I have the GPS knocked .. I use the Holux GPS slim 236.. Couldn't ask for better performance...
In atime pinch now .. Will search for the head/ear stuff.. soon.. Your suggestions will be in the list.. TNX ..John

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JOHN E ECK

Just got this today, so I may have more to add later after I use it for a while. The "entertainment system" consists of a BT adapter and BT headsets. Any wired earphones can be plugged into the little headset box. It comes with a set of earbuds, but I'm using the Sony's I've always used with my iPod. The adapter makes the iPod BT, and I don't hear any difference at all in the sound with the iPod wired or wireless. It also works great with my XM AirWave when I plug the adapter into the radio. The sound is very clear to about 13 feet, and then starts having a few dropouts.

The parts seem well made (this is the same company that makes the GlobalSat BT GPS receivers) and there is a clever charging adapter that splits into two mini USB plugs so that both pieces can be charged at the same time. Charging can be either through a powered USB port or with the included AC adapter. And I can also use my Socket Mobile Power Pack!

Pairing with the 6600 was easy. I first paired with the stereo profile and unfortunately could not hold a connection. I suspect this has much more to do with the phone than with the headset. But it holds the connection very well with the regular handsfree profile. The calls seemed clear on both ends, no static or fading so far.

Now here's the cool part. I can be listening to the iPod in stereo, and when call comes in the music stops and I can either answer or choose to ignore the call. When I hang up, the music starts again. I had a 10% off coupon for Semsons and ended up paying about $88 for the setup, including shipping.

I wish that the stereo profile worked with the phone (who knows? maybe with the infamous upgrade?), but other than that I am very pleased and unless something changes in the next couple of days it's definitely a keeper. Here's the manufacturer's website, with links to some reviews - http://www.globalsat.com.tw/english/...id=20&p_id=153 - sheureka

Second day - This morning it's working fine with the ad2p profile as long as I stick with wmp - itty bitty movies with stereo! - sheureka

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mY GPS is on the 6600.. so the ears working for music and fone will give me all I want.. In fact if I had a single ear that worked with auduio as well as fone I would have all i want.. It looks like thos that if you want audio you need to buy a stereo headset..I could get the headset and only use one ear.. While driving or walking i want one ear available for other stuff..
Globalsat has an extensive review on their fones but the PIX are not very descriptive..
If the thing won't work with the 6600 ,it ain't for me.. Do you say it just doesn't work at a distance or is no good at all.. If it works for tele it must not be the signal strength.. Must be software or ears need for higher s/n when in a music or audio mode..
Hate to milk your head like this but , if you know of a one eared thingey that does A2DP , let me know.. i put on the A2DP cab file and the BT files now include the needed facility.. Body glove still does fone but no audio function..

Gee! thanks a bunch... John

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JOHN E ECK

I received the BTH-820/830 from Semsons this morning. I'm still trying to decide whether to keep it. It works well with the included audio gateway BTH-9=830, but not very well with my PPC-6601 stack (3500 with 3601 BtCeStack.dll). It pairs and maintains a connection, but there are pauses every few seconds whether streaming or listening to mp3's stored on my SD card, using either WMP9 or TCPMP. Using GSPlayer breaks the connection.
Performance with the 3601 stack is worse than either the i.tech Clip S or the Mini BT. The volume is significantly louder when using the 6601 stack than when using the BTH-830 dongle. While I like being able to use any standard headset with it, I think it'll be going back.
Mick

I'm not having a problem with pausing at all with WMP9 though I haven't tried streaming yet (I'm on 1x). I have the same BT stack you do. I wonder why the difference? - sheureka

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Sheureka,
Bumping the CPU speed to 530 Mhz, and unchecking all Today Plug-ins (I usually have Date, Messaging, Calendar, IP Dashboard, and Pocket Plus plug-ins running) seems to significantly reduce, but not eliminate the pauses when listening to a 64k stream on Sprint's 1x network. It pretty much eliminates the pauses when using WMP9 to listen to music from my SD card.
Also, none of the AVRCP functions are working which makes me wonder whether I may have simply received a defective BTH-820. Do your Play/Pause, Next and Previous buttons work when using WMP9? (I made sure the Lock button was turned off, so that's not an issue.)
Mick

That's a bummer - my play/pause, next and previous buttons work fine with wmp9. Weird. - sheureka

And I just had my first rather long (15 minute) conversation using the headset, and my friend said she would never have known I wasn't speaking directly into the phone. Yay! The only thing I don't like (and I'll get used to it) is that empty middle of my head feeling I get listening to mono over a stereo headset. Anyway, I'm a happy camper.

