Mobile Fun Blog

Top 10 HTC Touch Diamond2 Accessories

Monday, September 28th, 2009

HTC Touch Diamond2

The HTC Touch Diamond2 has changed considerably compared to the original HTC Touch Diamond, so if you’re upgrading to the Touch Diamond2 not all of your accessories are going to work with it. Although the handset has put on a bit of weight, it’s mostly for the better as the screen is now a much more user friendly 3.2″ compared to 2.8″ on the original Touch Diamond, the camera resolution has been increased, and it’s finally got support for memory cards.

The Touch Diamond 2 is one of a few handsets that will support Windows Mobile 6.5, the all new operating system from Microsoft that aims to be more ‘finger friendly’ and give the iPhone a run for it’s money.

If you’ve got the Touch Diamond2, you’re going to want to make the most of all of it’s features, and to do that you’ll need to invest in a few extra accessories, so to help you find the best ones, I’ve compiled my list of the top 10 accessories for the  HTC Touch Diamond2.

1. FlexiShield Skin For The HTC Touch Diamond2

If you’re not one for leather cases, or you want a case that is a bit more practical then a FlexiShield Skin will probably suit you better. FlexiShield Skins for the HTC Touch Diamond2 are thicker and tougher than standard Silicone Cases and will certainly give your phone more bounce if you drop it! It has a non slip feel to it and covers all of the back of the handset, leaving the camera free for you to take your photos. The FlexiShield doesn’t cover the screen though, so you’ll need to buy a Touch Diamond2 screen protector to prevent your screen from getting scratched.

Touch Diamond2 Flexishield Skin

2. Martin Fields Screen Protector – HTC Touch Diamond2

The last thing you’re going to want to do the the screen of your new phone is scratch it. Martin Fields screen protectors are the best quality screen protectors you can get for your Touch Diamond2. They’re precision cut to size and can be removed easily and leave no residue behind. They’re re-usable too, so if it ever gets dirty, just take it off, run it under the tap and re-fit it.

Martin Fields Screen Protector for Touch Diamond2

3. Tuff-Luv Leather Case For HTC Touch Diamond2

Tuff Luv are new to Mobile Fun, but they make some great cases for phones, netbooks & laptops. The Tuff Luv case for the HTC Touch Diamond2 is a flip style leather case that holds your phone securely in place without needing a plastic cover over the screen or keyboard. The case is closed using a magnetic fastening and it has a removable belt clip on the back. Your camera can still be accessed by folding the front cover back on itself.

Tuff-Luv Leather Case For HTC Touch Diamond2

4. HTC C100 Car Charger

Battery life is never great on a touch screen smartphone so a car charger is a worthwhile investment. The genuine HTC Touch Diamond2 Car charger will work in both 12v and 24v vehicles (Cars, Lorries and Trucks). It has a Mini USB connection so will work with all Mini USB devices. Find out more about HTC Chargers.

HTC C100 Car Charger

5. SanDisk Micro SDHC Card – 16GB

Using a SanDisk 16GB Memory Card will allow you to store even more music, games, photos and videos on your Touch Diamond2. Images taken using the 5MP Camera will take up more space, so more memory is a must. A 16GB memory card will let you store over 6000 high quality photos, 3000 songs or 80 hours of video. A 16GB card is the largest memory card that is currently available.

SanDisk MicroSDHC Card - 16GB

6. HTC Touch Diamond2 Sync & Charge Cradle

Charge or synchronise your HTC Touch Diamond2 simply by placing it on the HTC CR G300 stand. You can plug the desktop cradle into a home stereo system with a line in or AUX connector via the cradle’s 3.5mm line out connection to enjoy high quality music playback.

HTC Touch Diamond2 Sync & Charge Cradle

7. Jawbone Prime Bluetooth Headset

One of the best Windows Smartphones deserves one of the best Bluetooth Headsets and that’s exactly what the Jawbone Prime is. It uses a ‘voice activity sensor’ to help make your voice stand out. This sensor sits on your cheek and picks up vibrations as you speak. It then uses this information with the sounds picked up from the two microphones to eliminate almost all background noise. The Jawbone Prime  adds multipoint and it doesn’t rely on the voice sensor making contact with your face like previous models do. The Prime has been improved so that you still get excellent results even when the headset isn’t touching you. When it is making contact it gives the noise reduction a boost, improving the audio quality further. Jawbone Prime are available in a wider range of colours too. Named ‘Ear Candy’ the Jawbone Prime is available in Black, White, Yellow, Brown, Red, Green & Purple.

Jawbone PRIME Bluetooth Headset

8. Jabra Halo Stereo Bluetooth Headset

The Jabra Halo Stereo Bluetooth Headset is the latest stereo headset to be released, and to be honest its probably the best one yet. It has incredibly simple controls – a touch sensitive slider on the right ear lets you adjust the volume by sliding your finger up or down, where as a double tap will skip the track. One multi use button lets you play/pause your music as well as answer/end calls and activate voice dialling. When they’re not in use, the headphones fold away so as not to take up too much space and to reduce the chance of them getting damaged. If you want to know more take a look at my Jabra Halo hands on review.

