Interesting stuff from CES: XLink cell phone system

As might be expected, one of the things that vendors were emphasizing at CES was cost: Unless the product was considered so hot that it was worth whatever you paid for it, there was usually talk about how the device would either cost less than its peers, or at least save you more money.

One product sitting square in the latter category is Xtreme Technology Corp.'s XLink, which the company describes as "the world's first multiple cell phone Bluetooth gateway." Verbiage aside, the idea is an interesting one: That many consumers are reluctant to abandon their landlines, but are coming to the conclusion that they can no longer afford to pay for two separate phone services.

The XLink BT allows reluctant switchers to receive calls from their mobiles through their landline phones -- you hook the XLink up to your existing phone cabling, and it connects wirelessly to your cell phones via Bluetooth. When someone calls your cell, you can answer via any of your landline phones (or, of course, the originating cell). Each XLink unit recognizes up to three different cell phone numbers; you can arrange a different ringtone for each.

Some folks -- especially those in areas that tend to have blackouts -- are reluctant to give up their landline service completely. The XLink BTTN connects to both cell services and an existing landline, which allows you to downgrade your landline service (and the expense involved) to the most basic available.

Of course, those who have grown up with mobile phones and are completely comfortable with using them as the primary and/or sole phone service may not understand why this type of product should be necessary at all. However, if you're over a certain age, or have parents over a certain age, the $70 XLink BT or $100 BTTN device may be worth the investment.