Develop Bugs

XDA II for in-car SatNav?

Can anybody recommend what I would need in order to use my XDA-II as a satellite navigation system for my car? I believe I would need a GPS receiver, but unsure of which are the better options. I would be hoping to do this for under £100 if possible. Can anybody recommend anything or give me a link to some reviews?
Thanks,
Allan

PLEASE do a search around this forum before asking such a question.
YES we're ere to help each other
BUT
YES there is load of info allready available.

I have had a search through the forum but all the relevant posts are over 6 months old, and there are no indication of price.
Does anybody have any advice?
Thanks
Allan

I dont think last months discusions on carkits are > 6 months old.
The pricing info is still valid.
Carkits were introduced between may and july this year.
Good carkits are from Expansys (iMate / XDAII carkit), T-Mobile (MDA II carkit), Qtek (Qtek2020 carkit), Yeti.
All have specific (dis)advantages.
Decent cradle is from Carcomm and maybe Seidio.
If i say more, I can just as weel copy the other threads in.

allanmb
I'm new to this too, so I researched the subject as well as I could and this is what I've found since I unwrapped my 'surprise' (!) GPS package at Christmas...
First of all, the package itself. I (sorry, Santa) went for a PDAMods bundle (sixth one down on http://www.pdamods.com/products.asp?cat=104) of Rikaline X7 Bluetooth GPS, TomTom 3 and the Silver Shield powered mount with built-in speaker. Let's look at these one at a time.
Rikaline X7 I was attracted to this model by its replaceable battery, long battery life and no on/off switch. I upgraded my O2 XdaII to the 1.72 ROM from the O2 website before trying to bond it (so cannot comment on different brands or earlier ROMs), but when I did so it bonded immediately. You simply hold a button down for 5 seconds + to activate Bluetooth discoverable mode, pair with the XdaII in the normal manner and that's it. I also use a Jabra BT250 headset in the car, and have tested it with an incoming call whilst in TomTom nav mode - whilst admittedly I don't yet know whether the voice prompts still work during a call (because I was on a straight when the call came in), all that was necessary after hanging up was to close the phone app and there was the map again, bang on as usual. Accuracy is - well, phenomenal, I would guess within 5 metres most of the time, and I see little or no lag, except (slightly) on the heading in turns at junctions. All that is necessary to activate the Rikaline is to start TomTom on the XdaII; likewise, it reverts to 'sleep' mode when you exit TomTom at the end of the journey. There is really no need to turn off Bluetooth on the XdaII, so no chance of you missing calls on your headset because you forgot to turn it back on later.
TomTom 3 My software is v.3.03. I have downloaded the upgrade to v 3.07 to my home PC, but I have not yet installed it on the XdaII because I haven't yet encountered any problems - call it 'on-condition maintenance', or 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it'. There are some new roads in my area that are not shown, and some of the TomTom-provided POIs are slightly misplaced - although if you were really in the middle of nowhere and looking to fill up a petrol can I can't see you going too far wrong! Personally I find the 3D map presentation very useful - tried the 2D version today and didn't find it anywhere near as intuitive.
Silver Shield Mount The XdaII really needs to be powered whilst you nav. Obviously, the Rikaline looks after itself (I'm already convinced that only on really long runs or stints away from home would the in-car charging lead need to be taken along), but you'll flatten the battery on the XdaII much earlier then your GPS dies if you set it to keep the screen backlight on all the time on the internal battery. The Silver Shield mount also includes a built-in speaker, but as you will know from your searches on these fora the XdaII can only pump out phone audio through the bottom connector - so this enhanced audio facility requires a silly little coiled lead to be connected from the XdaII's headphone socket (bottom right) to the appropriate socket on the mount (top left). I have found that the right-angled jack plug on the provided lead prevents a snug fit on the mount and can cause an intermittent connection which can lose you your backlighting/charging at critical moments. For the mean time, I have stopped using the external speaker, and have found the volume on the XdaII speaker to be adequate for speeds up to 60mph; I will be trying motorway speeds tomorrow on a long run (Oxford - Kent). I think that the problem might well be solved anyway by shaving the offending corner off the moulded jack plug.
All in all, I'm very impressed and enjoying using my new system. I recommend it.
Cheers
Gadget :roll:

I would suggest going to www.ebay.co.uk and search either xda or navigation. There are many low priced systems on offer.