Jabra Halo Bluetooth Headphones

9. Brodit Passive Holder with Tilt Swivel

Brodit Holders are phone-specific cradles that will hold your HTC Touch Diamond2 securely in the car and have cut outs that allow you to charge your phone while it’s in the holder. They are made from a strong ABS plastic and are designed to be screwed onto your dashboard, although if you don’t fancy doing this you can use a Brodit ProClip. These are secure mounting pads that clip on to your dashboard and can be removed without causing any damage to your vehicle. ProClips provide an ideal base for fixing a Brodit holder on to.

Brodit Passive Holder with Tilt Swivel

10. Parrot MKi9000 Bluetooth Car Kit

Parrot have always made fantastic car kits and the Mki range are no exception. There are three options available, the MKi9000, Mki9100 and the Mki9200. The main differences between them being the display screen that comes with them. I’ve chosen the MKi9000 as the best one for the HTC Touch Diamond2 as you don’t need an external screen as well as the 3.2″ screen on the phone. You can play music from your phone through the MKi9000 using Bluetooth. The Mki9000 will synchronise with your phone book, and supports voice dialling. There is also a small remote that you can attach to your dash or steering wheel to control your music. Regular software updates that improve compatibility with your phone are available free of charge from the Parrot website.

Parrot MKi9000 Bluetooth Car Kit

So that’s my top ten for the HTC Touch Diamond2 – It’s not all of the accessories available, just our most popular ones. If you haven’t seen an accessory here that does what you want, then take a look at our full range of HTC Touch Diamond2 accessories. If you’ve seen something that you think should be in our top 10, let us know by leaving a comment below.

Top 10 Accessories for the Nokia 6600i Slide

Friday, September 25th, 2009

The Nokia 6600i Slide is a great little phone that is perfect for those that want a simple, compact, no frills handset. To keep your handset looking its best and to really make the most of all of its features there are a number of accessories you can treat yourself to, but with such a wide range of accessories such as Cases, Chargers and Car Kits available, choosing the right ones for you can be a bit of a minefield.

To help you decide on the accessories that you need, we’ve compiled a list of our top 10 Nokia 6600i Slide Accessories.

1. PDair Case for Nokia 6600i Slide

PDair cases are a range of elegant, hand stitched leather cases designed to protect and enhance your Nokia 6600i Slide. Each case is hand made from premium leather cuts and is individually designed to give a perfect fit to your phone. PDair cases are available in a range of styles to suit all tastes, but this is by far the most popular for the 6600i as the sliding mechanism makes it very difficult for other styles of case to fit the phone well. Due to high demand for PDair cases availability is often limited, so if we’re showing as having these in stock you’ll need to order one quickly as they can sometimes take weeks to come back into stock!

PDair Leather Pouch Case - Nokia 6600i Slide

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Top 10 Samsung Tocco Lite Accessories

Friday, September 25th, 2009

The Samsung Tocco Lite is proving to be an incredibly popular phone. It’s easy to use touch screen, music player and 3 megapixel camera make it a great all round phone. To keep your handset looking its best and to really make the most of all of its features there are a number of accessories you can treat yourself to, but with such a wide range of accessories such as Cases, Chargers and Car Kits available, choosing the right ones for you can be a bit of a minefield.

To help you decide on the accessories that you need, we’ve compiled a list of our top 10 Samsung Tocco Lite Accessories.

1. Samsung Tocco Lite Premium Flip Case

The Premium Flip Case is different to most cases for the Tocco Lite as it actually attaches on to your phone. The back of the case replaces your existing battery cover and provides a secure fit. The front flip protects your screen and can be easily folded away when not in use.

Genuine Samsung Tocco lite Premium Flip Case

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Top 10 Accessories for the Nokia 6303

Friday, September 25th, 2009

The Nokia 6303 is a great little phone that is perfect for those that want a simple, no frills handset and if you’ve been using a Nokia 3110, 6230i or 6300 for the past few years then this should almost certainly be your next handset. The 6303 Classic is available in Black and Matt Silver. To keep your handset looking its best and to really make the most of all of its features there are a number of accessories you can treat yourself to, but with such a wide range of accessories such as Cases, Chargers and Car Kits available, choosing the right ones for you can be a bit of a minefield.

To help you decide on the accessories that you need, we’ve compiled a list of our top 10 Nokia 6303 Classic Accessories.

1. Krusell Classic Case for the Nokia 6303

The Krusell Classic case for the Nokia 6303 is a phone specific case that allows you to use the phone without removing it from the case. There is no chance of your phone falling out of the case either, as the case is closed with a zip. The full plastic cover makes this case ideal for those working in dirty/dusty environments. The rear of the case has a fold down cover that protects the camera lens from dirt and scratches and a Multidapt clip that allows you to attach different mounting clips. A belt clip is included as standard.

Nokia 6303 Classic Krusell Classic Leather Case

2. Martin Fields Screen Protector – Nokia 6303

The last thing you’re going to want to do the the screen of your new phone is scratch it. Martin Fields are the best quality screen protector you can get for your phone. They’re precision cut to size and can be removed easily and leave no residue behind. They’re re-usable too, so if it ever gets dirty, just take it off, run it under the tap and re-fit it. The twin pack is the better buy as it’s just £2 more than buying one.

