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(More customer reviews)I've never been a fan of DWP (Driving While Phoning), whether it's me or the other guy. Let's face it, it's distracting. No matter how many times I hear people insist they can handle it, most of the time I'm stuck behind or cut off by someone, it turns out that person has a phone stuck to their ear.
But now that everyone and their granny has a cell phone, mobile yammering is here to stay, and any attempts to legislate or regulate it will be roughly as successful as putting toothpaste back in the tube. The best we can hope for is to mitigate the distraction factor a bit by getting everyone to use some type of hands-free device.
But hands-free stuff is a hassle. Wired headsets get tangled, lost, broken or subjected to the "I'm just in the car for a few minutes" cop-out. And BlueTooth headsets are quickly becoming the pocket protectors of the 21st century - a fashion accessory only geeks want to wear.
The best solution, hands down, is BlueTooth integrated into your car. It's literally a no-brainer - get in the car, your BT-enabled phone and the car silently shake hands and get to work. Get out of the car, your phone's back on its own. Ever since getting a car with BlueTooth a few months ago, I can't imagine being without it. Unfortunately, I have to do more than imagine, because I'm often relegated to driving my wife's car, a primitive 2008 model without BT.
But the folks at Miccus have come up with an exceptionally cool, gotta-have-it device called the BluBridge Auto-Talk that makes any car a BT-equipped ride. It's about the size of a closed flip phone, and is one of those little pieces of tech that was obviously designed by people who were paying attention to detail.
The first two rules for any device designed for use while driving should be simplicity and non-distracting. The BluBridge comes with a clear plastic cradle that sticks to the windshield with suction cups, placing it easily within reach. The basic functions of answering and making a call can be handled via a single Big Button that's easy to push without taking your eyes off the road. Bravo. And the sound is far better than I expected from such a miniscule device.
It's got a whole bunch of more intricate features too, including multilingual text-to-speech announcement ("call from two-one-two......"), voice dialing capability (if your phone supports it), and it'll even download your phone's contact list. Set these functions up once, and after that you only need the Big Button.
For me, my number one challenge with in-car devices is remembering to keep them charged. My number two challenge is keeping all those charger wires out of the way. The Miccus folks thought of that too. The back side of the BluBridge is outfitted with a small solar panel. So while it's sitting there stuck to your windshield, it's sucking up the sun and staying charged. Clever. And with a talk time of 800+ hours, even the most overcast environment should keep it charged.
The BluBridge is hands down one of the coolest and most cleverly designed gadgets I've gotten my hands on this year. It's my number one choice for stocking stuffer this holiday season. If more people got one for Christmas, the roads would be a whole lot safer.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Miccus BluBridge Auto-Talk: Solar-Powered, Bluetooth Hands-Free Carkit with "Talk-to-You" Announcement.
