Develop Bugs

[REVIEW] Nokia BH-214 (a different kind of bluetooth headset, $48)

(LONG! But I like too much info vs not enough)
You might be asking yourself, wtf is that thing?
See stock photo (theirs):
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Imagine it as a wireless wired remote to your phone's media player! I say wired because it's wired to the headphones, but it's wireless between the device & the phone over bluetooth.
Features:
Bluetooth HFP/HSP/A2DP/AVRCP
7hrs battery time
included earphones w/short cable
Buttons (on the face), clockwise from noon:
Phone (send/end)
Next Track
Play/Pause
Prev Track
Buttons (around edge)
Vol Up
Vol Down
Power
Photo (mine):
Pros:
Cost: $48 (clone or fake for $18?)
L O U D !
Uses *ANY* 3.5mm earphones to hear
Fantastic battery life
Did I mention loud?
Phone audio in BOTH ears
Stereo audio from your phone!
Really good audio signal, clean/clear . . . AND LOUD!
Just flat works well!
Included earphones have really good sound and a short cable, no excess cable dangling about, and comfortable!
The broadcast distance is pretty long too
Cons (and these are trivial!):
Included earphones seal almost too well
The blinking blue light is bright in the dark
Button presses don't provide any real tactile feedback, but it does beep in your ear
When it times out, requires a button press to get it active again
You have to turn off bluetooth on the phone to turn the ringer up, otherwise it just turns up the bluetooth connection audio (more of a phone issue)
I can't think of anything else
I've had a couple of bluetoothes (blueteeth? blueteethes?), but never really liked any of them. I always wanted stereo over bluetooth, but I've not liked any of the devices I've seen. What's great about the BH-214 is that you can use any earphones with a 3.5mm tip to hear! You're not limited to the ones they include.
I've got some Shure SCL2 IEMs (In Ear Monitors, professional grade) & some Sennheiser HD-465 (over ear) & I was expecting to be underwhelmed by the included headphones, but I'm extremely pleased with them. They are remarkably comfortable. I wore them for about 8-9hrs today with zero discomfort. The audio quality was fantastic too. I'm no audiophile though, so YMMV.
Now for you volume buffs, these can get LOUD! I plugged in my Sennheisers and cranked the volume on the BH-214. These are full size headsets and just holding them in my hand, I could hear the audio clearly . . . as could anyone sitting nearby. We've been working in a team setting lately and we've got 4 of us cramped in a smaller room and we all listen to headphones. I had Led Zeppelin playing and a guy across the table could name the song & was whistling along. That was before I even turned up the bluetooth media volume on the phone itself.
With the cable for the headphones being only 30", it makes it real convenient for storage & not have all this excess cable dangling around. My Shure's cable are 60" long & my Sennheiser's are even longer! Shorter means its also easier to store/transport. I keep my Shure's in a little round case that came with them, but it's bulky in my pocket.
For comparison, I took some pictures comparing my Shure SCL2 IEMs next to the included Nokia headphones.
I liked the fit of the Nokia headphones so much, I made sure my Shure's were using similar size & pliability inserts. The Nokia's come with small/medium/large. Mediums are installed by default & they are the ones I think have fit better than any other in ears headphones I've had.
The only downside to the included earphones is that they do seal really well. That might be a good thing for some people, but expect to not hear things & have people wave at you to get your attention! At dinner tonight, I didn't notice the waitress checking in on me. The other kinda annoying part about them sealing so well is that things like eating tortilla chips, all you could hear at that point was the crunch inside my head! Also, I could hear the cable rubbing against my collar as a rustling/brushing sound. Not a terrible thing IMO, but something to be aware of.
I started wondering why I was having that full seal issue with the Nokia headphones, but not with my Shures. Until matching the size/pliability of the inserts, I was using the medium foam ones on my Shures & they allowed a lot more external sounds in. When I switched to the black rubber pictured here, I did experience more of the full seal isolation, but not quite to the extreme of the Nokias. Again, just relaying my experience.
I started listening to the MP3s on my phone via the BH-214 on my way to work around 830am and listened virtually non-stop all day except for around lunch. I listened straight thru dinner & until I sat down at my computer about 830pm! They were still going strong & I did not charge them at all during work. I did the button press to see the state of the battery (green good/yellow 1hr/red low!) & it did show red.
I was watching some YouTube vids & the audio came across over the BH-214 fine.
When I hit pause for awhile, it would automatically power off after a few mins. Hitting the play button will reconnect it, but I've had it not get the phone profile reconnected & just the A2DP/AVRCP stuff will work. I got some phone calls today while listening to audio & it rang in my ear, but for some reason it did not answer it on the BH-214. I sat there for a few seconds before realizing that. It might've been something I did, but it happened a few times today. Even when I tried to initiate a call, while listening to audio, it didn't trigger the BH-214 to handle it. I'm not sure it's the device or me or my phone (rooted stock 2.2). I'll have to experiment some more to find out the deal. Twice was later during the day, so I wonder if it was something to do with the charge?
[8/31 UPDATE: When I know it's not going to reconnect the phone audio, I just turn on/off BT on the phone & it will reconnect. It's a little easier using the BT widget than trying to power off the BH-214 with it's tiny power button.)
Now, yesterday I made a call with it & it sounded great in both my ears, my buddy said it sounded like I was just on my phone (he has the Icon). I used it flawlessly this morning during a conference call while pulling into work. When it was my turn to talk, everyone could hear me no problem. The funny thing about the mic sensitivity was that when I was done talking, I got out of my car in the parking garage & someone's car alarm was going off. It was on another floor & not even close to me and they asked me to mute because they could hear it!
While I was packing up for the day, I walked away from where I was working back to my desk, leaving my phone behind. That had to be like 40-45 feet away & I never even got so much as a hiccup in the audio. Nothing. You couldn't tell if I was 1 foot away much less 45 feet away.
Overall I'm ecstatic about this thing thus far. I imagine I'll figure out the quirks about answering calls with it & getting an answered call with the phone switched to BT. Since calls is the least used feature on my phone, I'm less familiar with those functions.
RATING: 4.5 / 5
I love it & would definitely buy another if I lost it. I've already considered writing my name on it in case I do drop it some place!
Here you can see how the earphones are only 30" long:
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
UPDATE:
Last night after writing the review, the phone rebooted on me when I tried to start Wired Tethering while listening to audio. Thought that was weird.
Then this morning, the BH-214 had timed out on pause, so I tried to reconnect it. The audio timer was running, but no audio was coming across. I went to check the bluetooth settings & noticed this in the menu:
Notice how it says "Connected to media audio"? When it first pairs, it will says "Connected to phone and media audio". Some how, the phone audio profiles drop even though it's checked for "Use for phone audio". Like this:
Then shortly after taking the screenshots while trying to get the audio to play, my phone randomly rebooted again. Does this have anything to do with the BH-214? It could just be my phone, but I can't tell for sure at the moment.

