ROAD TRIP! Installment 9 - MORE Follow-up - FINAL on Magellan RoadMate 3055

This will close the loop on my evaluation of the Magellan RoadMate 3055's Bluetooth capability - the ONE feature that seemed possessed by demons. Save for a few minutes after initial setup, I could not get it to work again - with my phone.

Since then, I have tried again and again. I've tried with other phones, all without success. Finally, I think I've solved the puzzle, successfully!

This time, I was determined to start fresh, with a clear head, as well.

THIS time, I switched on the unit and deleted all the address book entries I had permissioned for it to receive from my phone. Next, I deleted my phone as one among those with which the unit had been paired. Finally, in my Sony Ericsson C902 phone I deleted this unit from among those listed under paired devices in the Bluetooth application.

Now, everything really did start fresh.

I clicked on the map screen where the little phone icon is located. Next, I clicked that new screen's icon for tools and settings, bringing me so I could select to enable Bluetooth Auto Connect and the one indicating "Audible Maneuver Warning" to chime in with instructions as needed, even during a call. Then I clicked the box at the bottom of that window to "Pair Phone Now."

The next screen begins the process of pairing, instructing the user to enable Bluetooth on the phone and to make it discoverable, that is, seen by a searching device.

Fast forward through this successful outing. My phone asked if I would allow the Magellan to use my phone as a modem. I clicked yes, even though I do not have data enabled on this handset.

A short time from then came a screen asking to allow Magellan to connect with this device. I clicked yes.

Next was a screen asking to import contacts from the phone (up to 1,000 of them) so as to have them resident in the Magellan device. A most enthusiastic OK!

And then . . . it just worked. Again and again, I disabled and enabled Bluetooth on the Magellan. Each time, success. Magellan automatically connected to my phone (if the phone's Bluetooth was enabled.

Now, all is well and my initial consternation with this Magellan is gone. Sound is good (from the callers's perspective).

Accurate GPS performance, just as have already been experienced.

A big thumbs up on the Magellan RoadMate 3055! Easily found just now for under $200 including shipping from Amazon.

Now, think about how you might use BT on this GPS unit. If you're a regular, daily user of the device, such as might be the case for a salesperson, the 3055's BT could be a substitute for any other visor-mounted BT device. It would not replace an on-ear device for those who are in an out of the vehicle and need BT tethering throughout the day, in and out of the car. Take these thought-starters and run with them, deciding for yourself if this feature is of value.

If BT is not going to be used, consumers may wish to get a different unit without it, though, frankly there are not others without the feature, retaining the other useful features, for less money. One possibility may be to opt for the RoadMate 3045-LM, selling for about $230 (it's new and of limited availability). What's hot on this one - FREE lifetime map upgrades. Ditch the BT and pick up lifetime maps seems a worthwhile trade-off.

Regardless of your choice, you cannot, will not go wrong with these new Magellan devices, clearly at the top of my list of best tested PNDs.

ROAD TRIP! Installment 8

Almost finished with the aftermath of the trip!

Unfinished business:

Pam needed phones for her new place. As I have experienced excellent service from our 2-line Panasonic system (reviewed here), we looked at hew local Costco, of course, where I knew Panasonic had a presence in cordless models. Note that I ONLY recommend DECT 6.0 technology and ONLY those models that use standard, off-the-shelf (meaning inexpensive) AA or AAA rechargeable NiMH batteries.

Costco had a 5-handset Panasonic system - KX-TG6440 - for $100. It would appear that this is a special model just for Costco and in the stores, not online, and most closely resembles the Panasonic KX-TG64445. The Costco set has one odd handset unlike the others in color and physical layout on the front face, but operation seems the same. Costco also carries a couple of other 4-handset Panasonic models, one at the same $100 price point and one at $80. All have answering machines, but with PhonePower VoIP, it is unused, letting PhonePower handle all the voicemail.

