Does the receiver have its own 3.5 mm jack? Can I just plug in my own headphones to the receiver or do I have to do so soldering?

Jaballer wrote:So can I use this for my bluetooth phone, to take calls and listen to music from the phone? It does have bluetooth, it does not have a headphone jack...

yep

synthesis77 wrote:

Oh, and to whoever said digital is perfect, just because it's digital doesn't mean there's no compression. MP3s are digital too, but aren't full quality. A2DP (Advanced Audio Distribution Protocol) is pretty heavily compressed; most likely similar to a 64-96kbps MP3 file. Can't imagine I'll care on the R1.

got any documentation about this 64-96kbps compression... i cant find any info on that anywhere... thanks

im pretty concerned that music would sound pretty terrible at that bitrate... i wouldnt be able to handle it anyways...

golaw wrote:iphone compatible??

Last I checked, the iPhone didn't support A2DP, so it's partially compatible. You can pair it as a headset, and if you really want stereo sound out of it, you can hook the audio transmitter up to the headphone jack. This won't be a very elegant hack, and because of the iPhone's recessed headphone jack, you'll have to get an extender, and then you'll have this big black thing hanging off of your phone, and you'll still have to manually switch between the headset for audio and the headset for calls. Not quite sure it's worht it for you.

mysteryman3001 wrote:Does the receiver have its own 3.5 mm jack? Can I just plug in my own headphones to the receiver or do I have to do so soldering?

You'll have to do some soldering. Not many A2DP headsets have support for receiving jacks (that would actually be pretty cool) partially because you'd still have this mass of wires hanging everywhere (which would actually be pretty un-cool). Still, I could see a lot of merit in splicing new earbuds onto that thing.

uncleenzo wrote:at this price it seems like these were made for headphone modding.

To cut off the earbuds (sparing the microphone) and add a 3.5mm Jack Plug ( female jill socket), available at the dollar store or RadioShack, see sample schematics in this Wikipedia article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_plug

First one to do so, please post your actual pictures of the schematics in this forum, later on for the rest of us.

hello Saitek A-200, meet the pool party!! (took woot a year to complete my BT subwoofer setup, thanks woot!)

i dont care how many people said it before but, before i read all the posts...

ZING on iPhone! gj woot i applaud thee

DocThan.com wrote:BlueTooth signal is digital. So you can't loose audio quality

BlueTooth has to perform digital re-compression, so you get some generational quality loss there. BlueTooth is also wireless, so you have the potential to lose a good amount of quality in packet loss.

If you want an example of what I'm talking about, go pair a standard Bluetooth headset with a computer, play some high quality music through it (not crap-rock, but stuff with some dynamic range beyond 3dB, and something where there's a lot of fidelity and properly compressed, not 64 KbPS WMA stuff). Now, stand about twelve to twenty feet away and have a friend or two stand between you and the laptop, with the headset on the side of your head facing away from the laptop. You'll lose a LOT of quality in that situation.

two things...

first: if you're worried about crappy earbud audio quality, splicing better earbuds probably wont improve audio quality all that much because the a2dp compression will keep the audio quality on the lower side anyways.

secondly: Open Interface North America (OINA) is releasing a codec for lossless audio transmissions over bluetooth. when that codec is supported, then you might think about splicing some better quality earbuds on. Heres some info on that codec: http://www.mobiledia.com/news/61452.html?rfp=dta

pdcrow wrote:Hmm... I've been looking for something like this for a long time. I'm in a band and wireless in ear monitors are super expensive ($200+). I was thinking this might work as a sort of poor man's monitoring system.

Probably a bad idea. Bluetooth isn't known for the world's greatest signal quality.

pdcrow wrote:So theoretically I could have my source audio that i want to be sent to a singer's ears that comes from a 3.5mm jack... I could use the included transmitter to plug into the jack and then the singer could have the headset and listen to his mix wirelessly. Is my thinking correct there?

Technically, that's correct. In practice, I haven't a clue.

pdcrow wrote:What would the range be like? Isn't Bluetooth (1.1?) like 10 feet or something and some other bluetooth (2.1?) like 100 feet?

You're confusing versions with classes. BlueTooth Class I devices have a 100 meter range, and put off as much radiation as a cell phone. They also burn through batteries like nothing else, and are hella hard to find. Class II (the most common) has a 10 meter range (closer to 12 feet of effective range). Class III is slightly more common than Class I devices, and has a 1 meter range. Typically, you'll only ever see this in things like mice, but with a maximum range of 1m (meaning about half of that range is all you'll probably ever get anything useful from) it's likely worthless.

