Motorola 89556N Roadster 2 Universal Bluetooth In-Car Speakerphone - Retail Packaging - Silver

 

Motorola 89556N Roadster 2 Universal Bluetooth In-Car Speakerphone - Retail Packaging - Silver

 

Price : $79.99

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Unleash the Power of Mobility
Stay in touch on the go with ROADSTER 2, the latest Bluetooth enabled in-car speakerphone from Motorola. The speakerphone conveniently attaches to your visor making it perfectly placed to hear and be heard when making calls in the car. ROADSTER 2 also has best-in-class noise cancellation which means your voice can be heard over the loud traffic or road noise outside.
Never Forget Where You Parked
Don’t worry about having to search endlessly for your car in a massive parking lot or multi-tiered garage. Roadster 2 is designed to work with the new Motorola Car Finder app, so you can always find where you’ve parked the car. The innovative Car Finder app turns on when you enter the car and when you leave the car it automatically marks your car location using GPS technology.
Voice Powered
The My MotoSpeak application is the ultimate hands-free texting solution with the latest text-to-speech and speech-to-text technology. Simply press the smart button on your ROADSTER 2 to initiate a text message or to hear incoming text messages and then dictate your reply. Simply speak, “Answer,” or, “Ignore,” into your device in order to voice-activate your calling.
Amp up Your Sound
The loud, 2-watt speaker works to combat cabin noise and wind, so you can have a conversation without shouting or straining hard to hear. The integrated FM transmitter allows you to listen to your calls or your music over your car speakers.
Intuitive and User-Friendly
ROADSTER 2 automatically turns on when you get in the car and off when you leave and the smartly-placed buttons provide easy access to the most-used functions. Perfect for long drives or on-the-road business calls, ROADSTER 2 has up to 20 hours of talk time2, so you’ll never have to worry about cutting calls short.
Product Details

• Streams music from compatible phone or MP3 player
• Talk time up to 20 hours
• Up to 3 weeks of standby time
• Rechargeable battery
• Motospeak: Hear and dictate texts hands-free
• Bluetooth 2.1
• Works with Bluetooth technology-enabled smartphones, music players and mobile phones
• Wireless Bluetooth range up to approximately 33 feet
• Connect and receive calls from two phones simultaneously
• Stream audio to car speakers with FM transmitter

Motorola Roadster 2 is the ultimate car kit. Motorola car finder app from Android Market remembers where you parked. Initiate and respond to calls and texts with voice controls. Listen to music or calls through your car speakers. Roadster 2 features 20 hours talk time and 3 weeks standby, streaming audio with A2DP and FM transmitter. Motorola retail packaging includes: Motorola Roadster 2 Bluetooth In-Car Speakerphone, Car Charger, User Guide.

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 7 x 3 x 5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B007AQF0WK
• Item model number: 89556N
• Batteries: 1 Lithium ion batteries required. (included)
  

Technical Details

• Download the free My MotospeakApp and listen to incoming texts messages read aloud, then use voice commands to respond or initiate texts. Also receive caller ID and important battery call status voice alerts.
• Roadster 2 automatically turns on and connects with your phone when you enter your car. When you're ready to leave it automatically turns off, saving battery life.
• Listen to calls or stream music on a powerful 2-watt speaker or through car speakers using the FM transmitter
• Have crystal clear calls with CrystalTalk technology on Roadster 2. Your speakerphone's dual microphone noise cancellation and echo control settings block out background noise in the car better than other speakerphones.
• Motorola retail packaging includes: Motorola Roadster 2 Bluetooth In-Car Speakerphone, Car Charger, User Guide. Choose 'ships and sold from Amazon.com' to ensure new, authentic Motorola product.

Customer Reviews

This is my fifth bluetooth speakerphone, and the word that sums this one up best is "cool".
Like all the other speakerphones I've used, pairing this with my phone was easy. In this case, a recorded voice guides you through the process. This comes with more controls than most (good clicky feeling buttons, too), making music playback easy.
The FM transmitter is better thought out than products I've used in the past. The recorded voice tells you the station the device is using (which is typical), but if you hold a volume button down, the unit will automatically scan the FM spectrum until it finds an unused frequency, then announce the channel. This is a cool feature that is a lot safer than trying to drive while adjusting both car radio and speakerphone ten times, looking for a clear radio frequency. This feature alone is probably enough to justify choosing this unit.
The sound clarity is noticeably better than the others speakerphones I've used. I credit this to the noise cancellation claims on the box, but what matters is that calls go through clear. The people I've called have remarked on it.
Battery life is roughly equivalent to the Jabra it replaced and far superior to the other speakerphones I've used. I was on the phone for 50% of a routine six hour trip and the fourth drive was nearly completed before the recorded voice reported "Low Battery" (which is a nice touch). Most speakerphones need to be charged after two trips (the Jabra needs to be charged approximately as often as this Roadster).
And this segues nicely:
All the other speakerphones I use are designed to be charged via USB. This too has a microUSB port, but instead of a USB cable the box comes with a DC car charger (and it's a swanky looking DC charger). This is so much better thought out. I don't always have time to remove my speakerphone and charge it. I often need to charge it in the car. I don't want to buy an extra cable or have redundant cables. The charger has a coiled (think old telephone handset) cord and a nice clip and is intended for serious use. I really like it. If you have a car that shuts off the DC power when the car isn't on, you might consider just leaving this thing plugged in forever.
This product also detects when you enter and leave the car, pairing automatically. I have to admit I didn't really have a problem hitting the button on my Jabra to initiate the pairing, but this is one less step. Pretty slick.
The Android app is quite cool. It relies on your phone's location service, but you can also save a snapshot of your car's location. I actually often take a snapshot when I leave my car at the airport, but now that process is more automated and organized. I'm a huge fan.
The lighter grey color fits the interior of my car much better than black speakerphones, too. It looks sharp.
This product retails for $20 more than the one it replaced, but I think it's worth the additional cost.

