I have the Convenience Package on my new 08 and was wondering which cell phones have inserts available for the factory armrest. I can't find anything on my dealers website.

Thanks,

sd

 

Your best bet is to call your dealer and ask the parts guy. Also you can call MiniUSA and ask them as well.

 

Do a search in the Nav&Audio forum, or start a thread for your phone there. I bet your dealer won't be much help. The armrest sleeves are from BMW, so check with their site and they'll tell you whether they have sleeves for the Mini.

 

i think the one they had displayed with the armrest is a sony ericson... only reason i know that is cuz im a sony freak and i love their phones...

dont they pair it up with bluetooth? does it really need to attach inside the armrest?

 

The armrest is to connect the phone to a charger and to the car's external antenna. Not all cradles have a direct connection to the phone's external antenna connection though.

 

I was told by the Sales Manager (Sorry I'm not up on the MA and SA lingo) that I don't need an insert for my phone. It's a Razr V3m...hope this is correct?

 

You don't need a phone insert to use the bluetooth connection.

 

As stated by Minidrivr, the insert is not needed to operate a phone by bluetooth inside your Mini. It just allows you to charge your phone and to connect to the antenna.

However, it only works on Mellow Yellow vehicles. Hope that's what you got. Joking. I'm only joking on that one.

The Razr is one of the few phones supported with an insert. I bought one several months ago and am happy with it. I previously used a cigarette lighter cord to charge my phone. I find the insert more convenient.

 

so when the sales manager told me I did not need a "cradle" for my Razr, technically he was correct? The bluetooth feature will work; the car will serve in lieu of a headset.

However, I will not be able to use the car antenna or charge without being plugged into the armrest connector. Since the Razr charges with the connector on the side of the phone....is a cradle required to hook it up?

 

Here's the deal on the cradles: They're expensive ($120). When available they all will charge the phone in the armrest. Only some will connect the phone to the car antenna (I think the RAZR may be one). To do this: a. the phone must have an external antenna jack on it somewhere. b. the cradle must have a connection that plugs into that jack (in addition to the charging jack of course, which is separate). Not many phones have external antenna jacks, and the sleeves don't always have their own connector even for those that do. If there's no antenna jack the spiel is that the phone somehow gets better reception anyway via being close to an antenna amplifier or something. Most people just charge their phone with the lighter socket and a $7 charger, like I do. Bluetooth has nothing to do with the armrest sleeve, it's a radio in the phone that talks to the BT receiver in the car.

 

Are the armrest inserts available through MINI? Or; are they aftermarket?

My Dealer's parts department says they do not have a way to order them...for any model. He says that MINI is "supposed to update this".

 

You've discovered the rub. It's been quite tricky sometimes to locate the cradles. I bought mine from Classic Mini in Ohio and had them ship it to me. They provide a discount for NAM members.

It's a BMW part and I had to discuss it with them at length before they accepted that the part with that number was a legitimate part and could be ordered. However, they confirmed that and it wasn't any problem to get it ordered and shipped to me.

The box and all of the documentation was BMW. There wasn't any Mini brand identification anywhere. However, it's the correct part and it has worked flawlessly since I got it in October.

I agree with BigNewt that the cost might be a consideration for the value. The list price was $140; with the discount, they charged $112. The part number is 84210415023.

You'll have to decide for yourself whether having an easy way to recharge your phone is worth the cost. You could use a cord that plugs into the cigarette lighter for less money. I'm happy with mine, although I don't have any evidence that the antenna connection provides any better reception.

 

I bought the one for my Razr from my dealer. It was $140 and took 2-3 weeks to get. It didn't work when I got it. I picked it up without my Mini so I didn't know it wasn't working until later. About a month after I had my car in for a few minor things and mentioned it not working. They found the cradle was defective, and over-nighted a replacement, which has worked great ever since. I like that I've always got a car charger without any cords or wires to deal with. The battery in my phone really doesn't last very long with Bluetooth enabled, so having a convenient way to charge it and keep it out of the way is great. The slight improvement in reception is nice too.

The only negative about it is the cradle itself rattled against the inside of the armrest. I had to put some rubber feet on the bottom of it to tighten it against the locking mechanism in the armrest. The fixed the rattle.

