HP Bluetooth Headphones

I would love Sridhar's instructions on the ipaq 55XX hookup. I got mine from Logitech and yes they have the same band defect. This tells me that both Logiteh AND HP got screwed by the maker of these headphones and it rolls downhill. Mine has not cracked yet but I expect them to. The only thing is I do not have the HP drivers for my PPC and HP no longer provides them. Any help is welcome. you can reach me at stevenlr@mail.com

Great review! Thoroughly enjoyed it :-) After picking up the HP bluetooth heaphones on ebay I was feeling lucky to try them on my o2 atom. Well, all I can say is that they are outstanding! And for $49.00 AUD they were a bargin compared to the others that are more than double the price. Really suprised that they worked with my atom after reading so many forums saying that they were HP compatible only. Phew!

THESE HEADPHONES ARE TERRIBLE. I bought a pair at COMPUSA. Luckely they have a great return policy. Took me all of two minutes to figure out I disliked then and to to come to hate them. The bluetooth reception is terrible and almost unbearable when you cover the right ear peice with your hand. Distance from the BT reciver was 3'.

I took them back and exchanged them for the Morola HT-820. Of which I am completly satisfied. The HT-820 BT reception is flawless at anywhere in my three bedroom condo. Great button functionality and it kicks over to my cell phone if anyone calls or if I want to make a voice dialed call (Samsung a900 from sprint ....exelent phone). The base is a little week though for audio.

I give the HP/Logitech BT headphones a 2 out 10.
The Motorola HT-820 get a 8 out of 10.

OK, here's what i found out, almost nobody knows this so listen closely. I dont have a pair of these headphones. I did consider getting them but didn't because of the neckband cracking problem. I have a different pair of headphones (OMS600) hard to get in the USA. After two months of scrounging around for the Bluetooth High Quality Audio Setup Drivers I got my hands on them and connected these headphones. Once connected Audio Quality was great except for one problem I keep hearing about even today, the popcorn cracking. This is a problem i know all of you are just dying to fix, so here's how. I noticed the cracking did not happen instantly after play, it takes audio output (from a video or a song) a few seconds before starting to crack. I figured this was a memory problem. Here's how to fix it. I got my hands on a program called Pocket Hack Master (surely most have heard of it). it's designed for overclocking, but it's safe, you dont have to worry about burning anything out, at i've never heard of that happening on an iPAQ. You fix the problem by overclocking the RAM Speed. you might have to play with it a bit, but just bumping my ram speed up a few notches did the trick. I have an hx4700 i changed the Ram Value from default:104 to 117, never went under that, but it works perfectly. Word of Advice: changing the ram values from higher to lower values may freeze the pocket pc, you will then have to soft reset. It's not too big a problem. but dont tell Pocket Hack Master to start on reset, otherwise you may not be able to return to your original speeds, and it may keep freezing every time you try. I hope this helps a lot. Hopefully my findings will eliminate the popcorn cracking sound for good. Oh, one more thing, if you enable the overclock, make sure it's setup to deactivate after and only after soft reset, otherwise if it's application and forground enabled, it will freeze your ppc each time you close or switch out of the program. -Enjoy

I've also experienced the cracked headband issue. Took mine about two months (of careful use) to start developing the issue.

To be fair to HP (UK arm), I reported the cracked headband to them, after about two months of sodding about with them cancelling my warranty case and requesting my iPaq serial number, I've just received a replacement headset.

To be honest, though, I do wish I'd read the forums before buying. I'd then have had to balance the potential issues against the fact that they are some of the best looking Bluetooth headsets around.

3-1-06
Hi, all
I just wanted to add a brief version of my bad experience with the HP BT headphones.
The software wouldn't install on my iPAQ 5455 and HP refused to help saying that I needed to 'prove' I bought the headphones before they would help. I bought them on eBay recently. (Did they think I stole them?)
Since this was telephone support, I had no idea how I could prove, over the phone, that I had just paid $100 to some eBay merchant named 'Frank' for the headphones.
I pointed this out to the surly HP rep. and he replied that was my problem. He told me he couldn't help.
After farting around on the HP 'support' site, I eventually downloaded several alleged 'fixes' for BlueTooth this and that. None of them helped but one of them did knock out the wireless networking. That was special.
Finally, I emailed Tom from this forum and he VERY KINDLY sent me a series of emails and attachments that some brainiac had worked up. That finally got the BT driver installed on the iPAQ and I was able to make a connection! So, to get the driver installed on my HP handheld, it required volunteer help from some Indian guy who doesn't even work for HP and doesn't even get paid. What in the world is going on here?
Whooppeee! There is sound coming from the headphones at last!!!
The only problem now is that the audio quality is so bad I can't stand to listen through the headphones. The audio is slow, crackly, skips, pops, stutters, etc. It's amazingly bad. I've had other people listen and they laugh after a few seconds as if it's some kind of a joke.
So, I downloaded the 'lite' audio player mentioned here in posts thinking that maybe WMP10 was just too much media player for my lowly $500 iPAQ to handle. That didn't help.
At the moment, I'm wondering if it's worth the effort to modify the headband so it won't break tomorrow after almost 10 minutes of total use so far. Based on the 'headband' posts I've read here, I'm afraid to even breathe near the thing for fear the plastic will shatter and take out someone's eye!
I am a computer software engineer and I can tell you that this product is utter crap! If I ever produced something like this, I would be run out of business so fast it would be laughable.
Only a 'giant' like HP can get away with this garbage. This product is a joke. I only wish I had seen the comments on this site BEFORE I stupidly and naively bought this junk.
I actually thought Bluetooth was a well-established standard that would easily work with minimal configuration on any BT-enabled device. I actually thought the whole IDEA behind BT was to make connecting to other BT devices a breeze. God, was I wrong!
When you consider that the iPAQ is an HP product and the headphones are also an HP product (and $100!), it's staggering to me that there could be so much trouble getting the crap to work together.
Then, add the poor quality of the plastic and the piss-poor support by HP and you've got another Microsoft!
Anyway, I sure hope someone reads this post BEFORE they part with any $$ on this pile of garbage!
Thanks again to Tom for kindly helping. What a guy!

http://h18007.www1.hp.com/support/files/handheldiPAQ/us/download/22475.html

Driver update, in case you don't have it.

HP customer support guy says he is positive it's for all Ipaqs, not just the 5500. I have a 4150. Still drops, only 6 ft. range when it does work, and I have to re-establish the paired device (not simply the connection) each time I time out (after 2 minutes of not using it--no option to change this). This is a nice looking piece of shishkebob that HP should be thoroughly ashamed of, and it should refund all buyers. Other forums are full of vitriol about this not-ready-for-prime-time unit.

My experience duplicates exactly "dirkmanuel" (see below, Aug. 11th '05). Thankfully I don't have a crack yet, but they haven't seen much use.

And while I'm complaining, (and please moderator do not delete this post and stifle the free flow of ideas) I have to say the obvious: the reviewer here who constantly writes fluffy, half-true hype on everything he reviews at this site ought to take his reviewer role more seriously, as people will spend their hard-earned money based on his recommendations. It's largely hyper-cheerful marketing here anyway, so you have to read with a grain of salt--this review exemplifies this point.

I too am a victim of the cracked headband. I read all of the reviews of this product from Daves before buying, and I was extra careful of the headband to the point of not using the product while running. Sound quality has been very good, but now my headphones will only power on while plugged into the wall.

I bought these headphones to use with my 6340 but am really disappointed in the audio quality. The audio constantly has glitches in it as though the player can't stream across the blue tooth connection fast enough. I've tried all the suggestions on this list and others as well as different MP3 players. Even a complete reset back to factory defaults with nothing installed doesn't make any difference to the audio. I can't believe I'm the only one experiencing this, but I can't find any updated drivers or software. I'm just waiting for the headband to break now and my experience will be complete!

Anyone resolved the poor audio quality issue?

cheers


Peter.

Me too. How about a class action law suit!

I brought my pair in June this year and have been very careful using them as I thought this would prevent the handband "cracking issue". No joy, cracked 6 weeks ago and split. I've just got around to posting an email to HP in the UK today, but seeing "JimmyG"'s comment, I too have thrown money HP's way for a very poor product!!

Are the hp bluetooth headphones compatible with the nokia 6230?

I just got a different type of bluetooth headphones but I have no way of setting up a hi-fidelity bluetooth connection without the iPAQ software that is supposed to be packaged with the HP bluetooth headphones. If anyone could get me a copy of the information on the CD or just a few files that would really help me out a lot. I really dont want to spend another $100, PLEASE HELP!!! (email: lord.azoroth@gmail.com) i am able to receive the CD contents in any form (you send it/aim/msn/ect)
Thank you for your time, and if there is any way i can help anyone reading this out in exchange for help in this field myself i will gladly do so

Does anyone know where to get the drivers for the HP Bluetooth Stereo Headphones for iPAQ. or can enyone help me to get them.

So disappointed with HP's lack of commitment to customers.

I've just called HP in the UK with the cracked headband issue, and they have refused to acknoledge any known defect, and refused to replace the headphones!! GBŁ50 up the swanny as I bought them from the HP website :(

I have reported HP to trading standards, as I do not believe these headphones are fit for purpose. I will keep you posted!

I also experienced choppiness with my HP 4705 -- and although I wouldn't call myself a big-league audiophile, I'd have to say that it's REALLY ANNOYING!! I seem to have minimized it by downloading TCPMP (thanks, Dragonden) (though I found it here: http://tcpmp.corecodec.org/download ) and changing two settings -- one, from high to medium quality, and two, to microdisk mode for increased buffering. This gets me to acceptable sound levels, with maybe a pop every other song or so -- nothing major. Another benefit, for Mac guys, is that you can just download the .cab file and unpack it on your iPaq -- a big, big plus!

I like my new headphones, but the choppiness in the signal is a problem. I worked out what the problem is: Windows Media Player 10. It's a particularly fat media player.