Martin Fields Screen Protector - Nokia 6303 Classic

3. Nokia DC-4 Car Charger

Keeping your phone charged on the move is easy with the Nokia DC-4 Car Charger. It features a tangle proof cable, LED indicator and will stop charging your phone once the battery is full. The DC-4 Car Charger will work in Cars, Vans and Trucks (12v & 24v).

Nokia DC-4 Car Charger

4. MicroSD HC 4GB Memory Card

Using a 4GB Memory Card will allow you to store even more music, games, photos and videos on your Nokia 6303. Images taken using the 3MP Camera will take up more space than they would have done on the 3110 or 6300, so more memory is a must. A 4GB memory card will let you store over 2200 high quality photos, 750 songs or 20 hours of video. A 4GB card is the largest memory card that the Nokia 6303 will officially support.

MicroSDHC Memory Card - 4GB

5. Nokia CA-101 Micro USB Data Cable

The Nokia 6303 does come with a data cable, but for some bizarre reason it’s ridiculously short and is only about 6 inches long. While this might be great if you use a laptop with USB ports on the side, if you use a PC or your USB ports are at the back of your laptop it’s going to make connecting your phone extremely difficult. The Nokia CA-101 data cable is the same as the one that came with your phone, but is around 3 feet long.

Nokia Connectivity Cable CA-101

6. Jabra BT530 Bluetooth Headset

The BT-530 is a fantastic Bluetooth Headset from Jabra that packs in a lot of features. As well as having 2 noise cancelling microphones, the Jabra BT530 has intelligent volume controls that will automatically increase the volume when you enter a noisy environment and support for multipoint – this allows you to use the headset with two mobile phones at the same time (Read our post on ‘What is Multipoint‘).

Jabra BT530 Bluetooth Headset

7. Nokia Bluetooth GPS Receiver LD-4W

One of the more advanced features on the Nokia 6303 is that it can be used as a Sat Nav device and comes with Nokia Maps pre-installed – all you need to make the most of it is a Bluetooth GPS receiver so that your phone knows where you are. The LD-4W is designed to work perfectly with the Nokia 6303. It has a long life battery and uses the same charger as your phone. Nokia Maps is free to use for route planning and basic navigation, but for full turn by turn voice navigation you’ll need to purchase a UK Drive and Walk License. The license is available from us for around £40, purchasing the same license through your phone will set you back over £60.

Turn your phone into a sat nav unit with a GPS receiver and Nokia Maps

8. Nokia HF-310 Bluetooth Car Kit

Nokia have always produced fantastic fitted car kits but their plug & play car kits have been good, but not really anything to shout about. The Nokia HF-310 changes all that.  It’s a lightweight, compact Bluetooth Car Kit that can be used in the car, at home or in the office. It’s incredibly easy to use, with just one button to answer and end calls, activate voice dialling or redial the last number you called. Even adjusting the volume is simple – it’s just a case of rotating the outer dial. For more info on the HF-310 take a look at my Nokia HF-310 review.

Nokia HF-310 Bluetooth Car Kit

9. Brodit Passive Holder With Tilt Swivel – Nokia 6303 Classic

These are phone-specific cradles that will hold your 6303 securely in the car and have cut outs that allow you to charge your phone while it’s in the holder. They are made from a strong ABS plastic and are designed to be screwed onto your dashboard, although if you don’t fancy doing this you can use a Brodit ProClip. These are secure mounting pads that clip on to your dashboard and can be removed without causing any damage to your vehicle. ProClips provide an ideal base for fixing a Brodit holder on to.

Brodit Passive Holder With Tilt Swivel - Nokia 6303 Classic

10. Nokia CK-100 Fully Fitted Bluetooth Car Kit

The Nokia CK-100 is the replacement for the aging Nokia CK-7, and at first glance isn’t that different, but if you look closer, there are a few big additions to the CK-100. The most noticeable is that it supports music playback as well as calls so now you can stream your MP3’s from your phone through your car speakers in stereo without having to buy any additional cables. Installation is now quicker and easier too. It’s a really easy to use kit, and if you spend a lot of time in the car and need to use your phone, then you  can’t go wrong with the CK-100.  There are now 3 fully fitted car kits in the Nokia range, the Ck-100 is the entry level kit, so if you want something a bit more advanced, take a look at the Nokia CK-300 or Nokia CK-600.  For an overview of the differences between them, take a look at my guide to Nokia Car Kits.

Nokia CK-100 Bluetooth Car Kit

This isn’t the full range of accessories, just a selection of the ones that we think do the best job of enhancing your phone. If you’ve not seen the accessory here that’s right for you, then take a look at our full range of Nokia 6303 Classic Accessories.

Top 10 HTC Hero Accessories

Friday, September 25th, 2009

The HTC Hero is the most highly anticipated Android handset to be released.  Not only because it’s only the third handset to be released running the new operating system from Google, but because this one is available without network or Google branding. Instead, HTC have put their own interface on top of the Android operating system to make it easier to use and improve how the menu system looks.

