knbcpab

Has anyone heard of this company?. There offer a plug in device for Mercedes that will work with any phone and any service. No Puck required!. They say they should have for newer model cars like my 07' E350 by November. Cost is steep 799.00 - but no phone and no puck to buy and can use any service. Install they say is simply plugging into current phone unit in Trunk.

Fly Low

I believe you are referring to the ARGOS unit. I have been following their "progress" for some time now. Waiting for the actual release of the new unit designed for our cars. So far they have pushed the release date back repeatedly. But supposedly the system integrates flawlessly into our COMAND.
hope this helps

NewMoses

I'm guessing there must be some significant problems with ARGOS. It's months overdue and no public explanation from the vendors. If it works, it will be the preferable solution. I wonder what the problem is.

tgseaver

I was told late August,Now I can't get them to even respond!

Benz-O-Rama

I've also been following the development of this product for some time now. My question is this:

My car does not have the factory MB phone system. Nor does it have the voice control system. What will my car use for a mic with the Argos system? Do all late model MB's have a mic built in?

Oh crap....you know what? As I'm typing this, I just realized that it probably uses the same mic that tele-aid utilizies. I'm a dufus.

Nevermind.

iceking69

Just my 2 cents on the Argos:
I have had the argos in my 02 C32 for about 3 weeks now. I did quite a bit of research before buying. It works about 50 percent of the time. 25 percent it doesnt recognize the Argos unit. Another 25 it doesnt link back up . The 50 percent it does work the clarity if the calls is very poor on the end of the one you are talking to. Thanks

barrykaye

If you do a little checking on the 'net, you will find that the hold-up in the release of the Argos system for MOST cars was that MB didn't want to release the new fiber optic communications protocols.

As I understand it, one major difference between the D2B (pre '05) cars and the MOST cars ('05 +) is that in the MOST cars, there are actually 4 cellular/tele-aid microphones. They are located on the underside of the rearview mirror. Apparently, the new system's logic monitors each of the 4 mics and uses the one with the best incoming signal. From what I have read, figuring out how to make that right has been a real challenge for the folks at Argos.

Iceking, I've done a lot of reading on this and I haven't heard of anyone having the kind of difficulty you describe. Could it be a phone compatibility problem?

iceking69

I have used several different phones. All work the same. Biggest problem is Car not recognizing unit. Have tried everything. Not green behind the ears in this dept either. Quality of the calls with Argos is awful on the receiving end. They all claim it sounds like im in a wind tunnel. This is with no radio on. All windows rolled up and car stopped. I would like other feedback from other Argos users.

gvaughn

There has been mention before that the wind tunnel effect might be because of your climate control. Have you tested your phone quality w/ and w/out the climate control on?

JohnAMG

Hmmm, tough choice. Argos phone system or climate control??? I will take the MB phone system and keep the climate control. I can't believe you guys still waiting for a phantom phone kit to work with your cars. This topic has been going on since beginning of 2006 and still no actual product for the MOST equipped car. Good luck for those of you still waiting for it.

John

gvaughn

The wind-tunnel effect (if it is infact due to the climate control) would be a concern REGARDLESS of whether or not it is MB bluetooth or ARGOS. They both use the same microphones.

barrykaye

Way to go John. That's just the kind of attitude that we need in this forum. NOT.

Argos is clearly a real company and there is obviously a real market for a bluetooth system for the MOST cars. See my earlier post in this thread for some legitimate reasons why the MOST bluetooth system is not out yet. For those of us who spend a lot of time in the car, it's worth waiting for. By the way, is there anyone out there with an ARGOS D2B system who remembers how long it was between when the "rumors" started floating around and when the actual product was available for purchase?

Iceking, perhaps it was an installation problem? Early production version? Possibly just a system that was bad out of the box? I do believe that you experienced problems but I have read a lot of posts in this forum and others and haven't encountered anything like what you are describing. Did Argos do anything to correct the problem or did you just give up and send it back?

JohnAMG

[QUOTE=barrykaye;1880938]Way to go John. That's just the kind of attitude that we need in this forum. NOT.

QUOTE]

Touchy feeling aren't we. Tell you what, I will continue to enjoy my hand-free phone system while you wait. Mercedes phone system isn't perfect but at least it is available and it works. when I spend this kind money for a Mercedes, I am not going to nickle and dime myself and not enjoy the vehicle to its full potential. This is just my opinion and if you don't like it, that's your problem.

John

iceking69

I have not been able to get anyone as they are out of the country and My 30 days is almost up. I wait any longer and im stuck. No I dont just give up. I can And have rebuilt, repaired and replaced just about anything ever related to a car. Everything has been checked. It may be a bad unit. Im not going to take the chance on waiting and then they tell me im stuck with it and nothings wrong with it. Thanks,

gvaughn

I think I speak for most of the people who are interested in the ARGOS, when I say we're not interested in it for the cost savings. I'm interested in the ARGOS because it's supposed to have significantly greater compatibility with the most commonly used cellular phones on the market. If the current MB system were fully compatible with my phone, I'd get it in a heartbeat.