Silly little coiled lead
Hi all
Did Oxfordshire - Bluewater and back yesterday, including a full circuit of the M25, and found the Xda II's built-in speaker quite adequate in my convertible (roof up). Have now decided that I don't really need the silly little coiled lead, although I'm still going to trim the corner off for use in the summer when the roof is down.
Still b****y impressed.
Gadget :roll:

Allanmb
I have gps working on my Jam. If you need further help please E mail me.
Feel free to ask what you like if you can't find what you want in SEARCH, I don't mind helping out!!!

I'm loving destinator 3 on the xda II never crashes and has been updated some 50 times since it had an algorithm problem,
you can take calls and flick back to another screen with no problem. I got the Destinator whole of europe a XDA2 power supply / serial GPS 256MB Ram all for 160 + VAT and very happy since I got badly lost just before it arrived.
have fun

Hi, i have a question for y'all that have GPS working on your xdaII. I have a Bluetooth GPS receiver that does not "communicate" the position to my Qtek 2020 (it seems like it does not find any satellite)! Could it be because of the software i use (Mapsonic)? The receiver uses the NMEA standard 2.2, while the software requires a receiver that requires 2.0 (it's more advanced the one of the receiver...so why should i have problems...?)! Do you think i should find another software? Which one? My receiver is this:
http://www.acte.no/techstuff/gps/BT-R500.htm
In case anybody has this receiver, plesae tell me what software you are using.
thanks in advance

Bluetooth Headsets/Headphones - Who has 'em? Mind doing a test?

So I've got a pair (if you can call it a pair) of Motorola Motorokr S9-HD Headphones.
I can connect them to the phone just fine, but when I cover the bottom portion of the phone with my hand the signal drops out completely and I was wondering if anyone else experiences this or if it's just me.
So surrounding the bottom portion of the phone (with the Home, Menu, Search and Back buttons) with my hand and the signal drops out. Headphones on, phone in front of me.
Same thing happens if I push the phone up against my chest/stomach, no signal. Sometimes to the point that it disconnects entirely.
Normally I would be like "no big deal, I just won't do that." But the phone being in either my front or back pocket causes the same effect, making them kind of useless.
So, end result, is it my headphones, my phone, or both? Can you test the headset you have and see how it works out for you?
I've attempted this on stock ROM with Root, Fresh 5.3, and DC 3.2.3 with the same results each time.

I tihnk the BT and WIFI ant's are on the bottom
teh CDMA is on top -- if i cover the top, i can go from 4 bars to 0 barz
if i cover the bottom the wifi drops a lot
i think the BT ant is pretty weak .. couldn't go more than 10 ft from a laptop doing audio streaming
i'll try the BT later on when i get home unless someone else gets to it first

strung said:
I tihnk the BT and WIFI ant's are on the bottom
teh CDMA is on top -- if i cover the top, i can go from 4 bars to 0 barz
if i cover the bottom the wifi drops a lot
i think the BT ant is pretty weak .. couldn't go more than 10 ft from a laptop doing audio streaming
i'll try the BT later on when i get home unless someone else gets to it first
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well if the BT antenna isn't on the bottom, then why is it when I put my hand over the bottom the signal drops?
I want to see if anyone else can replicate this issue..

I have the same headset. I tried everything you did and it works for me. I occasionally get a breakup of audio, but it is not related, however it is the headset.

Brutal-Force said:
I have the same headset. I tried everything you did and it works for me. I occasionally get a breakup of audio, but it is not related, however it is the headset.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Damn, that sucks. I hardly used the damn thing. Thanks for checking it out, I would have assumed it was the phone.

