problem with pairing my phone with my car

[jcreed]

my phone is not supported by bmw and i have the bluetooth on my car turned on. and then i searched for audio devices with my phone and it cant find my car. is anyone else experiencing this? and is there some way so that my phone can find my car?

[rooster328]

my phone found my car, but it won't work when i am making a call...time for a new phone i guess...: )

[EJCX5]

For some reason it took several times to pair my treo 700p with the car. It's supposed to memorize the info but I had to do it several times. at first only a "triangle" appeared with the bars indicating signal strength but now a small "cell phone" symbol appears everytime I get into the car and the phone is recognized. It doesn't recognize your whole contact list as it's not an officially recommended phone.

[stanleysteamer]

Does anyone have a list of officially recommended phones? Has anyone heard when BMW will offer a cradle, and what models will fit? I prefer to keep the phone in the vehicle most of the time.

[statdoc]

Originally Posted by stanleysteamer

Does anyone have a list of officially recommended phones?

Look at the front page of this site, in the "Electronics and Cell Phone" section, then the first link ("bluetooth phone info").

[stanleysteamer]

Thanks, Statdoc, lots of good info there. But some of it is out of date, unfortunately. Specifically, all the compatible phones for Verizon customers seem to be Motorola models (except for one Blackberry). I called Verizon and learned that the cheapest recommended model, the Motorola E815, is no longer made. So that leaves the Motorola Razr V3m, although it apparently doesn't support Object Exchange. I can live with that, but I hate to buy it and find out six months from now, when BMW finally makes a docking cradle for the E70, that it doesn't fit the Razr.

We're going to Spartanburg in two weeks to pick up our new baby (yay!) Meanwhile, have any E70 owners/Verizon customers decided what phone to get?

[statdoc]

Originally Posted by stanleysteamer

But some of it is out of date, unfortunately. Specifically, all the compatible phones for Verizon customers seem to be Motorola models (except for one Blackberry)

The list is definitely out of date, but that is as good as BMW has done. There are several of us who have managed to pair non-listed phones with our X5's. If you have a particular model in mind, you might just ask specifically if anyone here has been able to make it work.

As far as docking cradles, I don't know why you would want it. I had one to hardwire my phone in 3 prior Mercedes vehicles, and hate the "locked in" aspect. With Bluetooth, you can change your phone without having to change anything else in the car. If you want a cradle just for a charger, I still don't see the point. What am I missing?

[rufusdedog]

Not sure if I would buy a cradle if offered. Just need to hook the phone up with a DC charger, plug it into the socket in the bin, and leave it on. As I mentioned in a previous post, the charger is slaved to the ignition so it won't charge when the car isn't running. The under-right-elbow bin (no sure what else to call it) is small anyway. A charging base would only make it even more useless. I'm also guessing if an Ipod adaptor becomes available it'll have to share the bin (or the equally tiny glovebox).

Another subject - Anybody check the lenses on their headlights? I just looked at mine with the lights on (07 X5) and each has a nice clear palm print on them. Will have the dealer remove the clear lens and wipe them down.

Other than that, the 07 X5 is FLAWLESS! (so far).

[stanleysteamer]

Originally Posted by statdoc

As far as docking cradles, I don't know why you would want it. I had one to hardwire my phone in 3 prior Mercedes vehicles, and hate the "locked in" aspect. With Bluetooth, you can change your phone without having to change anything else in the car. If you want a cradle just for a charger, I still don't see the point. What am I missing?

As I understand it, the main reason for a docking cradle is signal strength, as it enables the phone to use the car's antenna. Am I wrong about that (or does Bluetooth technology accomplish the same thing?)

I also thought it would be a slicker way to keep the phone charged, rather than just having it kick around in the storage bin. It's going to be primarily my wife's car, and she doesn't usually keep the phone on her person anyway. But this is our first venture into the world of Bluetooth, so any advice will be greatly appreciated.

[rufusdedog]

Anybody know the answer?