But...there's NO WAY IN HELL...I'm dumping my high-end Nokia for a POS Motorola just because those are pretty much the only phone(s) supported by the MB bluetooth system. I didn't buy a $67K MB to be forced to buy a cheap-*** Motorola cell phone if I want to make phone calls in my car using bluetooth.

The problem with your statement is that MB's bluetooth "full potential" is PATHETIC!!!

barrykaye

Ditto!

JohnAMG

At least MB bluetooth has some potential but the Argo has none, since it is not available. It is pretty stupid to sacrifice phone functionality of a $67K car so you can keep a $200(if that much) phone. Logic tells me to maximize my E55 than worry about the particular fancy phone. Tell you what, I will still continue to enjoy my "half-***" potential of a MB bluetooth system but you won't. I am not pathetic, you are.

John

gvaughn

Haha...ok. Since you said so...I'll go out and buy it right away!!! Good that you know what we all want and what works best for us better than we do. Thank god there's someone on these forums who can show us the way!!

If you're not interested in the ARGOS...why don't you drop off of this forum thread since obviously this isn't the "solution" for you? There's no need for you to be a troll in this forum lambasting others for their desire to get something you're not interested in. Give it up!!!

Oh...and while we're at it...I never said you were pathetic...I said that MB's bluetooth is pathetic. Learn to read!!

barrykaye

We obviously have some differing opinions here. Let's everyone take a step back.

John, I am assuming that you have the factory telephone kit installed in your car. Unless I am mistaken, that costs somewhere in the neighborhood of $2,500. Right now I use a Plantronics 640 bluetooth headset (works great) with my Palm Treo (which I can not give up). For me, the ARGOS system is a matter of convenience. I would get the MB system for in my mind, the convenience is not worth paying all that money, Mercedes Benz or not. Others might disagree and that's fine. Let's just check the hostility at the door.

flybeech

Here in the country, we only get into brawls over important stuff, like women or Ford vs. Chevy pick-ups. Getting personal over this or that bluetooth module seems well, .

I can appreciate the desire to cling to obsolete technology we paid big bucks for just a few years ago. Heck, I've still got 486 computers running DOS and Win3.1 that I paid $2,600 each, tucked away in closets.

The problem I see with integrating technologies that advance at different rates is exactly what we see here. The Mercedes system was, at one time, very nice. It was however, locked in time. Communication advances every day and our cellular handsets are now essentially disposable. For me, that's the appeal of the Argos. I don't yet have one in my car, but it seems like the best solution, allowing rapid integration of the new handset I want every six months. I wonder how the Argos will communicate with the newest Nokia N95?

iceking69

On a positive note, I did return my argos unit and they did credit me back my money. Thanks, Argos.
PS and ive seen the MB phone systems selling on Ebay for around 250.00 plus the V60 Bluetooth puck for 300 and less.
This is used equipment but much much less than Argos. Not to mention its factory! Which is what u want on resale. This stuff is very easy to install. From this forum I think the factory equipment is working with as much or more than the Argos. I have the PPC-6700 Pocket PC phone and all I got w Argos was to call and receive w Caller id. Any bluetooth phone will do that w factory Bluetooth puck! Ill probably have less than 600 in factory phone w Bluetooth Puck.

PS got Voice Control kit off ebay for 135.00 Installed it in 30 mins. Works great.
If you shop this stuff it doesnt cost much at all.

barrykaye

Iceking, that's some really great info. I'm glad Argos stood behind their product.

As for the factory phone kit, I never thought to look for it on ebay.

Where did you find the instructions for the do-it-yourself install? Also, maybe this is a dumb question but what exactly does the voice control kit do?

iceking69

The Voice control lets you control the radio CD player and telephone with voice activation.You get new lever for steering column.Voice Command module installs in trunk, Plug in two fuses if you dont already have phone installed and install lever on column. Very easy w a little help from this forum. Guy on ebay still has some as well. he wants 199.00 buy it now. I offered 135.00 and he took it. I was shocked. got it the next day!

here is link for anyone interested.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/OEM-M...62072153QQrdZ1

jello

So anyone else have experience with the Argos AIK integration kit? I have a D2B system with phone (I think Timeport - definitely not V60) and Voice Control. My options are the AIKD2B or upgrade to the V60 cradle and BT puck. My current phone is an LG VX8600 flip phone, but could consider changing the phone for better compatibility. Anyone have more recent experiences or advice? Thanks!

FrankFi

I just installed the Argos in my 2003 ML-500 this weekend. So far, so good. I have a Motorola Q9M Windows Mobile phone, and it recognized it and worked right away. The sound quality seems about the same as my wife's On Star system in her GM SUV.

One thing I already knew - the contacts list in my phone (which is really a PDA of course) isn't loaded into the Argos when the system starts up (which is perhaps just as well, since I have 1000 or so contacts in there). However, the phone does load one number - the number to activate the voice recognition system of my phone. So I can "dial" that number, then talk to my phone using the car's microphone and speakers to tell it to dial a contact.

- FrankFi