There’s no doubt that the Hero is going to be an incredibly popular handset this summer, and if you’ve invested in one, you’re going to want to keep it looking at its best and working to it’s full potential. To do that you’re going to need a few accessories, but with such a wide range of Cases, Chargers and Car Kits available, choosing the right ones for your phone can be a bit of a minefield.

To help you decide on the accessories that you need, we’ve compiled a list of our top 10 HTC Hero Accessories.

1. HTC Hero C300 Leather Carry Case

The Hero is a smart looking phone that needs a smart looking case.  The C300 has been designed to fit most HTC smart phones. It has cut outs for your charger and handsfree/headphones, as well as a hole in the bottom to make it easier to push your phone out.  It’s made from a high quality leather with grey stitching and a soft suede lining that helps to keep your screen fingerprint free.  The front of the case has been toughened to give your screen extra protection against crush and impact damage. On the back, the case has a couple of mounting options. The first is a sprung belt clip that allows you to attach it and remove it from your belt quickly and easily, the other is two stitched belt loops that allow you to keep the case on your belt permanently with no chance of it falling off. The HTC C300 is available on its own, or as part of the HTC Hero Gift Box.

HTC Hero C300 Case

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Top 10 Cases for the HTC Touch Diamond2

Thursday, September 24th, 2009

HTC Touch Diamond2

The HTC Touch Diamond2 has put on a bit of weight compared to the original HTC Touch Diamond, so if you’re upgrading to the Diamond 2 and planning on using the same case for it, you’re out of luck as the phone is considerably bigger – but in a good way. The screen is now a much more user friendly 3.2″ compared to 2.8″ on the original Touch Diamond, the camera resolution has been increased, and it’s finally got support for memory cards.

With the Touch Diamond 2 being one of a few handsets that will support Windows Mobile 6.5 – the all new operating system from Microsoft that aims to be more ‘finger friendly’ and give the iPhone a run for it’s money.

If you’ve got the Touch Diamond2, you’re going to want to keep it safe and protected against knocks and drops. A protective case is the best way to look after your phone, so to help you find the right case, I’ve put together this quick guide to the best cases for the HTC Diamond2.

1. Tuff-Luv Case for HTC Touch Diamond2

Tuff Luv are new to Mobile Fun, but they make some great cases for phones, netbooks & laptops. The Tuff Luv case for the HTC Touch Diamond2 is a flip style leather case that holds your phone securely in place without needing a plastic cover over the screen or keyboard. The case is closed using a magnetic fastening and it has a removable belt clip on the back. Your camera can still be accessed by folding the front cover back on itself.

Tuff-Luv case for the HTC Touch Diamond2

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How to Sync your contacts to your car kit

Monday, September 14th, 2009

More and more Bluetooth Car kits now support phone book synchronisation – this is where all the phone numbers stored on your phone are copied to the car kit. It’s a handy feature to have, although the benefits may not be all that obvious.

By having your numbers stored on the car kit, it means that kits that support Caller ID can show you the name of the person calling instead of just the number – what’s more, if your car kit supports TTS (Text to Speech) it can also call out the name of the person that’s calling you.

Another great benefit of having a car kit with phone book sync is that some of them will support voice dialling. Now you’re right for thinking that a lot of phones already support voice dialling, and you’re right, but what I mean here is that the car kit itself handles the voice dialling rather than your phone.

On a standard Bluetooth Car Kit, when you activate voice dialling, you press a button on the kit that then puts your phone into listening mode. Your phone then tries to match what you’ve said against either a pre-recorded voice tag or automatically match it to a name in your phonebook – often getting it wrong as the increased wind & road noise can distort what you say.

iPhone and Parrot Minikit Slim

With some car kits that with phonebook sync and voice dialling, it’s the car kit that listens to your voice and matches it to a name or number stored in it and it then tells your phone to dial that number. As the car kit is optimised to reduce wind and road noise, you get a more reliable match and less mis-dialled numbers. The great news with this though is that your phone doesn’t have to support voice dialling in order for this to work and it even works on the iPhone.

Syncing your contacts

Without getting too technical, there are two ways that your contacts can be transferred to your car kit – each using a  different Bluetooth profile. Profiles are predefined ways in which two Bluetooth devices talk to each other. One method uses the OPP (object push profile), the other is the PBAP (phonebook access profile). Which one you use depends on your phone and car kit.

OPP (object push profile) is used to receive contacts that are ‘pushed’ to it from a phone. Syncing your contacts to a car kit that uses the OPP profile needs to be done manually and normally involves putting the car kit into ‘receiving mode’ and sending your contacts over one by one or, if your phone supports it, all in one go. To update a contact you’ll need to delete the entry from the car kit and then send the updated contact to the car kit.

PBAP (phonebook access profile) works very differently. Rather than you having to send your contacts to it, the kit connects to the phone and retrieves the contacts from it automatically. Any changes that you make to a contact will be transferred to the car kit the next time your phone is connected. Depending on your phone, you can normally specify which contacts and call logs are synchronised with your kit too.

Of the two, PBAP is the easiest way to sync your contacts, but as the PBAP is a newer Bluetooth Profile some older car kits and phones don’t support it.

