Home > Consumer Reviews > Panasonic KX-TG5212M GigaRange Supreme 5.8 GHz DSS Expandable Cordless Phone with Dual Handsets and Answering System

This is a great 5.8Ghz phone system. I got it to avoid interference with my Wireless Network (that runs on 2.4Ghz). It's much better reception and sound quality than the new Uniden sets that I returned, but not quite as feature rich as they were. Overall, I'm very happy. The only drawback is that they only allow a total of 4 phones (base + 3 extensions). If they came out with a model with more extensions, I'd buy it right away!

I live near the Mexican Border which is also close to a military base. Our older 2.4 GHz phones gave us lots of trouble in this area. It sounded like someone picking up the line and then I would get feedback. I had the phone company check everything on their side with no help. If the military does not interfere with the phones it's the Border Patrol, or Homeland Security, or who knows. I cannot blame them in this day and age for monitoring, but it sure is frustrating.
I bought this phone and found it eliminated our interference problems. It has the newer Dual Spread Spectrum technology, and the newer NiMH batteries rather than the NiCads in other phones. The speaker phones in each handset really work well which was a surprise.
They have a very large call ID display and the tip of the antenna lights up and flashes when ringing or when you have a message that has been left on the answering system.
With this system, you only enter the phone numbers one time. Then you can send the entire phone book, without wires, to the extensions you have on the system. That is a real bonus in my book. It comes with two handsets, you can add two more. And one last thing, in the past, with two phones in the house, my wife had a lot of trouble getting on the extension with me. We had lots of noise and it just did not work well. With this phone, that problem is gone and all callers can hear each other without a problem.
It's pretty simple to use compared to other brands that I have had in the past. It seems once you use it a few times that the controls are both simple and natural.

I bought the phone based on some reviews and that you can transfer the phonebook from phone to phone. It allows you to transfer one listing at a time or the entire phonebook to each handset.

I have had the phone for two weeks and have not had any problems with the phone going digital. No range issues. Sound quality is good, just play with the "VE" option if it sounds funny.

Highly recommend it to anyone.

This phone replaced a 2-4 yo 900MHz Panasonic Gigarange phone. The old phone's number pad stopped working after about 2 years of use -- 1 or 2 buttons would enter double digits or required excessive pressure to work.

The old phone did everything I wanted. It did quite a bit more, but I mostly ignored those features. It didn't interfere with my 802.11b network. Like most post 1997 consumer products, it was not made to last. I find that very annoying; I hate the hassle of replacing things that work. When it came time to replace that phone I'd have chosen a non-Panasonic brand -- if a better alternative existed.

Unfortunately, there's no alternative in this market. All the products are cheaply made, everyone's quality control and customer service is poor, everyone produces a dizzying array of minor product variations that make comparison shopping pretty much impossible. So I bought another cheap Panasonic phone. I'd have bought a 900MHz phone if one were available, but the vendors evidently decided those worked too well.

I gave this product 3 stars because it feels like it will last about 18 months and be replaced when the batteries die. However, I don't think there's really anything better on the market.

In our small house the range is adequate. It doesn't interfere with my 802.11b network, I haven't tested it with an 802.11g network (we may see problems there).

One key note: this model's base station doesn't have a speaker phone or keypad. There's another variation of this phone system that DOES have a speaker phone and keypad on the base station. I'd recommend that variant instead of this one. That other model also ships with two handsets. With a speakerphone base station you can always find a phone. There are endless variations on this phone from Panasonic, good luck sorting them all out and figuring which is the most recent.

A good feature: the phone directory list works well and it's easy to copy the list from one handset to another.

My next wireless phone (2007) will presumably be a VOIP handset; so this is probably the last phone I buy that will have such an odd mix of wireless protocols and features. Overall this phone reminds me a bit of the pre-PC dedicated wordprocessors, but they were better made.

Bottom line: Buy the version with the keypad, look for a good price, if it doesn't work don't bother with customer support -- just return it and order another one.

Great phone if you are away from the base. If the base is located on a desk for example, your voice will be "underwater" on the handset untill you move at least 3 feet away or more. Panasonic is aware of the problem and they will repair or replace the defective phone...if you send it to them.