I like the coolness and convenience of the hands-free system in my car but after the novelty of hands-free conversation wore off I've stopped using it to a large degree. In fact I prefer putting my phone to my ear while driving. Bluetooth is cool, but when I can hear everything that is happening in the background of who I'm talking to (through 11 speakers, no less) it is rather annoying. Also, if the mic on the phone of who I'm talking to is not all that great I can hardly make out a word they are saying because of the distortion. Add to that some zones in town where the rather passive bluetooth signal just drops and I have to grab my phone anyway until the signal eventually picks up again.

I just hope this technology gets better because it is the technology we need in the ever so mobile world we live in. In the meantime I'll opt to not use it unless I necessarily have to. /rant

 

Must be your car or phone, I like my bluetooth setup in all three of my cars. It even works properly in my S2000.

 

I've had no problems with my bluetooth in both my cars but I agree, better sound quality would be nice.

 

Two different phones. Don't get me wrong, steering wheel buttons and voice dialing works great. I just hope that there will be some more thought put into noise cancellation and foreground amplification. I understand that the signal has to be passive so the very few drop signals I get are understandable.

 

I will say the quality of cell phone audio is awful to begin with and is just amplified on a decent set of speakers. Another example is XM radio..

 

Yeah, that is the other part of the equation. Since phones are getting bigger again I hope manufactures take a look at using some of that space to improve the mic and speaker.

 

I could be wrong but I think it's more about the digital audio compression on the networks themselves rather than the phone.

 

I can see that, especially with so many users on the network. I bet the compression ratio (if there is such a thing) is nuts. Talking into a mic the size of a pinhole doesn't help either. Garbage in, garbage out.

 

I've been told that the hands-free in my Jetta works really well.

 

Love my hands free setup. Not buying any more cars without it.

 

I haven't had any problems with the hands-free in my ZDX

 

i love the handsfree in my genesis
and where i live theres a law against talking or texting on a cellphone while driving, so i kinda need handsfree unless i want to pay 200 dollar tickets

 

The RL only plays through the driver's door speaker I believe. Background noise is not a symptom of the HF system. It is only playing the same signal that would be going through the ear speaker.

What is really fucking annoying is when you are driving behind someone who is obviously not paying attention to their driving only to pass them and find they are holding a cell phone. When that person is in a car with BT capability, .

After using HF every day, I have realized how distracting and dangerous it is to have to hold the phone.

 

Holding the phone is not the distraction. If you think so you could make the same case with driving with one hand and doing anything else with your other hand. What is distracting is looking at your phone, if even for 1 second while driving. I still see drivers dialing on their cellphones while driving (or are they texting, checking their email or surfing the web?) That is annoying to me. In fact it is as annoying as watching females putting on makeup while driving.

 

I disagree that holding the phone does not impede on your ability to drive to your maximum potential. I use HF on Mopac everyday during rush hour. When my phone dies and I use my work phone w/o HF, it feels terribly awkward and dangerous as I feel that I have lost full mobility when checking my blind spots. Plug the phone in to a charger, and it just gets worse.

I agree with Tim, that HF is one feature I would give a lot to never give up.

 

I shifting a distraction? What's the difference with what exactly you do with your right hand while driving?

Disclaimer: My question sounds argumentative, but that is not the intent. Just probing.

edit: If you have the "pleasure" of driving on MoPac during rush hour you shouldn't be talking at all.

 

try holding a phone and driving a MT... it gets lets just say 'creative'

 

Yeah, I once watch a friend of mine get a cheeseburger while driving a MT. Nutz.

 

I think the issue is having to hold your hand up to your head. I don't know how else to put it. I am used to HF. Having to hold a cell phone to my ear makes it feel very uncomfortable when I need to check my blind spot.

And I feel you on talking on Mopac. I am almost always calling my wife leaving work, and most of the time the conversation is short b/c I can't concentrate enough on the conversation to say anything thoughtful.

And it's going to take a lot more than polite retorts to get me fired up. Unless your talking on your cell phone on Mopac.

 

Did you ask your friend to let you out at the next stop?

 

We were both young and wild. Those were the days.

 

[sigh] Ain't that the truth? Back when we were too dumb to know better.

 

giant rubber band. problem solved.

 

Talking on the damn phone, regardless of the technology used, distracts from what one should be using all CNS functions for: DRIVING! People on the phone have a tendency to drive slower since their thought processes are impeded by trying to concentrate on a conversation. ESPECIALLY the ones who get in the left lane and start yapping away, drive me CUH-RAZY!

What happened to waiting to get home to talk?!?!?!?! How on Earth did humans survive with landlines?! For F's Sake!!

 

I agree to a point, those that slow down while driving and talking on the phone suck at driving to start with. For myself, I find it no different than talking to the person next to me.

 

The biggest difference between the phone and the person next to you is that the person next to you is aware of impending events that need quick reactions. The person on the line doesn't have a clue if you are stopped at a light or about to get cut off. The person next to you will stop talking when you attention is needed. (I hope.)

 

And that goes to the person driving to start with, I don't depend on people in my car to tell me what's going on when I drive.

 

This.

 

That has nothing to do with it. You missed the point. It's a simple enough concept that I shouldn't have to explain it again.

Keep in mind we aren't just talking about people who take driving very seriously and will put that responsibility above everything else including a conversation. We are also talking about the general public.

 

I think we all hate when drivers talk on the phone while driving, when they are not doing the right thing in traffic as a result. The only time holding a handset comes into play is when you have to react. Without both hands on the wheel, you increase the chances of an accident. I could also argue that most people don't drive with two hands anyway. That places my point regarding distractions squarely on being engulfed in a conversation that decreases the attention a driver allots to the task at hand, regardless of if using Bluetooth, a handset, or talking to someone in the passenger seat.

I also think we can all agree that, regardless of your driving skill or ability to multitask that driving while doing anything else but driving decreases our ability to drive responsibly and safely to some degree. I typically drive to and from work without even listening to the radio. It is interesting to me how I pay much more attention JUST driving when there are no internal distractions. I actually picked this up from riding my motorcycle, where it is a MUST that you concentrate on the task at hand.