Review-Sony Ericsson HCB-150 bluetooth car speakerphone

Hi there once again. I hope you have all successfully upgraded your iphone to the latest version of the operating system which was released yesterday. I will post on the new features later this week but there are some nice additions to play with.

Today I wanted to continue the Xmas theme with a review of an item which would make a nice present for the driver in your family. The item in case is the Sony Ericsson HCB-150 bluetooth car speakerphone which is available from MobileFun.co.uk for £24.99.

The Sony comes nicely packaged with a car charger and easy to follow user guide. Out of the box it is only pocket size and nicely put together.

Switch the Sony on and you have a nice OLED display, it is easily paired with your bluetooth device and a bonus is that you can pair up to 5 separate mobile phones. All the buttons are nicely back lit and easy to find.

The Sony syncs all your phone book contacts, which are then easily accessed at the touch of a button. It also provides text to speech, as long as your mobile phone supports this, making use that much easier. It mounts to your cars sun visor using the strong metal clip and once mounted it is nice and discreet.

To receive a call you simply press the "green" phone button. To make a call  press the "green" button and scroll through your phone book using the large, centrally located button.

Another really nice feature of the Sony is that it can be used as a desktop speakerphone, the display auto rights itself depending on which way you have the unit placed.

In use I have had no problems in being heard by the caller or vice verse. The Sony comes with dual, 2 watt speakers so the clarity is clear and the volume is easily adjusted to suit your needs.

Sony claim the HCB-150 has up to 25 hours talk time and a massive 700 hours standby time, I am not one to doubt them as I have only had to charge my unit once since I started to use it. I do switch it off when I'm not in the car.

I have already mentioned the in car charger that comes supplied however I am not a big fan of leads everywhere in my car. MobileFun supply a mains charger for £8.47 which does the job brilliantly.

I really like the Sony. Yes it lacks some of the bells and whistles of other, far more expensive car speakerphones. But what you have is a truly portable device that performs its job each and every time. You can't get better than that so I am very happy to give it 5/5.

Well that's me done for another evening. I hope you find this review informative, you never know it may be one less Xmas present to worry about!

Andy.