Hands free phone kits are now a requirement by law if you wish to use your phone whilst driving. We can offer a number of solutions from portable Bluetooth devices that clip on to the sun visor to fully fitted systems that integrate with the vehicles original stereo, dash display etc.
Phone kit installation has got a lot more complicated in recent years as many cars have navigation systems, dashboard displays, steering wheel controls, upgraded audio with amplifiers as standard (Bose in Audi, Harman Kardon in Land Rover, Boston in Chrysler, Alpine in Jaguar and Mark Levinson in Lexus to name a few) or maybe some telephone connectivity on the original stereo which is often worth using. (Land Rover, Audi, VW)
If you are in and out of different vehicles on a regular basis it is worth looking at a portable unit such as the Parrot Minikit or Minikit slim, Bury AD9060 or Novero. These will allow you to answer a call and dial, normally by voice tags. These devices are usually battery powered and charge from the cars power socket but have no integration to the car stereo etc.
The most common installation we do is a Bluetooth kit that is dash mounted with a display (Parrot 3100, Bury 9060, Nokia 15w) so you can see who is calling you and select a number or name from your phone book and dial with the phone in your pocket, handbag, brief case etc. This normally lowers the stereo volume and feeds the conversation and ring tone though the car speakers for the best sound quality.
A step on from this is the kits that allow a iPod, usb stick, SD card or other devices to used and controlled in the car for music. The phone side works in much the same way as the above but displays artists, albums, playlists etc and interfaces to the original car speakers. (parrot 9200,9100 etc)
A further refinement to this is connecting to the steering wheel controls if you have them commonly known as MFS. We can offer this on a wide range of vehicles and the steering wheel doesn’t necessarily have to have phone buttons, audio control buttons are enough on some cars. This will normally allow you to answer and end a call, browse the address book and alter the volume.
We can also have a range of kits that are similar to the factory fitted options for mainly Audi, Volkswagen, Skoda, Seat, Mercedes, BMW, Vauxhall, Porsche etc. Again these use the controls on the stereo and/or steering wheel and display on the original screen. E.G. COMAND in a Mercedes or the dash display between the rev counter and speedo on a VW or Audi.
If you prefer a cradle type kit that the phone clips into these are still available. We normally recommend the THB range as they have a base unit with interchangeable holders for lots of different handsets and allow the use of a antenna for the best reception and performance. We also use mounting brackets that don’t require drilling and hence don’t damage the car. Again these can have the audio fed through the speakers etc.
Cradles and mounts are available for a huge amount of phones to hold the handset securely, charge it and possibly position it to use the navigation function on a smart phone. We can also hardwire charging leads to free up the power socket and get rid of unsightly wiring.