asking dr. geeky: Bluetooth multi-device headsets

[topaz]

My goal: a Bluetooth headset that will both allow me to take hands-free calls on my phone, and play music from a BT-enabled music player, preferably without any reconfiguration nonsense.  I.e. hitting a button on the headset to switch devices is fine, but plugging it in to a computer to reconfigure which device it's talking to is not.  I want to be able to listen to music and take calls on the fly.

The phone and music player are separate devices.

I do not require the headset to provide stereo.  A single earpiece providing a mono version of the stereo stream would be fine.

Suggestions?

I stopped in at a RatShack this morning with a surprisingly helpful fellow who looked up the specs on the BT headsets they stocked in the store and confirmed they would not do what I needed.  He suggested that what might work would be to have the music player send its music stream to the phone, and then have the headset just talk directly to the phone.  A novel approach but it sounds worth investigating.

Comments

[fj.livejournal.com]

He suggested that what might work would be to have the music player send its music stream to the phone, and then have the headset just talk directly to the phone. A novel approach but it sounds worth investigating.

No phone I know can reroute a BT audio stream.

First: make sure the phone does not support the A2DP profile.

Second: look into this Sonorix BT headset (http://www.amazon.com/Sonorix-C3-Bluetooth-Removable-Earphones/dp/B000V1UGZ2/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=wireless&qid=1217870039&sr=8-1).

The reason for condition one is that if the phone does not support the A2DP profile, pairing it with two different devices becomes easier. Check the Sonorix website to see if you can download the manual in PDF to examine that first.

[qwrrty.livejournal.com]

My current phone is the LG VX 9800 (http://www.engadget.com/2005/11/04/lg-vx9800-glowingly-reviewed/) -- no A2DP.

What I am learning elsewhere suggests that it isn't possible for a Bluetooth device to pair with two other devices at once, which I think is what I'm asking it to do (so the headset could notice that a call is coming in and advise me appropriately, even while it's playing music from the other device). Does that sound correct to you?

[fj.livejournal.com]

Check the user reviews: people are doing exactly that. Download the manual to make sure, i haven't used it with two different devices in a while and i'm not home.

[penk.livejournal.com]

http://planet-geek.com/archives/003338.html

Hmmmm :)

ANd yeah, the ratshack guy was a bozo :)

Most modernheadphones support multiple sources for -different- profiles. So, HFP (hands free) for cell phone, and A2DP (audio) for music. The BlueAnt headphones I linked to just there did that, and I could change from cell phone to music and back (minus the problems I was having on the palm).

AFAIK all BT headphones can do this.

[qwrrty.livejournal.com]

Right, but when you were doing that, wasn't the Treo acting as both your music player and your cell phone? So it was really only paired with one device even though it was switching between profiles? I'm trying to avoid that.

[ctseawa.livejournal.com]

It works much better if your music plater and phone are different devices. it can get very confused if you're using one device for both functions. If you have a single device that can do both you're better off letting the device deal with switching back and force.

What you want to do can be done with any device that has A2DP and HFP profiles as long as your music player supports the BT A2DP profile.

[ckd]

If you can accept not using Bluetooth for the music player/headphones connection, and the music player is a dock-connector iPod, consider this. (I currently use it with an iPod classic and a Sony Ericsson W710; works great.)

[vespid-interest.livejournal.com]

Gizmodo today reviewed a headset that can do just what you're looking for. $100. I have no experience with the issue myself though.

http://www.callpod.com/products/dragon