Bluetooth Phone car kits

[vpalhories]

I'm thinking of changing my cell phone to a Bluetooth phone so that I can go wireless with the earpiece. Did a little digging around and found that there are some Bluetooth car kits out there that will use your car's speakers and the phone's built in handsfree option thus eliminating the need for an earpiece.

I'm curious if anyone has installed this in their cars and what model phone/car kit you use as well as how it works.

Thanks

[QWK SVT]

I'm thinking of changing my cell phone to a Bluetooth phone so that I can go wireless with the earpiece. Did a little digging around and found that there are some Bluetooth car kits out there that will use your car's speakers and the phone's built in handsfree option thus eliminating the need for an earpiece.

I'm curious if anyone has installed this in their cars and what model phone/car kit you use as well as how it works.

Thanks
Haven't tried the car kit, but I do have a bluetooth phone... The Motorola V600 - easily the most moddable phone I've ever seen (you can do some pretty cool stuff with it). I have a bluetooth headset, but this unit also features speakerphone. Moretimes that not, I just use that, if I really need to drive, while on the phone (I do my best not to mix the two).
http://commerce.motorola.com/consumer/QWimages/v600.jpg

PS - I mostly use bluetooth to wirelessly connect my iPaq to the internet with GPRS (highspeed wireless)! Cool way to pass the time!:coolman:

[vpalhories]

Haven't tried the car kit, but I do have a bluetooth phone... The Motorola V600 - easily the most moddable phone I've ever seen (you can do some pretty cool stuff with it). I have a bluetooth headset, but this unit also features speakerphone. Moretimes that not, I just use that, if I really need to drive, while on the phone (I do my best not to mix the two).
http://commerce.motorola.com/consumer/QWimages/v600.jpg

PS - I mostly use bluetooth to wirelessly connect my iPaq to the internet with GPRS (highspeed wireless)! Cool way to pass the time!:coolman:Thanks for the reply. I spend way too much time on the phone and want something a little safer. The headseat is nice however it gets on my nerves. The phone you have is one I've looked at. I'm also considering Sony Ericsson. I'd really like to have a PDA/PHONE all in one (Windows only, not Palm) however it's still way too expensive. I'm stuck with Phone and iPaq for now!

BTW, where abouts are you in Toronto? I used to live there a few years ago. Worked for the Bank of Montreal at Bloor and Young. Used to live in what was called "Cabbage town". I do enjoy the states, however learned to love Toronto while I was there (3 years) and find myself missing it.

[QWK SVT]

Thanks for the reply. I spend way too much time on the phone and want something a little safer. The headseat is nice however it gets on my nerves. The phone you have is one I've looked at. I'm also considering Sony Ericsson. I'd really like to have a PDA/PHONE all in one (Windows only, not Palm) however it's still way too expensive. I'm stuck with Phone and iPaq for now!

BTW, where abouts are you in Toronto? I used to live there a few years ago. Worked for the Bank of Montreal at Bloor and Young. Used to live in what was called "Cabbage town". I do enjoy the states, however learned to love Toronto while I was there (3 years) and find myself missing it.
I dunno... I think speakerphone is about as safe as you can get, if you MUST use a phone while driving. I've got a holder, but it works well enough, just sitting in the cup holder, too. No use of hands needed, and no worrying about the boom mic falling out of your ear, getting uncomfortable, or draining the battery.

I love having a PDA (it's scary how much I rely on it). I love having a cool phone (warning: MP3 ringtones with naughty lyrics should NOT be used at work :bop:). I would rather pay a little more, to keep them seperate. The larger size of the PDA Phones is a deal breaker. Besides, with my combo, I have all the same functionality, and more (including wifi when walking around the house).

