vB Easy Archive - My Scala 500 Review

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My Scala 500 Review
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Posted by: tcatnat

OK, a week ago I received my new Treo 650 from my employer and personally bought myself the Cardo Scala 500 BT headset. I purchased it based on reviews I have read both consumer based and so called professional reviewers. I tested it for 2 days but wanted to get something out as I know a few may be waiting for some feedback on this device.

Physical Characteristics
Very light and pretty compact for its form factor. The era loop has a rubberized coating on it which makes it fit nicely without sliding around. It has what they call a multi-function wheel on the back that controls ON/OFF, volume up/down, mute. It has a control button on the side to accept/initiate/reject/transfer calls. It also has an LED on the side to give you the status of the headset.

In the Box
Headset, ear-lop, glass clip, charging cradle, power supply, belt clip holder, lanyard, and directions/CD.

Charging
Funny, they tell you to charge it for 4 hours the first time however; mine was done charging in less than 1 ½ hours. I know this because I sat the cradle on my counter and an 1 ½ hours later I walked in my kitchen and the charging light was off. So it may have taken considerably less, maybe not.

Pairing
The Scala 500 paired flawlessly with my Sprint Treo 650, even after I screwed up one of the steps (type is very small). I would have to say it took less than 5 minutes even with my mis-step. I have shut off both the headset and Treo multiple times and have never had to repair. I even took the battery out of my Treo last night and it still repaired without any problems.

Another pairing test. I left the headset on and in the center console of my truck and went into a store with my Treo, well out of range of BT. I got back in my truck and was quickly able to make a call, so they two devices paired right back up even after being separated for about two hours.

Fit
The ear-loop is bendable so you should be able to get almost the perfect fit. I t took me a little while and a few tries to get it to fit to my likely. The fact that you can bend it is pretty nice for different shaped ears.

Day 1

First Test
My first test was just a quick call to the Treo from my home phone to make sure it paired correctly. Everything worked flawlessly but there was a faint hissing sound in the background.

Road Test
So I hop in my 2003 Explorer for a short road trip. I get on the highway, set the cruise control at 75 mph and make my first official call with the Scala 500. Called my folks and off the bat I noticed that the volume was a little low, but so was the hissing. I quickly reach for the volume rocker and up the volume. Each increase on the volume scale gives you a little beep which I did not care for but not horrible. My mom said she could hear me fine as I could her. The volume did seem a little low but maybe due to the road noise at 75 mph and the radio on in the background. Tap the Control button to hang up, a little confirmation tone and the call ended.

Incoming Call Test
Low and behold about 15 minutes later my brother calls me. I tap the Control button on the side to answer the call, the confirmation tone again and the call quickly connected. Call quality was pretty much the same, very clear and did seem slightly louder than the previous call. Maybe my mom was talking low. Again I could hear everything fine but guess I just would have like another step or two up on the volume scale. Again, slight hissing noticed.

The Wandering Test
Later that day I make a call from home to my brother in Alaska. Again voice quality is clear but there’s that hissing again. Ever so slight, but noticeable. (Now I’m wondering if there is interference in my house or something.) Here’s the stickler. To this point I’ve always had the phone within two feet of the headset when calling. So I place the phone on the table and start walking around my house. Low and behold, disconnected. Now, the headset went dead so I ran to the phone to see if the call transferred to the Treo but the call was ended. I’m not sure if my brother hung up or I lost Sprint service, which is not the greatest in my house.

Later analysis of my distance form the phone showed between 25-30 feet through about 4 walls (wood construction) and there was a wireless B router in between me and the Treo (I’m not sure if the router and BT work on similar frequencies, maybe someone here can comment on this.)

Conclusion
The Scala 500 is very comfortable. I wore it for about 1 ½ hours straight without any discomfort. It may take a few tries to get the perfect fit from the ear-loop but it is worth the effort. I like the charging cradle, the belt clip holder is almost useless accept that I can place the headset in the holder and clip it inside the center console of my truck. I have not used the lanyard or the glass-clip (20/20 vision).

I always had a slight hissing in the background while using the Scala. I called their support and after repairing it was still there. Cardo has agreed to replace the unit and is confident that the new one will be a big improvement. Their support essentially blamed the performance of the unit on the BT radio strength of the Treo 650. I wonder f this can be tested; anyone?

Other than that I really like the Scala 500. It answers quickly, transfers calls quickly and the range seems to be OK, although not the 30 feet they claim. I should have my replacement unit this week and will update this review once I receive it. Many others here have had success with the Scala so I’m hoping I just got a bad unit.

