First, if you don't have a Bluetooth kit, don't want a Bluetooth kit, etc please move along. I'm not interested in your opinion so save yourself the time of posting.

For the rest of you, I'm interested in adding a Bluetooth phone kit to our car.

What I'm looking for in a kit:

• Plays well with others: Most importantly it needs to be able to pair with multiple phones. My wife and I will both have BT phones in a few weeks and we're both just as likely to be driving the MINI. To not have to re-pair the device on entering the car because the other person drove it would be a major plus. Anybody know what kits besides the Sony HCB-300 does this?
• Price: To me the biggest killer for the MINI kit isn't the looks, but the insane price for the kit even without installation. In the end it doesn't matter how good the kit is, if I can't afford it then it does me no good.
• Functionality: Idealy I'd like it to pipe the sound through the radio, I know that out of the box few kits beside the MINI kits do this. Although I've heard that New MINI stuff has a cable for the HCB-30. Hey Mikey, got one for the HCB-300 that will work with the 03 and 05 HK systems? Any other kits play along with the HK?
• Sound Quality: I've got a Jabra BT headset for my T-610, I love it and I have great sound quality on my end, except to the people I'm calling it sounds like I'm calling from the far side of a pipe.
• Compatibility: This one might need to be higher up. We're going to be getting Moto V600's whatever BT kit we get has to work with the Motos... I know there may be better BT capable phones out there, but they meet some important points on our power curve... BT, flip phones, camera, and we can get them dirt cheap....
• Ease of Use: I can tolerate with having to fiddle with a device to get it to work well. My wife however won't. If it doesn't work well without having to mess with it she will get frustrated and not use it.

As for aesthetics, I'm not really all that concerned if it doesn't match the color scheme of the car as long as the device works. My other thought is that if we get a car kit that works well in the MINI, we might buy a matching kit to put in our Subaru as well...

So with that in mind, please share what you have, what you'd like to have and your experiences. Did you do it yourself or did you have somebody else do it?

 

I was going to buy the Bluetooth kit for the MINI, but after hearing all the negative reviews, and especially the price, I decided to go with the Motorola Bluetooth wireless headset. I just leave it in the cup holder, and stick it on my ear whenever someone calls. You can use voice dialing on it, and switch between calls. It has a standby time of about 100 hours, so I wind up charging it once a week or so. I absolutely love it, and it was only $100 dollars as opposed to the insane amount MINI is charging for their kit.

Hope this helps a little.

 

Whatever phone kit I get, I want it to integrate with the Nav. When I look up a place and it has the phone number there I want it to be able to initiate the call with one press. SO far no one has answered that has either a blue tooth pr other integrated kit wether theirs will do this.


Paul

 

Yeah I've got the Jabra which I like a lot, which means I tend to carry it around with me. I'm trying to get rid of the "geek utility belt look" Plus, the thought of not fumbling with a headset at all when a call comes in is quite appealing. I don't like wearing the headset whenever I'm in the car because I A) don't get that many calls, B) It gets uncomfortable after a while, and C) It just doesn't look cool to wander around with a headset in your ear if you're not using it!

 

I've not heard the negative reviews. What are the complaints about the MINI kit?

The price is really high , but I could probably bring myself to pay it if it worked really well.

Thanks.

 

The only complaints I've seen regarding the function of the MINI BT adapter seem stem from the fact that based on the rumors that were flying for about a year before it's release everybody expected the MINI BT adapter to work with the 2 spoke MSFW (specifically the dead button on the MSFW), plus many expected caller ID information to be displayed on the HU.

The other complaints are based on the form of the device... The lights don't match the interior lighting scheme of the car and the control box isn't elegant...

My biggest problems, it's very expensive. I could get an HCB-30 for MUCH less, installed. Plus I think it will only pair with one phone at a time... Maybe somebody who has it could comment on this?

 

Some may be interested in the Motorola BT unit that has a built-in small speaker and mic that is so small, the whole self-contained unit simply slides onto the visor (close to your mouth and ears). If you don't talk incessantly, but have safety and convenience in mind, this relatively cheap alternative may sound attractive, as it does to me. FYI, Expansys carries it.

 

How does it get power? Batteries?

 

Not sure, from what I remember is works just like a BT headset, only it has a speaker and a mic that should be more sensitive - so, I'm inclined to think it recharges.

 

Here's a Motorola:
http://www.expansys-usa.com/product.asp?code=116351

and a Jabra:
http://www.expansys-usa.com/product.asp?code=110320

 

I contacted UK Mini to see if i could: 1)purchase the bluetooth kit currently available in the UK (not the ugly US one!) and, 2) if it was indeed availble if it could be installed post-production. Not good new for us early 2005 MC & MCS buyers!

Below is the reply I found in my inbox:

Dear Mr Levitt,

Thank you for your email to MINI Customer Information dated January 07,
2005.

We can confirm that the Bluetooth Preparation available in the UK is only
available as a factory fit option at the moment and therefore may not be
sold as a retro fit option.

We hope this has answered your questions. should you require any further
assistance please do not hesitate to contact myself or a member of the MINI
Customer Information team.