I loaded up TCPMP (www.tcpmp.org - freeware). It supports all the file formats that WMP10 does, the main thing it lacks is decent library support. Because it's lighter, it doesn't use as much processor power as WMP10, so there's plenty left over to support the headphones, and BIG BONUS, it natively supports all the buttons on the headset and will playback movies successfully with the headset.

I can't recommend the software enough, if you don't mind the lack of library features. If anyone can recommend another media player (pref. freeware) with good library support, I'd be interested.

Hey great review, thanks. I wrote my own review a while back about my HP Headphones and it is also totally for them!
http://yse-uk.com/wordpress/?p=473

Thanks :)

I don't have an iPAQ but I recently bought HP Pavilion DV4000 notebook which came with bluetooth technology. I am wondering if this HP headphone will work with my notebook PC.

Actually, I have already bought this headphone and my computer could not find it. Please let me know if anyone out there was able to get it working with a PC notebook.

Here's an easy fix for the crack/break issue with the headphone band. Take a plastic collar stay such as the one found in dress shirts and trim it so that it fits on the inside middle of the headphone band. Super glue it to the inside of the band. I used four paper-wire twisty ties to tie and keep it in place as it dried since the plastic collar stays bend easily but also go back to a straight shape easily. If you want, beforehand you can use a sharpie to color it black for cosmetic reasons.

Will this headphones work with cell phone Nokia 6230 or 6230i??

Thanks for your comments, i've been watching these things for like 6 months. Im not gonna buy until HP releases a product made from more resilient material. Cracking in the headband is unacceptable.

I feel I've got to add my tale of misery with these headphones. I've had them for about a month, so I feel I've given them a fair chance.

They do suffer from drop-outs, which is INCREDIBLY annoying. Oddly, it does seem to get better as time goes on, but you still get them. Next, after a couple of hours of listening they REALLY freak out with the sound completely scrambled. The only solution is to switch them off and then on again (which annoys other people in the office because as soon as I switch them off the sound starts coming through the iPAQ speaker again.

No, you can't use them on a plane, which is annoying but not unexpected. I also can't walk around the mall with them on as every time I go into or walk by any form of electronics store they pick up awful interference. They also have a range of 'very small room' so I can't even get up from my desk and wander to the toilet about 5 metres away without them cutting out. Given that half the point of them being wireless is to allow movement, this isn't good.

They are also uncomfortable to wear. The headband is too loose for my head (and I'm no pinhead) which means that they are resting on your ears. Which means that you can't wear them with glasses (or sunglasses). Also, after a couple of hours of use they seem to pinch the tops of my ears, which is uncomfortable.

Sound quality is OK, but the sound leaks, so you can't have them too loud or your cubicle-mates hear them, too.

Overall, extremely, extremely disappointing. I really wouldn't recommend them to anyone. Mine are now in a drawer along with my betamax video recorder and my laserdisc player...

I too noticed the headphones feeling loose and sure enough there is a crack on the underside of the headband in the middle. I e-mail HP and they asked me to ring the free phone number to get the issue resolved. Ringing the free phone number resulted in being told that the crack is user damage and will NOT BE COVERED BY WARRANTY!

Since I have been extremely careful with them and this failure has happen after a 2-3 weeks of use I am extremely disappointed. In all I’ve been happy with these headphones apart from the design flaw of a weak headband. I had a few software glitches getting them running in the first place but after downloading the newer version of the drivers this was resolved.

Feedback from HP about getting the theadphones to pair & function ok with a iPaq rx3715:

On your handheld rx3715 with Pocket Media Player 10, if the forward, back and play/pause buttons on the headset do not work (+- volume buttons works fine), please download the updated drivers which does include Media Player 10 support. The headset drivers were designed with Media Player 9.

Please note that currently the driver is not linked to the rx3000 download pages; you can find it on the h5555 HP download page though:

http://h18000.www1.hp.com/support/files/handheldiPAQ/us/download/22475.html

Does anyone know if the cracking headband issue is only with early versions of the headphones, or if the Toshiba versions have exactly the same problem?

Also anyone had any luck using them with a hx2750?

thanks

I purchased the headphones in April, got them a few days later and had a little difficulty getting them to connect (I think it's probably due to the SD card I have and because I have a lot of my files/software installed there--it's a problem I have with other programs as well). But once I got it working they worked fine. They occasionally drop the bluetooth connection, but that may be due to either RFI from computers or the wireless card on my laptop because they don't really seem to drop the connection unless there's something else close by.
Having read this forum, I was EXTREMELY careful about the head strap and watched it like a hawk for craks. Sure enough: the little buggars cracked last week. This also seems to cause them to drop the connection and stop working. If I hold the headphones just so, the connection is fine, but when I try to put them on (stretching the crack a bit) they drop everything.
So I called HP support. They were real quick to let me know that they'll send me a replacement pair and I should have them in a couple of days. But this still seems like a serious design flaw. The support person said that they are "aware of the problem and are working on it."
My advice to those considering this purchase would be to wait until this flaw is resolved. My advice to HP is to recall the phones and replace them once the problem is resolved.
That said, HP support was great: no questions asked. I was on the phone with them for less than 10 minutes. And other than the cracks, I really like the product. Once this cracking problem is worked out I can see these things being a big hit. I'd also like to see them compatible with additional devices (per other posts here), but I have an IPAQ (3100 series), so for now I really don't care.

To Alasdair and other 40iPlay-users: first of june there is going to be an update available for the Bluetooth headphones.

To other users: you should absolutely try 40iPlay mp3-player!

I also cannot get the Ipaq BT headphones to play properly on my 4700. Intermittent random breaks are most frustrating. I can improve it by using an MP4 decoder (40iPlay)but the underlying fault is still there. As previously said it would appear to be some sort of buffering issue, it certainly isn't processor loading as 40iPlay is only reporting a 6% processor usage.
Any help gratefully received.

Hi, Everyone. Just when I was giving up on HP, they came thru. The new drivers are @ www.hp.com. In search type "bluetooth headphones" and your there. For some reason, my HP5550 would not work with HP Drivers alone. I have to install Bluesoleil first, then HP's new drivers. After that, the party begins.

P.S. you guys @ HP really came thru, thanks.

My conclusion on the clicking/skipping/popping through an iPAQ is that it is somekind of buffer issue. It is not a proccessing power issue because I tested playing an MP3 with BetaPlayer and a CPU monitor to discover the CPU rarely hit or exceeded 60%. I replayed the same MP3 over and over, also repeatedly with another MP3, to find out that it started clicking at the same time every time (50 seconds).

So my only thought is that this is a buffer issue, not a processing power or interferance issue. Unfortunately this could only be fixed with a driver revision. I don't understand why some people experience this and some do not. I own a rx3715 and would like to hear if other owners can't hear any problems with the sound.

Please post a comment.

How to get the bluesoleil drivers:
http://www.bluesoleil.com/ - But they're only demo versions. I wrote them saying I wanted to buy a version to use and they sent me a free licence.

How to get them to work with your Fujitsu:
Get the bluesoleil drivers. The Toshiba drivers do not have A2DP implemented.

The headphone band is cracking:
Yes, mine did too. I contacted HP about it and they sent me a second pair. There is no recall that I know of. In fact, you're going to have a tough time getting them replaced because no one in tech support even knows what they are. I ended up going through the tech support department for iPAQs.

Would they work if I instaled an MP3 player other than WMP9 that is in my hx4705?

Thanks.

Brenton wrote: I own a pair of the HP Bluetooth headphones, and they work great with my laptop (Fujitsu S7010D).

I have a Fujitsu T4010, but am not able to pair my HP BT HPs with it. ANy suggestions?

Thanks

I have the headphones and I really like them.
Battery life is great as well as sound quality/volume.

A couple of things:
Play/Pause/Prev/Next controls don't work on Media Player 10 Mobile. Have an open case with HP, but no update. Tried the suggestion something listed at the top of this but no luck. Even IM'd the poster, but have gotten no response. If anyone can help (actualy post files instead of semi complete instructions), please do.
The headphones do crack (my buddy went through 3). So what I did was - take a pci slot plate and cut the metal 1/4 inch width and 1 1/4 length. Bend the metal to the curve of the top inside middle of the headphones. Sand down to remove sharp edges. Use some sort of crazy glue to glue the metal to the top inside middle of the headphone. The way I did this was to poor a single strip on the middle of the middle and press/clamp hold. Then applied glue along the edges, quickly wiping off excess. You can't even see the metal and now I do not worry about them breaking since its an extra support for this known weak area and it forces the headphones to distribute the stress.

Have bought the HP headphones yesterday. Connected to my Ipaq 4700; Nothing but hickups in the sound; Turned off all other applications, didn't help; Anyone an idea to bypass this problem???

I've got My HP BT Headset. It's awesome. But....
unfortunately it's starting to crack, no matter how great you take good care of it.
is there anybody write the complaint to HP to recall on this product????????

The Bluetake BT007Si Bluetooth dongle works very well with the HP Bluetooth Headphones. The dongle is v1.2 complaint and is class one. It supposed has a working distance of 100 m but I only can get it works a little bit morer than 10 m but not bad. The dongle comes with the BlueSoleil 1.4.9.5 stack and sell for 34.95 MSRP. I also have it works with the iTech BSH338 Bluetooth Stereo Headset.

Brenton,

So the obvious first question is, "How do I get the BlueSoleil drivers?" Are the available for sale anywhere? Do you know what they cost? Which devices are supported? Thanks in advance,
Rich

One more thing I'd like to add, I have gotten the headphones to work with the Licenced BlueSoleil stack on 1.2 AND a 1.1 bluetooth devices. So A2DP so not a 1.2 only protocol.

That being said, for those of you who want to go after your current bluetooth device provider to get them to update their stack, don't let them bully you into thinking you need to upgrade to their newest dongle device.

Another interesting note, most companies don't write their own bluetooth stacks. They just buy their stack from companies like BlueSoleil and Broadcom (aka WIDCOMM). The big issue is they just don't want to fork out any money to improve a product you already bought.

Sorry for my rant...

I own a pair of the HP Bluetooth headphones, and they work great with my laptop (Fujitsu S7010D). The problem is, they use the Advanced Audio Distribution Protocol (A2DP) which most stack providers haven't implemented yet.

