In this digital phone age, most people regard answering machines as technology on its way out. But answering machines have a distinct advantage over the built-in voicemail programs on your cell phone or landline—they let you screen your messages as they’re being left. This is crucial when you’re unsure if Aunt Sally is just phoning for a marathon chat or has important news to share.

Standalone or In-Phone?
Both standalone and in-phone answering machines have their advantages. In homes or offices where the telephones themselves are in frequent use, standalone answering machines let you listen to, replay and organize messages without the use of the handset. Standalone machines are the best choice for busy households and small offices as they tend to offer more message storage space and more robust features than their abbreviated, built-in counterparts. If you don’t need to save or log messages for later reference or if you rely more on your cell phone for incoming calls, in-phone answering machines offer you the basic benefits of standalone units without a host of features you’re unlikely to use.

Recording Options
Digital recording has replaced the tape-recording technology and delivers greater audio clarity on playback. Look for answering machines that allow you to set the length of recorded messages at a variety of increments (usually one minute, four minutes or no-limit). Setting the message length determines the overall number of messages your answering machine can record and limits how long each caller can speak.

For businesses, choose an answering machine that doesn’t limit message length. This gives your customers and vendors the time to explain things in detail.

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