Sirchuk said:
Well if the BT antenna isn't on the bottom, then why is it when I put my hand over the bottom the signal drops?
I want to see if anyone else can replicate this issue..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i'm saying the tooth antenna IS (probably) on the bottom hence why you cover it up it dont work as good. sorry my grammer sucks

I would swap it for another one. While generally I find the headset to be a great improvement over past Bluetooth Headsets, I am still not impressed that after 15 years that bluetooth has been around that it has yet to impress me as a wireless medium.
This headset is still only class 2 and Bluetooth 2.0. Where are all of the Class 1 and Bluetooth 4.0 devices?
I have tried all the Plantronic, Jawbone and Numerous Motorola devices and have been left wanting. I will probably be returning this headset as well. Although it has good sound quality, the earbuds (event he smallest ones) are too big for my ears and they do not seat down inside like a quality pair of tips. The phone breaks up especially while on the phone, but for listening to music, it is in general quite a good device.
The biggest problem with going wired headsets is that people have quit making a good wired stereo heatset with mic.

well, I have had 20 or more BT headsets, and, the only one I have EVER had that played music without breakup is the Jawbone Icon..
Sure the sound sucks, its mono and tinny, but I never lose signal with pandora, slacker, or sd card music with this headset..
motorola s9HD was one of the worst ones I had for losing signal from my phones..agree that its a shame that no one is able to make a HQ STEREO BT lightweight headset that doesnt drop signal yet..

the backbeats are damn good for music, world better than my s9s. ive got the 903 but the 906 are supposedly even better

I have the same issue with the motorolas, not as bad as you but I do get the breakup if i carry the phone in front of me. I have the Shure 530 headphones which kick ass so I got a Sony BT Transmitter, I think it is the BT15 or maybe the BT30, works perfect for me, I clip it on the front of my shirt plug in the Shures and presto bluetooth. The receiver even has a built in mic, works about as good as the Motorolas.
http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&q=sony+bt15&rlz=&um=1&ie=UTF-8&cid=10714892124428811058&ei=YH43TJrnAdWfnwf_ob2ABA&sa=X&oi=product_catalog_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CC0Q8wIwAg#
I can't for the life of me remember which one I have but be advised one of them has a mini usb charger the other requires a specific cradle, i go the one that has the mini usb, didn't want to carry around a specific charger for this.

Custom MP3 as a Voicemail Message Greeting?

i don't think this is an evo, or even android, issue, but i was hoping the great minds here could maybe direct me or at least clear this issue out for me. i have an mp3 file i'd like to use as a voicemail message greeting. is that even possible? i know a lot of people have songs as greetings, but i always thought those were selected from a bank of pre-selected options.
any thoughts on this?

hmmm. Take the song, layer your voice over, then plug your phone into the computer through line output (does the 3.5mm act as mic jack? on the phone) then call your voice mail

elegantai said:
hmmm. Take the song, layer your voice over, then plug your phone into the computer through line output (does the 3.5mm act as mic jack? on the phone) then call your voice mail
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
haha i thought of doing that, but i don't think the 3.5mm acts as a mic. if it does though, someone please correct me because i have the most epic of all greetings ready to be unleashed on the few who actually call me haha.
my only alternative, which seems to be the only one at the moment, is to let my laptop scream it out loud while the voicemail system catches it. sigh.. lol

The headphone jack does support mic input, but only through a hands-free headset (that is, a TRRS jack). I just dug through my stuff and I only have 2.5mm headsets, no 3.5mm that would fit the Evo, but if anybody has a stereo headset they should try this out. I tried an external mic and it doesn't pick up, but the headset icon comes on in the notification bar. If it works, it's easy enough to make your own external microphone with simple Radio Shack parts, probably a $5 job. I'll splice something together tomorrow and test this out. The only issue would be that it might trigger the headphone output and mute the speakers. . . .
EDIT: Also just found this. I just sent my cables off with family on a trip so I can't try it right now, but I'll give it a go tomorrow as well.