The versions just introduce different protocols, profiles, and functions. BlueTooth 1.2 is the most common, with 2.0 slowly replacing it.

pdcrow wrote:This would be awesome if i could get these for everyone in the band.

At $12.99 and $5 shipping, what's stopping you? ;)

swedespeed77 wrote:silly, a phone already exists. it's pretty much any SonyEricsson Walkman phone, but specifically the w810i

There's a lot of phones like that, including the T-Mobile Dash (AKA: HTC s620 or Excalibur), I think there's a model of BlackBerry with A2DP functions, I think the Nokia N95 has that too (I know at least one model of Nokia phone has A2DP).

Of course, it's extremely lame that Apple didn't give people A2DP with the iPhone, or the iPod Touch, but oh well, there are other reasons I didn't want the iPhone too (the iPod Touch is another story though...)

flcalalum wrote:Let add the Walmart link

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=5751082
$19.98 2.3 star out of 5

Not available online and I don't see any reviews.

ha... yeah after doing some research i figured out the class and version mixup... thanks for the explanations anyways... i'm prolly gonna take the plunge for 3, i cant pass up this price

I have a set of bluetooth headphones that are fairly similar to this and they are the best peice of electronics i've bought in a couple of years. you plug the dongle into whatever you audio source is (mp3 player, stereo, computer, tv, etc.) and then the reciever hangs around your neck with the earbuds up to your ears. think of it this way, it's pretty like having the convenience of an ipod shuffle or zen stone, but you still get to use whatever decent audio device you want. it's really handy anytime you might be moving around. the nice thing about these as opposed to a lot of other bluetooth headphones is that you can leave one ear bud out if you want.

mine are made by Soyo though and cost quite a bit more than this. the price is really the only thing that scares me about this. i've never seen stereo bluetooth headphones for this cheap. a word of advice though, headphones that come with the transmitter dongle are the way to go. you don't need it use the headphones with most new phones or bluetooth enabled laptops with AD2P profile, but it's really nice being able to turn any audio source into a bluetooth enable device. and really, for that price, even if they suck they might be of some use. i think i'll buy some for a back up pair.

oh, btw, i don't know about these, but i get 3-4 hours of battery life on mine. the only hassle is that you have to charge both the dongle and the headphones separately, so expect at least a few hours of charge time.

Anyone find any images on how the headphone is connected to the pendent? All the images on the web seem to only show the pendent connected to the neckstrap. Are the headphones connected to the neckstrap?

djflo wrote:Ok dorks. Answer this! Isn't Bluetooth technology supposed to be wireless? Why am I seeing wires in this thing?

Let me get this straight, So you would walk around with an MP3 player, a phone. a transmitter, a receiver, and still.... WIRERESS!!!!

Because if the receiver was embedded into the rest of the headset, then this would no longer fit the Earbud classification of audio devices, and even if they did, you'd have one side so heavy, it'd fall out of your ear, dragging the other side with it. These merely allow you to use earbuds and not have cables snaking everywhere.

mysteryman3001 wrote:Anyone find any images on how the headphone is connected to the pendent? All the images on the web seem to only show the pendent connected to the neckstrap. Are the headphones connected to the neckstrap?

The headphones seem to be connected to the pendent. They just... meet, likely through the strap.

Interesting. Thanks for all the insight folks. I'll wait 'til the WootOFF (everything makes the WootOFF, right?).

Screw it! I'm in for one. I'm also going to get a "Sucka" T-shirt and 3 bottles of wine. In a week I'll be rockin' out the Zune wirelessly, slamming wine and wearing a lame T-shirt. Woot! Rocks!

after all my bitching and reservations about this one... i'm in for 3

The Amazon link that somebody posted IS INDEED CORRECT. Yes folks, $125. Read the Amazon reviews too. One good one that gives you plenty of details. 25 foot radius will be nice with the new Zune at the office. Never thought I'd Woot! again this soon.

could you use the headphones with another blue tooth receiver?

Ok, got 3, 1 for me, 1 for gf, 1 for... someone lucky i guess.

I got the Philips VOX130 BT v1.2 headset (not stereo/MP3 compatible) and that worked already for me. Yes, granted the BT transmitter was attached at the end of a wire and sometimes made it inconvenient when wearing shirts without a collar or something to have clipped it on to.

This one will sort of be an "upgrade" to what I'm already using (the VOX130). I'd say this is a good investment for $13 + 5 s&h.

And YES! I will get what I paid for. Cell phone bluetooth stereo/headsets sell averagely between 50-80, so $13 is a good "trial" price.

golaw wrote:iphone compatible??

iphones use a 3 prong audio jack, this one uses a 2 prong... it wont work

In for one!