The Costco Panasonic KX-TG6440 includes all one could want in a single-line system, including a headset jack which is so handy in so many situations, a good quality speakerphone and all the other normal features in a modern cordless system. Call quality is customarily excellent as on my 2-line Panasonic system. I also like that the time and date can be set from the base handset and distributed to all handsets. Capable of being expanded to a total of six handsets, this seems ideal for most family situations where single-line phones fulfill the family requirements.

It is connected to her PhonePower adapter, which, in turn, it connected via Ethernet to her 2WIRE modem/router for her AT&T U-verse system. Even with the PhonePower VoIP system set at its lowest bit rate, the sound is clear as any wired phone system, just as my own PhonePower line behaves. Remember, if you want to really save money on home/home office phones, PhonePower has to be the best deal around, with the best quality and local SoCal offices with local SoCal tech support. All told, when signing up for their Premium Annual service, at $200 and with the second year FREE, with taxes, it comes to less than $11 per month!

The final tech item to report on is TV. For the main TV, we chose the 50-inch 720p plasma LG 50PJ350 from Amazon.com for a delivered price of just $706. What a deal! HDMI from the U-verse HD DVR to HDMI 1 on the LG and, voilà, HD on the TV. The picture looks great and she'll never miss not having 1080p from the distance she'll be viewing it. Yes, plasma over LCD, even the LED backlit LCD TVs. The picture is so much better on a plasma set such as this over any LCD!

We found a little 24-inch Viewsonic VT2430 1080p LCD set for her second bedroom/office/exercise room for only $250 at Amazon.com. In that size it is hard to go wrong for that price. Popping the HDMI cable from the U-verse cable box to the single HDMI on the Viewsonic is all it took for instant picture.

The only remaining piece of equipment will be a battery back-up unit to accommodate the U-verse 2WIRE modem/router, the PhonePower adapter and the Panasonic cordless base. Houston has its share of weather-related power outages. With a Tripp-Lite battery backup unit on duty, there are several incidentals handled.

We'll have to do the math and figure out the draw - how many watts of electricity each component draws and then look at the runtime she wants on battery power, from as little as one hour to several hours. This extreme runtime represents what may occur during extended power outages over several days.

With cable and telephone company-based Internet providers, though the power may be out at the residence, the service coming over the phone lines or cable may still be active. That they fail to operate may only be because of a lack of power to the needed components within the blacked-out premise where the customer equipment resides. A battery back-up system in that home, supplying power to the Internet modem and router might be all that is needed to connect to a laptop via wireless connection, as would be normal in day-to-day operation. Add the PhonePower adapter's 12V, .5 amp requirement to the mix and the user can have many hours of use spread over several days by managing the handset's rechargeable batteries, removing them when not in use, for example, to preserve power to short periods per day.

For as little as about $100, to about $300, depending upon just how much reserve life is required, all the aforementioned systems can operate for several minutes at a time over many days.

Once the math is known, we can choose the right Tripp-Lite Desktop UPS system for her needs. I have found that Tripp-Lite delivers quality I have trusted for more than 30 years and at prices considerably less than APC.

I've finished posting stills and videos!

Head on over to www.MrGadget.SmugMug.com and click to view the Road Trip Gallery. Then, visit my YouTube channel to see and compare videos from the PlaySport, including underwater clips, EVO 4G and Flip Slide HD. Be sure to watch the PlaySport and Flip Slide HD videos in their native 1080p!

Remaining to be done as time permits, is more work with the excellent performing Magellan RoadMate 3055. The more I use it, both on the road trip and now back at home base, the more I like it. It deserves and will receive more from me in the near future. I still also need to try the built-in Bluetooth, which gave me some problems in the limited testing while on the road as detailed in earlier Road Trip posts.

I also need to spend some time with and report on the new Aliph Jawbone model, "The Ace," which fell victim to a lack of time while on the Road Trip.

I'll likely take time off from blogging for a while, getting back to my regular work of more in-depth articles for www.MrGadget.com.

Thanks to all for following these posts!