The only Bluetooth stacks out as of now that claim to work are the WIDCOMM 4.0.1.9 stack, and the BlueSoleil 1.4.9.5 stack. I personally was not able to get the headphones to work with the cracked WIDCOMM drivers floating around.

I got a licensed version of the BlueSoleil drivers after many emails to the company asking them "pretty pretty please". I have a range of 30'-60', and the side buttons fully control both Winamp 5 and Windows Media Player. There are issues with sound distortion when I'm paired with a HID. Hopefully they'll resolve this in their next release.

All I gotta say is I love these. They have decent sound, they are comfortable, and the controls on the side are awesome too. I can't count how many times I've gotten pissed off in the past because I snagged a headphone cord and dropped my device. These work good with the Ipaq 6315, as long as you're not calculating pi to the 85th decimal place at the same time. BTW... If you can't get them to connect to your 6315 after applying the t-mobile update, you will have to do a hard reset to get them to work. The update will still be there, but you will have to reinstall/restore all your data/programs. It's a hassle, but it's definitely worth it.

Hi everyone. Well another failed install with the HP5555 and HP's Bluetooth Headphones. If I can get the link or info on fixing the problem, that would be great, thanks bobirt and Sridhar. redrapter1@yahoo.com

MAI

How to force buttons work in WMP 10.

The buttons do not work because BtCeAvIf.dll contains some tricky code to control WMP. It looks for the skin file to parse it for the button positions and then send messages to WMP window. But the place in registry and the skin files themselves changes from wmp 9. So we need to fix both.
The idea is to make new skin files and force widcomm code to use them. WMP 10 should use the new ones of course.

Look in [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\MediaPlayer\Skins] în your device

There must be several string variables, we need "DefaultPortraitSkin" and "DefaultLandscapeSkin", there the paths to skin files, portrait192.skn and landscape192.skn (or 96 for non VGA devices)

Find the files in \\Windows folder and copy them on PC. Rename them in e.g. _portrait192.skn
and _landscape192.skn

Then open them in notepad (turn word wrap off in it).
Find "PlayPauseStop" and delete all in and later columns. This line should look like all other buttons defininitions. Rename "PlayPauseStop" in "PlayPause" and align all.

Copy the new renamed files back to device.

Create new registry key
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Media Player\Parameters]
"DefaultLandscapeSkin"="\\Windows\\_landscape192.skn"
"DefaultPortraitSkin"="\\Windows\\_portrait192.skn"

Well, these headphones have survived over 3 months now, albeit with electrical tape, but they still sound great.

Other than the universal cosmetic/structure flaw, I only have one issue with my headphones, that the sound will stop every so often, although the connection still seems to be occurring between the iPaq and the headphones. The only fix I've found to it is to soft-reset, and begin windows media player again, and connect the headphones. Anyone know how to fix this long-term? Anyone else with a h4155 hooked up getting this problem or NOT getting this problem? It seems to happen after 1-1.5 hours of listening, but sometimes shorter.

I still like the product, and the reset only takes as long as untangling the cord of a wired set of headphones. The other thing I'd like to do though is be able to use them with my laptop. I have a D-link BT dongle (DBT-120) but I'm not sure if I can upgrade the software for it to the necessary 1.2 stack that has been mentioned here. If anyone knows how, PLEASE let me know. Thanks all.

Could anyone plz send me a A2DP software [BT-PPC AV Setup] for iPAQ2210?... thanx

vookky@gmail.com

Here's a better link to my photo of the potential flaw in the headband:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v721/jschall/HPBluetoothHeadphonesbanddamage.jpg

Two monts now, and it's still holding...

Maybe I got a good one

- Jeff

Could someone please send me Sridhar's instructions for installing on the 55xx? You can send them to not_spam_me@yahoo.com

Thanks

The HP Bluetooth Stereo Headphones (P/N FA303A) doesn't work well with iPAQ H6365, even the latter has been flushed with the latest firmware Ver. 1.00.38. The sound is clicking, popping like a scratched old vinyl LP. Has someone got the same experience and the fix for it? Thanks!

Upon reading of the success posted by tweaked-out with getting the BT headphones working with his PC, I ran out and purchased the Targus BT mouse/dongle, installed and upgraded the software, but no dice for me. :( Any suggestions? I'd most likely be using these with my laptop more often than my PDA in any case (if I can get it to work).

IPAQ 55xx and BT Headphones,

look guys, if anyone needs instructions that Sridhar
made (all the credit goes to him) on how to connect the two, just leave your e-mail on this board and I will try to send you ASAP.

bobirt

tweaked-out,

did you, or anyone else on this forum, try with any other USB dongle beside Targus one with the mouse?
Perhaps Belkin, Logitech, D-Link USB dongle?
I wish to connect my Laptop also to BT Headphones but worried that the dongle would not work...so if anyone tried with some other brand, pls. share.

tweaked-out, would you think that Targus USB dongle that is a stand alone one without the mouse would connect as well? And when you said you upped it to version 1.2 was that a new driver from Targus site?

The reason I ask is where I live it is hard to purchase this Targus one that you mentioned and I don't really need a mouse so if you thik stand alone one would work or any other brand that would be terrific!!!:-)

bobirt

hi guys and ladys ,i new to this does the hp bluetooth headset work with the xda 2s

Does enyone know where to get the drivers for the HP Bluetooth Stereo Headphones for iPAQ. or can enyone help me to get them. i can't find the cd anymore

tweaked-out, please provide more details. I've been trying to do this for weeks! Which USB dongle? What drivers/stack/profile? Where can they be obtained?

GREAT these hp bluetooth headphones work with laptop. just upgraded my usb bluetooth dongle to the new bluetooth 1.2 stack. The headphones work better with the pc than the pocket pc!

Jschall
Where is your picture? Could not find it.

Hi all!

I just want to draw your attention to my thread in the Dave's iPAQ forums that will track the specific issue of the cracking headband in the iPAQ Bluetooth headphones. The software issues are generally "fixable" - given the time and the will to upgrade the drivers. But the "hardware" issue of the failing headband is a more difficult problem to live with after spending $100 on a pair of headphones!

The thread I started will share our collective experience with this specific headband problem.

In my personal case, I can see a tiny bump in the top centre of the band, but it hasn't developed into a failure yet (30 days of sparing, careful use). See my photo in the forum thread, submit your own pix, share your techniques to prevent or repair the failure!

Thanks for your participation!

- Jeff

I just got the BT Headphones. I have the same problem with the software issue with the 5555. Can someone email me Sridhar's fix to the problem. my email is james_bonde@verizon.net

I just got the BT Headphones. Like many others the software issue pops up with the 5555 (except mine is my ppc is not compatible with the headphones). Can someone email me Sridhar's fix to the problem. my email is pgreer6478@aol.com

pgreer6478

I did try using the HP BT driver but it didn't work. By all means, see if you can get it to work. I just felt it was easier to use the dongle because I knew it would work quickly with my Ipaq and other devices like CD players. Also, by using the dongle on my hx4700, I can use the built-in equalizer which makes a tremendous difference in the sound quality.

As for the BT420EX headphones, they are a bit large and you definitely won't win any fashion prizes, but they're a comfortable fit (they stay snug on your ears), output great sound with no popping or drifting (just like wired headphones), and can be paired with a bluetooth cell phone. It's really cool to press a headphone button to pick up a call and when you're done, your music comes back. I'm glad I got them.

Brent,

did you try the BT420 without the dongle but making use of the HP headphones drivers?
In theory that should work...
Maybe they will work better than the HP headphones. I'm also considering buying them, but I don't like the dongle.

After being convinced that HP will do nothing for me, I ordered Bluetake's BT420EX bluetooth headphones and they're great. I'm totally satisfied. The sound is excellent with very good bass. They do have some minor aesthetic issues and use a dongle to plug in to your headphone jack (a little inconvenient but so is rebooting your Ipaq to gain back the bluetooth driver memory to turn the radio on--with the dongle, you simply turn it and the headphones on and pair them). Also these headphones fold up so I don't have to worry about stress fractures finishing my headphones since they're built in. I'm pretty sure these will last me more than 2 months. And as a bonus, they pair with my bluetooth cell phone so that I can switch to an incoming call by pressing the pairing button. After I hang up, the music comes back. It even has a retractable microphone built in to the headphone! They are very cool, especially for a pioneer product.

Here's Bluetake's link:
http://www.bluetake.com/products.htm

Igoulart,

Unfortunately installing the Headphone drivers will NOT add a headset/handsfree profile to your 3715. You will not be able to use your BT headset.

Hi Jack and all,

First of all, great review! Secondly, I´d like to say that I own an iPaq rx3715 and I´d like to know if I install the new BT drivers that come with the HP BT Headphones I would get the Handsfree / Headset profile for my iPaq.

I´m planning to buy the stereo headset in a near future, but right now I already own a BT headset (a Scala 500) and I really would like to use with my iPaq for VoIP and other stuff.

If anyone could send me the drivers to luizgoulart@legdesign.com it would be great!! :))

Tks in advance and best regards!

If anyone gets the software for the Toshiba BT Headphones, released last week, please report back. I'd like to get ahold of the software to see if the HP BT Headphones will work with a laptop that has an internal BT module using the Toshiba software. Thanks

I have the new headphones and they work fine with my 4700, howevere after 15mins or so I start to get clicks and gaps in the sound in the headphones. Is there any fix that can resolve this.

Second question has anyone managed to pair these headphones upto a portable and play audio. I have a NC4010 with XP prof service pack 2 loaded. But so I can't seem to get the device to work, its paired ok and I set the audio system to payback through bluetooth audio device but no joy.

thanks

david

Could anyone plz send me a A2DP software [BT-PPC AV Setup] for iPAQ?... thanx

donovnz@yahoo.com

Carlo,

Thank you for the nice comment and NO, I did not think you were rude. Maybe a bit frustrated but that is clearly understandable.

