If you have been searching for a new wall mounted phone, you have probably discovered that the selection is extremely limited. Here is our current list of wall phones:

+ GE DECT 6.0 Kitchen Phone (GE-27909EE1)
+ Philips SE7451/7452 (note: this has horizontal mounting holes, not vertical!)
+ Panasonic BB-GT1540B and BB-GT1500B
+ Clarity C4210 (this is an amplified phone)
+ RCA 25250RE1 or RCA 25210RE1 (2-line phones)

A few other phones claim to be “wall mounted” but in fact stick out at an angle from the wall. Many of these are “wall mountable”, but they’re far from flush to the wall. So, why is there a lack of wall mounted phones? First, people forget that even if the cordless phone can be wall mounted, all cordless phones require an AC connection for recharging the batteries (another ugly cord hanging down). Older wall mounted phones used the power provided on the telephone line and didn’t need direct A/C power to operate. The only way to (elegantly) fix this problem is to have an electrician install a power outlet next to the phone plate on the wall.

One final note. Remember that with most new cordless phones the voicemail system can be accessed from any handset. So, maybe you don’t need to mount that phone in the kitchen after all!

Mix in some industrial design, good quality and “high definition” marketing and you can see why Philips has really added fire to the competitive cordless phone market in the last 6 months. Though the product line is relatively small, expect more models to reach the U.S. market within the next 6 months.