I got these lovely things for my motoRIZR. Because for some god awful reason motorola though headphones used USB. Now I can actually use the MP3 player in both ears!! Huzzah!

the helmet-speaker idea sounds interesting... I wonder how easy it would be to wire up to my snowboard helmet

"....in for 1....wireless zune headphones is good..."

I guess not me. My brown refurbished Zune came pre-broken. Saves me the hassle of breaking it myself. That is the last time I'm buying refurb (rox0rz!) from woot. This is the third piece of crap that is broken. Audiovox car dvd player. Sansa mp3, Zune.

Not sure what the confusion is here. Regardless, I bought this and will sort it out later.

Basically, this is a combo device as I understand it.

First, it is a wireless stereo earphone set. It basically works just like the old wireless or cordless headphones from a few years ago [that were a flop].

You do NOT need to have a bluetooth device, such as your MP3 player or the iPhone. If you do NOT have bluetooth on your device, you plug in the transmitter [the box with the 3.5MM plug on the end] into your 3.5MM port that is on your iPhone, MP3 player or any device with an earphone port [even a portable DVD player.]

You then can listen through those ear buds. Where the cordless feature comes in is that you will not have a cord running from the ear buds to the device.

But the ear buds do have a neck strap [probably acting as an antenna, as a power source from the control/battery module to both ear buds, and also some way to secure the ear buds to the neck.]

The second device this is: if one has stereo bluetooth capability in a device [such as a phone], then one can simply use the ear buds WITHOUT having to use the transmitter. This is because the device will already have the stereo bluetooth transmitter built-in. For example, my T-Mobile BlackBerry Curve has bluetooth A2DP built in. I will be able to use these ear buds without having to connect the transmitter.

By the way, A2DP bluetooth is the designation for being able to play wireless in stereo. Old bluetooth headsets, for example, did not support stereo sound.

An additional feature this set has is the apparent ability to cut off the music or movie [my Curve plays movies] when a call comes in. I can then press a button on the ear bud cord to answer the call.

Also, it comes with a 3.5MM plug because that is what all stereo ports are nowadays, on all devices. "Old" cell phones have 2.5MM ports, but newer phones [the Curve] are coming out with 3.5MM ports because people want to play everything in stereo. So cell phones more and more are coming with 3.5MM ports.

So for $18 or whatever it is, this is a good deal. IMHO

That's how I understand all this.

Kichigai wrote:There's a lot of phones like that, including the T-Mobile Dash (AKA: HTC s620 or Excalibur), I think there's a model of BlackBerry with A2DP functions, I think the Nokia N95 has that too (I know at least one model of Nokia phone has A2DP).

Of course, it's extremely lame that Apple didn't give people A2DP with the iPhone, or the iPod Touch, but oh well, there are other reasons I didn't want the iPhone too (the iPod Touch is another story though...)

That's right. My BlackBerry Curve [T-Mo 8320] that I bought last month when it came out, has A2DP stereo bluetooth capability and has a 3.5MM audio port [as opposed to the "old" cell phone standard 2.5MM port].

Also, RIM just came out with the BlackBerry Pearl 8120 [carrier Telefonica of Spain] that also has A2DP and a 3.5MM audio port.

Don't mind the smell in here. I just wooted. ;)

mysteryman3001 wrote:Does the receiver have its own 3.5 mm jack? Can I just plug in my own headphones to the receiver or do I have to do so soldering?

It has the 3.5MM plug so that the transmitter can plug into any stereo emitting device such as an MP3 player, portable DVD player, TV, desktop PC sound card or whatever.

See my post where I characterize this a many use device, one treating it as a cordless earphone set. Plug the 3.5MM transmitter into any device's 3.5MM port [or "earphone jack" to some]. You can then wear the ear buds and roam around the room [and maybe even the house.]

By the way, the main reason I wanted this was NOT to get quality stereo sound, but rather for when I am on my road bike.

Currently I have to wear ear buds with a cable running from the ears down to the bars where I have a pouch that holds the cell phone / MP3 player. It's kind of a hassle always hooking up the thing because I have to make the cable just long enough so it will not get bound up when turning or getting off the bike and not too loose to where it is flapping all around.

Having just got my BlackBerry Curve a month ago, I was waiting for something like this and I was willing to pay up to $50 for bluetooth stereo earbuds. So this was very timely.