Sounds really cool, especially for the price. Ahh, I just wish it were a headset without wires, but for the purpose of what it is, sounds like a winner. Seems like the sweet spot looking for minus the headset (a2dp, range, battery, quality, etc). How are their other headsets?

Jbroad572 said:
Sounds really cool, especially for the price. Ahh, I just wish it were a headset without wires, but for the purpose of what it is, sounds like a winner. Seems like the sweet spot looking for minus the headset (a2dp, range, battery, quality, etc). How are their other headsets?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What other headsets? Nokias? I don't know. Wired or not, I like it, but thats primarily because I WAS looking for stereo over bluetooth. In that regard, it works really well. Set up a long playlist, hit play & you can leave the phone tucked away for a long time. Call comes in, you can answer it (or at least when I learn how to!).
ericpd said:
Nice review and nice find. You know what, this only shines light on one short coming of the Evo,... the FM radio won't work without a wired headset plugged in. This would be like succotash if HTC were able to fix,... well maybe not fix, because nothing is really broken, but if they were able to fit an antenna in there without affecting the form factor, these two would be a perfect match. Doesn't matter which decides to be the pea and which chooses to take on the role of the Lima bean.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I rarely and to date, have never, used FM. I will experiment some to see if I can get FM over bluetooth. I did experiment some with having headphones already plugged into the EVO & connecting bluetooth. It did not disconnect the audio from the wired plugins, but I didn't try to see if I could hear anything over bluetooth.
If it works, you can share audio! You keep your phone handy, plugged in directly to it, listening, hand someone the BT-214 & they get the same audio. I'm going to experiment with that right now!
UPDATE:
Experimenting with wired/bluetooth simultaneously doesn't seem possible. I think wired immediately takes priority. I was able to control the audio via BT-214 via bluetooth, but no audio came across. In order to get the audio on the BT-214, I had to unplug the wired, hit play/pause twice. As soon as I plugged in the wired, I got audio there immediately.

Found this review that showed more of the device and had similar pleasant results:
http://www.phonearena.com/htmls/Nokia-BH-214-Review-review-r_2278.html

I found that at DealsExtreme, you can get it for $18 shipped:
http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.30406
Thing is, some of people claim that it is not authentic. Comparing the pictures to my device, some of the text on the clip is different. Mine says Nokia on the face and clip where as the pictures there do not. So, my guess is that it probably is fake. Or it could be manufacturer seconds (wouldn't pass retail QC).
I'm glad I didn't see the $18 one first because I would've bought it. After having bought an original for $48, I can say I'm happy enough to NOT have buyer's remorse.

LAYGO, which player were you using on your EVO? The default HTC app? I am wondering if it works with MixZing. Have you tried it with that?

sparhawk6 said:
LAYGO, which player were you using on your EVO? The default HTC app? I am wondering if it works with MixZing. Have you tried it with that?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mixzing. I did zero config to make it work, it just worked.

Based on your review, I bought this thing for running with my EVO. Thanks. I hope that the device will control the Audible app as well as MixZing.