Compatibility

In order for you to be able to sync your contacts both your phone and car kit will need to support the same Bluetooth Profile. If you have a phone that only supports the PBAP such as the iPhone 3G, and a car kit that only supports OPP you’re going to have problems. The iPhone will be waiting for the car kit to read the contacts, and the car kit will be waiting for the phone to send the contacts over. Eventually both devices will time out and no contacts will be transferred. If you’ve got this type of kit, you’ll still be able to use the kit for calls and last number redial, but that’s all.

Parrot Kits

From personal experience, I’ve found that Parrot out-perform every other car kit manufacturer when it comes to phone book synchronisation and the additional features that come with it, so if you’re after a kit that will sync easily and give you all the extra features that I mentioned above then take a look at the ones listed below.

Simple Car Kits

Parrot make a couple of simple car kits, but they’re actually both the same – they just look a little bit different. The Parrot Minikit Slim and Minikit Chic are both slim, portable car kits that can pair with up to 5 phones. They support both the OPP and PBAP profiles, so you shouldn’t have a problem in synchronising your phone book with them. The Parrot Minikit Slim/Chic can store up to 1000 contacts per phone (maximum of 2500 for all phones) and has text to speech synthesis to read out the callers name when you receive a call. Unlike most kits, the Minikit Slim/Chic doesn’t have a speaker, instead it has a vibrating panel for improved audio.

Parrot Minikit Slim & Minikit Chic

Fitted Car Kits

The fitted car kits from Parrot are just as good as the portable ones, if not better. As they’re wired into your car, you get much better audio quality as they route the call audio through your existing car stereo speakers as standard, not only that but they are also designed to work really well with the music player on your phone or a stand alone MP3 player or iPod. Each kit has support for streaming your music in stereo over Bluetooth as well as a dock connector for iPhones and iPods, a 3.5mm line in cable and a USB port for flash memory MP3 players. The current range is based around one model with a few noticeable differences between each of the kits.

Parrot MKi9000 Bluetooth Car Kit

The Parrot MKi9000 is the kit that the next two models are based on. The kit is fitted completely out of sight behind your dashboard and is operated through a small remote (shown above) that can be attached to your dashboard or steering wheel. The MKi range of kits all support both the OPP and PBAP profiles for maximum compatibility with handsets. If your phone supports PBAP, the first time you pair your phone, your entire phone book will be transferred over to the kit. Everytime you connect your phone, the car kit will then check for any updates and download them automatically. The kit also features phone independent voice dialling, so to make a call, press the green button and say the name of the person you want to call. If you have multiple numbers for a contact, you’ll be asked by the kit whether you want to call them at home, on their mobile at work etc. As there is no screen on the MKi9000, all the menus are voice-driven and the car kit will talk back to you as you scroll through them. If you don’t want to use voice dialling, or aren’t sure what a contact is saved as, you can manually scroll through the phonebook using the remote control, with the kit reading out the names of your contacts as you go through. The MKi9000 is better suited to touch screen or large screen handsets as the kit itself has no display.

Parrot MKi9100 Bluetooth Car Kit

The Parrot MKi9100 is exactly the same kit as the MKi9000, but with the addition of a 2 line OLED screen it means you can keep your phone out of sight and still access some of the menu’s on it. The MKi9100 supports OPP and PBAP so your contacts will synchronise in the same way, but by having a screen it means that you can scroll through them visually, rather than have to listen to the car kit read them out to you.

Parrot MKi9200 Bluetooth Car Kit

The last one in the range is the Parrot MKi9200. Again its the same basic kit as the MKi9000 but with a 2.4″ colour screen. The bigger screen obviously makes it easier to scroll through your phone book, but it can also show you album art and detailed information on the song that is currently being played from your phone or iPod. On the back of the screen there is an SDHC memory card reader that can handle cards upto 32GB in size – so depending on how much music you own, you could carry your entire music library with you all the time. The screen is detachable and can be removed easily.

There are other car kits that support phone book synchronisation – I’ve listed a few below, but these don’t have all the extra features that the Parrot ones do – and the voice dialling features are all phone dependent.

• Advanced Bluetooth Visor Car Kit – Supports OPP only
• Movon MK20 – Supports OPP only
• Supertooth Visor Voice – Supports PBAP
• Sony Ericsson HCB-150 – Supports PBAP

A guide to the best Professionally Installed Car Kits

Monday, September 7th, 2009

If you spend a reasonable amount of time in the car use your phone for calls, listening to music or for GPS Navigation while you’re driving, then a hands free car kit is essential.  Over recent years, the number of ’self install’ or ‘plug and play’ car kits available has increased considerably, but while they may be a great low cost, portable solution, they can’t compete with the audio quality, ease of use and reliability of a fully installed car kit that is integrated with your vehicle.

In the earlier days of mobile phones, the King of the Car Kits was the Nokia CARK-91, almost every fleet car had one fitted but then along came Bluetooth, changing Car Kits forever. You no longer needed bulky cradles or holders attached to your dashboards, external aerials and speakers became unnecessary  and car kits started to get smarter.