SilverZero said:
The headphone jack does support mic input, but only through a hands-free headset (that is, a TRRS jack). I just dug through my stuff and I only have 2.5mm headsets, no 3.5mm that would fit the Evo, but if anybody has a stereo headset they should try this out. I tried an external mic and it doesn't pick up, but the headset icon comes on in the notification bar. If it works, it's easy enough to make your own external microphone with simple Radio Shack parts, probably a $5 job. I'll splice something together tomorrow and test this out. The only issue would be that it might trigger the headphone output and mute the speakers. . . .
EDIT: Also just found this. I just sent my cables off with family on a trip so I can't try it right now, but I'll give it a go tomorrow as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
oooh awesome, please let me know! i don't mind building an external mic at all. thanks!

Well, I struck out looking for my other AV cable and finding one locally. Here's the way this is going to go down:
The Evo headphone jack is a 4-conductor type, also known as TRRS (tip-ring-ring-sleeve). Normal stereo headphones are TRS (tip-ring-sleeve), and you can see the difference by looking at the plug end. If you have a metal tip, then a black ring, then a metal ring, then another black ring, then the metal shaft (sleeve), it's a TRS type. These are able to send the left and right analog signals separately (usually left to the tip, right to the ring, and the ground or shield to the sleeve). The TRRS connector adds another wire to the mix, and this can be used to carry a mono mic or line signal, or even an analog video signal. This is why you could use an analog camcorder cable like this one. I've seen them for less than $2 from some websites, but no local retailers have them, except maybe Best Buy . . . for $41. (You think I'm kidding? )
Cell phones are starting to use these TRRS connectors more commonly, allowing both stereo headphones and a hands-free microphone to share one cable. The problem here is finding a TRRS input cable and coupling it to a line/mic signal. So here's what I was going to do. Get a TRRS-to-RCA adapter like the one linked above, then use a 3.5mm-to-RCA female-female adapter OR a common 3.5mm-to-RCA (red and white) adapter to connect a line/mic signal to the correct RCA connector on the TRRS cable - probably the yellow one. It may or may not take the right kind of adapter to take the stereo line signal down to a mono signal, unless your source is already mono. Otherwise, you could be sending a stereo signal from the source, but only recording the left or right channel into the phone. Alternatively, if I had an iPhone headset or another stereo hands-free headset with a mic built in, I could cut the wire open and separate out the microphone wire from the bundle, then splice a mic/line onto it. It's sometimes tricky getting those tiny wires split apart just right, and those headsets are sometimes expensive.
So, short version: You need a TRRS connector to plug into the Evo headphone jack, and you need to be able to feed a mono line/mic signal to just the tip of the connector. Easy. I have everything but the TRRS plug itself, so I'm stuck for today.
By the way, if you've ever plugged a TRRS cable into the Evo, you'll notice that the standard headphone icon in the notification bar actually shows up with a little microphone coming down, like a flight headset, so you know you have a mic signal at least triggering that fourth conductor.

hmm... you're right about the different icon. i tried it with my old iphone 3gs earphone/mic. pretty slick lol.
i'm going to go to radio shack tomorrow and grab this stuff. all for a custom voicemail lol.
thanks a lot! i'll post up my results, probably this weekend.

There are broader applications to this, I think. Find a good mic and you could record events, maybe. Or hack together your own car kit.

SilverZero said:
There are broader applications to this, I think. Find a good mic and you could record events, maybe. Or hack together your own car kit.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you, sir, are giving me ideas.. i sense a good weekend project coming up.