I certainly had hoped that HP would have been a bit more forthright with their replies to me. I always have to remember though that I am just a tiny fish in a big sea although we certainly would like to feel bigger than that.

Folks just have to continue to register their issues and maybe we will get a resolution. We will keep trying on this end and if and when we get a reply, it WILL be posted immediately.

Thanks Jim! I do appreciate that. Again, I just review the units over a short period of time and then post my impressions which were (and effectively still are) positive.

Yes some have had issues and I have reported them to HP with a true lack of response. That has disappointed me a lot!

I did send another email which stated the following:
Have you ever got a reply from the tech folks on the issues I sent you before. You had indicated that you were unaware of the problems and said you would send it up.

Three issue:
1. "crackling noise" that occurs while playing. Does not start until it has been used for a while. Usually, turning them off and on will cure it for a while.but it does return.

2. The compatibility issue with the 5555. It will NOT install for a lot of folks. (I can't do it on mine)

3. New issue. Reported cracks in the headband. I just looked at mine, there is a crack.

There have been, 56,018 Pageviews on my review with 151 reader comments. If someone at HP wanted to look at the comments, they might get a "drift" of some of the problems.

It would be nice to be able to respond to folks on these issues.

I appreciate the help.

Regards,

Jack


I did get a reply:
We are not seeing the issues you bring to our attention; however I'll circle back with our teams to see if they have a specific answer to forward you.

I think those that have issues need to call HP and keeping telling them about the problem. Maybe they really don't realize that there is an issue. Only time will tell!

Jack,
thanks for your reply. I did not mean to be rude, I'm just a bit frustrated because of HP and not being able to get in touch with the right person at their support desk. I was thinking that they might be listening to you more than to me. What makes me wonder is that they keep selling these headphones in spite of the obvious flaws.
But I agree, for a gadget freak thay are still a funny thing to have. However, there are many other stereo headphones coming on the market and HP might not want to loose too many customers...

Fritz,
Isn't that what all these user posts are for, right at the bottom of the review's front page??

I would rather that Jack spend his time hounding the HP folks to read these posts and respond to us here about how we can get refunds or reliable replacements.

Jack: The beauty of an online review is that is can be ammended. Given the structural problems and the lack of drivers (I'm still awaiting the driver that will make the buttons operable with WMP10), a word of warning appended to the top of your review would save people from buying this not-ready-for-primetime product until HP irons the bugs out and properly supports customers whose headphones have failed.

Carlo,

When I do a review, it is based on the time I have the product, which often times is a week or two. I use them, test them and talk about what I find.

It is foolish to think that a reviewer is going to find each fault that may occur in a product...that is why you have a warranty.

My headphones are used almost daily as I "surf" the net and prepare news items for the front page. They work well, although I do get that crackling noise on occasion when I use them with my 4700.

When I was preparing for the review, I used them on the 3715 and 4700. I had no issues, if I did, I would have reported them.

Unforunatley, I did not test them with my 5555 but after I returned the 3715 that I had on loan, I tried to install them...I was unable to.

The original specs stated that they were compatible, well they are not. Hopefully, HP will address this issue.

There have been reports of folks getting cracks in their headphone band. I have checked mine several times and found no cracks...until today. As I was writing this post, I look again. I have a crack right in the middle of the band at the rear of the head. Clearly a defect, because I too, like many others have taken the utmost care in my headphones.

As for contacting HP, I have sent several messages asking about the driver issue for the 5555 and the "crackling" noise and still have not had a return on the questions. I will send another email but now I will add the crack.

For those that are experiencing problems and if their units are under warranty, I would return them. If it is out of warranty, I still believe that there is a reasonable time one can expect the band to last. From my perspective, it is not unreasonable to expect them to last a while...not a few months.

With all that said, am I still pleased with my headphones? Absolutely!

Yeah there service is worthless. I actually tried to call the tech support line. I couldn't find a phone number because the online support system needs a valid product model number, and the headphones are not in the system yet apparently! When I did get a number I was sent to the worst offshore tech support outfit I ever contacted. I was transfered 3 times and at each step the person on the other end could not find the product in the database. The last guy told me to hold on for a minute while he get some 'help'. He didn't put me on hold, just set the phone on the desk. He never came back. I could here people talking in the background and stuff. After about 25 minutes I hung up.

I wish the author of the over-optimistic review would contact HP and report all the complaints.
From the last point in the review I understand that the author has a direct line to HP. After all, such a positive review could be deceiving when the daily practice is so bad. I would feel at least a bit responsible.

Well, the worst has happened.

My cracked headphones have now most probably cut off my bluetooth signal. I can no longer connect to my Ipaq. I called HP (HP Shopping) and they did nothing for me, stating that my headphone purchase was past 30 days (in my case two months old). So, poorly designed, beta headphones are my worry? HP, be responsible. I feel so ripped off. $100 headphones for 2 months? Is that right? They were fine when they worked but now I wouldn't recommend them to anyone. HP's customer care is laughable. This problem combined with my hx4700's bugs have really put me off of HP. Not happy.

Reading the comments here, I checked mine. Yep--a small fracture right at the inside top of the band. I've scarcely used them. It's time for HP to apologize to its customers and do the right thing.

Well I just found 2 hairline cracks in mine as well. I've had it less than 1 month. Same story about careful use etc. It is obviously a manufacturing defect. The band material is too thin and too rigid. Has anyone had any luck with HP yet? I shudder at the effort and time this is going to cost me trying to get their attention; tech support, emails, posting on forums, blogging contacting the BBB. I wish big corporations would just do the right thing up front. Instead it will probably take a class action lawsuit. Any laywers out there?

Jeterdawg,

By connecting I mean being able to establish a connection between PPC and headphones, that is,pressing the command buton on the headphones until I hear the beeps and then the sound.
This I can do a couple of times, but the next time I try to establish connection this not possible anymore, there won't be BT connection between PPC and headphones. This is the moment I need to soft-reset.
The dropping of sound you mention, I do have it occasionally, but then it's enough to ghange track and it works again. I don't need to soft reset.
With me the sound is best with Pocket Player by Conduits.

By the way, I'm an HP IPAQ 6315 user. You'll notice that the bluetooth headphones isn't listed as an accessory. I called HP, and the tech support guy says that it isn't an accessory because it doesn't work with the 6300 series IPAQ. Well, IT DOES. I had no installation problems, and it works "ok" for audiobooks, but rates poorly for music fidelity. There are small breaks, cracks & pops in the sound.

Hi All. I bought one of these before coming across this review. I bought these a month ago, and I've taken very gentle care with them. I noticed that these headphones have been getting loose, and a crack appearing down the middle of the band. I did a search online to see if others experienced the same problem. Gosh, I'm not the only unlucky chum that's had these pricey headphones crack on me! I'm a mechanical engineer, and it looks like a fatigue failure. The hoop is underdesigned. Someone suggested using black electrical tape, but that won't be enough. I would recommend taping a flat wire across the crack (much like a spint/broken leg). I'm going to try using the flat metal wire found in automotive windshield wipers as my reinforcement. I'll probably curl two 6" lengths of metal wire in a semi-circle, and reinforce it on both the inside and outside of the headphone hoop. Then I'll wrap the entire thing in electrical tape. I know this is just a band-aid solution to a design flaw. I hope HP can address this problem, since this sounds like a common problem!

Carlo,
When you say it "connects again a couple of times." are you saying that it will play for a little while (~30 minutes), and then the sound stops (except for an occaisional "beep") until you soft-reset and reconnect them? That happens to me sometimes. It's not that much of a pain now that I have one of my shortcut buttons programmed to start WMP, but it's still annoying.


Derivolk, I'll see if I can find my CD tonight and send you what you need tomorrow morning.

After a couple of times I connect Headphones to 4705 I have to soft-reset the PPC and then it connects again for a couple of times. After that, again soft-reset.
Am I the only one?

Can anybody send me a A2DP software for iPAQ?

vookky@gmail.com

I had the first post here about a cracked band and was hoping that other areas wouldn't suffer. Wrong. After reading Jeterdawg's post, I more closely examined the plastic around the headphones themselves and discovered multiple fissures. I'm not rough with them and am puzzled why this is happening. I just hope nothing else breaks.

I don't mind being a beta tester, but I would appreciate HP's acknowledgment of it. This is the second HP device of mine which was pushed too soon to market.

I think I'm going to have to wrap mine completely in black electrical tape. I have both problems with the construction---starting to see a small break in the middle of the band, and some of the casing has broken off around the left ear. They still sound fine, but I bet a newer, tougher version of these headphones comes out in the near future. Maybe they will give a discount to those of us that tried the beta version.

brownk1956,

guy on this board (Sridhar) has solved the issue...give me your mail and will send you files and HOW TO ( as was given kindly to me and made it work).

BR

bobirt

Ipaq 5555

Yao Ming, I treated the headphones with the utmost care, never bending them in any direction. The crack was there when I took a closer look, but I can't say how long it was there.
Btw, I purchased it in Europe from iPAQ Choice.
They asked me to return them and I'll get a refund.

Can someone please help me with the following error?
(WIDCOMM BT-PPC High Quality Audio setup failed)
I have a Ipaq 5555 and tried to install HP BT headphones and this error comes up. Thanks!

Carlo
Regarding headband crack, how did you get it? Did it just happen even if you treatet it like gold? Did it happen when you tried to put it over your head? Did you bend it right at the center of headband or you were just holding it by earcups like I normally do? I just want to know how careful I should be with mine.

I have also discovered a crack in the headband. HP is not acknowledging that there is a construction fault, therefore it is not covered by the warranty. The headband did not break completely yet, therefore I will try to repair it with glue and tape. However, I would advise everybody who bought these headphones to check the headband before it is too late. I discovered the crack in time because I kept an eye on it after reading the comments here.

Jack,

I found the below thread, but couldn't find the answer.

Can you please advise?

Thanks,

Seth



I have a 5455, which is not listed in the compatibilities. I have upgraded to Mobile 2003. Will these headphones work with the 5455?

