Siemens Gigaset S685IP VoIP phone

Offering combined landline and Voice over IP (VoIP) connectivity, the Siemens Gigaset S685IP is a surprisingly powerful, yet affordable cordless Dect phone system for home users. Its features and ease of use put more expensive products to shame.

Although it has been available for several months, the S685IP remains the flagship of Siemens’ range of domestic VoIP phones, a range that’s kept a low profile but which on this showing deserves wider recognition.

Our review bundle comprised the Gigaset S685IP base station and an S68H handset ­ but you can buy each separately, mixing and matching handsets from the range if you wish. The base station is a small plain black box with a single large blue-illuminated button used for registering handsets and showing Ethernet status. At the back of this wall-mountable box are the power and analogue landline phone connectors, while the Ethernet connector is at the side.

The base station has a well-designed browser-based interface for configuring the unit, although usefully you can also perform many common setup tasks via simple menus and wizards on the S68H handset itself, so you can get VoIP services up and running without a PC.

This ease of setup sets this phone apart from the obscure procedures found in many VoIP devices. For instance, there’s a built-in database of settings for dozens of global VoIP providers (18 in the UK alone), which means that in most cases all you need to do is pick your VoIP provider’s name from a list and enter your ID and password. Advanced setup is possible as well, but the ease of connection is a breath of fresh air.
The web interface gives you access to the more advanced features that are the highlight of this phone. You can register up to six VoIP accounts and make three simultaneous calls (two VoIP, plus one fixed line) on different handsets. You can also assign incoming and/or outgoing calls to different accounts on different handsets (up to six Gap-compatible handsets can be registered on up to four base stations each).

Dialling plans let you route particular calls over specific connections, such as routing emergency 999 or 112 calls over the fixed line, and different incoming and outgoing lines can be assigned to each handset. The Gigaset S685IP lets you set up almost unlimited dialling plan entries (up to the base station’s memory limit) for this purpose. One important feature missing is the ability to fail-over to the fixed line connection if the VoIP connections aren’t working ­ Siemens told us that a firmware update will fix this in March 2009.

Conditional call forwarding for each VoIP account is available, and you can also set up the system to access your VoIP providers’ answering services if required. Otherwise, you can use the built-in digital answering machine for incoming calls on any line.

The S68H handset is solidly built and has a large, bright, 128x160 pixel, eight-line, 65,000 colour screen. Its hands-free speaker is one of loudest and clearest we’ve heard on a cordless phone, and sound quality is excellent. Buttons have a positive action, and the four-way navigation pad works well. There are two programmable function keys under the screen, with 13 preset functions to choose from.

The phone book uses the standard Vcard (.vcf) address book format, so you can have three numbers, an email address, anniversary information and a picture for each contact. Using the free Gigaset Quicksync utility (Windows only), you can synchronise your Windows Address Book (or Vista Contacts) with the phone over the built-in Bluetooth link. You can also add your own caller pictures and screensaver images.
Bluetooth can also be used for a headset or even to receive contacts from a mobile phone.

Every Gigaset VoIP phone comes with a free Gigaset VoIP account and phone number built in. This lets you call any other Gigaset user free of charge using your broadband connection, with no configuration needed. The Gigaset service also lets you configure your phone to display services such as a three-day local weather forecast, RSS feed headlines or even a daily horoscope when it’s on standby.

Other novel features include SMS capabilities (if your phone provider supports it), a Jabber instant-messaging utility and the ability to check an email account for new messages ­ you can only see the From and Subject lines, though.

There’s very little this phone system can’t do and, combined with its excellent call quality, ease of setup and attractive design, it’s a great choice for those who want advanced VoIP capabilities at home without the usual setup headaches.