A different voicemail for each caller.
One of the few times I've been able to come up with an answer before some one beat me to it.
There is a free website out there that I love called youmail.com. You can choose from hundreds of recordings they have or upload your own. Each person can have their own unique voice mail greeting or you can set up groups and each member in that group will have the same greeting.
For example, my work associates get a more professional greeting, family and close friends get something more fun. I've got one just for my wife telling her how much I love her, and a friend of mine that I have shall we say, a boisterous relationship with, get's a very sarcastic greeting. Another friend that's into horses get's a Kentucky horse race greeting. As you can see, you can have a lot of fun with it and do just about anything I like with it.
If you want to do something in your own voice than all you need is a regular microphone to plug into your computer and your set. You can record it directly on the web site or you can use your own software to overlay other audio if you like.
Your limited only by your imagination.
It's a free site, but they do have some pay ring-tones if you really want to give them your money. Personally, I haven't found most of the pay tones to be worth it, but I'm sure somebody does. They have to be paying the bills some how.

Old Spice?

jerryparid said:
Old Spice?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this voicemail is now diamonds

djstern said:
One of the few times I've been able to come up with an answer before some one beat me to it.
There is a free website out there that I love called youmail.com. You can choose from hundreds of recordings they have or upload your own. Each person can have their own unique voice mail greeting or you can set up groups and each member in that group will have the same greeting.
For example, my work associates get a more professional greeting, family and close friends get something more fun. I've got one just for my wife telling her how much I love her, and a friend of mine that I have shall we say, a boisterous relationship with, get's a very sarcastic greeting. Another friend that's into horses get's a Kentucky horse race greeting. As you can see, you can have a lot of fun with it and do just about anything I like with it.
If you want to do something in your own voice than all you need is a regular microphone to plug into your computer and your set. You can record it directly on the web site or you can use your own software to overlay other audio if you like.
Your limited only by your imagination.
It's a free site, but they do have some pay ring-tones if you really want to give them your money. Personally, I haven't found most of the pay tones to be worth it, but I'm sure somebody does. They have to be paying the bills some how.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i read about this.. is it really that good? i don't really like setting up my voicemail from a third-party because, well, i've never done it and didn't really have a need before.

shift_ said:
i read about this.. is it really that good? i don't really like setting up my voicemail from a third-party because, well, i've never done it and didn't really have a need before.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think it is. Never had a problem and I've spent hours going through the hundreds of sound files they have and had a lot of fun doing it. Found everything from very professional to down right vulgar (used that on my best friend) and everything in between. I've even set up holiday greetings for many holidays. It can be lots of fun for both you and your callers.
Just like ringtones. Some people love them, others hate them and just want a simple ring. It's up to you. If you like custom voice mail greetings, then you'll love this one.
Other than selecting the greetings you like and assigning them to your frequent callers, all you have to do to enable or disable is it to set your no answer call forward from your carrier to the youmail number. *28-XXX-XXX-XXXX to turn it on and *38 to turn it off. It couldn't be any easier.

djstern said:
I think it is. Never had a problem and I've spent hours going through the hundreds of sound files they have and had a lot of fun doing it. Found everything from very professional to down right vulgar (used that on my best friend) and everything in between. I've even set up holiday greetings for many holidays. It can be lots of fun for both you and your callers.
Just like ringtones. Some people love them, others hate them and just want a simple ring. It's up to you. If you like custom voice mail greetings, then you'll love this one.
Other than selecting the greetings you like and assigning them to your frequent callers, all you have to do to enable or disable is it to set your no answer call forward from your carrier to the youmail number. *28-XXX-XXX-XXXX to turn it on and *38 to turn it off. It couldn't be any easier.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hmmm.. i'll definitely check it out then. thanks!

A lot of these features are available through google voice. (http://voice.google.com). Google also has an app for google voice to integrate visual voicemail with your phone. Worth checking out if you want a highly customizable v-mail service.
In order to setup your phone so that all voicemails go to your google voice instead of your sprint voicemail dial *28 + google phone number without the 1. it's a free service from sprint.

I have the perfect answer for uploading greetings!!!!
All you have to do is simply download youmail!!!! On your mobile. It works for all cellphones and you can do whatever you want to do. Any other way is simply ridiculous hahaha try it and spread the word!!!!!

