Customer Reviews

Parrot CK3100 Bluetooth LCD Display Car Kit

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I played with one of these at Best Buy and thought the display was hard to read and the knob and buttons felt cheap. When I ordered my unit I got the newer all BLACK version display panel and these things have been improved. I chose the 3100 model because I realized I don't have a lot of space on my cars dash to put a lot of displays.

I ordered mine with not just a custom wiring harness for my 1998 Accord EX, but with a custom wiring harness which includes prewired mute configuration (quickconnectproducts dot com). I was dreading having to run the wiring for power until I realized I didn't have too!! The power is also automatically taken via the wiring harness from the power going to the radio. I installed it myself in about 1 hour.

The Parrot has some thoughtful ergonomic design. Very functional. For example, when you turn your key ignition off while on a call, instead of going dead and dropping the call, it continues to to stay on and asks you if you would like to transfer the audio back to the phone! How cool is that.

Audio quality is great. First, unlike my 2008 RAV4 factory bluetooth which is very good, the Parrot is FULL DUPLEX which means both of you can talk at the same time which allows much smoother conversations. It has the magic DSP background noise elimination so callers don't hear the road noise. All the echo is cancelled as well, and your voice is processed to remain strong and loud despite being distant from the microphone. Callers tell me I sound like I am directly talking on the phone and not on a speaker phone. The Parrot audio amp which sends sound to the car speakers does have a small amount of high frequency hiss/noise in the background; however this isn't a problem as you can only hear it when the engine is shut off.

Even though the Parrot doesn't have an interface for your steering wheel controls (I don't have them anyway), you can still operate some of the key functions via voice recognition. Because the Parrot voice recognition limits you to half a dozen voice commands, they actually work!

The 2-3 line display of the Parrot CK3100 is plenty of display for me. Some users may not even need a model with a display. The display indicates phone battery charge and cellular signal strength, although on my Palm Treo 700p with Verizon the cell signal strength is not accurate as displayed on the CK3100 display.

Mounting the display and microphone for these types of devices in a car is always a challenge. However, the Parrot kit includes several different mounts for both the display and microphone. Some quite unique and helpful. The best assortment of actually useful mounting hardware I have seen.

When talking on my cell phone while driving, I am aware that my attention is diverted. I don't like it. So for some time now I have used a Plantronics headset (great product). That improved the situation some but then I tried talking via bluetooth speakerphone in our 2008 RAV4. Talking on speakerphone is VERY different. It is much safer in my opinion. It is just like talking to the person sitting next to you in the car. I would encourage everyone who wants to be a safer less distracted driver while on the cell to get a GOOD QUALITY FULL DUPLEX speakerphone for their car. The Parrot 3100 fits the bill.

I just completed the installation of this unit in my Chevrolet Avalanche. The one thing that was not known to me prior to purchase is the need for an aftermarket wiring harness adapter to hook the Parrot unit to my factory Bose system. I did some research online and found only one company who provided the harness for $80.00 so do your research before buying. The harness that comes with the unit is based on european ISO connectors found in mercedes benz, volkswagen and other cars, you could splice into your existing system but it is NOT recommended what so ever.

Once the harness arrived the install was easy for me since I have previous experience with removing the factory system, avoiding the theftlock etc. The unit was easy to mount on the dashboard with the provided double sided tape, the microphone also has many different adapters for different locations, I used the smallest self sticking pad placing the mic on the top of the steering column between the steering wheel and instrument cluster. The main unit is hidden within my center console so the overall installtion is very clean.

The unit hooked up to my Verizon VX8300 phone with no problems, the phone book and voice activation system works great. The volume is very loud but adjustable and so far anyone I have talked to did not know I was on a hands free system even at 70-75 mph interstate speeds.

