Months ago, I published what I think was the first-ever detailed overview of exactly which Bluetooth technologies are included with Windows Phone. Since then, I’ve had a chance to test Windows Phone in a few modern automobiles, which Bluetooth connectivity and USB/line-in-type connections for playing device-based media through the vehicle stereo. Here a few comments about these capabilities.
USB. Windows Phone does not yet support USB audio-out, I believe. At least I’ve not gotten it to work. However, I know that Microsoft is using USB audio- and video-out with their own devices, in fact, that’s how they’re doing all of their onstage public demos. This internally developed software is very buggy and it’s not clear what form it will take when it reaches the public, but I’ve been told it’s coming.
Line-in. Windows Phone does of course work with any standard line-in port, and I’ve used this system successfully in two recent vehicles, a 2011 Chevy rental and a 2011 VW Jetta Sportswagen TDI. No surprises here.
Bluetooth audio. Windows Phone can play music content over Bluetooth and this appears to work pretty well to very well depending on the vehicle. I got some drop-outs on the Chevy, but so far the VW has been crystal clear. As expected, the audio playback mutes when a call comes in, and then fades back in when the call is over. It’s very nice.
Hands-free Bluetooth calling and address book integration. I was also able to get this to work just fine with both vehicles. In both cases, you link the phone to the car using Bluetooth and then download and sync the address book. This lets you give voice commands (“call Steph at home”) and use the phone in a hands-free mode, which is arguably a lot safer than other methods of using a phone while driving. Both cars have hardware buttons for controlling some aspects of this functionality, including navigating through the address book if required. In the VW, this is particularly nice, with many phone details appearing right in the center of the instrument cluster. As you can see below, this even includes battery life and 3G signal strength.
Using hands-free bluetooth is a must for me. I used a Motorola T505 Bluetooth Music FM Speakerphone with A2DP 89149N for my iPhone 3GS. It worked okay with the 3GS, but it has been working great with my Samsung Focus Win 7 phone. There was a certain order I had to turn everything on in order to get it to sync to the Motorola. I have not had one problem syncing with my Focus. I turn the bluetooth on the Focus and it doesn’t matter when I turn on the Motorola, it recognizes it.
The Motorola works well with the pause music/answer function on the front, as well as, the skip songs button on each side of the device. Voice over radio is nice too.
I hope this helps anyone who is in the market for a good hands-free with their Win 7 phone. It is an older model and you can find it cheaper online than buying the latest Motorola version that is currently in stores.
Glad to see it works so well with VW. The Focus will easily be my next phone, and I plan on keeping my GTI for at least as long as my 2 year contract will be. :p
I have a jvc head unit with Bluetooth and it works great with my omnia 7 , calls, streaming audio, phonebook and voice dialling no sync issues at all. Also have the phone synched to a jabra halo very good for music. Phone 7 attracts good comments and this phone has the wow factor.
It’s working with the Ford Focus’ Sync as well. Only issue that I really have is that when it connects to Bluetooth the WP7 tends to have a habit of picking some random song to start, even if I’ve got something paused in Music/Videos. Other than that it seems to work really well. Calling works well (as well as it has worked) and had no issues so far there.
I have a Samsung Focus and I was able to get it work with my Kenwood car stereo. Two issues I am facing are –
1 – Call quality is not as good as the iPhone, it’s not very bad also
2 – With my iPhone once I switch to use the Phone, it will remain like that for the entire trip. But with Focus it always switches to Car’s audio system.
I’ve found call quality to be significantly better. In fact, two people actually asked me, unprompted, what changed (for the better)? (Of course, that’s the other end of call quality, if you will.)
Microsoft’s SYNC will also display/read text messages from Windows Phone.
I hope Microsoft adds USB audio-out very soon. My Samsung Focus is basically useless to me as a music player when I’m in the car currently.
I have a Kenwood KIV-700 that I use with my Zune HD through USB and I thought I’d give that a try to see if it would recognize a Samsung Focus. Sadly, it said “No Device” on the screen even though the phone was receiving power from the USB port. I guess it’s a good thing I stuck an Aux jack into the cluster of inputs added to the console. Makes me wish I spent the extra $100 for the bluetooth model though. Ah well, at least I know I can still charge the Focus with my car’s USB ports. Does anyone else have a Zune-compatible stereo that they’ve tried with WP7?
really? It plays the Zune via USB? I didn’t think that was possible.
I have had no issues with the audio system in my 2010 Prius and the Samsung Focus. Prior to the WP7 phone, the car was paired with a Windows Mobile Touch Diamond 2. Music playback on the TD2 required an extra step of pushing a Start button on the audio system touch screen. With the Focus, the phone simply begins playing when I select Bluetooth as the music source.
I paired the Focus with the car without issue and was delighted that it worked with the contact list that had been downloaded from the Windows Mobile phone. The list of contacts in the car does not include those from the Windows Phone that are imported from my Facebook account of course because it came from my Windows Mobile phone, but the non-Facebook contacts are the same between the two phones. I suppose I could delete the car contact list and reinstall it from the Focus so it includes the Facebook contacts too, but so far, I haven’t needed to.
If there was a way to fool my head unit into thinking Windows Phone was an iPod when I plug it into the USB, that would be golden!
Any chance of that happening?
Probably not. Certainly not officially.
Hi Paul! My Samsung Omnia 7 is working fine in my BMW One, but there is one minor issue, the car is syncing each individual phone contact, and not the linked contact. So I if have my wife’s number in Outlook and Hotmail with the same name, on my phone it’s one contact, but it will be duplicated in the car.
Is it the same for you?
Windows Phone works great in a 2010 F-150 Sync… too include reading out text messages. While it reading those text messages seems to require you to touch the screen to say so, but with my Droid 1 the feature didn’t even show up as available. Being able to respond to the text messages via Sync is also a little odd but still cool tech. The odd thing with Sync is with remote start you need to be mindful that your Sync system is trying to pair with your phone and based on distances, there is a chance that you might receive a call and you swear the phone is broke… nope all the audio is going on in the vehicle… just a fun note.
Paul, good to see you reference on the Channel 9 Ping podcast.
For those of us that don’t have built in blue tooth but do have a 3.5mm / 1/8th inch aux jack there is a hands free over the radio solution. There is a microphone/aux adapter that best buy sells for $10. Its made by Dynex and its got a 1/8 three conductor plug that jacks into the phone with a microphone/switch and 1/8 two conductor jack on the other end. Or an extension cable with a mic on the end. The switch allows for all the voice activation stuff on the phone. I have it clipped to the back of my rearview mirror and it works awesome.
Unfortunately my bluetooth experience with my car has not been so positive. I have the Samsung Focus and a 2009 Acura TL. The bluetooth connection with my previous phone, the Fuze, worked perfectly. I find that with my Focus I get a noticeably less good connection, and at least once a call my car will completely lose the bluetooth connection and drop the device. And I don’t mean it drops the call. I just lose the bluetooth connection between the Focus and the car. This never happened with my Fuze.
i know i am late posting on this, but i wanted to add that the Samsung Focus (and HTC variant do not work with Pioneer aftermarket bluetooth .. it will sync up fine and then it says invalid device and will disconnect. because of this i am in the market now for a better double din radio that has hands free bluetooth built into it …