Review: Motorola T505 BT & FM Transmitter

I created this review and posted on Android Central. Figured I should share here as well. Original Thread can be found here and i have copy and pasted below. Hope this helps!
After seeing someone mention the Motorola T505 in this thread, I decided to check it out for my self. I know this device has been out for a while, but due to the quality of it, I think a review can be beneficial for some.
Purpose of review: For those of you that drive older cars that did not come with bluetooth technology built in to the stereo and would like to hear phone calls on your stereo, this can be the device for you. Additionally, for those of you that do not have an iPod compatible radio and like to use their EVO as their primary portable music device, this may also be the device for you.
Overview and Un-boxing:The Motorola Motorokr T505 (link to Motorola's website) as an all-in-one bluetooth speaker phone and fm transmitter. The device measures approximately 2.75 inches long and wide (front to back and side to side, respectively) and is just shy of 1 inch think without the included clip (utilizing the pretty mandatory clip brings it to about 2 inches). The unboxing is very straight forward. Included inside the box are the device itself, the clip, a fold-our instruction pamphlet/diagram, a car charger (for the blue tooth. It will NOT work for your EVO), and some other miscellaneous papers. The instructional diagram is extremely easy to read and has pictures for every step of the setup.
Layout: The main function of the accessory is to be a BT speakerphone. The face of the device 2 buttons surrounding a back lit Motorola "M". The left button has a phone icon which is used for accepting, ending, flashing through, and making calls. The right button displays the play & pause icon, used for pausing and recommencing music and muting phone calls. On the left and right side of the device are the volume up and down buttons (respectively). While on a call, these buttons will raise or lower the volume and while playing music, these buttons will go forward or backward through your track listing. On the back of the device, opposite the call button is the power button and opposite the play/pause button is the FM transmitter button. The power button is activated and deactivated by holding it down for three seconds. The same goes for the FM transmitter button.
*It is important to note that these buttons are a bit awkward and take some time to get used to. This especially goes for the instances when you are required to press 2 buttons at once*
Using the T505: The pairing procedure is extremely simple. Once the device is on for the first time, it automatically goes into pairing mode. It came up immediately on the BT scan on my EVO and paired with no errors. The T505 announced that i may need a password and if so, the password is 0000, but i did not need it. Once paired, any audio output from phone calls made or received is played from the BT (which is not clipped about a foot away from me on my visor). The audio in microphone is also on the BT. Sound quality is very good on the speaker phone but it can be a little hard to hear people when driving on the highway. This goes especially for those of us that have loud cars (yes, i'm one of those guys that drives a very loud modded car. Sorry for setting your alarm off when i drive by ). However, this becomes a non-issue in FM transmission mode. On the other end of the phone, people reported that i would occasionally sound distorted but for the most part, ok. Having the windows open did not seem to effect the quality of my voice; people still said they could hear me fine, although i was more or less unable to hear them (again, non-issue, as i will discuss later). It is important to note that people did say they could hear everything, eg, road noise, my loud-*** car, etc, but my voice was still the most dominant thing they could hear. Additionally, any music you play on your EVO will be played on the speaker as well. The sound quality is decent, at best, for music and if you receive a phone call, they music stops as the device announces who is calling you. If you reject the call, your music picks up right where it left off. Same goes for you accepting and ending the call a few minutes later.