If you're anything like me, you've probably been coaxed (or coerced) by you're friendly local law enforcement into buying a bluetooth solution for your car. I've owned bluetooth headsets for about 3 years, but the newest California State law mandates that by July 1, 2008, drivers must be handsfree or they WILL be ticketed (with exceptions of course i.e. emergencies). My habitual forgetfulness, namely me leaving my BT headset at home a couple days a week, led me to insist on a solution that was impossible to forget. Enter the Parrot CK3100.

Be prepared to spend -AT LEAST- $250 for purchase AND installation. And again, if you're anything like me, for the love of god DON'T try this install yourself. Complicated is an understatement.

Professional installation takes about 2 hours. Once complete, ask to sync your phone with the unit BEFORE you leave. Good technicians will have already tested their own BT devices during install. If everything goes well, the unit will sync and download your contacts database and call log. Then just record your "keywords" into the device, and you're off and running.

Calls have never been easier or distraction-free to place while behind the wheel. Simply speak "PHONE", your stereo will mute, then either the Parrot -OR- your phone (depending on your preference -AND- whether your phone supports voice-dialing) will prompt you for a voice-dial entry. Speak, and the device places the call. To hang up, merely speak "HANG UP". Couldn't be easier.

There are, however, a couple of cons with the device.

First, after you startup your car, speak "PHONE" and every time you could be waiting as long as 20 seconds until the unit prompts you for a voice input. I've just gotten used to saying "PHONE" when I get in my car, to activate the unit. Just unnecessary considering how well the unit performs otherwise.

Second, and thankfully NOT in the middle of a call, the unit stalls and then resets ... usually right after I say "PHONE". Irksome.

Third, think of good keywords to use, PLEASE. People start to wonder about you when, at the end of your conversation, you exclaim "HANG UP". ... What? No not you, HANG UP! Why? Why what? No, it's this darn thing I have to talk to it to hang up HANG UP!! Okay!!! NO!!! WHAT!?!?! HANG UP!!!! WHADDYA WANT ME TA DO!!?!?! NO HANG UP!!!!! WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU!?!?!! You'll find yourself in the next Abbott and Costello routine.

Save some lives, save your own, save the time it takes to dial a number, and buy yourself a Parrot CK3100. Worth it.

The Parrot CK3100 looked like just the thing I was looking for. I drive a tractor trailer so have been looking for a handsfree system with high volume and this is to be incorporated in your sound system. I can hear calls just fine but the microphone BITES!!!! It works great when I am not driving, but at freeway speed people always complain that I cannot be heard, I paid Cicuit City $150 to install it, so I am just stuck with it now, I will just have to keep looking for a decent Bluetooth set.

The Parrot CK3100 hands-off car phone kit is not the coolest-looking gadget around. It just works.

Form lags function in this case, but the function is so good that you hardly notice.

Countless pedestrians have had their lives spared by the installation of one of these little dudes in my car and another in my truck. Now I spend my road hours yackin' away for business, family, and pleasure, redeeming countless hours for productive purposes whilst allowing innocent bystanders to get on with their lives without the tire tracks across their extremities that would certainly have resulted if I'd kept dialing and speaking through my cell phone.

Most customers will want to have their Parrot 3100 installed by a professional. Many more will find the owners manual moderately maddening. Some may be driven to become axe murderers as a result of their unsuccessful efforts to make sense of the instructions.

Fortunately, the little gizmo is pretty self-explanatory, so homicide rates will likely continue their steady decline in spite of Parrot's growing market share in the hands-off cellphone sector.

I get good sound flowing out and coming in. Customers with a more negative experience likely have their installer to blame. For effective use, the Parrot needs to be installed where the noise of wind and vibration are at a minimum, something that is true of any gadget in its class. If this is done well - my two were installed by Indianapolis' Auto Outfitters - the Parrot should give you good sound.

An incoming call automatically mutes the stereo. Voice recognition is a staple. The really cool feature is how BlueTooth technology synchs up your PDA - including all your contacts - with the Parrot when you enter the car so that you can dial from your electronic address book.

It looks a little dorky, but some things you can overlook for the sake of getting the job done.

