[General Accessories] n1xda:
If you want Bluetooth in your car, but you don’t want to spend the money and/or time to install a new head unit, the eCandy Smart Flex Wireless Car Stereo Bluetooth FM transmitter will allow enable you making phone calls or listening to music -it’s the most reliable alternative and the one that will produce the best overall sound and call quality. If you value call quality over sound, a clip-on speakerphone is the way to go; if you care more about music and podcast sound quality than about clear calls, choose an FM transmitter. We spent 10 hours playing with eCandy Smart Flex Wireless Car Stereo Bluetooth FM transmitter and compared it to seven new similar products out on the market to find the best pick.

If you want to makes calls or listen to music from your phone while driving (and remaining hands-free), and you don’t want to replace your entire stereo unit (either because of cost or hassle), then you should get the eCandy Smart Flex. If you have an older car and want Bluetooth without the hassle or cost of a brand-new stereo or professionally installed kit, then this low cost method is a surefire way of getting there. It can be detached from its own charger to be used with other, potentially faster, charging sources with more ports. We also like that it can be detached from its own charger to be used with other, potentially faster, charging sources with more ports. That gives you more flexibility than you’d get with similar models, which is hardwired to a weaker 1A charger with only one USB output. We also liked the small, unobtrusive design, and that it comes with a magnetic plate mount that allows the receiver to be removed easily to protect against theft.

The eCandy Smart flex is super easy to use. After initial pairing, it will automatically connect to your phone every time you start the car. Once connected, music-playback controls, phone functions, and voice controls work as expected. Pairing a second phone is simply a matter of repeating the initial connection process. This arrangement is great for when two people will be using the car at different times, as they don’t have to worry about re-pairing each time. (If both paired phones are in the car, either device can play music as long as the other one is paused. Similarly, you can stream a phone call to your stereo from only one phone at a time. If you make a call on one while the other is streaming music, the phone call will take over).

Music sound quality is top notch compared with other aux-in kits, as there wasn’t any buzzing or interference across the volume range. When compared with a direct aux connection from an iPhone 6, we did notice a small amount of bass distortion during music playback, but not enough to be bothersome—and not any more than we heard with other kits. Incoming audio is crisp, clear, and distortion-free, even at the volume’s highest setting, which is pretty darn loud. In my testing, the quality was strong enough to make me forget I was using a speakerphone, and it was certainly clear and easy to understand. This is partially due to eCandy’s echo-control and noise-cancellation technology, which is surprisingly effective at minimizing background wind noise and other interfering sounds that come up while driving. In our voicemail test, the eCandy Smart Flex had the clearest sound. Again, while it sounded a little speakerphone-like, my voice carried loudly and clearly with little to no interference, distortion, or echo. Even while driving with the windows down at 45 to 50 mph, the voicemail audio was loud and clear with little discernible wind noise in the background, which is quite impressive considering the speakerphone was mounted on my car’s visor right next to an open window. Voice commands are also implemented well. When receiving an incoming call, the eCandy Smart Flex announces the name of the caller if it’s someone from your contacts; otherwise, it recites the phone number. You can say “answer” to take the call or “ignore” to let it go to voicemail. In addition to these device-specific voice commands, you can activate your phone’s voice commands (Siri on an iPhone or Google Now on an Android) by tapping the voice dial button. The eCandy Smart Flex also supports dedicated buttons for mute, call answer/end, FM frequency, and music play/pause

If you want to listen to music and make phone calls, and your car stereo has either an auxiliary-audio input or a cassette player, grab the eCandy Smart Flex Bluetooth. If you want Bluetooth primarily for phone calls, and your car doesn’t have an aux-in jack or a cassette player, the eCandy Smart Flex Bluetooth FM transmitteris the best you can get. If you want to play and stream music but don’t plan on making many phone calls, the eCandy Smart Flex Bluetooth is the best for you.