Very nice review. I'm considering picking up a set. I must admit though, that dealextreme clone looks tempting. Though I've found time and time again that when I skimp on something like that, I end up buying the better product anyway and thus not saving any money.

sparhawk6 said:
Based on your review, I bought this thing for running with my EVO. Thanks. I hope that the device will control the Audible app as well as MixZing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd be interested to know what all the AVRCP stuff it will control. I'd imagine it's more related to the app vs the BH-214.
If you're going running with the included earphones, stay clear of traffic or run in a park. I'm telling you they seal well! Yesterday walking into the office, my supervisor was behind me talking & had to tap me on the shoulder to get my attention. I'm very attentive, but she snuck in behind me!
If you use a different set of earphones, you could clip the BH-214 to your belt with the longer length cord. You might be limited to where you can place it if you use the included earphones. I wear it on my shirt and with enough slack so I can turn my head, it sits just above the nipple line. I wear a 29-30" silver chain & the BH-214 hangs just about the same distance on my chest.
Albaholic said:
Very nice review. I'm considering picking up a set. I must admit though, that dealextreme clone looks tempting. Though I've found time and time again that when I skimp on something like that, I end up buying the better product anyway and thus not saving any money.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can say (again), I have zero regrets buying it. I use it everyday now where my old bluetooth, I'd simply forget about it until I wanted to make a call & I couldn't remember where I put it. My BH-214 sits next to my phone all day long or is clipped to me.
If you read the reviews on DE, you can hear some people complain about noise or humming. I do not have that issue at all.

LAYGO said:
If you're going running with the included earphones, stay clear of traffic or run in a park. I'm telling you they seal well! Yesterday walking into the office, my supervisor was behind me talking & had to tap me on the shoulder to get my attention. I'm very attentive, but she snuck in behind me!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will not be running with the included headphones. Running with in-ear headphones that seal is painful for me (you can feel each step in your head). The big selling point for me was that I can use any pair of headphones with these.

sparhawk6 said:
I will not be running with the included headphones. Running with in-ear headphones that seal is painful for me (you can feel each step in your head). The big selling point for me was that I can use any pair of headphones with these.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You get it it yet?

LAYGO said:
You get it it yet?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes. I like it. It does want I want it to do.
I have a few issues:
I wish the buttons were more responsive, like a "click" or something. It's hard to tell when you've pressed them sometimes.
When I have multiple apps open that could be controlled by the device, it doesn't always control the one that's on my screen at the time. For example, if I have doubletwist on the screen and the audible app in the background, and I press pause, it will control the audible app (either play or pause depending on whether or not its running). That is probably an android problem.

Thanks for the tip off on this product. After Searching around I found it for 23.99 on Bestofferbuy.com (Resellerratings.com rates this as a good site and they state they do not sell knockoffs or fakes). I ordered this and then applied an online coupon for 10% off bringing the total value to $20.88 Shipped.
The only downside of this coupany is that it is Asian (China I believe) based so its 5-12 buisness days to ship with free shipping. I have ordered from them before and have not been dissapointed. I will report back with my opinion as well once I have it.

sparhawk6 said:
Yes. I like it. It does want I want it to do.
I have a few issues:
I wish the buttons were more responsive, like a "click" or something. It's hard to tell when you've pressed them sometimes.
When I have multiple apps open that could be controlled by the device, it doesn't always control the one that's on my screen at the time. For example, if I have doubletwist on the screen and the audible app in the background, and I press pause, it will control the audible app (either play or pause depending on whether or not its running). That is probably an android problem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I said that as well in my review. It beeps, but there's no tactile feedback to indicate a click.
I have only ever had one app running to respond to a click, so I haven't had that problem.

Brutal-Force said:
Thanks for the tip off on this product. After Searching around I found it for 23.99 on Bestofferbuy.com (Resellerratings.com rates this as a good site and they state they do not sell knockoffs or fakes). I ordered this and then applied an online coupon for 10% off bringing the total value to $20.88 Shipped.
The only downside of this coupany is that it is Asian (China I believe) based so its 5-12 buisness days to ship with free shipping. I have ordered from them before and have not been dissapointed. I will report back with my opinion as well once I have it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see the white one is ~$17 & the black one is $23. I should probably get the black one too!
Know what though, that's the exact same description on DealsExtreme.Com. "Designers BH-214", doesn't say Nokia. I think this is a knockoff man . . .

Thanks for pointing that out. Man, I really need to pay better attention. Fortunately the reviews on DealExtreme seem to be above average on this. They point out the included headphones are sub par, but I already have Vmoda Remix. In addition, I primarily got this to hook up to my 3.5 Jack on my car stereo. Either way, its 20 bucks. If it sucks I will throw it away. Up until now I haven't been impressed with ANY bluetooth devices.

Brutal-Force said:
Thanks for pointing that out. Man, I really need to pay better attention. Fortunately the reviews on DealExtreme seem to be above average on this. They point out the included headphones are sub par, but I already have Vmoda Remix. In addition, I primarily got this to hook up to my 3.5 Jack on my car stereo. Either way, its 20 bucks. If it sucks I will throw it away. Up until now I haven't been impressed with ANY bluetooth devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Seems like you could skip the middle man & connect the 3.5mm straight to the phone, no? Unless you never took the phone out of your pocket.
I did read that the DE folks some complained about audio quality or a hum. I don't experience any of that . . .