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After some experimentation, including deleting all BT pairings, I have reluctantly concluded that the Globalsat BTH-820/830 Audio Gateway Bundle simply does not work well enough with my Sprint PPC-6601 to justify keeping the Bundle. Ironically, the BTA-830 transmitter works better with the Mini BT headset than with the included BTH-820 headset.
It appears to be a matter of trial and error to discover which BT headsets work with a particular device--what works for one person does not necessarily work for another.
Mick

Sorry it isn't working out for you. I'm wondering, though, if you've used the BTH-820/BTA-830 with devices other than your phone. I assume so, since you say another headset works better. What sort of problems are you having with other devices? - sheureka

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Sheureka,
I also tried it with my Ipaq 2215, with the same results as the 6601--the headset would only maintain a connection if within a few inches of the Ipaq and both were motionless. The Ipaq had nothing installed after a hard reset, except the A2DP patch, so I don't think the problem results from a software conflict. It is possible that I received a defective headset, since the buttons intermittently fail to respond to button pushes, no matter what I do. When using the headset with the xmitter, volume generally is extremely low.
Mick

I think it must be defective. I can have a very clear conversation with the phone about 8 feet away (haven't tried farther), and can listen to my iPod using the BTA-30 when I'm over 15 feet away from it. And at that distance the volume can be cranked up enough to hurt my ears. - sheureka

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This response I received from Semsons seems to be inconsistent with their claim that: "customer satisfaction is our #1 priority."
"We apologize for the problem. Please contact GlobalSat directly via the contact info below for support. If they determine the unit is defective, please let us know and we will waive the restocking fee for you. Please include the name of the support engineer you talk you with your RMA request. Otherwise, a minimum of 5% restocking fee will be charged."
Of course, by the time I send the headset to GlobalSat so they determine whether the headset is defective, the odds are Semson's 30-day return period will have expired.
It seems to me that when a product does not perform as advertised, I should be able to return it without paying a re-stocking fee.
I suspect I'll just cut my losses, and send it back to Semson's. If they hit with a re-stocking fee, I'll decide whether it's worth escalating to the Better Business Bureau.
In any event, at this point I cannot recommend doing business with Semson's.
Mick

I got the 820 headset from semsons and after some stumbling it works as advertised.. thanks for all your help.. now i have to figure out how to make my music play continuously not stop after every cut and need to be told to play the next.. Suspect it is me setting the right buttons.. That gives me something to dom while my spouse does the mall.. tnx again John

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JOHN E ECK

I too am experiencing the same problems as Mick. I did a hard reset and installed just the A2DP patch on the xv6600. Soft Reset. Then I paired first the headset profile then the High Quality Audio profile. Soft Reset. The Headset profile connects automatically but the HQA profile needs to be connected manually. No big deal. Listening to WMP on the HQA the connection cuts out when more than a few inches away from the BT 820. Unacceptable!! The buttons also seem to work only intermittently. Sometimes it will not turn on or will not turn off or will not answer calls or the volume control will not work. I am wondering if I need to change my ROM / Patches / BT Stack....? The 820 will stay connected to the 830 up to about 15 feet but the button problems occur as well with the 830.

My current xv6600 setup:
ROM: 1.35.00
Radio: HA01_140
PRL: 50386
ExROM: 1.35.113
BT-PPC 1.0.0 Build 3500

Mick,
Are you still having the same problems? Did you return the unit? If so, did they charge you a restocking fee?

After giving it a try for a full week-end, with no improvement, I returned the unit. In response to a polite request, Semsons agreed to waive the restocking fee. Here's a copy of what GlobalSat tech support sent me in response to my email to them.
I interpret their response as saying the headset I received was in fact defective.
It appears that they have a fairly high defect rate, so I chose to ask for a full refund rather than simply exchanging it.
One thing you may want to try before sending it back is to see whether underclocking your device helps the performance. After I sent the BTH-820 back I did some research on the Aximsite forum and discovered that some folks there have reduced the drop outs on various BT headset by using Pocket Hack Master to underclock and change other settings. I have done some experimenting with my Clip S, using Xcpuscalar. Underclocking at 200 Mhz does improve the Clip S performance, but does not entirely eliminate the drop outs. The Clip S does not have AVRVP buttons (which is why I tried the BTH-820).
Underclocking also seems to allow the 6601 to run significantly cooler and extends battery time, without adversely affecting the ability to stream over the BT connection. Of course, underclocking can be risky--I have occasionally experienced lockups when doing it, particularly when trying to multi-task. I have also heard of people turning devices into bricks when messing with clock speeds.
Mick

Well guys...heres my 2 cents! I love this little BT gizmo!!! From day one it has been GREAT!!!! I bought just the 820 and not the 830 and it works great with my BT stack. I use my PPC exclusivley for all my A/V. The volume is GREAT, all the buttons have worked flawlessly.....only cuts out intermittantly at approx 10ft+ which is to be expected.
Both of you guys must have gotten defective units, cuz this is the best find I've found since the XV6600 came out!!!!!!!!

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Verizon xv6600

Agreed. It's unfortunate that it's not available from a trustworthy brick and mortar store. The difference in Semson's policy with regard to defective items between what they state in their website, and what they state in email is enough that I simply am no longer willing to do business with them. Given what is obviously a high defect rate for this product, I am not willing to order it from any online vendor that requires customers to pay the return shipping costs for defective items. Unfortunately, there are very few vendors other than Amazon that do not require custormers to pay for the vendors' mistakes in shipping defective products.
Mick

Have you thought of contacting the manufacturer directly? They're at http://www.usglobalsat.com - sheureka

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Here's the response I received when I contact the manufacturer directly:
As I have been advised by the vendor that a refund has been credited to my VISA account, I consider the matter to be ended.
I will continue looking for a better BT stereo solution, but will confine my search to Amazon (which, unlike the vendor I have been dealing with, pays shipping charges for the return of defective merchandise) and/or brick and mortar stores.
Mick

Z1truth,
does the bth 820 remote control work with your 6600?