Sony-Erriccson has some nice offerings. I have a couple of older models, as backups (T68i and T39mc). I'm a bit of a geek with technology, and change phones every year, or so. If you're willing to modify the programming (not as scary as it sounds), nothings more customizable than the Motorolas, though. :cool:

Re: Toronto, I'm pretty central, right around where the 401 and 404 cross. I work for one of the other banks (in a head office capacity), at Bay/King. Toronto's nice, but you guys have WAY better BBQ! If only Fiorella's Jack Stack BBQ would ship north of the border :rolleyes:

[LimoMerc]

The guys at the carwash found a bluetooth wireless Motorolla headset in the back seat of my Limarauder (Mercury Marauder Limousine) and none of the customers have inquired about it and I was thinking of putting it on ebay, how much are those worth?

[01 Interceptor]

The guys at the carwash found a bluetooth wireless Motorolla headset in the back seat of my Limarauder (Mercury Marauder Limousine) and none of the customers have inquired about it and I was thinking of putting it on ebay, how much are those worth?


It depends on the model. I just bought a Motorola V710, so if you'd like to sell it to a fellow member first, I would be most grateful. For model info click here:
Motorola Bluetooth Wireless Headsets. (http://commerce.motorola.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce3/ExecMacro/acc_sub_results_phones.d2w/report?phoneID=&type=All&checkbox_value_1=29&checkbox_value_2=238320&checkbox_value_3=24&checkbox_4=on&checkbox_value_4=238596&checkbox_value_5=26&checkbox_value_6=27&checkbox_value_7=240974&checkbox_value_8=28&checkbox_value_9=25&checkbox_value_0+value%3D=&TOTAL_CAT_DISP=10&search_string=238596&cgrfnbr=22&cgmenbr=126&x=11&y=13)

[LimoMerc]

It is: Motorola Bluetooth® Headset HS810 - 98565H

We will have to make a donation to this fine site if you are going to buy this from me.

[AtomicJim]

I'm thinking of changing my cell phone to a Bluetooth phone so that I can go wireless with the earpiece. Did a little digging around and found that there are some Bluetooth car kits out there that will use your car's speakers and the phone's built in handsfree option thus eliminating the need for an earpiece.

I'm curious if anyone has installed this in their cars and what model phone/car kit you use as well as how it works.

Thanks
What phone brand and model do you use? I have a Nextel using a wireless Jabra headpiece and it works like a charm. I'm also quite experienced in wireless tech. so just need your phone model and I can recommend something nice for you :) Do you have a price range too?

[vpalhories]

What phone brand and model do you use? I have a Nextel using a wireless Jabra headpiece and it works like a charm. I'm also quite experienced in wireless tech. so just need your phone model and I can recommend something nice for you :) Do you have a price range too?
I haven't bought my Bluetooth phone yet. I am considering the Ericsson T637 phone. The thing is that I want to stay with Cingular as I've been very pleased with my service for the past two years so my options may be limited. I haven't gone to a store yet however their website only has 1 Bluetooth enabled phone. I'll have to go to one of their stores to see if there are more which I suspect there will be.

I used to have a Nextel (not Bluetooth) which had a Speakerphone. It was convenient, especially in meetings however would really like something integrated with my sound system.

I'm assuming I could purchase an "Unlocked Phone" if Cingular doesn't have what I'm looking for. I'm also assuming that I will have a hard time getting them to configure it given that I wouldn't purchase it from them.

Any advice is appreciated.

[AtomicJim]

I haven't bought my Bluetooth phone yet. I am considering the Ericsson T637 phone. The thing is that I want to stay with Cingular as I've been very pleased with my service for the past two years so my options may be limited. I haven't gone to a store yet however their website only has 1 Bluetooth enabled phone. I'll have to go to one of their stores to see if there are more which I suspect there will be.

I used to have a Nextel (not Bluetooth) which had a Speakerphone. It was convenient, especially in meetings however would really like something integrated with my sound system.

I'm assuming I could purchase an "Unlocked Phone" if Cingular doesn't have what I'm looking for. I'm also assuming that I will have a hard time getting them to configure it given that I wouldn't purchase it from them.

