gizmokid999

Digital answering machines have completely taken over the market from the older varieties that record on tapes. Digital answering machines are faster and quieter, and they let you bounce from message to message, picking and choosing which messages to keep or discard. You also don't have to worry about finding replacement tapes.

Here's what experts say to shoot for when purchasing a telephone answering machine.

Power outage backup. The machine should have a battery backup in case of a power outage of a few hours or more. Otherwise, you may lose messages.

Total recording time. Many digital units hold only fifteen minutes of messages. If you receive many messages or travel for long periods of time without checking messages and deleting them, look for a machine that offers thirty to forty minutes.

Remote message retrieval. Look for a machine that lets you change your greeting and turn the unit on and off from a remote location. Most have this feature.

Toll-saver. When you're checking your messages from a remote location, this sets the machine to answer on the fourth ring if there are no messages (as opposed to answering on the first or second ring if there are messages), which allows you to hang up before you're charged for the call.

Auto-disconnect. This feature automatically disconnects the answering machine when you pick up the receiver; it's useful for people who screen their calls or sometimes don't get to the phone fast enough. Be aware that some machines only stop while the outgoing message is playing, but not once the machine starts recording. Other models only disconnect when the directly attached phone is picked up (meaning this feature won't work with an extension).

Variable speed playback. This function speeds up or slows down playback to electronically enhance messages; it's useful if you miss a number and don't want to skip ahead.

frontline

I prefer voicemail over answering machines. I have Vonage telephone service and the voicemail feature is great because you can check your messages any time from anywhere.

hotshot

How well does that vonage service work. Is there a lot of additional access fees etc? Do you have constant service?

frontline

In answer to your question, Vonage offers constant phone service. You need to have high-speed Internet for it to work. So if your Internet is down, then I guess your phone service would be down as well. I haven't had a problem yet!

gizmokid999

I'm with you on the voice-mail vs. answering machine debate. Voice mail wins out every time for me. Our answering maching is . . . rude. It usually cuts off the long-winded callers. My cell phone doesn't ever do this unless I've not cleaned out my inbox lately.

hotshot

I just got Vonage and have been happy with it. The advertised monthly fee is $25 but I end up paying $28 with tax. I haven't encountered any hidden charges.

frontline

I can't figure out how the phone is hooked into the internet. How does that work exactly?

hotshot

The phone service is powered by the Internet router you have set up for high-speed Internet. It's very simple to set up and vonage.com explains it further.

frontline

Do you have to get a special router, or does just about any router do?