Wow.
Great product review.
I've been looking for something like this for a long time. Blackberry makes one, but it does not have its own battery.
The first great thing about it is THE DETACHABLE HEADPHONES. Why you ask? Because you can use them to broadcast to car stereo, home stereo, office stereo......any where really. Also because you can hook up your expensive set to the unit. The second, the size.....its tiny.
The only unknown is the battery life. Ill be waiting for a review on that one.

jasonziter said:
Great product review.
I've been looking for something like this for a long time. Blackberry makes one, but it does not have its own battery.
The first great thing about it is THE DETACHABLE HEADPHONES. Why you ask? Because you can use them to broadcast to car stereo, home stereo, office stereo......any where really. Also because you can hook up your expensive set to the unit. The second, the size.....its tiny.
The only unknown is the battery life. Ill be waiting for a review on that one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks.
Waiting for a review on battery life of the BH-214? I think I've covered that one already. I used it all day for roughly 12-13hrs, give or take an hour when I turned it off for lunch. It was still working at 830-900pm when I sat down to write the review.

[Q] Qi Wireless Charger + Car cradle with Pioneer Reciever

Hey everyone,
First time post but I have a question I think others might be interested in as well. I'd like to create a simple method of charging my phone wirelessly in my vehicle but I have a few questions before I make a couple purchases.
1.)Will the LG WCP-300 charge through a galaxy s4 otterbox defender case?
2.) Will the Samsung Wireless Charging Back Cover be able to work with my galaxy s4 otterbox defender case (perhaps with a little pressure applied)? I've seen a post online where a user was able to get it to work. Anybody on XDA try it out?
3.)If I stuck a NFC tag on the LG WCP-300, will wireless charging still work fine? Will NFC work fine?
4.) Will the LG WCP-300 charge my phone if I have it plugged into the Pioneer DEH-X6500BT USB port? I know it may not charge quickly, but what I'm leaning towards is having GPS, bluetooth, NFC and music streaming from spotify while having the battery charge at least not decrease, or have it decrease slower.
5.) Will the NFC tag work through my galaxy s4 otterbox defender case and Samsung Wirless Charging Back Cover?
I've heard of the OwlPad, but the reason I don't want to use that particular setup is because I'm trying to cut down on the amount of cables running in my car (the reason I'm going wireless, and I've got a radar detector already hooked up and don't want to use a cigarette lighter socket adapter to run two gadgets). I know a cigarette lighter socket adapter might be able to charge it quicker, but if the USB port can provide enough power to at least keep the battery from draining while running GPS, bluetooth, NFC and music streaming from spotify, then I prefer that route. I'd also like to stick to the products mentioned since I'm kinda trying to avoid third party products.
Thank's in advance, and looking forward to hear back.

Thought I would add my findings encase anybody else has similar ideas they want to undertake!
1.) I can confirm the LG WCP-300 charges through the Otterbox defender case for my Galaxy S4.
2.)The samsung wireless charging back cover (by samsung for the galaxy s4, no third party) does indeed fit with the otterbox defender case for the galaxy s4. It fit it 100% okay, but you will feel a bit more weight and notice a difference. It feels like more girth, although it locks into place and has not came apart. I will warn that it is a snug fit, so if it doesn't work for you the first time, keep at it. It doesn't bulge, but you just gotta see it to know what im talking about, I'd say give it a shot. I found a half off accessory code online and bought it directly from samsung.
3.) have not tried a NFC chip on the wireless charger yet.
4.)The LG WCP-300 does work with the pioneer USB port. But be warned!! I thought the USB port wasn't going to work (10 foot cable is recommended if you want to run the cable and try hiding it, that's what I did), because the wireless pad didn't work on my first attempt. Gave up, brought it inside to use. The USB cable inside didn't work. I had tested it before, and it did work. Odd.... Turns out, a good amount of the USB cables have to much plastic near the micro USB head which prevent the cable from going into the wireless charger all the way. Shaved some of the plastic on the cable in my car and.....got it to work. Wireless charging working in the vehicle via USB port.
5.)NFC does work through the case. Tried it with a Nexus 7 tablet and communications worked as long as it sat at the sweet spot (which I'm sure is fairly standard).
The next step for me is fallowing the guide to root the phone (thanks XDA community!!) and then fallow a different users guide on xda (Sorry, I'd post links and directly link but I haven't reached the post limit to do so quite yet) to allow unlock the phone via NFC while the phone is locked and the screen is off.
NFC running 24/7-->Place on Wireless charger with NFC chip-->Unlocks phone, sets it to not turn the screen off, turns off wifi, turns on bluetooth and connects to receiver, and starts spotify. Remove phone from NFC and all settings revert back.
Will post back (or create new post?) when it's all accomplished, maybe a video if people are interested??

I'm interested in pictures, sounds like a neat idea.

