Trumpy,
They usually do work on very low power, however it sounds very like that cordless phone is not approved for use in NZ and shouldn't be on the market at all. She should bring it back and kick up a stink. If they refuse to do anything about it threaten them with bringing it to the attention of the telecommunications regulator as its using unlicenced radio spectum etc.
She should get a DECT (Digital Enhanced (used to be European) Cordless Telephony) phone they retail over here for as little as € 60 and provide much better battery life, signal that's comparable to a fixed wired phone and are much more secure. She would also have the possibility of adding handsets to her base station (from any manufacturer) and setting up a 6 extension phone system (wirelessly)
[This message has been edited by djk (edited 10-18-2003).]