Modern Bluetooth car kits can do much more than just play your calls through a speaker. Car kits can now route audio from your calls through your car stereo without the need for adapters or extra cables, play music from your phone through the stereo, store your phonebook, add voice dialling capabilities, connect to MP3 players and Sat Nav units and much more. Bluetooth car kits are more flexible too, they work with any make of handset, where as older car kits with cradles generally only work with just one manufacturer – THB car kits being the only exception to this.

To help make choosing the right professionally installed car kit a bit easier for you, I’ve been through our range of car kits and listed 5 of the best below.

Nokia CK-300

The Nokia CK-300 is a mid-range Bluetooth car kit from Nokia and with the right phone can be a very powerful accessory. All you see on your dashboard is a small remote control that has a rotating dial and 4 well spaced buttons which make it extremely easy to use. The CK-300 is designed to work best with Nokia S60 handsets (N-Series and E-Series). On it’s own, it can connect to your phone to answer and end calls, stream music in stereo over bluetooth and can also be connected to any music player that has a 3.5mm headphone socket.

Nokia CK-300 Bluetooth Car Kit

To really make the most of the kit though, you can download and install the Nokia Car Menu Application which will then make your phone an integral part of the car kit. You can use the remote control on the car kit to access pretty most of the main applications on your phone, including the phone book, email inbox, music library, Nokia Maps, call logs and settings. If your phone supports it, you can then get the car kit to read out text messages and emails while you’re driving using text to speech technology.

Installation of the car kit has been improved too. It no longer needs to be wired into the ignition of your car as a built in motion sensor will turn the kit on when the car is moving.  It’s a neater installation too as there is no external speaker on the CK-300 – it connects directly to the back of your car stereo and plays all audio through your existing speakers (Non ISO car stereos may require an extra cable). Nokia handsets with a 2mm charging port can be charged from the car kit as it has a 2mm charging cable, other handsets will need a separate car charger. If you want to know more about the CK-300 I covered this kit in detail on my post a couple of weeks ago when I wrote my guide to Nokia Car Kits.

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Got 2 phones? Here’s how to save on accessories

Monday, August 24th, 2009

There was a time when a mobile phone was considered a luxury, but for most of us they’re now a necessity that we can’t live without. So much so, that many of us now have two or more phones. Often though, the decision to carry a second phone isn’t ours – although from past experience I know how tempting it can be to take out a second contract just to get the latest handsets!

Carry two phones around with you?

The majority of people that carry two phones do so because their employer has provided them with a phone or BlackBerry to help make their work life easier and to ensure that they’re contactable 24/7, although I’ve got several friends that have one phone for calls and a different one for texts as it works out cheaper. Using more than one phone can have it’s benefits, but at the same time it can be a bit of a nightmare when it comes to charging – I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve been away with work in the past and only taken one charger with me, only to find that it’s not the right one for my work phone.

Using your phone safely in the car can be a challenge too. Using two wired handsfree kits can be dangerous and if you use a Bluetooth Headset or Bluetooth car kit, how do you know which phone to connect them to as there is no way of knowing in advance which phone is going to ring.

Accessory manufacturers are aware of the problems people have when it comes to charging multiple devices or using them handsfree and are starting to produce accessories that are designed to make these two simple tasks much simpler. The best accessories that are currently available for those who two phones include: Desk Chargers, Mains Chargers, Car Chargers, Portable Chargers, Bluetooth Car Kits, Car Holders, Bluetooth Headsets & Stereo Bluetooth Headsets.

Charging

Earlier this year all the major phone manufacturers agreed to start using the same Micro USB charging port on all of their new handsets. This is great news as it means that going forward you’ll only ever need one charger. The downside is that it’s probably going to take a couple of years for this to filter through to all handsets on the market. In the mean time though, there are a number of solutions available that will allow you to charge several devices using just one charger.

Idapt Desk Chargers
The Idapt Desktop Charger is made up of a charging base and interchangeable charging adapters. You get 6 in the box to start you off and can buy additional ones as and when you need them. The charger is designed to be simple to use, you just stand your phone up on the relevant charging adapter. Most handsets will charge in an upright position but if the charging port is on the side of your phone then your phone will need to lie on it’s side to charge. You can use Idapt to charge several types of devices too – not just mobile phones. Charging adapters are included for iPods and portable games consoles, and the Mini USB connection means that you can charge most Sat Nav units too. The Idapt chargers take up a relatively small amount of desk space, and needs just one power socket to charge up to 3 devices.

Idapt I2 and I3 Universal Desktop Chargers

The charger is available in two sizes – the Idapt I3 desktop charger has 3 charging ports and the Idapt I2 desktop charger has 2 charging ports. Adapters are available for LG, Mini USB, Nokia 2mm, Micro USB, iPod & iPhone, Nintendo DS Lite, Sony Ericsson and Samsung.

Bluelounge Refresh
The Bluelounge Refresh is a similar concept to the Idapt, but rather than having fixed charging adapters that you have to stand your phone onto, it has 6 charging cables hidden under its base – two iPod & iPhone, one Micro USB, one Mini USB and two standard USB ports that you’d find on a PC or laptop. The point of these is that you can use your existing USB data cable to charge any phone without having to buy any additional adapters. It also means that you can charge any device that supports USB charging – Bluetooth Headsets, portable games consoles, sat nav units. The base of the Refresh lifts up and there is space underneath for you to store any excess cables.

