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Accessories Droid X and Bluetooth headsets

credemann said:
I'm currently using the Plantronics Voyager 510 which i have used on several previous phones. It works great with Voice Commands and Is very crisp (audio wise).

I am having problems with it when i use DriveSafe.ly. I do not get to hear DriveSafe.ly read txt or emails. I have been in contact with their support but nothing has helped. I am looking at getting a Motorola H17txt which will work with DriveSafe.ly.
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Does your Plantronics 510 work with media audio?

I have a Plantronics that I used for my cell phone several years ago. I had been told that I would have to get a stereo bluetooth headset to listen to music and audio books, etc. because the protocol is different.

I had been using a wired headset to listen to my audiobooks on the iPod when riding Metro (didn't need bluetooth for my phone because I have it in the car) and are using them now to listen to my books on the Droid X. I've been wanting a wireless set, but actually don't need stereo because I only use one ear anyway - deaf in the other ear. I didn't think my Plantronics would work but since reading this I've just dug it out, located the charger, and am charging it.
 
droidros said:
Does your Plantronics 510 work with media audio?

I have a Plantronics that I used for my cell phone several years ago. I had been told that I would have to get a stereo bluetooth headset to listen to music and audio books, etc. because the protocol is different.

I had been using a wired headset to listen to my audiobooks on the iPod when riding Metro (didn't need bluetooth for my phone because I have it in the car) and are using them now to listen to my books on the Droid X. I've been wanting a wireless set, but actually don't need stereo because I only use one ear anyway - deaf in the other ear. I didn't think my Plantronics would work but since reading this I've just dug it out, located the charger, and am charging it.
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Well, I can answer my own question. It doesn't work.

I read through this thread and saw a couple of people mention the Plantronics 855 -- but that has been discontinued. I went to the Verizon store to see what they have (I can get a 25% discount) but the salesman was not at all knowledgable about what works and doesn't work with media. The information on the packages doesn't help. I saw the Jawbone Icon, which was one of the others mentioned in this thread, and it was $99, but there was nothing on the package to say what type of audio it was compatible with - only a whole lot of fluff about noise reduction and so on. I'm not concerned so match with phone quality since I won't be using it for the phone that much (I have bluetooth connectivity in my car), but I'm most concerned about being able to play back audio books and music.

As mentioned before, I don't want a full headset as I only use one ear anyway, and I have to have an earlooop. I've never been able to use plain earbuds.

Has anybody used the Plantronics Pro?
 
What you are looking for is A2DP. The Jawbone Icon has this after a simple download. I use the icon and like it very much. I did have to purchase jabra earbuds but I can wear all day without fatigue.
 
Martimus said:
For all those early adopters of the Droid X, what Bluetooth headsets have you been using with the Droid X and how well have they worked?

I think that I've likely invested in more than a dozen bluetooth headsets over the years (Motorola, Plantronics, Jabra, Jawbone, Sony Ericcson, and BlueAnt)... only to find that the sound quality when paired to my various bluetooth-capable phones has been less then awe inspiring. And worst of all is the quality of the connection between my current Omnia 1 and the bluetooth-enabled Alpine stereo in my car!

I don't know about anybody else but I really hate having people tell me that I sound like I'm in a tunnel or a well. :eek: One would have hoped that they'd realize that my voice always sounds like this!! :p
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iresq said:
What you are looking for is A2DP. The Jawbone Icon has this after a simple download. I use the icon and like it very much. I did have to purchase jabra earbuds but I can wear all day without fatigue.
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Well I have an Icon too, and updated the software months ago to the A2DP. It works great, sound pretty good, and connects well with my DX AND my BB.

Infact you can leave both connected at the same time supposedly. I don't use it as I don't want to run down the battery that much. (IE leaving BT on , on the phones all the time)

Meanwhile, people tell me when I stop talking it sounds like it turns off and honestly I think it might. SO for noisy environments it works well.

However, the vibration pad on it has to make contact for people to understand what you are saying. I have had issues with that part of it, where it just doesn't fit my head/face right. But, it takes a bit of getting used to. Otherwise it works very very well.

