective. The first return was the result of the all of the answering machine buttons flashing continuously without any messages. The second return was for a defective handset that refused to register with the base station. The handset has very poor standby time and no mute. Programming the phone was arduous. Although after programming the directory, sending the directory to the handset was a cinch. Do not purchase this phone if you want to share other wireless transmitters in the same environment. This phone creates an incredible amount of interference. I did decide to keep the third set to test long term but I sincerely think that this last set will complete its warranty period.
Rating:
Summary: Bad Corded Handset
Review: I purchased the 8825 as a replacement for the previous model, primarily because it has a better cordless handset, with speakerphone (something i wanted). Everything is ok, with the exception of the recorded voice quality and the corded handset. While using the corded handset, I hear a loud buzzing if about 1-2 feet away from, and in line with, the antenna. I have diagnosed the problem to a badly shielded handset. If you hold the handset near the antenna, with either the corded end, or the back, of the handset next to the antenna, i hear the buzzing...strongest at the middle. I called Siemens, and they said it was a bad cord...not so. I also tried a toroid on the cord, to no avail. This is a disappointment, since the previous version has better sound, and no buzz problem. None of these multi handset systems are perfect. I looked at the Panasonic kxtg2000b, but no mute on the base or handset, and more complicated to use. Really disappointed in this product.
Rating:
Summary: Great phone and easy to use!
Review: I don't know what one of the previous reviewers was smoking when he/she tried to use this phone but it's got a very intuitive menu system. I didn't even need to look at the manual to get started! Great quality all around although as with all digital answering machines the recorded messages performance on message playback is so-so. Don't get me wrong, it's better than most systems I've used but until someone decides to stick a decent amount of RAM into one of these digital answering machines and NOT use mega-compression we'll just have to get used to it.
Rating:
Summary: AWESOME features, best cordless available, but not perfect
Review: After spending quite a bit of time reading product reviews, and looking at a number of cordless phones in person, I finally settled on this Siemens 8825 set. I must say that I'm quite impressed overall with this phone and its performance! As others have said, it is literally PACKED with features, from callerID, voice announcement, multiple voicemailboxes, call directories that can be sent between base and hand units, intercom, speakerphone in base and handset(!) and many many others. You can register up to 8 handsets with a single 2-line base unit. Each handset may be registered with 2 different base units as well. It is important to note that the handsets use standard NiMH rechargeable AA batteries. This makes them very easy and economical to replace in the long-run. The sound quality is oustanding - from base and handset phones. It is at least as good as my old trusty Panasonic "Sound Charger" which set the standard for good quality analog cordless phones. In 3 weeks of use, I have not experienced problems with handset hanging up calls that one other reviewer mentioned. The callerID features are particularly well implemented. Incoming calls appear on the display of the base unit and all handsets (even during calls if you have callerID call waiting service). You can call a number from the callerID log, as well as save it to the directory. There is only ONE master callerID log - so using a handset to review and delete call log entries deletes them from the base unit as well. The digital answering machine offers 4 mailboxes. By default, callers on line 1 go to mailbox 1, line 2 to mailbox 2, special ring1 to mailbox 3 and special ring2 to mailbox 4. Or, you can enable an automated attendent, that allows callers to direct themselves to a particular mailbox. Unusual for cordless phones, Siemens has provided a configuration for "long DTMF" which enables touch tones to be held out for a longer period. This is useful if you're in a bad area or over a noisy connection, and need to communicate with an automated service (such as your bank, a calling card, etc). While the manual is not always complete, the features and menus are generally logical and well laid out. If you're technically savvy, you should have no problem learning the features. Siemens does provide an 800# to call for help as well. Having said all that, this phone set is not perfect. You cannot hear the actual touch tones being sent when dialing a call (i find this annoying but the numbers do show up on the display). The handset is small (about the size of an older cell phone), and does not balance as easily as a full-sized cordless handset. There is no battery backup for continued operation during power outages. The base unit offers speed dial for up to 10 numbers, but you must remember which number was stored in a speed dial location (the speed dial prompt only offers you single digits). The redial function does not keep trying if your caller is busy. The voice announce feature for recording your announcement is highly unreliable (you may have to try 5 or 6 times before it understands you recorded something). When recording greetings for the answering system, the unit always cuts off the very last half-second of your message. The handset has its own set of limitations not found on the base unit: you cannot mute your call (you can put it on hold however). You can choose an outgoing line from the handset ONLY if this capability was enabled from the base station menus (this is confusing at first). If a line is in use, you can choose to conference in or call out on the other line however. Or, you can configure certain handsets to ONLY connect using a specified line. There is no "speed dial" on the handset. You must page through the directory (you can hit the first letter to jump to that location in the directory). Even with all these limitations, the sound quality, and other features more than balance to earn a 4-star rating.
Rating:
Summary: Great on Paper, Horrible in Reality
Review: After purchasing this phone from Amazon.com, I absolutely could not wait to use the phone system. It read in the description like the 2.4 GHz phone of my dreams with its small size, two lines, hidden antenna, answering machine, advanced caller ID, and directory features that appeared to be similar to my cellular phone.
Yet in reality, it's horrible because Siemens took a phone that could have been easy to use and made it absolutely as hard as possible.
The command and menu system on every phone is arduous and almost nothing can be done at a touch of a button. When you pick up a phone line, it automatically defaults with a preference to one line or another (meaning I can't select to use line one instead of line two without digging through menus). The phone defaults to disallow call barging -- great if you want privacy on the Siemens system, but horrible if you want to have two people talking on one line. The list goes on and on, but can best summarized by saying it will the least simple phone you have ever owned.
I can program my VCR, I can program my ReplayTV, and I have a computer navigation system in my car. I can absolutely tell you that this is the most difficult phone system I have ever seen implemented in a "home / home office" two-line unit.
The speakerphone on the handset works fine, but there's no mute button on the base. That means if you're on hold using the speakerphone your every word (or background noise) is broadcast. Siemens thought out this phone very, very poorly.
So if you read about the phone and you're excited -- you're right -- it's a great phone on paper. After spending nearly a month with it as a highly motivated buyer I can tell you that it's a horrible phone in reality and I'll revert back to 900 MHz before keeping it.
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