Knievel_Spirit said:
Thought I would add my findings encase anybody else has similar ideas they want to undertake!
1.) I can confirm the LG WCP-300 charges through the Otterbox defender case for my Galaxy S4.
2.)The samsung wireless charging back cover (by samsung for the galaxy s4, no third party) does indeed fit with the otterbox defender case for the galaxy s4. It fit it 100% okay, but you will feel a bit more weight and notice a difference. It feels like more girth, although it locks into place and has not came apart. I will warn that it is a snug fit, so if it doesn't work for you the first time, keep at it. It doesn't bulge, but you just gotta see it to know what im talking about, I'd say give it a shot. I found a half off accessory code online and bought it directly from samsung.
3.) have not tried a NFC chip on the wireless charger yet.
4.)The LG WCP-300 does work with the pioneer USB port. But be warned!! I thought the USB port wasn't going to work (10 foot cable is recommended if you want to run the cable and try hiding it, that's what I did), because the wireless pad didn't work on my first attempt. Gave up, brought it inside to use. The USB cable inside didn't work. I had tested it before, and it did work. Odd.... Turns out, a good amount of the USB cables have to much plastic near the micro USB head which prevent the cable from going into the wireless charger all the way. Shaved some of the plastic on the cable in my car and.....got it to work. Wireless charging working in the vehicle via USB port.
5.)NFC does work through the case. Tried it with a Nexus 7 tablet and communications worked as long as it sat at the sweet spot (which I'm sure is fairly standard).
The next step for me is fallowing the guide to root the phone (thanks XDA community!!) and then fallow a different users guide on xda (Sorry, I'd post links and directly link but I haven't reached the post limit to do so quite yet) to allow unlock the phone via NFC while the phone is locked and the screen is off.
NFC running 24/7-->Place on Wireless charger with NFC chip-->Unlocks phone, sets it to not turn the screen off, turns off wifi, turns on bluetooth and connects to receiver, and starts spotify. Remove phone from NFC and all settings revert back.
Will post back (or create new post?) when it's all accomplished, maybe a video if people are interested??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The NFC will only read the chip so long as to enable the mode. It does not act as a proximity sensor and will not "revert" back to it's normal operation. Keeping an NFC chip in range the phone will ignore it after it first reads it. You will either need NFC Tasker or some other app to make it a "switching" tag where you can lift your phone off, tap it again to return to normal mode and then go on your way, or another tag stuck somewhere else to trigger going back to normal, maybe perhaps on the car keys?

Yes the post that talks about unlocking the phone has tasker involved with reverting the settings back. On another post it mentions unlocking the phone by keeping NFC on 24/7. The app I'm looking at is NFC Unlocking by MohammadAG, and work also done by Madfish73.
http://www.xda-developers.com/android/unlock-your-phone-using-nfc/
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2122019
I should also mention that I'm trying to follow the directions here (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2306247) to add home-screen rotation, but as they mention cyanogenmod, I'm not sure if this will work with the stock touchwiz on the galaxy s4....any thoughts?
Ultimate rotation control worked great for my galaxy s1, but the s4 is a little buggy. Nova launcher works great for the homescreen rotation, but the lockscreen rotation is absent in nova launcher. Looking to have both rotate.

Knievel_Spirit said:
Yes the post that talks about unlocking the phone has tasker involved with reverting the settings back. On another post it mentions unlocking the phone by keeping NFC on 24/7. The app I'm looking at is NFC Unlocking by MohammadAG, and work also done by Madfish73.
http://www.xda-developers.com/android/unlock-your-phone-using-nfc/
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2122019
I should also mention that I'm trying to follow the directions here (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2306247) to add home-screen rotation, but as they mention cyanogenmod, I'm not sure if this will work with the stock touchwiz on the galaxy s4....any thoughts?
Ultimate rotation control worked great for my galaxy s1, but the s4 is a little buggy. Nova launcher works great for the homescreen rotation, but the lockscreen rotation is absent in nova launcher. Looking to have both rotate.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
NFC unlock works perfectly fine. I don't think you understood what I was saying, the NFC system triggers once per touch to the tag, and that's it. You can leave NFC on 24/7, all it will do is waste just a tiny bit of battery each hour throughout the day. When you touch the tag (on your wireless charger in this case), it will trigger once to unlock and do all the things you want it to do, but when you remove the phone, it will do NOTHING. NFC does not care when the tag has been removed from it's field, just the initial connection to exchange data, that's it. NFC is a fire-and-forget-it system, it does not track anything other than the initial touch. It will not work to pull the phone away and "viola, locked and normal again," it just doesn't work that way, you'll either need NFC Tasker or some other app to create a switching tag (so you tap it again to 'switch' back to normal), OR configure another tag say on your keys to lock the phone and return it to normal.

Cynagen said:
NFC unlock works perfectly fine. I don't think you understood what I was saying, the NFC system triggers once per touch to the tag, and that's it. You can leave NFC on 24/7, all it will do is waste just a tiny bit of battery each hour throughout the day. When you touch the tag (on your wireless charger in this case), it will trigger once to unlock and do all the things you want it to do, but when you remove the phone, it will do NOTHING. NFC does not care when the tag has been removed from it's field, just the initial connection to exchange data, that's it. NFC is a fire-and-forget-it system, it does not track anything other than the initial touch. It will not work to pull the phone away and "viola, locked and normal again," it just doesn't work that way, you'll either need NFC Tasker or some other app to create a switching tag (so you tap it again to 'switch' back to normal), OR configure another tag say on your keys to lock the phone and return it to normal.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did the second link I provided above not run special actions when NFC is removed (I think you're thinking of a different method...)? I fallowed the link from a site, Google "Lifehacker Run an Action When You Remove Your Phone from an NFC Tag" and it should show what I'm talking about. Yes, I am FULLY aware when you remove your phone from a NFC tag, it doesn't run a task because the tag is braindead, and only does what it's programmed too. Hence, you need your phone to say "Hey, I was removed from my NFC tag, let me run another special command!" via special applications that would signal the phone to do so. The reason I want NFC running 24/7 (even while the phone is locked, normally it has to be unlocked to accept a NFC command) is because its convenient not to unlock my phone to run said task (I belive the Moto X has a similar feature with the Motorola Skip). I know i could double tap the NFC tag to revert settings back (via, again, a app), but its not as seamless as just removing it and going on my merry way.
I'm just trying to ace this in one go around, but seeing as phase 1 of my ongoing saga is accomplished in this post, I think I'll create a new post so the title can attract some more help. Thanks guys! And Exel i will do one better and post a video. I'll try to remember to send it over to demonstrate my methods, but only once I'm satisfied with the results :good: .