Meanwhile, on BT headunits, I have a new JVC device and I have to say it occasionally won't connect cleanly. I haven't tried it since the 2.2 update so will get to that one day. However, microphone placement is KEY here.
 
Well, I just ordered a Plantronics Voyager Pro + from the Verizonwireless website. I guess it just came out recently and you can't find it in the Verizon stores yet. I used to use a Plantronics Voyager 510 with my old cell phone and was quite happy with it and I had read very good reviews on the Plantronics Voyager Pro (without the plus), so felt this would be the one to go with. CNET has a positive review for it.

I really hope this is what I'm looking for. I'll let you know when I get it.

BTW, I downloaded Super BT Mono and tried that with the 510. It worked, but there was a bad hiss in the background, so it's unusable for me.
 
I have been using the BlueAnt Q1 and its working well. Callers say everything sounds good on their end and it's the same on mine.
 
I don't mean to sound like a doubting Thomas here, but I have a "cheapie" LG HBM-230 (got it with a "package" deal) and so far I can't complain. Although I only use it while I'm driving, so no background noise (or it can be turned off) and no wind noise.

Is there really that much of a difference in using a $30 bt headset versus a $100 one? What am I getting for that extra $70 or so $$$$$s? Just curious, I've used Plantronics, LGs, PS3, Motorola (single and stereo) and I don't think I really noticed much difference - other than stereo versus mono . . .

Thanks - Dean
 
subbiepops said:
I don't mean to sound like a doubting Thomas here, but I have a "cheapie" LG HBM-230 (got it with a "package" deal) and so far I can't complain. Although I only use it while I'm driving, so no background noise (or it can be turned off) and no wind noise.

Is there really that much of a difference in using a $30 bt headset versus a $100 one? What am I getting for that extra $70 or so $$$$$s? Just curious, I've used Plantronics, LGs, PS3, Motorola (single and stereo) and I don't think I really noticed much difference - other than stereo versus mono . . .

Thanks - Dean
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I can't see paying $100 for something that's not even A2DP compatible - just for something that can make and receive phone calls. I would, and have, paid close to that for something that allows me to listen to my audio books through one ear piece.

However, I was curious why you have had experience with so many different BT devices. I have experienced three so far - the first was the Plantronics Voyager 510 headset, which I found great for phone calls. Then I have a Garmin GPS with bluetooth - the bluetooth was passable for taking phone calls while driving, but sound quality was pretty bad. In my current Prius 2010, I have built-in bluetooth. It has great sound quality, both for voice calls, and streaming audio. I have played back music and audio books from my iPod Touch and now from my Droid X.
 
What you pay for mostly is battery life and sound quality. I bought the ICON simply for the software updates and I had never tried a jawbone item before. My previous 2 where moto and plantronic (i had it for 2 days and went back to a moto, long story).

To that end, so far I like the icon, just wish it was a bit bigger. I am not a small person by any means. And its not the ear pieces, its the whole thing. I would buy a larger one that was longer and wider so A) I could find it easier (different color would have been nice I suppose) and B) the sensor pad would be closer to my cheek bone and make better contact.

Otherwise I find plantronics BT items don't work well for me either, their corded devices kick azz. meanwhile the moto ones have worked well in the past.

BTW as far as the icon is concerned the whole voice call out of the number calling is nice but not fully necessary. And BT headset with a display on it is equally useless to me (IE use the phone right). but the voice call out is nice when the phone is in the cup holder and you still have the BT headset on. I also don't KEEP mine on all the time. Just can't do that.
 
I have the Jabra Clipper.
I like having the option to use my own headphones to listen to music AND take me phone calls too, and the Clipper allows me to use whatever headphones I want.
I also like I can pair the Clipper to two devices at the same time, I can hook it to my computer and listen to my music stored there, and still take calls from my cell... OR listen to music on my cell, and take Skype calls from my pc.
 
I received my Plantronics Voyager Pro + from Verizon - super fast - I just ordered yesterday and requested free 2-day Fedex shipping - and it was delivered today! I'm still charging it, so can't report on whether/how well it works.