Thanks
Posted by smwilhelm, Sunday, Nov. 28th, 2004

I heard from the "escalation team" rep yesterday. He said that a driver is in progress but there's as yet no ETA. We agreed that if the driver isn't forthcoming in 30 days, I can get a refund.

Hey Fritz, keep us updated on what they say...unfortunately I'm in the same boat.

All I got was the whole reset, re-install routine, despite the fact that I stated I have already tried those options.

Just installed the headphones on an RX3105. The sound quality is fine, but the controls don't work. I just got off the phone with HP support. Apparently, WMP10 (which comes with the ROM upgrade) isn't (yet?) supported. I've now got a case number and awaiting a call from HP customer support.

I occasionally have the same problem Jeterdawg. I haven't called it in yet. 4150 with WMP9

Go to http://www.engadget.com/ and Toshiba just announced it will work with their laptop.

Has anyone used this gadget with bt enabled laptops? I want to listen to music and play games on my laptop and have the sound transferred to a real wireless headphone (without any dongle or adapter), so this would be the ideal solution... if it works.

I am worried that mine will split in the middle as well...perhaps HP should have made them folding headphonese so that they'd be more flexible.

I don't have any of the clicking/popping/hissing problems that anyone else does, but every so often my headphones stop playing music, while WMP still continues to play, and my headphones still have button control. The beep happens about every minute or two. If I reset my iPaq, I can re-connect, and it seems to not happen again for a while, if not at all that day. Anyone have any clue why it does this? I know that it has nothing to do with proximity, as it's happened as close as 2 feet and as far as 15 away from the iPaq.

Thanks

Sure as S#!t, My headphones felt a little loose last night so I looked and found the same inside center crack that Brent has. Again, I have treated these like gold and I only use them a couple times a week.

At least with duct tape and bailing wire on them people will stop asking me how great they are, compelling me to relate all the cautionary tales from this board.

I think I had the same issue as googl had.
I've paired the headphones with my iPAQ 4150. Unfortunately, after installing everything necessary the headphones play the music, but not smoothly. I experience serious slowdowns, clicks and scratches all the time.

Being worried, that the problem can be a consequence of a conflict with another application, I have installed everything also on the bare iPAQ - after the hard-reset. The problem unfortunatelly did not disappear.

I have also noticed that these clicks and cracks can be reduced by sliding up and down a slide for example in the contact list. If one does it quickly, the music becomes performed reasonably smoothly.

Any idea what can be wrong?
Cheers,

Andrzej

FYI,
Just recieved mine several days ago and it works quite well. I have and Ipaq 2210. Works all optins in WMP and volume only in third party. sound quality very good, and install went ok with several minor bumps.
My install had Bluetooth 1.6 drivers when accessed thru the BT manager. Settings/connections says BT 1.2??? Works anyway. Appreciate the input on the headband weakness, and will input any problems.
Happy New Year

Well, I called HP and they said that I would have to buy a new pair. I guess I expected that but I'm a little irritated since this happened after a month of owning them. I suppose the only remedy that I have is to bind the crack with electrician's tape. Others might want to do this anyway to prevent a crack in the future.

The funny thing is that I haven't been rough with my headphones. When I don't use them, I put them in the headphone bag. Yesterday, when I was wearing them into work, I noticed that they were slipping off my ears. When I took them off and examined them, I couldn't believe the band was cracked (right in the center). This is a pretty major problem since the tension is now lost in the headphone band. I'm going to call HP and see if anything can be done.

Brent
Just want to know how you broke your headband so that I don't do the same thing. Did it crack as you try to put it over your head?

I've had my headphones for about a month now and the middle of the band just cracked so they don't stay snug on my head.

Will HP send me a new pair or am I out of luck?

Got my HP Bluetooth headphones for Christmas. The installation for my h4115 went flawlessly. The quality is great (and more than sufficiently loud) for my aging ears.

The drivers are from Widcomm (now Broadcom), so I'm hoping that as soon as Widcomm WDW 4.0 is available for download somewhere that I'll be able to use the headphones with my notebook as well.

Anyone know where I might be able to get a copy of Widcomm WDW 4.0?

DELL AXIM x30
Yeah, Yeah...I know this is an Ipaq site. Anyways, I have the x30. I've just purchased a bluetooth keyboard. Now I would like to have some headphones. Just wondering if anyone's had any problems with these headphones connected to an x30 device.

Hello Sridhar,

Could you help me in getting my iPAQ 5555 to work with my BT Headphones. Like “tstr and Extender” I am having the same exact issues with the software.
My email is sankypanky61@hotmail.com and any help will be greatly appreciated.

Frank (sankypanky)

Yup the Sakar iConcept Wireless Headphones aren't bluetooth. It was probably added into a wrong category. Reasons why it is not bluetooth: TOO cheap, bluetooth not mentioned in product description, not popular.

Anybody got the headphone buttons to work with Windows Media 10.

Forestflyer:

"Featuring new wireless radio frequency technology, including a wireless transmitter" does not mean bluetooth. If they were BT, you can be sure the ad would be shouting it.

Attention IPAQ 5000 series owners!!

Sridhar is a genius! Following his directions, I a computer novice, was able to get my BT headphones working with my 5555. Thanks Sridhar!!

forestflyer,
I don't know why you'd think they are bluetooth. Nowhere, in either ad you provided links for, does it say "bluetooth". It simply says "radio frequency technology". I would be warry of the sound quality and possible bulkiness of the transmitting unit that plugs in to the earphone jack. They don't say anything about how it's powered, what jacks are compattible, they don't even say "stereo" anywhere. Save your money.

Not compatible with 1900 series? This is absolutely insulting. I thought of these headphones before I had ever even heard of them. I did a search over one year ago and lo and behold there were those damned OpenBrain Korean units that were supposedly in development for, like forevor. And now HP finally releases a product and its not even compatible with a 1945? God Damnit! I've been waiting for over a year for these things and was willing to pay up to $200 for them. I am so sick of wired headphones!!! This is Bullshit!!!

Yes apparently they are Bluetooth: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=935303&CatId=907 If they work without problems, then 33 bucks is worth a try. Anyone know if they'll work with a 4155?

Are you sure those use BT? They're only $30, and that to me doesn't sound like Bluetooth. If you've got an iPaq, the HP headphones are definitely the way to go. I think the best thing about them is the buttons. I'll wear them over wired phones where having a wire honestly doesn't matter, simply because of the buttons!

If you can get past the bugs, the $100 is so worth it.

Hey, I'm a non-tekkie, and I wonder if anyone know whether this: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0002JUHI4/ref=pd_sxp_elt_l1/002-3325858-1009615 (Sakar IConcepts Wireless Headphones) will work with an Ipaq, particularly with a 4155. It is bluetooth, it's also sold at Tiger Direct, and the price is right. Are the headphones and the connector compatible, and how's the sound quality?

Hi All,

How do you attach files here on the forum. Let me know so I can send the files for BT Headphones for IPAQ5555

asreddy_95

I can't email you - you chose not to accept email in your setup. Please email me how you got your 5555 to work. tstr14@comcast.net Thanks!!

Tstr/Extender.

Got the ipaq5555 working with the Bluetooth audio headphones. If you need help to get you ipaq5555 working please email me, I will send you the files and working procedure to get it working.

Mine works great after spending around 4 days to figure out whats going. Feel like a winner.

Sridhar

Yao Ming,
Treated them like gold. Only use a few times a week. Keep them in the bag and never stack anything on them. Glad that nobody else sees this failure yet. Hoping mine don't get worse.

Hey Jim Zambineni
How did you break your headset? How much did you abuse it? Did it just pop out?

I flex its headband quite a lot but it stays intact. Don't know how much more abuse it can take.

I hope sroach68 is right. I have a 5555 and after a combined total of 3 hours on the phone with HP tech support, I am:

a) Mad
b) Disappointed
c) Disgruntaled
d) Postal
e) All of the above.

Of course the correct answer is e). I reset my Ipaq, both hard and soft several times. I installed the latest rom and upgrades. I tried the install on two different computers running different operating systems. I tried installing the software on a friend's Ipaq (not a 5555 and it worked). I tried copying the cd to my hard drive and installing from there. I tried burying a toad at night (oops, wrong problem).

HP's final solution: return my Ipaq. The problem is, they don't know that returning it will help. I asked the tech if HP could guaranty if I returned it, they could make the headphones work, and he said no. I'm not losing the loss of my Ipaq for a week without a promise of "Hey, we know what's wrong and can fix it!"

Judging by other posts (here and elsewhere) I also think it's a software problem. I guess having HP / Widcomm try it on all the HP products before releasing it was too much to ask for. What a crock!

Just an update, John Tran at HP has informed me that Broadcomm (formerly Widcomm) is aware of and rapidy working on a patch to allow the drivers to be installed on the IPAQ 5500 series PDAs. This is the status as of this morning. I will forward any information that I get as soon as HP and Broadcomm come to a resolution.

Has anyone on here tried to mate the Sonorix OBH-0100 (www.sonorix.com) with an iPAQ running the Widcom A2DP enabled software and if so was it sucessful? I have a Sonorix player and want to know if it is now compatable with the iPAQ series as it also encorperates the Bluetooth headset profile to enable hands free phone opperation through the headset as well as stereo reception.

Jeterdawg-
You called it. Previous track control works fine with shuffle off. Thanks.

Jim Z --
Sorry to hear that your headphones appear to be falling apart. The one thing that I would say about the buttons -- are you using WMP and have track shuffling activated?!? I noticed when I put mine on shuffle that you can't go back whether on the headphones or by using the stylus/on-board buttons. It'll make the sound, but not go back. If that's not the case, the button is probably broken. Hope this helps.

Back again to report that after flashing ROM, and starting 100% and reducing bit rare WMA files, shutting down screen and all background tasks and still no luck getting rid of the popping and clicking - drives me crazy. The static you hear moving the vol level on WMP with the stylus, that's what I hear about every 3-4 sec. Mine went directly back to HPShopping for refund. Perhaps they'll clean up the drivers or restate that list of devices that can deliver a quality experience.

googull

My issue with the led is the same as NJTom's, I can't see it, but it is right at everybody else's eye level, and it is very bright, and constantly blinking (thus obnoxious). I just peel back the black dot if I want to see what the led is doing.