Any advice is appreciated. Do you have a price range, do you want a camera on it and will you be using wireless internet/mail/messaging alot?

[vpalhories]

Do you have a price range, do you want a camera on it and will you be using wireless internet/mail/messaging alot?
Have no need for a camera. As for wireless internet, I only use it rarely now on my existing phone (1-2 time / month). It's nice to be able to read emails, however no way am I using a phone to type emails or message for that matter. Way too time consuming.

As for price range, I'm flexible. So long as the phone does what I need it to and can connect through my existing sound system in the car somehow I will be a happy camper.

[vpalhories]

I finally got a Bluetooth Enabled phone with Microsoft Smarphone 2003 OS (Audiovox 5600). I love it. No need for my PDA anymore. :o

In any case, time has gone by since I first created this post. Anyone have Bluetooth car kits that you've installed for your phone? I'd be interested in finding out what you have and pics if possible.

Thanks

[Dan]

As a "listener" I have yet to be on the end of a cell phone convo where a person using the speaker phone gives me acceptable quality. I would advise avoiding any sort of speakerphone even if only for the sake of your listeners.

I, personally, am a recalcitrant cell phone user when driving. I wish they put a sunset on these laws so that we can repeal them once we learn that there was no net safety gain to them anyway.

Best,

Dan

[twolow]

I have a Sony B.T. kit installed in my 350Z and works great.

I will take a few pics this evening maybe.

[ckadiddle]

We just got a pair of Motorola V551 phones from Cingular this past weekend. Specifically for the Bluetooth - wife wanted a wireless headset like she sees a friend of hers using. Cingular had one of the Motorola headset models (850?) on sale for fifty bucks with a twenty dollar rebate. She loves it so far.

[dwasson]

I'll be switching to Cingular at the end of the month, when my Sprint contract expires. I will be getting the Motorola RAZR (http://direct.motorola.com/ENS/web_producthome.asp?Country=US A&language=ENS&productid=29690). That's the phone all the cool kids are getting. Motorola has some cool Bluetooth headsets. If you wear glasses the RAZRWIRE (http://direct.motorola.com/ens/RAZRWIRE_Web_ProductHome.asp?c ountry=USA&language=ENS#) is a good idea.

You can get the RAZR for free with some phone plans if you shop around.

[TooManyFords]

I have a Razr and would also be interested in this. [when my car is back on the road]

Oh, and the Razr has a USB port on the side and all the tools to mod/hack it are free. Way cool!

John

[blackf0rk]

Instead of just upgrading your phone - why not upgrade your car too? BMW or Mercedes has some built in radio with bluetooth capabilities to sync to your phone, interfacing with the built in speakers. :)

[TooManyFords]

I totally agree. It would be cool if Kenwood or Alpine would come out with head units that have blue-tooth enabled capabilities.

I think I'll google that...

John

[94_302]

Haven't tried the car kit, but I do have a bluetooth phone... The Motorola V600 - easily the most moddable phone I've ever seen (you can do some pretty cool stuff with it). I have a bluetooth headset, but this unit also features speakerphone. Moretimes that not, I just use that, if I really need to drive, while on the phone (I do my best not to mix the two).
http://commerce.motorola.com/consumer/QWimages/v600.jpg

PS - I mostly use bluetooth to wirelessly connect my iPaq to the internet with GPRS (highspeed wireless)! Cool way to pass the time!:coolman:
How do you like the phone itself, that is the one I have and it can be really annoying. It often freezes up either in the middle of the call or just by itself. I then have to turn it off, i usually just pop out the battery, since that is faster. Is there a site that I could find the right notes to compose ringtones for the phone? I uset to have a nokia that I had about 6 songs composed, then I got this one and didnt find any. I gave up after about 3 months of owning the phone.

[vpalhories]

I have a Sony B.T. kit installed in my 350Z and works great.

I will take a few pics this evening maybe.
Thanks Ryan, looking forward to the pics.

