So, New Jersey recently instituted a cellphone ban while driving – it’s now cause to be pulled over, so we all need to be hands-free. I do have a hands-free device, but it’s a pain in my ass; it’s wired and gets all tangled up and stuff. What do you use? Bluetooth? Something else? Tell me all about it – tips and tricks, best brands, best prices, etc. I’m not on my phone all that often in the car, anyway, so I don’t need anything super-fancy.
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I have a pre-historic headset for my work phone, because I sometimes use that one to call the office that I’m going to be late, because I took a wrong turn… Other than that, I just don’t use the phone in my car and I really like it. Talking to someone on a mobile phone in a car is horrible. My co-workers use their driving time to make “important” phone calls. But when they call me either they have to shout, or I have to shout and the phone call is really useless.
Sounds more annoying than anything!
I spend pretty much every day alone, so when I do get out in the car it’s sometimes a good way to catch up with my sister. I don’t really understand how or why people conduct business on a cell phone, though.
Being freelance and with no fixed working space, being on the phone in the car is a necessity to me. I got a bluetooth over a year ago as I too had no luck with headset entanglements in the car.
Have to say, I don’t ever talk on the phone in the car without it. It annoys me to see people doing so. The biggest problem being that it’s so lightweight, I sometimes forget to take it off and end-up looking like a right knob in social situations.
That’s my fear.
Looking like a right knob.
I just ordered a Bluetooth thing from Verizion, since I’ll be PISSED if I get a $350 ticket. I hate having conversations on the cell phone, too, esp with my mom. After pretty much everything I say, she says, “What? Huh?” and I lose my patience.
ha!
I’m in the camp that thinks this is a great thing. Yes, there are people who can walk and chew gum at the same time, but a lot of people simply can’t and either won’t admit it or are just not self-aware and have no idea they are a danger on the road. I am so sick of watching people swerve or forget to signal and do stupid things while driving because the majority of their attention is focused on their phone. I wish they would hurry up and impose this ban in Ontario.
Does your cell phone have speakerphone capabilities? If so, just use that. Chicago proper (not Illinois as a whole) has a ban and when I’m on my cell in the city, I put the speakerphone on and gently place my phone between my shoulder and my shoulder seat belt harness, so it’s close enough to my ear and mouth to hear and pseak clearly. That may sound a bit silly to do but I refuse to buy a Bluetooth headset to avoid looking like a complete tool.
The speakerphone on my cell sucks – it’s not loud enough and picks up way too much ambient noise. I’ve tried using that in the car and it works sometimes, but not well. As for looking like a tool, well, I agree that the people walking around the supermarket talking to thin air look like complete idiots. But those are a certain kind of people, right? It’s not the headset that makes them look stupid as much as the fact that they are carrying on a loud conversation with a dead look in their eyes with no concern for anyone around them. I think cell phone etiquette should be taught in school. Does anyone else remember learning phone manners at school or am I one hundred years old? IDY my BFF Rose?
Maggie, I’m thrilled this ban is in effect, too. We’ve been nearly hit in parking lots, swerved from drifting cars, etc. and it’s always been someone on the phone. I will step right up and admit that I have probably been guilty of this at times. No longer, though. Rona is right – the threat of a ticket is enough for me, as well as finally realizing just how dangerous/annoying it is.
The thing that gets me is watching people who are on the phone and how they handle it if you try to talk to them, too. For instance, if Jeremy’s on the phone with his sister and I whisper something for him to pass on to her, he holds his finger up and TURNS HIS BACK TO ME. Because he can’t pay attention to my whisper and still focus on his conversation. Imagine him or I on a cell phone in the car! I can drive and talk to my passengers or listen to the radio or sing songs, but not interact with sound coming in directly into one ear.
Headset is better, but speaker is best because then the voice on the phone is out there with the ambient noise around you, and you don’t have to tune out your surroundings in order to pick it out.
Well, the Bluetooth thing only goes on one ear, right, so you still get the ambient noise in the other. The headset I have now has perfect sound, but I cannot hear ANYTHING except the voice on the other end of the phone and it freaks me out.
That’s the problem…ambient in one ear, voice in the other, and your brain competes for which it should listen to. Know what I mean? You still have to decide to tune something out. I’d prefer to hear everything with both ears all at once.
When I was a kid my parents wouldn’t let me have a walkman because they thought it was so dangerous that I’d be walking around and not hear the whistling anvil about to fall on my head. Ha ha! They were afraid I’d get hit by a car or a bike or something.
I’m not trying to be a jerk here, I hope I’m not coming off all nasty!
No, you’re not! I guess that I never really noticed having an issue with the voice in one ear, noise in the other. I’ve always thought that most people are driving badly because they are trying to dial or fumbling around text messaging or whatever. But I guess the distraction is just as dangerous.
The best-case scenario would be your phone working through your car stereo, right?
You better patent that right now!
And oh my god, it never even occured to me that people are text-messaging while driving!
I think that already exists in luxury cars…not sure.
And yeah, about the text messaging – that’s why a lot of these laws are being passed. A group of teenage girls were killed in a horrifying car crash last summer and they’re saying the driver was checking her messages. Awful.
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=3379012
Maggie – I think it’s a male/female thing. Wimmens are able to process a lot more things happening at once. Mens is only able to focus on one. An overstatement, but not a massive one.
Huh-huh…”right knob…”
Hugh, you give me too much credit! I’m not as bad as my husband, but that’s not saying much!
In seriousness, I am aware of that fact(oid – didn’t we once have a debate on the use of ‘factoid?’
, but I think lots of us wimmins are also quite inept! :o
By the way, that smiley face is supposed to be a closing bracket. I’m not able to stop the wink.
Yes, a lot of cars (not just luxury) have Bluetooth capability. Mine has it. When a call comes in it rings through the stereo and there’s a mic up by the rearview mirror. You can also make calls via voice command by saying the number (or name if you store a phonebook). Still, I don’t think it makes one bit of difference whether you’re hands-free or not, and I just read something about a study to that effect. Even though I’m sometimes on the phone in the car, I would have no problem with it being outlawed.
http://crave.cnet.com/8301-1_105-9892735-1.html
Yikes.
FYI, I ended up getting the Motorola H375 onsale at Costco.
http://www.engadgetmobile.com/.....-headsets/
It seems to work fine; I haven’t tried it in the car yet but I will this week.