Something I failed to mention about the controls is that I can allways skip forward, but never could skip back since the day I got them.

Yesterday I had the more bluish plastic inset (that comes from behind the ear) start crumbling, falling out of the black behind-the-head rod. One little piece so far but I see more cracking.

These things are devolving from kinda sad to plain old bad.

after the rom update for my HP rx3115 which adds windows media 10 and bluetooh updates made my hp bluetooth headphone buttons USELESS. Before I upgraded the rom, everything was great. Bluetooth headphone buttons work perfectly til now. This sucks because I can't change the track anymore. Volume button still work but the Pause/Play, Previous, and Next buttons don't.

I need driver updates for the headphones immediately!!

Good tip with the electrical tape. I will have to try that.

Don't get me wrong, I like the light in general. Just want to turn it off sometimes.

You can see the flash of the blue led when you are in a dark place. It's surprisingly bright and it's at eye level.

I still think any of the useful information generated by the blinking led could be conveyed via audible cues.

Anyone else out there think that HP could improve on the interface by using audible cues?

BTW - I wonder if there would be battery savings by turning off the light.

-- Tom

I have just spent an hour on the horn with HP tech support and the they are aware of the problem with the Blutooth installation error on h55xx series IPAQs. They are working to resolve the issue and I will send an update as soon as they offer the resolution. What luck huh?

i bought another set from HP. Had it sent overnight. Put in the order at 5 PM, PST. Got here at 11 AM the next day. Wow, that's what i call responsive sales!!!

Same issues as my first pair. Same driver version too. I called HP to get an RMA for return. They paid for the shipping back to them. I just wrote the RMA on the box and Fedex grabbed it two hours later. They'll refund the cost, plus the entire cost of shipping overnight!! WOW.. good company, even if the headphones need work. Hopefully they'll get it resolved.

I like the blue light. it is bluetooth, so you get the cool blue light.

I would bet tweaked drivers will solve the problem.

Regarding Blue LED, why does it bother you? You can't even see it when you wear headphone. I think it is a good feature. It shows if battery needs to be recharged or not.

I have had them about a week and see good and bad. Sound quality is good. I don't have the popping issue but connectivity is fragile. If I sit at a table the ipaq has to be in my front right pant pocket or a shirt pocket; front left pant pocket = no signal integrity. Being cord free is awesome but it ought to be more robust within the length of a cord!!

My fix for the obnoxious led was to use a single hole paper punch on a piece of black electrical tape. Looks clean and can be peeled back to see led if needed.

Probably not getting 9 hours, but I am getting 6+ from a full charge. Probably won't return them but I would not buy them again today. btw- my driver version/date is same as others mentioned here. I am using iPaq 4155.

Still waiting on word from HP about loading the BT software on the Ipaq 5555. Anyone able to load the software on their 5550? The systems are the same, just one is purchased online, the other from a "brick and mortar" store.

I understand that some owners of the 5500-series Ipaq have had luck loading the software. Anyone else have luck with this?

Been using the headphones for about a week and I have some snap/crackle/pop issues but overall I'm happy with the sound quality and the connection.

I have two suggestions for further improvement.

1. There should be a way to turn off the blinking blue light. In dark places, like on a plane at night, the blue flash is very noticeable. It should be easy to add the ability to turn off the flash.

2. We need a better interface. I’m curious to see what apple does with the new flash ipod. Supposedly it is not going to have a screen but is going to rely on audible cues. I think HP can go a long way with using some of the same ideas for the headphones.

We should be able to manage songs or playlists by using audible cues.

For example, Say press and hold a button and allow me to scroll through playlist names based on the letter they start with. Follow me, you hold down an arrow key and we go into “letter” mode. The headphones say the letter A and you can choose to go up or down to B or Z. Then you select a letter and all the songs/playlists that start with that letter are selected.

I’m not an interface designer but it seems some more thought can go into the interface of these headphones. Like I said I’m really curious to see what Apple does.

Vano,

Can you please tell me which model of phone and version of software you are using? The version and date stamped on the CD are different than the actual date/version of the actual driver.

Here are instructions to determine version of Software.

To find out what version/date your drivers are do the following:

Driver is located here:
\apps\AV Installer

the file name is:
BT-PPC AV Setup.exe

right click on the file, then click properties.

mine was created october 18, 2004

My file version is: 7.1.100.1248

fireeater,

Once I have paired my headphones to iPAQ all I have to do next time I want to connect is to press center button on headphones. Connection goes through in 1-2 seconds. To disconnect I just hold center button for 3-5 seconds and headphones then disconnect and power off.

Tigrr_21,

My headphones ran for more then 8:30 hours, close to 9:00. HP adverised it at 8 hour playtime.

HEY ARE THEY LOUD ENOUGH THAT I CAN TUNE OUT MY MOTHERS EXCESSIVE NAGGING AND COMPLAINING...

or to hear over the normal married mans wife

I LIKE ROCK and i like it LOUD!!!... are these wireless headphoones worth buying?

??????????????????????????????

HOW LONG DOES THE BATTERY LAST?

??????????????????????????????

BT Headphones
I am having some of the same issues as others.
I notice in Bluetooth Manager under Active Connections that the status signal changes constantly going to red sometimes even though I remain stationary. This seems to indicate a weak connection even while the iPAQ is in my hand.
I also found after installing the software via ActiveSync the listing of "WIDCOMM BT-PPC High Quality Audio" in the Add/Remove Programs list on my computer with a file size of 2,002MB. Is this for real!!

Your comments: I bought and received the HP bluetooth headset. I am a long time
audiofile ( I own and have owned loads of high end gear). The sound is decent
not great but they do not work as advertised. Initially on the HP Shopper
website it listed the 6300 series devices as compatible with the headset. That
is why I bought it. HP has deleted the 6300 series from the list. On music
there is a periodic popping sound in the background. It works fairly well for
my Audible audio books. There is absolutely no support for this device. The
website linked in the brochure which comes with the headset has no information
whatsoever about the device. The search feature returns "unknown device". HP
telephone support is no better. There is no support information for this device
in their data bases. This is disgraceful. I will be returning this headset
next week. Beware!

Please go onto your installation disk and find out what version and the date is for your installation drivers.

it is located here:
\apps\AV Installer

the file name is:
BT-PPC AV Setup.exe

right click on the file, then click properties.

mine was created october 18, 2004

My file version is: 7.1.100.1248

HP 4150 - Installed no problem. Sound, no problem. The amount of pops and clicks is excessive - I have all other tasks shut off and screen shut down while using WMP. Suffering either from interference or bandwidth issue. This product is very 1.0 and needs some work to address the audio quality issues. I am only operating 3 feet from the iPAQ and have isolated myself away from other potential interference (PCs, cell, wireless phones, etc). I've noted some correlation to the blue blink on the headphones. Many of the audio "pops" appear to correspond to the blue flash on the headphones. At $100 mine will likely become an RMA.

to those with the 6315 (i don't know if the procedure for starting bluetooth hardware is the same on IPAQs), i have a question:

How do you go about start up to use your headphones? here is my procedure, which is much more of a pain than how i go about starting my JABRA headset.

-click on the IPAQ wireless app in the bottom right corner of the screen.

-turn on bluetooth service by clicking the bluetooth icon. Icon changes from grey to green. Blue light on top right of IPAQ begins to blink.

-Turn on Headphones. At this point my IPAQ would automatically pair with my JABRA headset, if I turned it on. I would expect/hope that would be the case with the HP headphones. This is not what happens with the headphones. I've got to do the following:

-click on bluetooth manager.
-press and hold my stylus on the "high quality Audio on BT headphones" until the drop down menu appears.

-choose connect.

Then the thing works.

Seems this is wrong. it should automatically discover my device. I have reinstalled my software, done a hard reset of my device, etc, etc.

WHat gives????

1. Works great with my h6315. You do need to turn off wifi and other cpu intensive applications such as pocket outlook.
2. Popping sounds, it happens sometimes but only on high bitrate mp3 files when I am using the ipaq while listening to music.
3. I am really surprised by the quality of the sound, excellent bass levels.
4. drawback: sound works only with windows media player for me. Why wouldn't we be able to use it as audio gateway when getting a phone call for instance.
5. Since the OEM is Logitech, I suspect they have an agreement with HP not to release their version until next year. Logitech's version will be compatible with all devices supporting BT1.2. Can't wait to use these with my Latitude D800 during my commute!!!

Guys,
I just came across this page. It seems that HP either is already selling or plans to relesae NX4800 notebook with integrated Bluetooth adapter that supports "2.4GHz Wireless Headphones". It doesn't say that it is bluetooth but it operates in that band. Go to link below and look under "OPTIONS" - "Input/Output Devices".
http://h18002.www1.hp.com/products/quickspecs/12108_div/12108_div.HTML

I am seeing much higher CPU utilization when using Vito Player (78%) vs WM Player (56%) during playback. Even when stopped Vito player consumes 17% where WM Player idles somewhere between 0-2%.

-Vano-

thump

I don't work for HP....

I am sure that there will be some problems with this device although I have not experienced any major problems other than occasional corruption of the signal. I am sure HP is aware of this and other problems and will resolve them.

Brent Wold

Thanks for the tip with Vito Explorer.

On a few occasions I have experienced the same coruption problem. Usually, I will turn off the headset then on again and the problem generally does not re-occur. Hopefully, HP is working on this and will come out with a fix.

Jack

Could you please tell us what version of the driver you're using? There seems to be at least 2 of us 5500 users that the Headphones aren't working for at all because we can't load the drivers. I'm wondering if some of us have bad CDs. The drivers aren't listed yet on the HP website for download. Thanks

raulito
I am not experiencing any difficulty with sound and video "in sync" with Pocket TV. I have just a few clips that I use on Pocket TV so I am not sure if a long file might make a difference.

smwilhelm

To the best of my knowledge, the 5100 and 5500 series are the only ones it works with.