BTW: I paid $44 including shipping from eBay for a new Scala 500.

Posted by: winger

Good job, buddy on the review. Appreciate the time and effort. Pls do give a followup when you get the unit.

Posted by: OscarX

Just got mine in the mail today! woohoo can't wait to go home and give it a test drive!

Posted by: OscarX

Well although the MOTO one does look hotter! I hear this one beats it in quality.....Ill post my experiences with it later

Posted by: winger

Quote:

Originally posted by OscarX
Well although the MOTO one does look hotter! I hear this one beats it in quality.....Ill post my experiences with it later

Anyone able to use the redial feature of the Scala w/ the 650? You are suppose to hold down the earpiece thingy for about three seconds, then it redials the last # called.

When I do this, I get a high pitched sould for about one second then the treo redials, however I do not hear anything - when I hit "cancel headset" on the treo's display, I can then carry on the conversation.

When I then hit the 500's earpice thingy, it refuses to transfer the call from the treo to it.

All other feautures seem to work as advertized, except for the sporadic low volume issue others have reported.

Mine may be slightly defective in the sense it does not sit on the charger tightly enough. Every so often, sometimes with a little nudge, the charging light goes off until I jiggle the earpiece against the cradle, then it charges again. Somethign is loose or contacts are not aligned correctly.

Posted by: tcatnat

Well, I got my Scala 500 replacement unit and I must say I am disappointed. First off, it does not appear to be new, it looks like a refurb. The one I had used a cradle for charging, the one they sent me has no cradle.

Although the volume is louder (could be the Sprint ROM update though) I still have static and some occassional crackling when I was 2 feet away from my Treo 650. I am so disappointed with this headset. Now I have to start all over again.

Can anyone else comment on their Scala 500.

Posted by: letsgoflyers81

I was VERY disappointed with my Scala 500. If I'm more than a few feet away from the Treo the static gets loud enough that the person I'm talking to and I can't hear each other. If I have the Treo in a pocket or on my belt on the opposite side of my body that the Scala is on, it starts breaking up. Charging is bad too. It's hard to secure it into the cradle and doesn't charge half the time. Then there's the redial issue. When I redial, it was make the call but I can't hear anything unless I transfer the call to the Treo then back to the headset. I thought I had a bad unit so I sent it back for a replacement and the new one isn't any better. After reading so many great reviews on www.treocentral.com I was hoping for better.

A friend of mine is giving me a Motorola HS820 in a couple weeks. If that does well I'm going to keep it. If not, I'll try the Treo Wireless Headset sold by PalmOne. I realize it's just a rebranded Jabra BT330 but I hope that if PalmOne is selling it as a "Treo" headset, they've tested it for good compatibility and performance.

Posted by: catchamental

I've had a great experiance with my Scala 500. My initial impressions when I opened the box weren't great. I thought the headset looked kind of cheap. After trying it for 2 weeks I realized that the reason I thought it was cheap was actually the reason I really like it now. It's really light. Other headsets that "feel" sturdier are heavier and hurt the ear but the scala is light enough that you can wear it for extended periods of time (like while driving on a semi long trip) and not have it bother you. I actually sometimes forget I have it on.
Sound quality is not perfect. It is good, though. With my headset I get some hissing in the background. It is very low so it doesnt bother me at all.
Pairing was very easy.
The accessories that come with the phone are useless. The cradle is only good for, like the gentleman said ion his review, for maybe hanging it in car or some other fixed point. The laniard is a little gay for me.
The redial feature works. Sometimes.
Overall this is GREAT headset for the price. If you want a better headset you would be hard pressed to find oune even at higher price ranges. I definitely recommend it.

Posted by: winger

My input after about a week:

1) very light, and fits very comfortably-even though I wear prescription glasses (I do NOT use that glasses adaptor - more comfortable not using it)

2) charging cradle and Scala unit does not seem to connect too good when charging. sometime due to little movement of the two during charging causes charging to stop. Irritating as I cannot tell if the LED goes out b/c fully charged or bc connection became loose

3) decent sound quality. At times, other end tells me I am choppy and breaking up, even if only 2 feet direct line of sight from the treo to the scala (eg when I am driving and the treo is sitting on the passenger seat next to me) - not sure what is causing this

4) range sucks...walk 8 - 15 feet away and static starts up on both ends...especially if I turn in such a way my body/torso is between the treo and the scala

5) I have NOT been able to get the Redial from the scala to work.

6) volume definitely sounds better (higher) and more stable from call to call with the new v1.08 Palmone phone upgrade.

7) not sure what to compare against so cannot recoommend or not.