Knievel_Spirit said:
Did the second link I provided above not run special actions when NFC is removed (I think you're thinking of a different method...)? I fallowed the link from a site, Google "Lifehacker Run an Action When You Remove Your Phone from an NFC Tag" and it should show what I'm talking about. Yes, I am FULLY aware when you remove your phone from a NFC tag, it doesn't run a task because the tag is braindead, and only does what it's programmed too. Hence, you need your phone to say "Hey, I was removed from my NFC tag, let me run another special command!" via special applications that would signal the phone to do so. The reason I want NFC running 24/7 (even while the phone is locked, normally it has to be unlocked to accept a NFC command) is because its convenient not to unlock my phone to run said task (I belive the Moto X has a similar feature with the Motorola Skip). I know i could double tap the NFC tag to revert settings back (via, again, a app), but its not as seamless as just removing it and going on my merry way.
I'm just trying to ace this in one go around, but seeing as phase 1 of my ongoing saga is accomplished in this post, I think I'll create a new post so the title can attract some more help. Thanks guys! And Exel i will do one better and post a video. I'll try to remember to send it over to demonstrate my methods, but only once I'm satisfied with the results :good: .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Second link on review appears to have some solid tools and tweaks to accomplish this goal successfully. I look forward to seeing the results, I know one friend that would probably go for this in a heartbeat.

Try Llama. Not the easiest UI to get on with, but very powerful and free.
You could use a llama variable and 'removed from wireless charger' condition to know that it was removed from the NFC: 1) when NFC tag comes on, set a llama variable. 2) when removed from charger and llama variable is set, do whatever you need (including reverting the variable). If that's the only wireless charger you use, then you don't even need to use any llama variable.
Among other things, I use Llama to deactivate pattern lock when connected to home wifi, and activating it when disconnected from home wifi after a certain delay. This could be done with many apps of course (Tasker, AutomateIt, etc).

lost_ said:
Try Llama. Not the easiest UI to get on with, but very powerful and free.
You could use a llama variable and 'removed from wireless charger' condition to know that it was removed from the NFC: 1) when NFC tag comes on, set a llama variable. 2) when removed from charger and llama variable is set, do whatever you need (including reverting the variable). If that's the only wireless charger you use, then you don't even need to use any llama variable.
Among other things, I use Llama to deactivate pattern lock when connected to home wifi, and activating it when disconnected from home wifi after a certain delay. This could be done with many apps of course (Tasker, AutomateIt, etc).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Llama looks great! If my methods don't work out I'll look at it as a alternative. I'm start to root right now. Hoping to have it running by the end of the day.

Root finished! 2 hours later. Not bad for a first time root :highfive:

Exel said:
I'm interested in pictures, sounds like a neat idea.
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Took some time but I just finished. I'll try to make time this week to create something to show you. It'd be great for truck drivers I was thinking who have longer drives than the typical commuter.

Pixel Buds

My Pixel Buds were delivered today, and I have to say, they are really nice. Right out of the box, I charged them for about 20 minutes before connecting them up. Getting the snug fit in my ear, after playing with the cord a little, took a few minutes, but afterwards, it was a light, comfortable fit. The volume on these things is insanely loud, which is a good thing, because there is no noise cancellation whatsoever. You will hear the outside world around you. After first setup, these connect super fast when you put them on. They don't really beat wired, in ear alternatives, but I have to say, these are a really nice product.
Update: it would seem the issue of the muted microphone for assistant over bluetooth headphones also includes the buds. I'm fairly sure Google will issue a fix for this soon enough, as it's their signature response to airpods.

Nice, have you tested the translation feature they touted? I am guessing that's why their is no noise cancelation so when you wear them you can still hear people talking

What codec does it is for music? Hopefully not default sbc. I can't give up my LDAC headphones.

Does it use Bluetooth 5.0?
Can you test the range.