I ordered this device because I've always like the concept of a speakerphone hands free. I find this one to be very easy to setup and use, with good call quality when used with the FM radio, fairly useful Android Apps, and clear (if a bit sparse) instructions.
The device is a nice looking silver. It clips onto the sun visor in the car. All the setup and connections are by voice prompts, making it unnecessary to remember a bunch of button combinations to use it. There are three buttons on the front (as it hangs from the visor) for mute, hang up, and dial. On the under side of the device, towards the windshield, there are buttons for music play/pause, volume / tuning +/-, and an "FM" button to change the speaker from internal to the FM radio. The FM radio connection works by having the handsfree device transmit at very low power to an unused channel.
Pro
The voice prompts make it extremely simple to use compared to many headsets. When first turned on, it provides instructions on how to pair to a phone. It also speaks the name of the device when connection is made.
It can be paired with two phones simultaneously.
The device has power saving features; it shuts down after 10 minutes, although the instructions also say that is will then subsequently re-pair. I don't see how this works without running the device constantly. The manual speaks of turning on when you open the car door. This was about the only part of the manual that didn't make a lot of sense. EDIT: After more use, I have discovered that the device apparently listens for the door opening, and powers itself back up. This is a nice feature.
The manual is short, but informative. Obviously the designers decided to put the needed instructions in the device as voice prompts, and it works very well.
When connected to the FM radio, the sound quality is outstanding. The device tells you the frequency being used when you push the "FM" button, and the "+" and "-" buttons will auto seek the next available frequency. Once I found a good frequency, everything was great. In this mode, the radio volume controls are used instead of any controls on the device. UPDATE: The FM tunes frequencies from 88.3 to 107.9.
If you have an Android phone, you can go to the market and download the two apps that work with the phone. the first app is MOTOSPEAK, which is simply outstanding. It allows you to make and answer calls (which is run of the mill stuff), but it also allows you to READ and SEND text messages. This is really great.
The second app is the Motorola Car Finder App (descriptive but not the catchiest name). It makes a note of your location when you are no longer connected to the device. You can then load the app and see a satellite picture of the car location. It works fine, but I don't generally run my GPS - and the program issues complaints about being unable to access the satellite unless location services with GPS is on. Since the program automatically launches when one is connected to the device, I ended up uninstalling it. But for people who visit large malls or parking lots, it may be useful.
The device will stream music from your phone. The quality is good, but there are no controls other than play and pause (the same button does both). The handsfree will answer and make calls while the music is engaged; it pauses the music while the other functions are working. Overall, a good job.
Con:
Not a super "con" for me (I use Android phones), but I'm surprised that there isn't an Iphone app. This limits the devices additional capability to Android phones. I list it here for those Iphone users who may be interested in the device.
When not connected to the FM, the call quality was not very good at the distant end. Also, the speaker sounded a bit tinny. I plan to use the FM radio option.
There is only one button to control the music playing, so it doesn't really provide much control of the music. I wish there were more controls; it would be nice to be able to skip a track, for example.
The device makes a REALLY annoying loud "PING" sound when it is turned off. Maybe it is designed to be left on, but it is very intrusive, and unnecessarily loud.
UPDATE 3 APR 12: When receiving a call, the device announces only the number, not the person (even if the caller is in the phone book). Other hands free devices I have owned have announced the person. I still like this one best!
Summary:
A good choice when used with the FM capabilities. The send / receive text message capability is particularly nice. Highly recommended.
EDIT: After more time, I can report that this device is still my preferred hands free. However, there are two things to report. First, it has mysteriously disconnected from my phone once. Second, when it powers back up "automatically" (I presume by hearing the doors open), if it is in FM mode, it switches back to internal speaker mode. This would not be a problem except that when I start up the car, the FM radio is still on and makes static until I manually switch the Roadster 2 back to "FM" mode. Otherwise, this has been a stellar device.