The following compatibility issues apply to all current MB Bluetooth units, regardless of whether they are V60 pucks, MHI pucks, or MHI cradle/Bluetooth combo units.
According to American Wireless Solutions, the cell phone sales unit that Mercedes has partnered with for wireless communication in its vehicles, compatibility issues are twofold: 1) equipment compatibility, and 2) firmware compatibility. AWS tests both phones and firmware for compatibility with the Peiker-manufactured MB Bluetooth equipment. They test phones in addition to those that they sell, and firmware other than that used in phones that they sell. However, firmware is provided by individual cell providers; AWS has no control over it, and does not write the firmware. The AWS website has a compatibility matrix for vehicles and Bluetooth equipment on its site; and the phones it sells are compatible (“approved”). AWS uses a 90-day test period for phones and firmware. Before you purchase a phone from a source other than AWS, you should check with them when you buy your Bluetooth equipment to see if the phone and firmware you are buying is compatible. In some cases, AWS will not ship the equipment unless you verify that you have a compatible phone and firmware.
The compatibility issues manifest themselves in freeze-ups of COMAND, failure to properly download phone books, dropped calls or disconnects from the Bluetooth unit, and poor voice quality. For more on these issues, see:
1)
Bluetooth Voice Quality - assessment of RAZR V3 cradle combo - MBWorld.org Forums for a discussion of compatibility and connectivity issues; it deals with the RAZR V3, but is applicable to most phones.
2)
Partial Solution to Partial BT Phone Book Downloads - MBWorld.org Forums for a discussion on some phone book download problems not caused by firmware conflicts, that may appear as conflicts.
AWS advises me that some folks are able to get phone book downloads, etc. with unapproved firmware, but eventually they run into problems with system freezes, inability to download features they could in the past, and they may experience poor voice quality. I have no personal experience with this. Some folks have no problem with some unapproved firmware, AWS says, because their phones have firmware that is compatible in fact, but that has not been tested (after it is tested, and works, it is "approved"). The test is a 3-month trial process.
Some recurrent compatibility problems: Sprint firmware; TREO PDAs.
A new Bluetooth puck has just been advertised in Europe for the UHI system. I believe the puck implements the Bluetooth 2.0 protocol, which will improve compatibility and will hopefully allow easier use of a wider variety of phones. I also anticipate that a newer puck for MHI will be developed, probably following the European version much as the MHI pucks followed the UHI. I do not know what the precise capabilities of the new puck are (or will be) at this time.
NOTE - Update, June 26 2007: Some folks are reporting success using the Treo 680 with the new Bluetooth puck - part number part # B 6 787 5878. No information yet on other Treo models, or on service providers or firmware versions that are successful. Carpersn reports success with the Treo 680, Firmware is MW01.50 and Cingular (ATT) software version is 1.04-ROW.
Phone and Firmware Compatibility: AWS lists MB approved phone and firmware combinations (the information for which I have advised "Call AWS" in older posts) - see
http://www.wireless4mb.com/MB.pdf. You can also go to the AWS home page,
http://www.wireless4mb.com/, and choose the Vehicle Selector option to check equipment options and compatible phones (and pairing instructions) for your model year. In addition, AWS now lists the iPhone as approved for the MHI puck, and many contributors report that it works fine with the V60 puck ("V60 Bluetooth Cradle Adapter").
STILL ANOTHER SOLUTION
If a Bluetooth installation will not meet your needs, but the phone you wish to carry is Bluetooth only, consider a two-line solution. Use a plug-in phone in your car; sign up for a family plan, and get a second number, and assign that number to the phone you carry. Give out only one number, and set that number for no-answer call forwarding (if your carrier offers this feature). Regardless of which phone you elect to carry, you will always receive calls in your car on a phone that is fully integrated with it, and through which all of the design features of the car’s system are available (including display on COMAND or other audio system, better signal strength, full phone book download, and the like). And, you can carry whatever phone you like. This is especially affordable if you are already on a family plan.