The Parrot 3100 certainly manages *that*.

The good:

Nice sounding unit, with decent pseudo-full-duplex ability (sorry, it's not real full duplex, most speakerphone technology is not due to the complexity of creating digital "hybrid" duplexing networks, but it's good none the less). Get the mic as close as possible to your head for maximum effectiveness.

Ergonomics are good, operation is intuitive and easy. Plumbing your handsfree kit through the car stereo is the only way to go, like this kit does. But that can involve a fair amount of wiring, so if there is a wiring harness available for your car, consider it money well spent.

Works well with my HTC Touch phone. Since using a touch screen phone while driving down the highway is the epitome of a Bad Idea, having the Touch play well with the Parrot is a nice thing.

The bad:

Works really badly with my LG UX8350 flip phone, to the point of not usable.

The Parrot incessantly beeps and continuously makes odd noises after one makes a call with this phone. I must shut off Bluetooth to make it shut up. Tried various suggestions from the Parrot tech support folk, with no improvement.

The ugly:

Updating the firmware in the Parrot is a maddening experience, combining the worst of Bluetooth, Windows, and voodoo magic. Version numbers of their firmware run bass-awkwards, so forget using any sort of logic to decide which firmware version you should be using. The dealer didn't have the appropriate cable to perform firmware updates, which struck me as both the logical way to perform an update as well as something basic a dealer just might have. This of course was precipitated by the problems with the UX8350, which culminated in Parrot's tech support telling me that I was LYING about implementing their recommendations (I'm not being hyperbolic here: they really did accuse me of not performing their very simple yet ineffective suggestions). Uh, okay. Didn't mean to offend the Parrot gods!

Summary:

Decent widget, assuming it works properly with your phone. Research on the web regarding your particular phone before purchasing. Buy from a dealer with a good return policy. Do not put up with any peculiar behavior; return ASAP to your dealer. It's not going to get better!

This is a great product, but it was hard to get it installed. I own a Pontiac and they couldn't install install it without cutting some wires (which voids the warranty on my car). My husband an adapter and everything worked out. I love having this in my car. We also had it installed in my husband's car. We have never had any complaints about not being heard.

This product does what is advertised. I installed it myself and it was fairly simple if your familiar with splicing together wiring, you can opt for the wire adapter if you want snap together easyness but it is an additional cost by an after market online store and it would not make a difference in sound quality. set up was generally easy. you can beam your contacts to the unit and add a voice to the contact for hands free voice dialing. microphne has excellent reception, anyone i called could hear me better than any blue tooth device that i previously used. My problem with this unit is that the caller coming thruogh the speakers were not loud or clear enough and no matter how i wired the unit this did not change. If i was dring at any more than 25mph than i would have a problem hearing the caller although maybe a newer vehichle might be quieter i cant see it being enough to where you would be satisfied. I had to unintall and choose a different product sadly because i really liked everything else a lot.

I received my car kit in good time, had it installed, and am now enjoying the ability to use the voice activation feature to make my calls. I am very impressed with the way it automatically syncs with my phone as soon as I enter the car.

I bought this product based on several reviews when I was researching this. My main criteria was good sound quality and ease of installation.
The installation was very straightforward going into our 2009 Toyota Corolla. The wire harnesses it comes with are designed for European cars (mostly VW), so don't expect everything to just plug in. If you want to use the car speakers for sound (and not get an external speaker), you'll have to cut wires on the Parrot and the car radio harness in order to interrupt the speaker inputs going to radio. You'll also need to find the radio mute wire if you want the sound system to mute when the phone rings (for cars that don't have a mute input, you can use a relay to interrupt the accessory to the radio).

The installation took about 3 hours, and the system worked flawlessly. When the phone rings or when I make a call (either through phone or Parrot device), and car stereo sound mutes, and the call goes through the front car speakers and sounds crystal clear. I was so please that I bought another one for our other car, which I haven't installed yet.

Laith Sinawi Web Development
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