Bluelounge Refresh Charging Hub in White

The Bluelounge Refresh is available in White, Black & Pink and is covered in more depth on our blog post from last week.

Mains Chargers

If you’re a frequent traveller, carrying around a bag full of chargers can be a bit of a pain. They take up extra space & weight in your luggage and you can almost guarantee you’ll leave at least one behind in the hotel. There is a way round this though. The 5 Port USB World Charger is a great alternative to carrying around a bag full of chargers. It’s a mains charger that has swappable US, EU, UK and Australian plugs and has 5 USB ports to charge all your devices in one go – 4 on the front and a hidden one on a short lead. You will of course need to make sure that you pack the USB cable for your phone, but they take up a lot less space than a normal charger. the charger has overheat, short circuit and over charge protection built in and will automatically adjust for all voltages. Its small design means that it can be left in your laptop bag so that it’s with you when you need it.

5 Port USB World Charger

Car Chargers

The Travelwise Universal Car Charger won’t let you charge two phones at the same time, but it will save you from having two separate car chargers. It has a changeable tip that you can change to suit your phone. To keep all the charger tips together, the Travelwise charger has a built in compartment to store them when they’re not in use. The Travelwise charger includes charging tips for Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Samsung, BlackBerry phones.

Travelwise Universal Car Charger

Unlike the Travelwise, this Twin USB Car Charger can be used to charge two phones at the same time while still leaving your cigarette lighter free for anything else that needs to charge in the car. The charger has 2 USB ports that you can use to charge any device that supports USB charging. The USB cables aren’t included with the charger but most phones come with one included.

Twin USB and Cigarette Car Charger Adaptor

Portable Chargers

If you don’t have access to plug sockets or car chargers through out the day but are finding that your phones just aren’t lasting long enough, then the Nokia DC-11 Extra Power could be just what you need. The DC11 is a portable, high powered battery with built in charging cables and can power 2 devices at the same time – one with a Nokia 2mm adapter and one with a Micro USB connector (Nokia, some Samsung & newer BlackBerry phones). A full charge should take around 3 hours, but you’ll be able to use your phone while it’s charging.

Nokia DC-11 Extra Power

Bluetooth Handsfree

Bluetooth is the easiest way of using your phone ‘handsfree’, but if you’ve got two phones it either means buying two headsets or having to manually connect to each phone in turn when you want to make a call – or at least it used to. Multipoint technology in mobile phones is becoming much more common now and allows you to use the same bluetooth headset or car kit with two phones at the same time. Using a multipoint Bluetooth headset is no different to using a normal bluetooth headset, and when a call comes in the headset will connect to the appropriate phone without you having to do anything.

When it comes to using your phones in the car, you’ve got three options, a Bluetooth Headset, a Bluetooth Speakerphone or a fully fitted Bluetooth Car Kit. Personally I’ve always preferred a fully fitted kit, but as they don’t currently support multipoint you’ll have to constantly swap between phones, something that’s not particularly easy to do when you’re driving and could be quite distracting. For this reason, if you carry two phones around with you and want to be able to use them safely and legally in the car then you should invest in a multipoint Bluetooth Speakerphone or Bluetooth Headset. The best ones are listed below.

Bluetooth Speakerphones

The Supertooth Visor One Bluetooth Car Kit allows you to use both phones at the same time and will automatically connect to which ever phone receives or makes a call. It has a voice recognition system that lets you answer your calls just by saying “OK”. The Visor One also supports voice dialling and can play music from your mobile phone too – although not in stereo.

Supertooth Visor One

The DualPhone Bluetooth Car Kit is a simple to use Bluetooth car kit – similar in many ways to the popular Clip and Talk Bluetooth Car Kit, but with the added bonus of being able to connect to two phones at the same time. The Dualphone Car kit supports last number redial, voice dial (if your phone supports it).

Dualphone Bluetooth Car Kit

The Movon Bluetooth Car Kit MK30 is a compact car kit that has a number of features that you’d normally expect to find on a much more expensive kit. It has an OLED display that will show you who is calling and Text to Speech software will call out the callers name or number too.

Movon MK30 Bluetooth Car Kit

Car Holders
Before I move on to Bluetooth Accessories, there is one more accessory for use in the car that I think deserves a mention and that’s the Brodit Double Tilt Swivel Holder.

I’ve been a big fan of Brodit ProClips and Car Holders for a long time – for those that have not come across them before, ProClips are brackets that clip onto various parts of your dashboard with out damaging it and provide a firm, flat base for you to screw a car holder into. They’re a much better option than drilling holes into your dashboard and can be removed easily when you change car.

Mount 2 phones using a Brodit ProClip, a Dual Mount & 2 Passive holders

The Double Holder fixes onto a ProClip in your car and allows you to attach 2 seperate phone holders on to it. As both mounting plates have a tilt swivel fixing, it means that you can angle them to suit your driving position.

This is the most secure option there is for mounting your phone in the car, the only slight downside is that because you need 4 seperate parts it’s not the cheapest but if you spend a lot of time on the road and need to be able to see both your phones quickly and easily then this is well worth the investment.