FM Transmitter: The built in FM transmitter is what changes the game for me. Once pair, you can turn on the FM transmitter. The BT will scan and within a few seconds, announce what frequency it recommends (usually a low 88-90 frequency). Once turned to that station, any audio from the phone is put out through your car's speakers. This holds true for both phone calls and music. You can easily control the volume now by adjusting the volume directly on your stereo and all the button features on the BT (taking and ending calls, skipping music tracks, etc.) still remain active. If the station you are on has a bit of static, tapping the FM button will make the device scan for a new station. Once you find a station that sounds good, you can save it by (awkwardly) pressing and holding the play/pause and FM button for 3 seconds (the BT will chime to let you know you saved it). Now the BT will prioritize that station next time you turn the FM transmitter on. And of course, when you receive or make phone calls, the music goes on pause while the call is on and picks up where it left off when ended.
Music Quality: As many users are likely to be playing music through this device, it is important to note that the quality is NOT perfect. That being said, it is very good. There are times where the volume seems to drop for less than a second, as if there was too much sound in the split-second of music and the BT couldn't transmit everything, but this is rare and inly noticeable when BLASTING the music. Overall, i would rate the quality of music 8 out of 10 as it is very good most of the time but occasionally gets hissy or sounds weird as aforementioned.
Battery Life: Here is another big seller for me. The battery life is GREAT on this BT. To put this into perspective, I drive anywhere between 30-50 minutes to work, then another 30-45 minutes to campus, and finally 40-50 minutes back home. Work is 5 days a week, school is 4 (even though i used this over the weekend, i am not including weekends in this small analysis). All things considered, MINIMUM weekly usage (excluding weekends) is approximately 460 minutes (over 7 hours). My BT is connected the entire time and almost always on FM transmission (i usually don't play music in the morning, but going to school and home, i always use it). Plus i take calls occasionally too. Considering all the aforementioned, after 2 weeks of this (10 work days), my battery was still not low (the "M" flashes red when low). I decided to charge it today just cause. I am very impressed with the battery life of this BT.
Trepidation: It wouldnt be fair for me to conclude this review without stating what i do not like about the BT, so here are a list of annoyances:
1. The speaker itself is not as loud as i'd like. When i'm not on FM transmission and i get a phone call, i don't want to have to turn on the FM transmitter and change my radio station just to hear who's calling me. When normally driving on the street, this speaker will suffice. But if you have a loud car and you're flying down the highway, eh....
2. The buttons are a bit awkward. I've gotten used to them already, but initially, it's a little annoying using the buttons on the back of the BT.
3. The music quality issue listed above.
4. This is the closest you can get to having a BT sync in a car stereo without having a BT stereo, and it comes with a small price. You have to press a lot of buttons to get it started. For example, a typical "getting in my car" experience when leaving work and heading to school. Get in my car, start the car, turn on the EVO BT, plug it into the car charger, turn on the T505, wait for it to sync, turn on the FM transmitter, wait for it to announce the station (same station every time, it's already saved on my radio), change to appropriate station, select music on EVO you want to hear, enjoy. Sounds like a lot because it is. Admittedly, this takes all of 15 seconds, but still, sometimes i don't feel like it. Also, you cannot turn to the saved FM station before the BT announces it otherwise it'll grab a different one. Weird, but it happens.
Conclusion: I am very happy with this device and recommend it to anyone that would like the things listed in the purpose of review section. My biggest worry was the battery life and it is phenomenal. It's not perfect, but it's very close. Because the device is older, most stores around me didn't carry it (no best buy, walmart, etc.) I was able to find it at Staples for $85 (but i had a $25 coupon ). However, i've seen it online for as low as $59.99 (tiger direct, i think).
**Lastly, I do not have my factory car antenna. I replaced my antenna with an Autoloc in-car antenna, so my antenna is located inside my car on my rear windshield. I am aware that many people have had trouble getting good reception with FM transmitters. Reception is not an issue for me, and whether that is due to device quality, antenna quality or possible antenna location, is unknown to me. The point is, there are many variables to consider when purchasing a product such as this; individual results may vary due to these variables. My experiences are as above and I hope if you purchase this product, yours will be too.**
Hope this was informative and helps someone!

