A Bluetooth headset priced at little more than a tenner raises immediate questions about its all-round quality. Is this the bargain of a lifetime or something cheap and cheerful but of little lasting value?
A hands-free kit is a must-have accessory for anyone wishing to use their smartphone while on the road.
The BlackBerry Visor Mount speakerphone, whose use is not solely limited to BlackBerrys, makes a good job of creating an all-encompassing car kit.
Hands-free functionality is there via a Bluetooth connection with your phone, and the device also has a built in FM transmitter than can be used to play music on your BlackBerry through your car stereo. (You can also listen to your calls in this way, although anyone nearby tuned to the same frequency would be able to listen in on them.)
The device is nicely designed, with just a single button on top controlling most of the action, and a flexible clip that enables it to be securely mounted in place on the visor.
Setup is simple, with a painless Bluetooth pairing process, and most of the call functions of your phone are available. Make calls with speech recognition (if supported on your device), and accept or reject incoming calls with a quick prod of that one button.
The device will read aloud the phone numbers of callers, although reading names would have been more useful. Audio quality was good, lacking the echo so often the curse of these products, and the FM feature easy to use thanks to the Visor Mount’s ability to scan for available frequencies.
At a touch under £70 you are paying for the BlackBerry name, and there are cheaper alternatives around. But the quality cannot be argued with.
Price: £69.99
Web: www.shopblackberry.com
Verdict: 8/10
The MKi9200 is a Bluetooth hands-free music system that combines a 2.4-inch TFT colour screen and a wireless remote control.
It is compatible with a wide range of Bluetooth phones, iPods, the iPhone and more. Straight out of the box and the MKi9200 is a mass of wires and components. Far too complicated for mere mortals, but Parrot do recommend installation by a professional and so do we. However, this will add another hefty wedge to the price bumping the price up to around £300 for the unit and installation.
Alternatively, if you are feeling brave there is an installation diagram included. The installation is screw free so at least the dashboard doesn’t get a battering when the unit is removed. The remote control sits on the inside of the steering wheel, giving access via a thumb.
It looks like an add-on and is something that will surely attract unwanted attention.
Once installed and powered up the first step is to pair up your Bluetooth phone. This is a simple and swift experience with visual assistance from the LCD display. Once connected using the unit is simple and intuitive.
The MKi9200 automatically synchronizes contact details (name, number) so when an incoming call is received the name appears on-screen letting you know who’s calling. To make a call it’s simply a matter of using the remote, press the green button and the voice recognition kicks in and dials the desired number.
The voice recognition is not perfect, for example, if you state the wrong number, it dials it anyway. A command like ‘confirm’ at the end could eliminate this.
For music the unit is adaptable for a host of popular digital and analogue music players. There is a iPod connector, USB connector and line-in. The sound quality was good with control over playback being via the remote control.
The MKi9200 is something that we really liked but struggled to get to grips with the high price point. Plus, the fact that there is the extra cost of installation. For these reasons we found it hard to give the unit a high score. If you have the cash buy it, but there are cheaper options available.
Web: www.parrot.com
Price (as reviewed): £229.99
Verdict: 6/10
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