I don't think anyone should be comparing this to top end headphones or $90 ear buds. At this price it's something to WOOT about, IMHO.

djflo wrote:Ok dorks. Answer this! Isn't Bluetooth technology supposed to be wireless? Why am I seeing wires in this thing?

Let me get this straight, So you would walk around with an MP3 player, a phone. a transmitter, a receiver, and still.... WIRERESS!!!!

MP3 player, $100.
Phone, $100
Another way to charge your credit card, BRAINLESS.

The wireless or cordless part is simply elimination of the cable going from the earbuds to the female 3.5MM audio port of the device. One can connect the transmitter to the 3.5MM port and then walk around or whatever without being chained to the device by the length of one's earphone cable or cord.

The earbuds need a cable or cord to act as an antenna, connect the two earbuds together for the stereo effect, power the earbuds and receiver, and to hang/connect the module that contains the buttons with which to answer incoming calls [and adjust volume?]

I think it impractical to not have those "wires" inasmuch as we are not close to having stereo earbuds, each with a little antenna and power source, and the ability to answer calls. If we do see those, each earbud might be pretty large.

Personally, I like the module on the end of a "wire." It allows me to grasp the module and see what button I am pressing.

sksmerc wrote:I have a set of bluetooth headphones that are fairly similar to this and they are the best peice of electronics i've bought in a couple of years. you plug the dongle into whatever you audio source is (mp3 player, stereo, computer, tv, etc.) and then the reciever hangs around your neck with the earbuds up to your ears. think of it this way, it's pretty like having the convenience of an ipod shuffle or zen stone, but you still get to use whatever decent audio device you want. it's really handy anytime you might be moving around. the nice thing about these as opposed to a lot of other bluetooth headphones is that you can leave one ear bud out if you want.

mine are made by Soyo though and cost quite a bit more than this. the price is really the only thing that scares me about this. i've never seen stereo bluetooth headphones for this cheap. a word of advice though, headphones that come with the transmitter dongle are the way to go. you don't need it use the headphones with most new phones or bluetooth enabled laptops with AD2P profile, but it's really nice being able to turn any audio source into a bluetooth enable device. and really, for that price, even if they suck they might be of some use. i think i'll buy some for a back up pair.

oh, btw, i don't know about these, but i get 3-4 hours of battery life on mine. the only hassle is that you have to charge both the dongle and the headphones separately, so expect at least a few hours of charge time.

Excellent and informative post.

TO WOOT STAFF AND WHOM IT MAY CONCERN !!! I tried to buy 3 “Philips Bluetooth MP3/Cell Phone Headset” when the page came up and said order not in verify info and try again, so I tried again and again and again and then when I tried for the 4th time my order was processed and verified so I went to check my online bank, when I login I see my account is over drafted, and I have four charges for 47.60, I only have one charge on my woot receipt. now I would like to RECEVE AND PAY FOR ONLY 3 “Philips Bluetooth MP3/Cell Phone Headset” not 12 if you could please get back to me in a reasonable amount of time I would appreciate it thank you

Just5foot20 wrote:TO WOOT STAFF AND WHOM IT MAY CONCERN !!! I tried to buy 3 “Philips Bluetooth MP3/Cell Phone Headset” when the page came up and said order not in verify info and try again, so I tried again and again and again and then when I tried for the 4th time my order was processed and verified so I went to check my online bank, when I login I see my account is over drafted, and I have four charges for 47.60, I only have one charge on my woot receipt. now I would like to RECEVE AND PAY FOR ONLY 3 “Philips Bluetooth MP3/Cell Phone Headset” not 12 if you could please get back to me in a reasonable amount of time I would appreciate it thank you

send an email, they'll reply.

sukru wrote:send an email, they'll reply.

as much as i would like to believe that your right, the reason this is here is because after I sent the email I was reading and I quote “One last try, before you write us: did you post in the community forums? It might be the fastest way to get an answer, if you can wade through the crazies” this is what woot said to do, not me

Check out warranty and spec info here, there are pdf links on this page or just do a search on goolge for "Philips VOX340/17":

Store.philips.com link

This should answer some questions. Also read the Amazon Comments they can be helpful as well.

fuzzymemory wrote:the helmet-speaker idea sounds interesting... I wonder how easy it would be to wire up to my snowboard helmet

Other companies make helmet mounted bluetooth headphones. You could check Benchmark Helmets for several different types.

I am getting two for the adapter to go with my husband's and my bluetooth speakers and my GPS device/MP3 player.

does this include the universal adaptor??

its shown in the pic, but not listed in the description

also, the shiiping weight and dimensions corresponds to a HEADSET ONLY> NOT A UNIVERSAL DONGLE INCLUDED