I have one of these as well and works perfect on my EVO.I got mine for xmas back in 08 and while i dont use it every day i will def agree on the battery life.If i've recharged this thing 12 times since i had it it would be a miracle!Highly recommended!!!!

I got this for my Palm PRE, worked great. Now I use it for my EVO, I use it daily.

I have this device as well and while it is great I wish the fm transmitter signal was stronger...commuting from new York to jersey, I have to change stations in the t 505 often.....

[Q] two way radio handsfree with the galaxy s3

Hi. I have been scouring the net for a while and only thing i could find was that iphone and s3 (other phones) pin out configuration is different.
my question is this. is it possible to use a two way radio handsfree with ptt button (as those are more solid and well built) with a smartphone or my s3?
because most sellers give the option to choose a jack for the handsfree, so if i choose the 3.55mm jack, should it work?
or do handsfrees like
ebay.com/itm/Earpiece-Samsung-Galaxy-Covert-Acoustic-Tube-Headset-PTT-Microphone-/280954126041
have special modifications?
thanks a lot in advance to anyone who can help.
sorry I'm new here and wasn't sure whether to post this to Q&A or here, as it is a question, but this is the accessories forum.

What exactly are you trying to achieve with that configuration?
The push to talk button on a headset for a walkie talkie is, like the send button on the device itself, used solely because you can either receive or send but not both at the same time. As long as you don't push the button your handset is set to receive, push it and your handset switches to send mode.
A telephone can do both at the same time. That is two way as I understand it and whether it's a telephone your talking about or a two way handsfree device doesn't really matter in that case, for both it's rather useless to have a ptt button. Well, in some cases you might want to mute your microphone for short periods of time but do you really need that often enough that it would be worth the hassle of having to push that button every time you want to speak?
I have no idea if the ptt button on a handsfree handset would work as an "accept call" button of a regular phone headset. Maybe. But since there isn't much tech in the microphone unit of a regular headset they are rather sturdy. Whatever you are doing that might need something more solid, you better make sure whatever protection you use for your S3 is up to the task aswell. If not, having to replace the headset unit will be the least of your worries.

shamez23 said:
What exactly are you trying to achieve with that configuration?
The push to talk button on a headset for a walkie talkie is, like the send button on the device itself, used solely because you can either receive or send but not both at the same time. As long as you don't push the button your handset is set to receive, push it and your handset switches to send mode.
A telephone can do both at the same time. That is two way as I understand it and whether it's a telephone your talking about or a two way handsfree device doesn't really matter in that case, for both it's rather useless to have a ptt button. Well, in some cases you might want to mute your microphone for short periods of time but do you really need that often enough that it would be worth the hassle of having to push that button every time you want to speak?
I have no idea if the ptt button on a handsfree handset would work as an "accept call" button of a regular phone headset. Maybe. But since there isn't much tech in the microphone unit of a regular headset they are rather sturdy. Whatever you are doing that might need something more solid, you better make sure whatever protection you use for your S3 is up to the task aswell. If not, having to replace the headset unit will be the least of your worries.
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Well. to be honest i just wanted it to work as a regular handsfree.
You are absolutely right, if i would have to push the ptt button each time i want to use the microphone, even within a call, it would be useless.
I will not be doing anything extreme, just regular use, but i keep my headset in a lot and i was just tired of regular headsets dying on me. Thing is, they don't die in my pocket as i keep them in a little case, the connections seem to be coming undone simply due to the amount of use.
Thanks a lot for your answer, Also, i have an otterbox defender for my s3. This is expensive tech which is very precious to me and i do all i can to protect. Thanks again

What connection is breaking? The 3.5mm jack or your headphone plugs?
I do have a throatmicrophone with a ptt button for my walkie talkies. The 3.5mm plug isn't much sturdier than those of a normal headset, neither is the headphone.
Maybe there are sturdier ones out there but I'm pretty sure they won't come cheap. Even those aren't unbreakable. Bend a cable often enough and it will break no matter what cable it is. There is nothing you can do about it except not to bend it. Carry your phone differently, don't wrap your headset too tightly when you put it your case. You said it's a little case, maybe that's the problem.
Buy a couple of those dirt cheap copies of the original Samsung headset on ebay. They are under $5 and are OK for voice calls.
If you prefer using better headsets because you want better sound, you could try to find a cheap extension cable. Buy a couple of those and just use a new one when needed. Your headset will live longer .
Get a bluetooth headset. No cables that could break but more expensive and another batterie you have to look after.