[dwasson]

Instead of just upgrading your phone - why not upgrade your car too? BMW or Mercedes has some built in radio with bluetooth capabilities to sync to your phone, interfacing with the built in speakers. :)

I'm not a fan of speakerphones in a office seting. In a car it has to almost useless. Ultimately a headset is still the best solution. The new ones are comfortable. I put my headset as soon as I get in the car. I can hear around it and I don't have to fumble for it when I get a call. With all the crap I use in my car the wireless headset would cut one wireout of the mess.

[DeepSea117]

I love my speakerphone for my car, it's been the handiest thing I've installed. The speaker plugs into a cigarette lighter, and I ran the wire for the mic through the console, and back out behind the steering wheel. This is a great accessory, but it's a Nokia product:

http://www.armory.com/%7Esaiyajin/nokiacarkit.jpg

Nokia Car Kit (Basic) (http://www.nokiausa.com/nokia_accessories/3650/1,2224,40,00.html)

As for a Bluetooth system you can install in our cars, I'm not sure about how those are yet. The one thing I know that wireless systems won't let you do is recharge your phone. I have a Bluetooth headset as well, but a speakerphone is excellent, especially for long drives. No hot-ear feeling, and no need to recharge the headset. You can still listen to the radio with the one I use, which I think is better than using all your car's speakers just for a person. If your car had a bluetooth interface to begin with, cool...but if not, I'd go for installing a wired-kit. :)

Oh yeah, not all Bluetooth interfaces act the same. So far, Nokia has had the best set-up, where I could switch from the phone, to my Logitech headset once it was charged, to the wired car-speakerphone, all during a call, and seamlessly. The person on the line didn't even realize I'd switched to anything (that's how good the mic for the Nokia car kit is.) Sony Ericcson on the other hand has a poor bluetooth interface in that you cannot switch from phone to headset while a call active, on top of some other problems with how active calls are handled and connection between the headset and phone. Try and test out the other kits to see how the Bluetooth interface acts with your Audiovox.

[ckadiddle]

Resources for learning about modding your Motorola phone - also good for just learning a bit about how they work and which models have which known problems:

http://www.howardforums.com/
and
http://www.motomodders.net/

[STLThunder]

I'm thinking of changing my cell phone to a Bluetooth phone so that I can go wireless with the earpiece. Did a little digging around and found that there are some Bluetooth car kits out there that will use your car's speakers and the phone's built in handsfree option thus eliminating the need for an earpiece.

I'm curious if anyone has installed this in their cars and what model phone/car kit you use as well as how it works.

Thanks

My daughter has this set up in her car. I'm not sure which brand of phone, but I know when she calls me from the car (Lexus 330RX) I can barely hear her. She can hear me fine though.

[DEFYANT]

Good info here. Thanks

We are looking at getting away from Nextel.

[vpalhories]

My daughter has this set up in her car. I'm not sure which brand of phone, but I know when she calls me from the car (Lexus 330RX) I can barely hear her. She can hear me fine though.
Does your daughter have an after-market unit or did this come with the car? A friend of my just purchased an Acura and his is integrated with the audio system from the factory. I can hear him clear as day when I speak with him!

[N40GL]

FWIW, I have a Motorlola IHF1000 car kit for my A780 (the Linux/PDA phone) and it works great. Dials the phone by voice (without having to 'learn' your voice), and 'bonds' to up to four different phones. The audio out of the supplied speaker isn't all that great, so I am probably going to change it so it comes out of the right front speaker for phone calls (an option that I didn't do when I installed it). Very easy install - I took out the passenger seat and mounted it in a little indentation I found under the carpet, wrapped in a layer of bubble wrap to protect it. I think it was about two hundred bucks.

[STLThunder]

Does your daughter have an after-market unit or did this come with the car? A friend of my just purchased an Acura and his is integrated with the audio system from the factory. I can hear him clear as day when I speak with him!
It's an aftermarket!