Bluetooth Headsets

There are two types of Bluetooth Headset available, Mono and Stereo. Mono Bluetooth headsets are worn on one ear and are great if you only want to use them for calls, where as Stereo Bluetooth Headsets are worn on two ears, look more like headphones and have a built in microphone. Stereo Headsets are perfect if you want to be able to listen to music from your phone, MP3 player or PC and still be able to take calls.

Top Multipoint Bluetooth Headsets

The Jabra BT530 Bluetooth Headset is a fantastic Bluetooth Headset that packs a lot of features into a really small device. As well as having 2 noise cancelling microphones, the Jabra BT530 has intelligent volume controls that will automatically increase the volume when you enter a noisy environment. Simple and easy to use controls make using this headset a pleasure, and as it’s multipoint, you can answer calls quickly and easily regardless of which phone starts to ring.

Jabra BT530 Bluetooth Headset

The Plantronics Voyager Pro Bluetooth Headset is quite a heavy duty headset, so if you’re on the road all day and need something that’s going to be comfortable, exceptionally clear and work with both your work and personal phone, I don’t think you’ll do any better than the Voyager Pro. It has dual microphones to eliminate background noise, protection against wind noise, and Audio IQ technology to make every call crystal clear.

Plantronics Voyager Pro

The Jawbone Prime Bluetooth Headset is a very powerful headset. It’s the third headset in the ‘Noise Assassin’ range and is the first Jawbone headset to support Mulitpoint. At first glance it looks similar the the previous Jawbone, on the inside it’s quite different. It has a vibration sensor that sits against your cheek while you’re wearing it, but the noise reduction technology has been improved so that even when the sensor isn’t touching your face you can still be heard clearly – even in the noisiest of environments.

Jawbone Prime Bluetooth Headset

All three of the Bluetooth Headsets listed here were featured in our recent Top 10 Noise Cancelling Bluetooth Headsets post.

Top Multipoint Stereo Bluetooth Headsets

Stereo Bluetooth Headsets are becoming increasingly popular now that most of us are using our mobile phones as our MP3 Players. Multipoint Stereo Headsets not only let you connect to two phones at the same time, but you can listen to music from one phone and if a call comes in on the other phone, your music is paused so that you can take the call. It’s not complicated either – the headsets handle the calls for you, so all you have to do is decide whether to answer it or not!

The Jabra Halo Stereo Bluetooth Headset is the latest stereo headset to be released, and to be honest its probably the best one yet. It has incredibly simple controls – a touch sensitive slider on the right ear lets you adjust the volume by sliding your finger up or down, where as a double tap will skip the track. One multi use button lets you play/pause your music as well as answer/end calls and activate voice dialling. When they’re not in use, the headphones fold away so as not to take up too much space and to reduce the chance of them getting damaged. If you want to know more take a look at my Jabra Halo hands on review.

Jabra Halo Stereo Bluetooth Headset

The Jabra BT3030 Stereo Bluetooth Headset can be worn either ‘Dogtag’ style around your neck, clip on your clothes or simply go in your pocket. Featurewise it does everything that the Halo does, but with a 6 button pad to control your music and calls. The bit that makes these stand out is that you can use any 3.5mm headphones that you want with the BT3030, so if you don’t get on with (or damage) the headphones that come with it you don’t need to replace the whole kit.

Jabra BT3030 Bluetooth Headset

The Sony Ericsson HBH DS-980 Stereo Bluetooth Headset is another headset that is designed to be worn around your neck. The earphones are fixed and the control unit has dedicated music control keys. These will work best with Sony Ericsson phones, but will work with all makes of phone and music player.

Sony Ericsson DS980

Well, that’s just about everything covered. If you know of any other products that work well with two phones or have any suggestions feel free to let us know using the comments form below.

Top 10 Noise Cancelling Bluetooth Headsets

Friday, August 21st, 2009

While shopping for accessories for your phone I’ve noticed that people tend to struggle when it comes to choosing a Bluetooth Headset – probably because at first glance they all seem very similar.  They all allow you to use your phone safely in the car and can answer & end calls, so why are there so many different ones to choose from?

Up until recently my answer would have been that the main differences were size, weight and battery life. While that’s still true for most headsets, advances in headset technology have meant that there is now something else to consider when choosing a Bluetooth Headset – Noise Cancellation.

Noise Cancelling Bluetooth Headsets

Now, you might be thinking that noise cancellation is nothing new, and technically it’s not – noise cancellation has been around for years and in a number of formats. From simple design changes such as foam covers over the microphone to clever software that makes your voice clearer, but the newer generation of Bluetooth headsets go one step further. Most of the latest noise cancelling headsets have 2 microphones built into them, one that picks up your voice and another that picks up background noise. Software in the headset then analyses the sound from both microphones and any sounds picked up by both microphones are removed so that your voice comes through clearly.

Not all Bluetooth Headsets currently have this feature, and trying to find the ones that do out of the 140 that we sell will take you some time, so to help you along I’ve listed below our top 10 noise cancelling headsets. Most of these headsets have the dual microphone technology, although a couple of them have some other clever technology to cut out back ground noise.

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