Kindest regards,

Shellyclaire Foote
Product Information Advisor

BMW Group
Great Britain

Tel: 0800 325600
Fax: 0870 5050206
Email: customer.information@bmw.co.uk

 

I picked up a Motorola HCB-300 off of e-bay for $125, and I'm expecting it here by the end of the week. The impression I got from howardforums is that the HCB-30 is supposed to be very good, although nobody had the HCB-300 yet.

I'm actually going to do this plan in reverse, instead of the MINI getting the kit first, it'll go in the Subaru. If it doesn't suck, then the MINI will get one.

I've confirmed with New MINI Stuff that the cable they have to connect the HCB-30 to the MINI stereo will also work with the HCB-300.

The HCB-300 isn't the prettiest of the bunch, however it WILL pair with multiple Bluetooth phones.

 

So, how did your HCB-300 install go? I put one in my Mini with Mikey's plug and play kit and everything went flawlessly. However the sound quality is horrible, barely audible and distorted through the speakers. How did yours go?

Steve

 

Try turning down the hcb300 & the stereo up

 

I haven't done the install in the MINI yet, as I'm still waiting for the car that kit is going into to arrive. However the install in the Subaru was done about a month ago. It uses the loudspeaker included with the kit and sounds fantastic.

Hopefully I'll be working on the MINI in the next week or so...

 

FYI, Sio Communications, www.siocommunications.co.uk sells a wiring harness for Parrot Bluetooth kits. I installed the Parrot CK3000 in my Z3 Coupe, and it integrates into the radio, speakers, and has a very tiny remote control. In retrospect, I like it alot better than the HCB Series of SonyEricssons. I say this because wordspotting is working with it, so you can do call management with only your voice.

Fyi, I have the MINI TIS documents to install the factory bluetooth kit... guess where the box goes? BEHIND the speedometer! How funny is that? Coincidently, the box in the photo looks exactly like the Parrot CK3000 box, which makes me think it IS a Parrot with an OEM harness and firmware to integrate into the steering wheel buttons. IMHO the steering wheel integration is not that important since voice activation is working. In my coupe, I hardly ever touch the remote.

Repeat after me "Bluetooth is cool, I need lots of bluetooth enabled devices!"

 

I hear ya. Has anyone bluetooth to aftermarket Ice? I need bluetooth for my baby. Currently i am using my Motorola Bluetooth Headset HS810 with my Sony Eric T610 but I am wondering if a car kit would be more convient. Or ..... it may not be the best option because my mini can be pretty loud especially with the sunroof open.

This only come up because, I just ordered a new primary vehicle and I am getting bluetooth installed in that car but I am in that car about 6 hrs a day.

Sorry for the rambling

Nice

PS. Bluetooth Enable Devices .....
Sony Eric T610
Motorola HS810
Sony Clie UX50 ..... RIP being replaced with Dell Axim X50v
Logitech diNovo Keyboards & Mouse
Uconnect ( MoPar in car bluetooth )

 

If the aftermarket HU has ISO connectors in back (the MINI's don't) or if there is an adapter to go from an ISO connector to whatever connector is in the back of your HU than you should be all set with a Sony kit...

It might also help if your aftermarket HU also has a phone mute connector too.

Most of the Bluetooth car kits out there will work for you, it's more a question of what your headunit is than anything else...

 

Thanks for the info mbabischkin
I have an Alpine 7998 which I think has a phone mute button as well as internal phone book and other feature that are going unused. Looks like I will have to locate it's instruction manual.

Nice

 

Sorry Mike, but that quote needs line needs to modified a bit... It should read: "Bluetooth is cool, I need more USEFUL Bluetooth enabled devices!"

I mean can somebody tell me why anybody needs a Bluetooth 56k Modem?!?!?! How about Bluetooth printing? If you need to print wirelessly that much, a WiFi enabled print server is cheaper and faster. Besides how many people that you know of actually print documents off of a PocketPC or Palm device? Bluetooth keyboard and Mouse? Again what's the benefit over a cheaper RF device, especially since bluetooth runs on that same popular 2.4GHz range that WiFi, Cordless Phones, and microwaves use?

Bluetooth is fantastic for phones, for handsfree kits, tethering PDA's to phones and maybe wirelessly syncing handheld devices... I love the fact that the Bluetooth radio in my PPC has very little impact on my battery, as opposed to the WiFi card which can kill an iPaq 4155 battery in 60 minutes or less. But I can't find anything else that you can do with Bluetooth that some other technology can't do cheaper, faster, or better. I've been looking...

 

So, thanks to Mikey, I've had my S-E HCB-300 installed for a couple of weeks now. It works ok, but people on the other end complain about how awful I sound. "Echoey", "Distorted", and "Distant" come to mind. I have the microphone mounted between my tacho and speedo (I have NAV) on the top of my steering colum. I know I need to play with different mounting positions, but has anyone had good luck with anyplace in particular. Given the complaints of my callers, I am afraid that in the headliner by the sunroof switch may not make a big enought difference.

Any other suggestions? Maybe there is a better microphone I could be using?

Thanks.

Steve

 

My microphone is up on the headliner my the base of the rearview mirror. I've had no complaints and when I've received calls using it, it's sounded fine.

 

I have fitted lots by the mirror or top of the a pillar

 

I got the BT buttons on my '05 MCS's steering wheel. I was told that all I needed was a BT phone and to program it. Is this so?

 

No it's not. You also need the MINI Bluetooth kit that is compatible with those buttons. Rumor has it that kit will be out this summer