LaslowNET Technical Rants, HOWTOs, and Writing

Bluetooth Headsets, Android, and You

On January 1st, a new law came in to effect in the province of British Columbia requiring that motorists must use a hands-free device while driving if they wish to make phone calls or else face to fine (of somewhere around $160). So, rather than risk a ticket, I broke down and bought a Bluetooth headset, which has ended up being a learning experience.

At first I was unable to stream music over my headset, but then I discovered that the Motorola H780 I had purchased wasn't A2DP compatible. I then exchanged it for a Jabra BT530 and music streaming worked out-of-box, so I can't blame that on the OS.

However, I can blame the biggest deficiency on Android - although both headsets support Voice Dialing, Android doesn't allow you to Voice Dial from your headset. You still have to pick up the phone and either manually dial or use the handset's built-in voice dialing, both of which will get you a ticket if you do them while driving.

So if you're looking for a full-featured Bluetooth Headset for an Android phone, make sure you pick one up that's A2DP compatible, just don't expect to do anything other than listen to music and receive calls. Just don't expect to be able to make calls from a headset anytime soon.