Hands-On: IOGEAR Solar Bluetooth Car Kit
Guest Post by Jeremiah Abraham of Twiistup
Multi-tasking drivers can breathe a small sigh of relief. If you’re like me, you probably find yourself fiddling with your iPod, reaching for that water bottle sitting in your backseat, or trying to untangle those darned ear buds to answer a call — all while speeding down the freeway. It’s risky, but your hectic life demands it. Enter the IOGEAR Solar Bluetooth Car Kit. This simply designed accessory can help alleviate the danger level on the road at an affordable price of $46.48 through amazon.
The first thing I noticed about the IOGEAR Solar Bluetooth Car Kit was its pretty straightforward design. The unit is not the best looking gadget I’ve seen but the thin, rounded body with easy buttons make up for its ‘garage opener wannabe Star Trek Phaser’ aesthetic. I’m a stickler for cool-looking geek toys and I would give this a 6 out of 10 with extra points for its fine finish. Its dedicated volume and mute buttons are a nice and functional addition, which makes it convenient to use on the road.
The kit in itself was fairly easy to pair with my iPhone, however I did have issues reconnecting to it when returning to my car. After a while, the unit would power it off and my phone would not be able to reconnect after powering it back on. My solution to this was redoing the pairing process, which again was an easy task but frustratingly redundant. This is a deal breaker if it’s consistent with all units and there’s no better way of re-tethering the device.
Call quality is as expected with any speaker system. Callers did not notice the ambient noise significantly from the moving car and there’s minimal to no static during the call. This is all thanks to its built in noise reduction feature. I did have intermittent issues with callers not being able to hear me clearly, so I found myself raising my voice to get my message across. This comes as no surprise due to the proximity of the unit and everything else that goes on in a car while you’re driving. The bottom line is that you’re using a speaker and your callers will know it. So if clarity is important to you, then invest in a corded headset instead.
Perhaps one of the cooler features that set my geeky heart a-flutter is the unit’s solar powered battery. This makes regular use very convenient. Just use the suction cup holster included in the kit, point it toward the sky, and you’re ready to go. If you’re not a big fan of the Sun, the kit also includes an adapter that plugs directly into your lighter socket.
Final Thoughts
While it did make speaking on the phone more convenient, the IOGEAR Solar Bluetooth Car Kit has a few quirks that make me second-guess its overall performance. Re-tethering issues were frustrating and I found myself just using the built in speaker on my iPhone or my own corded headset. Call quality did not impede its functionality and solar charging is a big plus for long-term use. In all honestly, if I had purchased this unit – I would end up returning it a week later.
