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(Credit: Newlaunches)

As home phones are continually threatened with extinction, manufacturers have tried to add functions that appear to bring them closer to their mobile counterparts. But perhaps there's a much simpler tactic: paint them in bright colors.

Following a trend that's become commonplace for most mobile handset makers, GE has introduced the "Ultra Slim Cordless Phone" from its Designer Series in candy-apple red, according to SlashGear. (Not exactly our taste, but it could always be worse.)

Other than the shiny finish, the $70 phone has standard functions including a small LCD, caller ID, and a digital answering machine that may actually look better than the handset itself. For the sake of everyone involved, we hope that the design emulation ends with color alone.

(Credit: GE)

Introducing the latest appliance for today's digital household: the wireless speakerphone.

No longer associated only with office conferences, the speakerphone is finding its way into kitchens and family rooms as well. Granted, there are many other variations built into answer machines or the handsets themselves, but they're often afterthought functions that don't emphasize quality. So GE's newest land-line system that uses DECT technology has added a cordless speakerphone that features "True Digital Sound" for "enhanced voice reception."

We're still not sure who would need something like this, unless you're a telecommuting parent who is constantly talking to clients while chasing toddlers around the house with a laundry basket in each hand. If that's the case, however, you've got more problems than any speakerphone can solve. And pray that you never need a video phone.

(Credit: VTech)

VTech may be one of the most overachieving phone makers in the land-line business. Rather than just lie down and let mobile handsets invade the home, the Hong Kong-based company has continually pushed the envelope by developing computer-like functions for its products, ranging from online news feeds to instant messaging. (We think they may be overcompensating because of their reputation as a toy maker, but that's no crime.)

In fact, it was nice to seem them lighten up a bit with the latest version of their DECT 6.0 home phones. The LS6117 sports a look that was "inspired by skateboard and snowboard designs," according to 7Gadgets, though consumers can also create their own styles on VTech's Web site.

We knew that the company's toy-making background would come in handy at some point.

(Credit: Grace Digital)

If you're an apartment dweller in Manhattan or San Francisco, you might as well skip this item because it'll probably seem utterly useless. But if you're in any other part of the country--with an abode that's more than a closet-sized studio--this device might actually come in handy.

The "Xlink Cellular Gateway" is a networking hub that lets you take your land-line calls on your mobile phone and vice-versa. That means if you leave your Vertu "Signature Cobra" in your library while retiring to the billiards parlor, you won't miss any important cell calls from the broker.

The $170 Xlink works with up to three mobile handsets as long as they have Bluetooth connections, according to Coolest-Gadgets. And if you misplace your cellie as often as we do, it'll save the cost of getting one of those remote locator devices.

(Credit: VTech)

Some companies just refuse to give up on an idea, no matter how illogical it may be. That seems to be the case with VTech, which is still trying to sell the concept of a land-line phone with computer-like features.

More than a year ago the company came out with its "infoPhone," a cordless handset that included limited online functions, such as getting news headlines and doing local directory searches--a classic example, we thought, of a solution in search of a problem. But this year, rather than ditching the idea, VTech has actually expanded the concept in its new IS6110 model to include instant messaging when connected to a computer, as well as a QWERTY keypad, according to Electronic House.

So let's get this straight: VTech is making land-line handsets that resemble smartphones, which were originally created to perform tasks that weren't otherwise available away from home. But if you're already at home--presumably within a few feet of a computer--is an IM phone really necessary? Apparently we're missing something here.

(Credit: Hammacher)

Several months ago we thought the idea of custom ringtones for home phones was a pretty nifty concept that would be picked up by other manfacturers. Our prediction, naturally, was met with dead silence. But now Hammacher Schlemmer is trying to introduce one such gadget for the masses, claiming the technology as its very own by labeling it "the first home telephone custom ringtone player."

While the hype is to be expected, other aspects of this "first" are less excusable. For starters, there's the $70 price: Do its features really justify costing that much more than the $12 Evertek "Magic Ringtone MP3 Ringer" we mentioned earlier? And even if they do, couldn't the design of Hammacher's version look a little better than an intercom speaker from an apartment building lobby?

Perhaps the price is simply justice at work. One probably should have to pay a penalty for subjecting everyone else in the household to the Bee Gees' greatest hits.

(Credit: Noveltyphones)

Some phone and gadget makers have understandably sought to make handsets based on Star Trek communicators, but that approach is apparently too subtle for others. Why limit yourself to a single replica, after all, when you can do the whole ship?

The "Star Trek USS Enterprise Telephone" is exactly that, a limited edition that GeekAlerts says even bears the inscription of William Shatner himself. When a call comes in, a red alert sounds and the engines light up.

It's not a mobile phone, however, so your bragging rights will be confined to your own conn. But it will look just dandy sitting next to your Phaser remote.

(Credit: Doro)

Against all odds, land lines are valiantly forging ahead in hopes of making an unlikely comeback. Though thoroughly mocked by other gadget blogs, for instance, Motorola debuted its "MOTOLIVN" home phone this week for the European market.

Maybe that's a key part of the strategy: Europe. Because Doro, a manufacturer based in Sweden, is also expanding its continental land-line business. And like other European phone makers--namely Philips and Siemens--Doro is focusing its efforts on form as much as function, if not more.

The company says its "NeoBio" line of DECT phones, for example, comes with customizable skins drawn from the design trend of "Neo Naturalism." The skins, which can be applied both to handsets and base units, are "inspired inspired by the natural Scandinavian environment" and meant to blend in with the interior design of individual households. Or maybe it's just a desperate marketing attempt to stave off obsolescence.

(Credit: Motorola)

Apparently not everyone is on the verge of ditching their land lanes. That, at least, is what we surmise from the actions of various phone makers, which seem to think there's still business to be had in the home handset market.

Among the models introduced recently are those from Philips and Siemens, while Japan's Amadana even has one that's into leather. The latest, however, comes from a manufacturer that's ensconced in the mobile world, Motorola.

Its "MOTOLIVN" land-line brand will be introduced in Europe first, according to U.K.-based Pocket-lint, and one of the models and can be used as Skype handset as well. Another notable feature is the line's energy-conserving "eco mode" option to save battery power.

Still, we wouldn't predict any huge industry trends based on Motorola's moves alone. Remember, it just introduced a designer walkie-talkie called the "TLKR." By the way, do all Motorola lines sound like custom license plates?