ErikFry said:
Does it use Bluetooth 5.0?
Can you test the range.
Click to expand...
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I don't own a pair but it was confirmed to have Bluetooth 4.2 not 5.0

I have had my pixel buds for about a week now. Like them very much, but have one main issue:
When I put my buds back in the case and close the case, they disconnect. But with the case just sitting there and my phone locked on the desk as well, they will reconnect while charging in the charging case. They also do this while in my coat pocket, I assumed it was movement based, but just sitting on the desk they do this as well.
Opening and closing the case disconnects them again.

bc14nj said:
I have had my pixel buds for about a week now. Like them very much, but have one main issue:
When I put my buds back in the case and close the case, they disconnect. But with the case just sitting there and my phone locked on the desk as well, they will reconnect while charging in the charging case. They also do this while in my coat pocket, I assumed it was movement based, but just sitting on the desk they do this as well.
Opening and closing the case disconnects them again.
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That's super frustrating. I hate when I forget to turn off my gym bluetooth headphones and then they just keep stealing my phones connection.

OnePlus Bullet Wireless 2 - just got them

Hello Community.
I have just received OnePlus Bullet Wireless 2 and I gotta say that sound quality is pretty nice. I know that there are cheaper bullets on the market but you got few things which explain the price.
So far my experience is very positive. They are very comfortable to wear which is not to easy task in my case since I often have a problem with fitting any airbuds. They are light and you do not notice them at all. As I said sound quality is very good. I am not an audiophile but I find everything what I am looking in earphones. Good bass, but not to strong, nice and clear separated sound. Outside sound isolation is also very nice and I was afraid that I will miss ANC in daily usage(my main headphones are Sony MDR1000x) but since they fit nice in my ears they do de work with cutting me off from environment.
I did not test battery life yet, I am using them without charging, they were already charged to 60% so I will have to test it more before I say any word about it.
Summary:
Pros:
- very good sound quality and sound isolation
- ergonomic - design, fit, comfort, magnetic connect
- Bluetooth 5.0 + aptX(you can change to LDAC in Developer settings)
- action button - switch between 2 devices
- fast charging via usb-c
Cons:
- charging cable could be longer
- case looks nice, feels nice but it could be slightly bigger since fitting earbuds inside is not to easy
- still price could be slightly lower since they do not have ANC and earbuds competition is strong
If you have any question - ask me

By the way... I am thinking about buying some foam tips for a better sound isolation but I am not sure what size should I get? t400, t500, t600? If any one knows it please let me know.

dorsefrith said:
By the way... I am thinking about buying some foam tips for a better sound isolation but I am not sure what size should I get? t400, t500, t600? If any one knows it please let me know.
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T160, according to Comply's online "Find your fit" guide.

But there are no bullets 2 in selection and for other bullets earphones I have only S/M/L size not with TXXX.
Nozzle size is around 6,25mm so it looks like T600? All I can find is T400, occasionally T500 but it is often T400/T500.

dorsefrith said:
But there are no bullets 2 in selection and for other bullets earphones I have only S/M/L size not with TXXX.
Nozzle size is around 6,25mm so it looks like T600? All I can find is T400, occasionally T500 but it is often T400/T500.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry, my mistake - that was for the wired Bullets v2.

Ok so some time has passed.
1. Love the battery life
2. I am happy with sound quality
3. Sound isolation not to good(still waiting for memory foams)
What I hate?
1. WHY THERE IS NOT POWER BUTTON! O_O I carry my bullets in a backpack and they very often detach and connect to my phone disconnecting my other earphones.
2. Silicon case is totally useless.
Would I buy them again? not sure...

dorsefrith said:
Ok so some time has passed.
1. Love the battery life
2. I am happy with sound quality
3. Sound isolation not to good(still waiting for memory foams)
What I hate?
1. WHY THERE IS NOT POWER BUTTON! O_O I carry my bullets in a backpack and they very often detach and connect to my phone disconnecting my other earphones.
2. Silicon case is totally useless.
Would I buy them again? not sure...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
correct I am also facing same issue with bullets1
no way to power off

- The Bullets turn off himself after few seconds of inactivity or just stick them...

khalisz said:
- The Bullets turn off himself after few seconds of inactivity or just stick them...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I travel to work and when it is not to hot outside I use Sony MDR1000X(main daily drivers), I have my OP bullets in my bag(DELL backpack ) and often when I move and listen to the music my bullets disconnects for a while in my bag and connect to my phone and disconnect my MDR's. Sometimes I must open my bag and stick them back sometimes not. Sometimes I must do it few times so it is very annoying. I take of my bag, put it on the ground, run, go to a crowded place and they disconnect.... When I am not listening to the music, they connect and when I have a phone call I have to go to settings and quickly disconnect bluetooth since communication is done on the bullets which are in my bag.
For my it is an epic fail.

dorsefrith said:
I travel to work and when it is not to hot outside I use Sony MDR1000X(main daily drivers), I have my OP bullets in my bag(DELL backpack ) and often when I move and listen to the music my bullets disconnects for a while in my bag and connect to my phone and disconnect my MDR's. Sometimes I must open my bag and stick them back sometimes not. Sometimes I must do it few times so it is very annoying. I take of my bag, put it on the ground, run, go to a crowded place and they disconnect.... When I am not listening to the music, they connect and when I have a phone call I have to go to settings and quickly disconnect bluetooth since communication is done on the bullets which are in my bag.
For my it is an epic fail.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
- I think you need and you must learn how to use them.
- I use them everyday, I've no issue.
- Read : https://forums.oneplus.com/threads/oneplus-bullets-wireless-q-a-user-manual-reviews-etc.954523/

I do not see what does your link solve? I can fit bullets inside the pouch but still if you press pouch gently bullets will disconnect and same thing happens inside backpack. Simple power button would solve the problem. Second thing it is a forum for bullets v1. Which as I heard had stronger magnets. In v2 magnets are weaker and they have a different shape so it is much easier to unstick them.