 

I used this site to find supported phones & inserts:

http://www.bimmernav.com/snapins.html

 

I'm not sure how accurate that list is for the Mini though. They list a cradle for the Motorola V551, which isn't even compatible with the Mini's bluetooth system.

 

The cradle has nothing to do with the bluetooth system, it only powers the phone and in some cases allows a connection to the external antenna.

Depending on the model of Mini as to where the bluetooth antenna is located.

I have had 4 different BMW's all with bluetooth and all have had cradles in the arm rest. different phones different cradles. All of the cradles fit in my new Mini.

One of the best places to get a cradle is from www.bimmernav.com. I have bought two from them and the other two from a BMW dealer in Sweden because a friend lives there and in the late 90's early 2000's event he BMW dealers in the U.S did not know where or how to get them. There are lots of parts for both BMW and Mini that are available Europe that are not available here but if ordered from Europe still work just fine. (such as the Refrigerated storage unit (i.e. electric cooler) for the BMW 5 series sedan and wagon that sits right behind the center console and also makes a console for the rear passengers. If you are looking for something and don't see it on the US Mini or US Dealer site check the British site and you may just find what you are looking for.

Schatzy

 

I think you missed my point.

Why have a cradle for a phone that's not compatible with the Mini's Bluetooth system?

The bimmernav site is not a good guideline as to what's out there for Mini's as this example points out. Apparently in other BMWs, the V551 works fine and hence there is a cradle, but it doesn't work in a Mini, at least not an 07.

 

Actually from reading the notes on the bimmernav site the cradle is only for specific BMW's and will not even fit in a mini. One of the cradle part numbers for the V551 is only for the E90, E60, E65, E66. The other part number would require a special adapter . So neither of these cradles would fit a mini any way.

As for the bluetooth note the V551 phone firmware must be a specific version for it to work with the Mini/BMW Bluetooth.

There is a lot of problems with many phones not working with the Mini and form all the research that i have done it all depends on the Firmware Version level as to wether or not the phone will work.

As for using a cradle that is all up to each individuals need. I have the module for my phone in my current 252IT wagon and i love it. But as for the one i bought for my Mini, it works great but the armrest cover makes it very difficult to get the phone in and out of the cradle. This is in my opinion just a minor design flaw and I will be doing some investigation work to see if i can make it better.

There are two reasons I use the phone cradle in both cars.

1. I travel in fringe reception areas a lot and having the antenna on my particular phone connected to the antenna amp and outside antenna makes a world of difference in the reception and transmission of the phones signal.

2. It keeps the phone from being connected to the lighter jack so that i don't have wires hanging all over the place in the vicinity of the shifter and other controls.

Is it worth the $140 to me? Yes. Is it worth it to others? Maybe, Maybe not.

Also have you tried a V551 with the PROPER Firmware Version in the 07 Mini.

 

I don't have the phone anymore, but it was with version 0B.09.38R, which is what Bimmernav mentions. Could receive but not make calls.

 

I have asked my Sales Manager to check on fit within the MINI armrest and he tells me that part No. 84210415023 does not fit????

I finally gave up and said I will buy this after the delivery.
Anyone use this cradle in a Clubman armrest?

Thanks!

 

What phone do you have that you are looking for a cradle for?

I use a cradle for my Motorola E815 all the time in both my BMW and my Mini.

Schatzy

 

My phone is a Razr V3m...the part number for the cradle is: 84210415023

I am trying to determine if this cradle fits in the MINI Clubman armrest ?

Thanks!

 

The Power Cord plug is on the side of that phone.

This post has NAM user that states they use that cradle in their Mini successfully. You may want to try and contact them about the ease of use of the cradle.
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...8&postcount=42

heres a link to the whole thread
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...d.php?t=111975

Schatzy

 

Thanks for the plug. The Razr is one of the few phones that seems to have a cradle available for it. It works fine. My phone gave out on me about three weeks ago and I obtained a new Razr. It works with the cradle the same as the old phone, which must have been at least four years old.

 

Which model new Razr did you get? Is it one of the narrower models?

I've had to replace the Razr once so far from a dead screen. Luckily AT&T had some of the older ones to replace it with. Once they stop with those being available, it would be nice to know some of the newer Razrs fit in the same cradle.