Vano,

Either way, mine is using around 90% available processing power to run the bluetooth headphones.

Yours use 18% with just the WM player running, mine uses 38%. When you enable your BT headphones your CPU utilization hops up about 50%, as does mine. The difference is that you have some CPU overhead available (about 40%), where I have very little available (about 10%).

John

Extender,
I think HP tech you spoke with misled you on BT 1.1 & 1.2 compatibility. According to the link below 1.2 is fully backward compatible with 1.1.
http://www.infosyncworld.com/news/n/5031.html

fireeater,
88-93% of CPU utilization you are seeing is not the maximum for that CPU sample time frame. It's more of an average. Even my 400Mhz iPAQ maxes out CPU utilization while browsing internet over BT. I would imagine that has to do something more with BT drivers on the iPAQ. Stats on my rx3715 (400Mhz,152MB RAM):
AFTER RESET Mem=36%, CPU=0-2% (BT ON)
WM Player Open (stopped) Mem=43%, CPU=0-2%
WM Player (playing 128kbps MP3) Mem=44%, CPU=18%
BT headphones connected (w/MP3 playing) Mem=44%, CPU=56%

i just shut down the bluetooth connection. my CPU level dropped to 38-42%. It looks like the bluetooth headphones eat up 50% of my CPU power.

What are you guys seeing??

ok, did a hard reset on my IPAQ 6315, installed the ROM update, installed the BT headphone drivers, etc.

Still have the popping sounds. I'm at 88-93% CPU utilization and 56% memory with nothing running but bluetooth manager and Windows Media Player.

Hmm. Seems they need to fix their drivers etc.

What amount of CPU utilization are you guys getting with other IPAQs???

here is what my 6315 has in the way of Bluetooth:
hardware revision: B1.2
driver version: 1.00
software version: 1.0.0.1400

i am going to hard reset mine reinstall the drivers, etc and see if that ends the popping, etc

OK. I got tired of waiting for that "senior level tech" to call me, so I called up HP to get more answers.

The HP Bluetooth Headphones use BT version 1.2 and the Ipaq 5500 series uses 1.1. According to the tech I spoke with, BT version 1.2 is NOT backward compatible with 1.1. Isn't that special?!

How the "senior tech in the R&D lab" was able to get the BT headset to work on his 5500-series Ipaq befuddles me. Does he have a different software CD?

So I'm searching on HP's website from other Ipaq models and elsewhere for BT 1.2 drivers that I can install on my Ipaq. It's already gotten a hard reset, so I don't think I can do any harm. Probably won't get an answer from HP until next week.

Don't know if this is a similar problem that you 6300-series owners are having. What version of Bluetooth is on the 6300, anyway?

Bill, the "hard reset plus" did NOT work on my Ipaq 5555. I tried loading the software from my laptop and my wife's laptop. I'll keep you posted. Please do the same.

It would have been nice to use my fancy new headphones on the treadmill this morning :(

Bill, please post if you have anything else. I'll keep you and all else posted on my results when "the senior tech" at HP calls me in the next day or so. IF you want to update your ROM, go ahead, but I don't think this is the issue. I'm doing a Hard Reset PLUS, leaving the battery out the whole night. Doubt that will help

I have an early model 5555 (serial # KRD325XXXX), so it could be that. I might call up the Carepaq people and get another one -- the Carepaq extended warranty has come in handy MANY times for me with previous Ipaqs I've own. Hopefully it won't come to that...

Extender, I'm in the same boat. I just received my headphones today and went to do the install on my 5555 tonight and I'm getting the same error you are. If I find anything out I'll let you know.

--Bill

two things HP promised me a replacement and a pick up for this pair....still waiting? and the 5555 is a 400mhz cpu...even though you can use stereo bluetooth head phones with a cellphone with a 33mhz cpu?? HP is really getting sloppy with testing and bug fixing!!very sad today i called to see where my order is they said my rma and ordernumber dont exist! BIG SURPRISE

Model 4155, processor speed is 400 Mhz I think...

I tested the range out some more, and these work up to about 50 feet away and through a couple of walls! I'm sure the farther away you go the less the battery will last, but it's cool that it doesn't lose the connection if you go a few feet away. If you do go completely out of range, beware that the music will then play from the external speaker of your iPaq. My sympathies to those who aren't getting these to work...I had similar issues with BT when I first got my iPaq trying to sync and connect to my cell phone.

One other thing--when it installs the "high-quality audio" profile, it will erase all profiles that you've already set up (BT serial port, BT dial-up networking, BT active-sync, etc.). Have the settings copied down if you can't easily remember how to set it up again.

Well, after spending two hours today troubleshooting my Ipaq 5555 with HP Tech Support, I'm not closer to getting these Headphones to work. I've deleted partnerships, updated ROMs, etc. I've even loaded ActiveStink on my wife's laptop to try to load the drivers from there. The senior tech at HP says that he's getting the BT drivers to load on his h5555. My case has been "escalated." I'll get a call from a senior tech in 2-4 days. Arggggg! In the meantime, I'll be restoring my Ipaq to get my data files and programs back so I can use it.

Can you guys give me some idea as to the files that are on your setup CD rom? The only actual setup file I see on the CD-ROM is a 3 meg file called "BT-PPC AV Setup". I'm using version 1.0 of the software, Nov 04, 378961-001.

I'm still trying NOT to be a HP basher here, but I'm pretty disheartened by the problems everyone (but a lucky few seem) to be having.

(thesmith & fireeater)
It sucks that HP got you screwed guys. They should have listed a few compatible models first and later expanded the list.
Headphones work great with my rx3715 which is 400MHz platform. It is very possible that 6315 occasionally running low on MIPS. I would recommend installing 7-day trial of "RhinoStats CPU Monitor 1.2" or any similar utility. You can find Rhino here: http://www.pocketgear.com/software_detail.asp?id=5367

TEAM: If your headphones work with your iPAQ please mention your model and processor speed. This should help thesmith and fireeater understand if CPU speed is the problem.

I don't think Jack works for hp, but I certainly don't, and mine are working great right now. At first the music stopped transmitting (although the buttons still seemed to work with WMP and it still appeared to be playing) after about 10 minutes of use. This happened twice, and I soft reset my 4155 and it started playing music again. I haven't had an issue yet. I am anxious to see when the battery dies; been about 2 hours now and running strong. I have gone 20-30 feet away with no problems with the signal loss.

I'm assuming the 6315 is the phone edition with T-Mobile? I love the idea of one device, but I've heard lots of bugs and issues with connectivity and accessories. For now, I'll just keep dialing up slowly through my Ericsson T616. It gets the job done until a completely new line of long-range wireless broadband medium comes along.

oh, it also fails to recognize the device unless I go through the whole pairing thing every time prior to use. Something is wrong here!!

i too am experiencing the same popping sounds about every 3 seconds. I went into my startup folder and removed every app (MS Voice Command, power monitor, etc, etc), except the bluetooth manager, figuring it could be programs running in the background.

It had no effect.

I've got an IPAQ 6315. I too noted that their online web site no longer mentions that it is compatible w/ the 6300 series IPAQs. The box certainly does.

It pisses me off. Sound quality, in between pops, is great. Great not having to worry about a damn cord. Very convenient. Now fix the popping sounds!! I'll give them a bit of time, then they are going back!!

Received my headphones yesterday. Getting the same "3-second pop" others are experiencing. Gonna try it using the Vito player as someone suggested. If there's no improvement these headphones are definitely going back. I expect overall less sound quality from wireless headphones in general, but a repetitive poping sound is just too annoying.

Also, does Jack work for HP? His glowing review seems to contradict all the reports I'm hearing from others. Unless he got the only good pair. A reminder never to base purchase of a product on a pre-release review.

FYI, running iPaq 2215 & PPC 2003.

the HP box has a list on the front it includes the 6300 and 5500 series (will not even load on my 5555)
...just as the web site listed them both at first? HP you can redo the web site, but not the box or the truth!

I've got an hx4700 and I installed the headphones fine. I've played WMAs and MP3s at 128kbps on Pocket Media Player and I'm experiencing pops and scratchiness about every 3 seconds just like user 'thesmith'. Also, after about 10 minutes in Media Player, there is a lot corruption with the signal, enough to make you scream!

However, when I play the same files in Vito Technology's Sound Explorer 2005, they are fine, real smooth. However, the only controls on the headphone that work with this program are the volume controls.

One suggestion to HP. The equalizer in the hx4700's Ipaq Audio Settings, which normally gets activated when a regular headphone jack is inserted, is disabled with these headphones. I'm hoping that can be fixed in the future.

I've got to agree...I just tested mine out and the sound quality was great. I didn't go past 5 feet away, so the distance won't be measured until tomorrow morning, but the sound quality was astounding! The unit didn't weigh as much on my head as I'd have expected, which means it will be fine for exercising with. And the buttons are such an awesome feature. Without the buttons, they're not near as innovative. Good job, HP on including those!

I did experience a tiny setback (note that I have an h4155 model)...when using the headphones over the BT signal, surfing the internet with the Wifi card was pretty slow...most likely due to draining the processor's resources. I haven't yet tried to use the headphones while trying something else with BT such as active-sync or dialing up on the internet through my BT phone. I'll test the inter-operability and post later. So far the BT count is up to 5!
--D-link BT dongle for laptop
--Sony/Ericsson T616 phone w/ BT
--HP iPaq h4155
--Belkin BT headset
--HP/Logitech BT headphones
Satisfied with all of them so far!!!

I Love HP. The bluetooth headphone is amazing. Installed everything in 5min. Just to tell you folks the audio quality is SUPERB. HP and Logitech Dominates Mobility.

OK, I cannot install the software! I have an Ipaq 5555, which has PPC 2003. I've rebooted my laptop and Ipaq (numerous times). I've turned off the BT radio on my Ipaq. I've synced my Ipaq. When I try to install the software, I get this message:

WIDCOMM BT-PPC High Quality Audio setup failed!

The connected Pocket PC is not supported by this version of WIDCOMM BT-PPC High Quality Audio.

