~CL500~

I currently have the OEM/POS Timeport in my CL and would like a Bluetooth upgrade. After seeing what's out there now, what exactly is the benefit of buying a MB UHI and MB Bluetooth Cradle instead of just buying the Argos Bluetooth Module and yanking the Timeport and cradle?

gmdebruyn

does the bluetooth cradle support all phones? or are we locked into using specific phones again which have special mb software on them?

Gareth

gmdebruyn

i found that if you set your V600's bluetooth on, and you have a headset, you can use the command controls to place the call, but the call will route through the headset. better clarity, more privacy if you have passengers, and if the bluetooth puck/cradle/whatever they want to call it locks me into certain phones again, then i might as well just find the right cradle for myself and use the bluetooth headset solution.

my feeling is that if you have bluetooth, you should be able to link into the car with any phone that you choose at the cingular store that has it enabled.

prsmith777

I just called AWS.

For my 2003 SL500, the puck wont be available for three more months. I was told I have MOST in my vehicle. I dont know if thats right.

When I asked if the puck would download the entire phonebook from my phone into the MB system, he said that only certain phones will work with the puck. When I asked which phones, he said he couldnt comment. When I asked if my Motorola RAZR would work, he stuck with the no comment line.

This has me worried.

It would seem I may have to get an approved BT cellphone to work with this solution. This is only slightly better than the old way with the MB proprietary phones. Ugh. I guess we'll find out soon enough. Meanwhile, I guess Ill start looking at the EIS kits again.

Capt Nemo o2

I think what he meant is certian wireless providers cripple the bluetooth in their phones (ie Verizon). For instance my VZW Motorola V710 does not support OBEX or PIM sync, so my phone would not download the phone book.

taz

The more information posted, the more I am confused...

ToonArmy

I'd be very interested in hearing how this works out. I have a similar setup, UHI system from MBenzNL installed by Scorchie, with a SE T637 cradle. The phone is getting a bit long in the tooth, so looking for the next move. I may have to use a Treo for work, so generic Bluetooth would be nice. The posts mention rSAP as a requirement - anyone have a pointer to a list of phones that suppport rSAP (remote SIM Access Protocol)?

gmdebruyn

i think all of us were assuming that a bluetooth enabled mercedes would mean we could use any bluetooth phone.

i think that assumption is going to be proven incorrect. basically i think they will hold us to proprietary phones approved by MB USA and just have it able to link via bluetooth to the car rather than placing it in the cradle.

this is bad because it degrades our reception. and we don't get to use the phone of choice.

if everything above is true, then i think we need to see what cradles are available out there bluetooth or not from Europe (they have a much wider selection and don't constrain you like MBUSA does). that way we can pick a phone that we actually like, and one that can talk to the car.

amazed that mercedes doesn't listen to its customers.

i don't know about you guys, but people complain to me about the noise inside the car when i call. its not the nicest car phone in the world. i solved that by using a bluetooth headpiece with the phone, but i think the bluetooth "puck" (i was one of the first excited members on this forum with regard to this topic) might not be delivering what we had hoped. i guess we'll just wait and see though...

ideally, i would want the puck to interface with any bluetooth phone, in my case a samsung d600, and have the same functionality as it does now with the annoying v600 that is in my car.

dtkw

Well, if I had bluetooth in the car which I do, why do I need a cradle for this particular phone? Chances are that I will change phone in the future and the cradle would become useless. A car charger would be the only thing I use.

ToonArmy

Well, two things. First, you're using a non-Mercedes electronics solution. And second, you have a car from the days when a Mercedes was designed to last longer than a specific model of cellular phone

eddieo45

I agree with dtkw: if my bluetooth phone would work thru my MB audio system, I'd be happy to keep the phone in my pocket!

ToonArmy

Well, yes, that's how BT is intended to work, and how it works in, for example, Acuras. Just to be clear, I like that usage mode, I'm just very frustrated at MB's insistence on hard-wiring proprietary components with fast-changing technology into their cars in a way that makes upgrading difficult (v60 phones, non-MP3 capable CD changers, ...) and exorbitantly expensive, if not impossible.

And then I was (semi-humorously) combining that with their well-documented slide in quality to imply that they were perhaps not intending their cars to have a very long lifespan. The term planned obsolescence comes to mind...

SFoRZA

they said it was going to come out today, but it got pushed back another 2 weeks....

if you have verizon you will only be able to use:

E815


or the mb710

Capt Nemo o2

Any E815? Or the MB 815?

Hmm, on the wireless4mb.com site, the pictures of the new phones do not show them having the MB logo (V60, V600, and V710 still do). Does that mean they are off the shelf?

iboj007

Any word on the EIS kits? What about the group buy that someone on here mentioned?

steverferguson

Copy of email just recived from AWS

http://www.wireless4mb.com

Dear Mr



Thank you for contacting Auto Wireless Solutions (AWS) with your questions. The MHI Adaptor is available from AWS at a cost of $474 is you have a Mercedes approved Bluetooth phone with the required specific software. If AWS needs to provide an approved phone, the adaptor is at a cost of $350.



Mercedes has approved certain phones with different carriers. To determine if your current phone is compatible, or to obtain one, please contact AWS customer service at 800-266-7746 M-F 7AM to 6PM and Saturday 9AM to Noon Pacific Standard Time.



Sharon

Auto Wireless Solutions

carpersn

Steverferguson, What are you adapting from/to? Gimme some details...my first upgrade is hopefully from a voice-activated startac in my 00 E-wagon. I have waited specifically to buy a new phone for my wife according to what will work the best, but would like it if i could also pair my Treo 650.

prsmith777

I just called AWS to check my phone compatibility.

I have the Cingular version of the RAZR and I have the following soft ware version: R374_G_0E.40.57R
I found this by typing "*#9999#" and it came up.
He said Im good to go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Couple more weeks and the Bluetooth for my 2003 SL500 will be available.

So this confirms that I dont need a proprietary MB phone afterall.

PAUL

Edited the code to the correct one....sorry.

Jayhawk

I just typed *#999# into my Cingular Razr and it came back w/ "Not Available." What does that mean?

chinhster

*#999# didn't work for me either so I tried Settings > Phone Status > Other Information > S/W Version and got R374_G_0E.40.57R_A1.

prsmith777

Sorry guys....
its supposed to "*#9999#"
I missed a 9 in there

Jayhawk

Hey thanks, I got exactly the same #. But prsmith777's # was slightly different in that it did not have the last three digits (_A1) as ours. What might that mean?

Jayhawk

Okay! That works too. Did yours also have the _A1 at the end, as ours did?

What does S/W Version, Flex version, etc. mean?

wsscott

Remember, you can't just buy the bluetooth cradle from AWS, you also have to have the MHI phone system installed in the Mercedes. If you don't have a factory phone system now in your MB, just buying their part won't give you an active phone or a bluetooth connection.

Jayhawk

My car has COMAND: Nav, Startac phone, voice recog., CD, Bose, fiber optic network, etc..

Does that mean I have the MHI system installed?