[IRONSIDE7]

Has anyone had any luck in getting a bluetooth-enabled Blackberry to work in an E90? If so, which models work?

[BigPapiDoesItAgain]

Originally Posted by IRONSIDE7

Has anyone had any luck in getting a bluetooth-enabled Blackberry to work in an E90? If so, which models work?

I have a Cingular Wireless BB 7290 which I am able to pair, but it will not sync the address book. The BB also asks if I want to accept the connection to the car each time it comes into proximity instead of automatically pairing.

I love my Blackberry, but I think I love the bluetooth phone function on my 330 more, and for that reason, I have been using my Moto Razr (that's the beauty of GSM, just switch out the SIM card). I hear tale that RIM is working on a firmware patch or upgrade to fix this, and that the reason that the address book won't sync has to do with a security function of the device.

[StevenT]

I have successfully paired a BB 7250 with my 330xi.
Any of the bluetooth BB's should work with the E90.

Note, however, that while all bluetooth BB's allow for voice over bluetooth (this is the headset profile), they do not allow data transfers over bluetooth. Thus, the E90 can make and receive calls through the BB, but cannot read phone numbers or any info in the address book of the BB.

Thus, there is no easy way of dialing the Blackberry through the E90. Well, not exactly true. If you have iDrive, then I do not believe there is any easy way to dial stored phone numbers using the E90. iDrive equipped systems expect to be able to interface with the address book on the phone. In case of Blackberries, this is not possible.

On non-iDrive equipped vehicles, you have the capability to store a voice tag (i.e., someone's name) and their phone number in the E90 itself. You can then use voicecontrol to dial that phone number. I presume this would still work with Blackberries because the phone number is stored in the E90.

It really ticks me off that BMW did not include the voice tag feature in iDrive equipped E90's. They obviously expect everyone with an iDrive equipped E90 to also own a 100% compatible bluetooth cellphone. This indicates to me that they obviously do not know much about bluetooth systems. Besides Blackberries, which deliberately prevent data transfers via bluetooth, there are a lot of inconsistencies between manufacturers on how bluetooth is implemented in cellphones, resulting in many phones being incompatible with other bluetooth headsets/systems (including that in the E90). Very poor planning/designing on behalf of BMW.

[StevenT]

Originally Posted by BigPapiDoesItAgain

I have a Cingular Wireless BB 7290 which I am able to pair, but it will not sync the address book. The BB also asks if I want to accept the connection to the car each time it comes into proximity instead of automatically pairing.

I love my Blackberry, but I think I love the bluetooth phone function on my 330 more, and for that reason, I have been using my Moto Razr (that's the beauty of GSM, just switch out the SIM card). I hear tale that RIM is working on a firmware patch or upgrade to fix this, and that the reason that the address book won't sync has to do with a security function of the device.

You need to enter the bluetooth section of your BB and edit the pairing settings between your BB and your E90. You should be able to classify the E90 as a "trusted source" or something like that. Once you do this, your BB will always accept a bluetooth connection from your E90 without prompting you. I did this, and my BB connects everytime without any intervention.

[boas1]

My Blackberry 7100g is hit or miss (mostly miss) with my 325xi, no nav. This a known issue and you can find two bulletins in the RIM Technical Support Database under the key words BMW and Bluetooth. Per RIM, there is no final fix yet for the E90 but they are working on it.
Anybody that has gotten the 7100 to consistenly work, I am all ears. Thanks

[MTMnet]

Originally Posted by StevenT

I have successfully paired a BB 7250 with my 330xi.
Any of the bluetooth BB's should work with the E90.

Note, however, that while all bluetooth BB's allow for voice over bluetooth (this is the headset profile), they do not allow data transfers over bluetooth. Thus, the E90 can make and receive calls through the BB, but cannot read phone numbers or any info in the address book of the BB.

So what happens during an inbound call from someone that happens to be in your BB address book....does their Name and Phone number show up on the radio screen or just the phone number ...or niether?

[BigPapiDoesItAgain]

Just to update. I am now rolling w/ my Cingular BB 7290 and it is working just fine. I downloaded and installed BB Handheld software v. 4.0.2.49 and now the device pairs quickly and stays connected without difficulty. Of course, the only function is the handsfree, and the phonebook function does not transfer over to the car. Hopefully RIM will remedy this issue. BTW, my friends' 7100g works similarly to my 7290.

[boas1]

Originally Posted by BigPapiDoesItAgain

Just to update. I am now rolling w/ my Cingular BB 7290 and it is working just fine. I downloaded and installed BB Handheld software v. 4.0.2.49 and now the device pairs quickly and stays connected without difficulty. Of course, the only function is the handsfree, and the phonebook function does not transfer over to the car. Hopefully RIM will remedy this issue. BTW, my friends' 7100g works similarly to my 7290.

I have called Cingular and have updated to the 4.02.49 and my BB7100g will not connect most of the time. What settings is your friend using?