I have the Installation CD Version 1.0, First edition November 2004. Anyone else seeing this?

thesmith,

On HP website I find that iPAQ 6315 model is not compatible with headphones. The reason to that I think is that the processor speed on this model is 168MHz which is much slower then processor speed on compatible models. For your reference please find your processor speed here: http://www.bargainpda.com/price/default.asp?productID=1139&brandName=HP&productName=iPAQ+h6315&display=productDetail

I hope that thesmith is having an isolated problem! Mine are probably getting dropped off right now; I hope they work as well as I've heard!

got them today "THEY STINK!!" THEY POP AND HISS ABOUT EVERY 3 SECONDS.........SOFT RESET DOES NOTHING! BETWEEN THIS AND THE ENDLESS SEARCH MODE ON MY 6315 I SAY GOOD BYE TO HP GARBAGE!!

this item is available in ncix.com for US$85.85 or C$105.17.

For me, the buttons are cool, but not necessary. I wish to use the headsets mostly with my BT laptop, to listen to streaming radio.

I loaded Impulsesoft's BluePC software on my laptop (Dell Inspiron 600m) to see if it would conflict with my current BT software or crash my system. It hasn't. The BluePC stack should (I hope) have drivers that will allow the HP Headphones work with Windows XP. We'll see. If that won't work, Widcomm 4.0 might do the trick while we wait for HP to develop the XP drivers.

I'll use the HP BT Headphones with my Ipaq 5555 at the gym, but not on the plane. It's too noisy -- I'll use the Bose noise cancelling on the plane. Man, wouldn't that be a great combo: BT noise reducing headsets. One can dream....

Just a comment on the "Locked into WMP" issue. Unless the hard buttons on the headphones can work with other media players like BetaPlayer, I would consider that the headphones are locked to WMP.
I would guess that the volume would work, regardless of where the sound is played from. Its the play, and skip buttons that I am interested in. I listen to spoken MP3 files at 150%. Sometimes they say something I want to hear again, and would like to go back about 10 or 20 seconds. Also need to skip forward if the topic is irrelevant. And I want to go back to 100% play speed when the talk gets more tech.
Having all these functions on the headphones is the biggest strength of these headphones for me. Means I do not have to carry the iPAQ in the hand while walking and listening. Also the fact that the buttons work when Word is in the foreground. This is great for taking notes.

jack,
when you use it with pocket tv, is the audio and video in sync? i have tried using bt phone headset with pocket tv and the audio is ahead of the video.

thanks extender. bummer. will call tomorrow the 800# and see if it might work thru the operator.

raulito, that code will not work for this. I tried it a couple of days ago too, and it didn't work then. Just tried it again with the same results. I guess is must not be linked as a Ipod accessory.

jack,
thanks for the reply. if not locked to windows media player that answers my question.
here's a tip for those ordering in hpshopping.com, there is a hp e-coupon for 10% off ipod accessory in http://www.couponcabin.com/coupons/hewlett-packard/. it's AC7724 and expires Nov 30 2004.

Jack,

I have a 5455, which is not listed in the compatibilities. I have upgraded to Mobile 2003. Will these headphones work with the 5455?

Thanks

I just ordered mine today. I'm wanting to try it with my Ipaq 5555, along with my Dell Inspiron 600m laptop that has internal BT. I'm going to try to load various software packages to see if I can get an A2DP stack that will work with HP's BT headphones on my the 600m laptop. I'd love to get my hands on Widcomm 4.0 (just released), but I've been Googling to see what else is out there that will allow for a A2DP profile within Windows XP. I'll report back with my luck, or lack thereof.

"'...locked into Windows Media Player only'?? ABSOLUTELY NOT!!"
Great news! Thank YOU, Jack!
Ordered mine yesterday; glad I was misinformed about the date!

pako..."...locked into Windows Media Player only"?? ABSOLUTELY NOT!!
There has been limited difficulty with sounds from some programs. For some reason, the game ARVALE will not play through the headphones and I did have some difficulty with CUBIS because it is so memory intensive, so it was scratchy at times.
All in all, for what I want it for (MP3's),I have been very happy.

morningstar1844...I do not know if Hp is planning on adding a dongle to plug into the Ipod.

raulito...I use it with Pocket TV and Windows Media Player. As a matter of fact, all sound comes through the headset (there have been a couple of games that don't work) so I imagine, for the most part, there are no limitations.
I am not sure I understand this question: "are the buttons the only one that works with wmp?"

I have not tried it with bluetooth mp3 players like the sony ericsson hbm-30 or diva gem.

hi jack. nice review. was all set to but this, but found thru your website that it works with wmp only.
1. are the buttons the only one that works with wmp?
2. how about the sound, will it transmit the sound of the current running software? i use pockettv most of the time.
3. have you tried using bluetooth mp3 players like the sony ericsson hbm-30 or diva gem? I am interested if the sound will be stereo if you use them as wireless headphones?

Since Hp is marketing the device; are they planning on adding a dongle to plug into the Ipod which they market for Apple. Or maybe Apple will soon release a BT ipod???

NEWS FLASH:
These puppies are now available from hp's website!!! They're $99.99 as before, but there's an "Add to cart button" next to them!!!!!

Does anyone else know if they are to be sold anywhere else, maybe retail stores? It'd be nice to use all my Best Buy gift cards on them. Can't wait to test these out!

"...locked into Windows Media Player only"??
Will these headphones work with Audible Player?
Sure hope so!

The date I've seen is December 15; don't know if that's accurate.

Damn, Back to the drawing board. Seems like these headphones have missed the market. Locked into iPAQ only, and worse, locked into Windows Media Player only. Strange. I would have purchased them, no hesitation If I could have used them with BetaPlayer. I need to play my audio tech lecture files at 150% speed, and Media Player does not do this. Nor does it allow skipping forward/backward 10 second chunks. Thanks for the info.

Jack,

The burning question in my mind is would this device work with non-ipaq bluetooth-enabled PDAs using the same software?

Great Review; has HP established a date when these will be available?

This would be a hit at the gym!

MadBison
On #1...no
On #2...no
On #3...Yes

armwood,

I have found the sound quality to be superior...of course the quality can vary depending on the quality of your recording.

Most of my MP3s are high quality recordings...I was very pleased with my experience.

I REALLY like the idea of these headphones.

1) Can the headphone buttons be used with other player software? Like BetaPlayer?

2) Can you modify the function of the headphone buttons? I would like to set a button to control the fastforward function of BetaPlayer. If you could try this, that would be fantastic. http://betaplayer.corecodec.org/

3) Can the headphone buttons still control the player software if another app is in the foreground? I take notes using Pocket Word while playing tech mp3's.

The battery life on mine was 8 hours. Also they will not work with any other devices.

Does the new iPAQ software add a A2DP bluetooth profile? I'm wondering if the iPAQ will now work with other CD quality bluetooth devices recently released. The bluetake BT420EX bluetooth headset has a built in mic so you can use it for both music and talking on the phone.
http://www.bluetake.com/products/BT420EX.htm
We should start seeing A2DP car stereos soon and I'm hoping the iPAQ's will be ready for anything A2DP! search in google for A2DP iPAQ and you'll see hype.

How long is the battery life? In addition please discuss the most important issue regarding the headphones which is their sound quality. Please compare them to a known wired reference pair of headphones in terms of sound. If the sound quality is poor they are a non starter for me and many others.

Thought of one other question--I'm assuming that the headphones control the playback/volume of Windows Media Mobile. If that is the case, could it be assumed that there would probably be support to use these headphones with a laptop/desktop and a BT dongle? It seems like all you'd need to do is download the profile and add-ins for Windows Media. I doubt I'd use it as much as I would with the iPaq, but still a good feature if it becomes available. If/when these become as successful as I bet they are, they'll probably unveil another model with the mic integrated. Heck, they're probably working on it in the meantime

Jeterdawg,

Thanks for thw kind remarks...I appreciate it.

For the most part, I have used the headphones carrying my iPAQ but I just did a test to see how far I could go.

Keeping the right ride of the headphones (where the receiver is) in a direct line with my iPAQ, I was able to go 60-75 feet...I was surprised.

Not paying attention to the "line of sight", I was always getting good reception up to 15 feet. From 15-30 there was an occasional "scratchiness".

All in all, if I was going to play golf, I would assume the bag is never more than 25 feet away...it should be fine.

pr0vider

I am not sure of that one...you will just have to try it.

Incredible review. Many kudos for giving everyone a sneak peak at what I think will end up being a great product. I am anxiously awaiting the "Out-of-stock" status to change like the rest of the iPaq community.

I agree that having a microphone would be cool, or at least being able to hear the phone ring through the headphones, whether or not they would be used for conversing. They do have a much better cosmetic appeal than the other BT headphones I've seen.

I do have one question--how far were you able to go before your reception suffered? My main reason for wanting the headphones is because I listen to music while I play competitive disc golf. I'll keep the iPaq in my bag, which I'll walk no more than 25-30 feet away from the entire time I'm playing. Will the music quality suffer greatly, or would I need to consider keeping the iPaq in one of my pants/shorts pockets? I try to wear really loose wind pants or shorts, which usually don't have pockets.

Sorry about the long post, but thanks immensely for the info!

Will this headset work with my CF FM radio card too?

David, It's a great idea. I was contemplating an ipod but with these headphones I get much more freedom, especailly since I can actually control the music without opening up the ipaq. Exactly what i've been looking for. I've ordered a pair here in Australia but apparently they won't be delivered until around the 29th of Nov. Bye-the-way Great review!

I see iPaq 1900 series is not listed as a compatible device. My 1940 has bluetooth, will it work? I hope someone can help because these look to be fantastic.

There coming....hang in there.

So the real question becomes, "where does one buy them?" HPShopping does not have them in stock. I've searched all over and can't find them anywhere!

Big G

I have no question in my mind that combining your iPAQ and HP's Bluetooth Headphones is one incredible system for listening to music! You will love it!!

Thanks for the great review. Looks like I've got to head over to HP to buy a pair.

Great review, Jack. What do you all think?