Hold the button down for a few seconds to turn off correct?
Works on wireless v1 at least

intruda119 said:
Hold the button down for a few seconds to turn off correct?
Works on wireless v1 at least
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Click to collapse
it goes to paring mode you really think I would not try it? There is no option to turn them off manually, only by sticking them together and since they are curved shaped they very easily unstick in he pouch or even in my backpack.

oneplus wireless bullets v1 vs v2?
Hi guys, is it worth it to upgrade from wireless bullets v1 to v2? Is there a significant difference?

This is just my opinion but I hate the OnePlus bullets. In the age of wireless earbuds. They barely changed the v2 versions. This thick neck cord is so 2015. Come on OnePlus we need some nice earbuds without and cords.

Question Bluetooth connection preference

I'm cleaning the driveway from this white stuff, wearing the pixel buds A while the truck is running to thaw.
If I walk up to the truck, the phone connects to the truck's radio.
Can I set up a connection preference so the phone ignores radio while the buds are on/in use? Rules wants full time location 25/8, which is not needed for what I'm looking to do.
P6p unlocked, no root.
Muchas gracias, komsamnida, domo arigato, thanks...

I wouldn't expect it to connect to your truck unless the truck is turned on, otherwise what's stopping it from just connecting when you're in close proximity anyway? Say you're working near it, phone rings, you answer... audio is routed to the car which is off.
If the truck is on, it implies you're driving it, which would indicate a higher priority for connection. I think the phone is working correctly, but the truck's bluetooth is NOT.

Larzzzz82 said:
I'm cleaning the driveway from this white stuff, wearing the pixel buds A while the truck is running to thaw.
If I walk up to the truck, the phone connects to the truck's radio.
Can I set up a connection preference so the phone ignores radio while the buds are on/in use? Rules wants full time location 25/8, which is not needed for what I'm looking to do.
P6p unlocked, no root.
Muchas gracias, komsamnida, domo arigato, thanks...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've heard it said that at least sometimes in the past, Bluetooth priority was in the order that things were paired to it, but I've also heard that it doesn't necessarily actually follow that priority anymore. In short, I haven't heard of a potential solution other than trying that (unpair everything, re-pair in your preferred order, then test).

96carboard said:
I wouldn't expect it to connect to your truck unless the truck is turned on, otherwise what's stopping it from just connecting when you're in close proximity anyway? Say you're working near it, phone rings, you answer... audio is routed to the car which is off.
If the truck is on, it implies you're driving it, which would indicate a higher priority for connection. I think the phone is working correctly, but the truck's bluetooth is NOT.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The truck was running to thaw the ice on the glass.
This still makes no sense to me because if the buds are turned on and connected already, they should take precedence and stay connected.
They should be priority anyways. If they're turned on, they're obviously going to be worn.

Larzzzz82 said:
The truck was running to thaw the ice on the glass.
This still makes no sense to me because if the buds are turned on and connected already, they should take precedence and stay connected.
They should be priority anyways. If they're turned on, they're obviously going to be worn.
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Click to collapse
That's what a scraper is for.
I would always prioritize a car over a headset. When you get into the car with the headset on, it should switch to the car. Working correctly.

You scrape. I'll be cleaning the driveway as the truck warms up.

I'll just hit the down button and the plow will clear the driveway for me.

Larzzzz82 said:
You scrape. I'll be cleaning the driveway as the truck warms up.
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Hell yeah. When I paid to have an after market remote start put on my base model first ever brand new car in 2014, I had them set the maximum remote start time to an hour. Sure, it was unlikely I'd keep it on that long, but I haven't yet had a garage so there was no risk of poisoning.
I've definitely let the car run for 30 minutes or longer, however, to melt all that ice.

I wear hearing aids and they are paired with the phone, as are my smart watch, and my car. When I'm in the car it connects to it fine. But typically it is paired with my hearing aids which is what I prefer. But sometimes when I'm on the phone it somehow switches back to the phone's speaker or the smart watch instead of my hearing aids. I can't always switch the sound to my ears. My old phone was a OnePlus and by pressing the volume buttons on the phone I could select where I wanted the sound from the phone to go, but there is no such capability on the Pixel. It is a pain in the butt.

almahix said:
I wear hearing aids and they are paired with the phone, as are my smart watch, and my car. When I'm in the car it connects to it fine. But typically it is paired with my hearing aids which is what I prefer. But sometimes when I'm on the phone it somehow switches back to the phone's speaker or the smart watch instead of my hearing aids. I can't always switch the sound to my ears. My old phone was a OnePlus and by pressing the volume buttons on the phone I could select where I wanted the sound from the phone to go, but there is no such capability on the Pixel. It is a pain in the butt.
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Pixel 6 Pro, rooted, same issue
No one knows a way to force priority/override?

christiebunny said:
Pixel 6 Pro, rooted, same issue
No one knows a way to force priority/override?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't yet found a way.