As an aside though, while I was very impressed with Verizon's fast service, I was most disappointed with Plantronics's. I wrote them an email through their website on October 17, asking whether the Plantronics Voyager Pro would play audio (I didn't know about the Pro Plus at that point), and apart from their email acknowledging my question and saying they would answer within two days, I didn't hear back. It's been over two days and this was a pretty simple question!
 
droidros said:
I received my Plantronics Voyager Pro + from Verizon - super fast - I just ordered yesterday and requested free 2-day Fedex shipping - and it was delivered today! I'm still charging it, so can't report on whether/how well it works.
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It's only been a day but so far, so good. I get very good reception and sound quality using the phone, as well as listening to Audible books and Pandora radio. I was using the default ear bud and had a bit of a time trying to keep the device in my ear because the bud is too large. I have changed to the smallest one and hope it will work better.

BTW, I forgot to mention that Verizon threw in a cute little carry case with the Pro +. It's listed at $12.99 on the Plantronics site.
 
droidros said:
However, I was curious why you have had experience with so many different BT devices.
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Truthfully, I don't think I really have that much experience . . . I've just had a few BT devices, but never really used them all that much.

The first mulitmedia phone I had was the original chocolate and I fancied the idea of being able to load up and play all my music through the phone. At the time, they had a Motorola BT stereo headset that was on sale and I also got a discount when I got the phone, so I went ahead and bought the BT headset. Actually, I liked it a LOT, but it is really bulky and the battery capacity wasn't all that great. I would wear it out when going for a walk or hike, but because of it's bulk, I would always be messing with how it was sitting on my head or muting it to hear my companions, etc. I eventually quit using it just because it was more fuss than it was worth. My son now has it and uses it occasionally with his PS3.

Then I decided I wanted a BT headset for when I was driving (I don't really like driving around with a phone glued to my head). So I bought an "O.K." mid-level LG model basically because it matched my phone's charging port so I could use the same car charger for both it and the phone. I quit using it just because I wouldn't remember to turn on BT on my phone, turn on the headset, wait for the sync, etc. everytime I got in my vehicle. It was actually a fairly good headset, I liked the voice command capability and not having a phone glued to my head when driving.

Then I ended up getting a PS3 system and my son had me get a BT headset to talk with everyone when playing. I got a "cheapie" Madcat headset, but the volume really didn't go high enough for my liking. My daughter ended up giving me a Plantronics BT stereo set she had, but never used (not sure why) and I use that quite a bit when playing on my PS3 (when I need voice communications). It holds a charge for a good amount of time, it's lightweight and just seems to work well.

So now I have a DX and ended up picking up ANOTHER BT headset as part of a package deal through Verizon. I got another LG set based on the recommendation from the store employee (had to choose between 3 that could be part of the "package" deal). I'm finding that I have the same "usage" as I did with my first and original BT headset, I just find it takes too much time to turn on BT on my phone, power on the headset, etc. I also found the last time I used it, I couldn't get the volume to turn up enough where I could here the voice command responses (not sure what happened, it was working), so I've kind of given up on it for now . . .

There's my story . . .

Dean
 
Samsung WEP870. it supports media as well' and has a stereo headset to boot. Make sure you look for the 870 with the streaming adapter. This allows you to plug it into an aux port with your headset and stream your music. Pretty amazing and I'm all about no wires!!!

i highly recommend cellularboys from amazon.com fast shipping!!
Cellularboys @ Amazon.com:

best of luck
 
This provides good phone voice quality and decent audio - except for the occasional hiccup (not sure why it does that).

The one problem I am finding is the bulky, stubby shape. It's not because of the looks - I don't really care about that - it's just that it feels a little unstable on my ear. The shape of the Plantronics Voyager 510 was different - less bulky on the top but longer, and it seemed to fit more comfortably behind my ear.

I don't notice it after a while and it hasn't fallen off so far, but I find myself having to fiddle with it for a while when I first put it on. I also find even the smallest earpiece a little large.
 
jawbone-prime-646026278.jpg


Aliph Jawbone Prime

Looks like a pretty sick and steezy bluetooth. Plus I heard the noise cancelling and sound is crystal clear. I've never been a bluetooth guy, but this girl makes me want one.
 
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