Gallery

Bluetooth madness

Posted on 16 Jan 2008 at 16:19

Paul Ockenden looks at the options available for making and taking calls when driving, and also examines a wireless security solution.

A few columns ago, I asked you to send in your own experiences of Bluetooth audio. Well, quite a few of you did, so I'm going to include some of your mails here, alongside my own experiences.

Let's start from the simple premise that the most convenient Bluetooth solution is the one that's already built into your car. Leave Bluetooth enabled on your phone, hop into the car with phone in pocket and switch on the ignition, whereupon your phone will wirelessly connect to the car kit and route calls through the car's normal hi-fi speakers (plus a microphone hidden away somewhere discreetly in the cabin). The system will offer some kind of display to inform you about incoming calls, and outgoing calls will use a voice-recognition facility either built into your phone or the hands-free kit. You don't have to remember to switch anything on, and making or receiving calls is a simple one-button action.

You've a couple of choices for in-car kit: either tick the "Bluetooth preparation" box in the vendor's options list when buying the car - for which privilege you'll probably be charged the proverbial arm and leg - or else go and have an aftermarket system fitted. I was due to road-test Parrot's latest MK6100 system recently but, after a series of false starts, Parrot decided that it didn't want me to review it after all (I can't help wondering if there are teething problems with that particular unit). I did get an interesting email from reader Tom Klimes, though, who has an earlier Parrot system: "I'm using a Parrot CK3000 Evolution Bluetooth hands-free car kit with a CANbus adapter in my VW Golf (2007 model)." That's interesting, because CANbus is the connection interface that VW uses to glue together all of the various bits of electronics in the car, so any aftermarket device that connects to it is bound to be well integrated with the car's audio and display systems. Tom continues: "The kit was fitted after-market because the VW salesman told me the official VW car kit wasn't very good! Using the Parrot kit, the sound quality, both in the car and for the person at the other end, is very good. CANbus integrates the Parrot with the VW's audio system so I get all of the usual features such as stereo mute, but it also enables the phone buttons on my steering wheel. The kit was professionally fitted and there's nothing showing within the cabin - the CANbus means the usual Parrot head unit isn't required - so it's totally discreet. It connects every time to my BlackBerry 8300 and, to date, has never lost a connection."

Actually, there's a third "fixed" option for in-car use that can work well, and that's to use a Bluetooth car radio. Such things were rare this time last year, but now several manufacturers offer suitable devices. Reader Mark Harbord writes: "In our Smart, I've installed a Sony MEX-BT2500 head unit, which can use Bluetooth for both hands-free mobile phone operation and also A2DP audio streaming. Obviously, it's handy for voice calls, but the Sony is also really good for playing audio streams from the phone. I've been using it to listen to files ripped from the BBC's Listen Again streaming service, but it's also good for standard MP3s. It will even play video podcasts and the like, although you do need good eyesight! It was all surprisingly simple to set up, and has worked a treat for several months now."

If you don't want a totally plumbed-in solution, the next best thing is a device you either clip onto your sun visor or dashboard. I recently played with Parrot's Minikit, which is good, but the fact that it isn't wired into the car electrics caused me several problems. For a start, you have to switch it on manually each time you get into the car, which I'd often forget, and then if you don't switch it off it will wait 15 minutes or so before going into standby - during that period, if you're standing near your car and a call comes in, the Minikit will pick it up without your realising. Given a bit more self-discipline and a regular recharging regime, it could be a usable solution, but frankly not for me. When it did work, though, call quality was very good.