Reader Review: BlueAnt Interphone F4 Stereo Motorcycle Kit
Text and Photography: Tim Kring, Fayetteville, Arkansas
I have been waiting for years for a Bluetooth headset that would allow hands-free bike-to-bike intercom, stereo music, and cell phone capabilities with the volume and fidelity to be useful when installed in a motorcycle helmet while riding.
After reviewing the specs for the new Interphone F4, and the largely positive reviews on the previous model, I immediately ordered 2 units as soon as they became available in the US. (The double-unit F4 is not available in the US)
The Interphones arrived at my doorstep just 14 hours before a planned ride through the Ozark Mountains. Having little Bluetooth experience, I was doubtful I could get the units charged, installed on the helmets, linked together and paired with two different model iPhones before my trip. As it turns out, the instructions were quite helpful.
Installation and Setup:
The Bluetooth control unit offers two installation options: permanent and temporary. The helmets I was using (Nolan 1002E and HJC CS-R1) both had grooves that prevented the use of the flat adhesive brackets for permanent installation; however, the temporary clamp brackets held securely with the included spacers.
The total installation time took about 5 minutes per helmet, and resulted in no holes, scratches or adhesive on either helmet. Once the bracket is installed, the control unit quickly and securely snaps onto the bracket, allowing easy removal from the helmet for charging or security purposes.
The boom-microphone and left earpiece (speaker) is a single modular unit. The speaker has a Velcro® backing, and includes a matching (larger) adhesive-backed piece of Velcro to affix to the helmet. The Nolan has a large, empty ear cavity, and the speaker mounts nicely against the helmet shell, and although it didn’t touch the ear at all, there was still plenty of volume. The HJC helmet has no such “extra space”, so the speaker was slid between the helmet liner and padding, and in turn, the speaker is mounted very close to the ear. However, it still proved to be comfortable and resulted in great fidelity. On both helmets, the flexible boom microphone fit nicely between cheek and collar pad seams, for a clean look while preventing the boom from touching our cheeks in the helmets. Be sure to mount both the control unit and the boom on the left side of the helmet so you won’t have to remove your hand from your throttle to adjust the volume.
The boom is flexible, and easily positioned comfortably near the mouth. Two wires extend from the speaker-end of the boom. One fits directly into the bottom of the control unit, the other ends in a mini-plug for the stereo speaker. The wire for the other speaker is a smaller gauge, allowing it to be easily nestled in spaces between the lining and helmet, and it’s long enough to run around the back of the helmet too. Mounting of the speakers and boom mike took about 10 minutes per helmet, as trial-and-error was used to determine the best speaker location. The finished product was very clean.
Note: BlueAnt offers an optional microphone intended for full-face helmets that affixes to the inside of the helmet chinbar, for an extra $29.95.
The real challenge was the Bluetooth pairing. The I4 boasts the ability to be linked with another I4 unit (for intercom), two cell phones, an MP3 player and a voice-controlled GPS unit–simultaneously! The first task was to pair the 2 helmet-mounted units to each other, which took about 30 seconds. The next task was to link my iPhone 3G to the Nolan helmet and an iPhone 3Gs to the HJC. In under a minute, we were able to make calls to each other, and switching from incoming phone calls to intercom seamlessly.
The phone is answered by speaking into the helmet microphone. Remaining silent refuses the call. During bike-to-bike conversations, the connection is automatically terminated so the rider is able to take the call.
The music from our iPod applications on the iPhone was loud and crystal-clear, and the buttons on the helmet-mount adjust volume and pause/play easily. Incoming telephone calls automatically pause iPod applications, but when the call is terminated, the music conveniently picks up right where you left off.
On the Road
We took off on our bikes for a day of running the twisties in the Arkansas Ozarks, leaving the units on “standby” (meaning just “on”), so our phones would ring, and we could play music if we wanted to. First, all we did was use the intercom. A 2-second hold of the main button on the helmet-mounted control unit gives you a satisfying “bong” in your ears, letting you know it is “calling” the other F4 unit. When it connects, a soft “beep” lets both parties know they’re “on”. To end an intercom connection, either person taps the button once quickly. We were immediately impressed by the sound quality. We separated on a straightaway, and never lost connection at more than 400 meters. When we hit the hairpin turns and were separated by more than 200 meters, conversations were “crackly”, but talking on frequent decreasing radius turns is a bad idea anyway. So, we signed off and decided to listen to music, and did so for about an hour before our first major turn. The music can be turned up louder than I would ever want (and I wear hearing aids, though not while I’m on my bike). I’ve used two other well-known units, and neither is loud enough for me. The F4 gets a plus 10 for music operation and volume.
As we approached a major road change, I reconnected the intercom to discuss the upcoming turn, and after disconnecting, all I got was silence. My music did not restart and nothing I did could get it going again. We pulled off to the side of the road, and finally got the music back on by closing the iPod application on the iPhone and reopening it. Unfortunately, the problem reoccurred every time we used the intercoms. If you have music playing when you initiate or receive an intercom session, you won’t get your music back on the iPhone!! This was very disappointing and is clearly a technical difficulty with the F4 interface and the iPhone, that took place with both units and the 3G and 3Gs.
If we both pause the music before making or receiving an intercom connection, then we can manually restart the music by pushing the F4 button twice after terminating the intercom call. However, we don’t have ESP, so that is not a solution. Riders can’t be honking or waving to say: “hey … I want to talk, stop your music!” All that’s missing is the F4 sending the same “pause” signal during intercom connection that it sends on cell phone connection.
We learned not to chatter on intercoms until right before a stop, and listened to music non-stop for the entire ride, and even left the units on during lunch. Ten hours and thirty minutes after starting, both units were still operational, with no lo-battery warning beeps. The Interphone F4 battery outlasts my butt!
Music-to-Intercom – a Temporary Solution.
It wasn’t until we got back the next day that we figured out exactly what is wrong. The BlueAnt
Wireless sales person in California was very nice and helpful, but it was obvious he is not trained tech support. And, being that the BlueAnt staff is extremely small in the US, it took quite a while for them to recreate the problem. They do get an A+ for effort.
After acknowledging the problem, BlueAnt suggested I get an external Bluetooth adapter called the iLink (originally designed for iPods and the first iPhones that did not have Bluetooth enabled). Admittedly, it’s weird to add a Bluetooth adapter to a Bluetooth iPhone, however, the F4 is intended to work with several Bluetooth channels (e.g., 2 cell phones, an mp3 player, a GPS unit). So, by having the external Bluetooth on the iPhone, I actually pair both the iPhone’s internal Bluetooth AND the external Bluetooth adapter on the same iPhone to the F4 unit. By doing this, everything works, although an extra F4 Bluetooth channel is being used (no loss).
This method does work, but at the expense of your iPhone battery life, which is reduced from about 10 hours to 4. Since the external Bluetooth adapter is occupying the charging port on the iPhone, you can’t even plug it in to charge while the bike is running.
Final Recommendation:
Other than the extremely annoying inability to get your music back after an intercom call, these units exceeded my expectations. The F4 delivers awesome sound quality during intercom and the stereo music is true high fidelity. However, without resolving the problem for iPhone users, the I4s only operate independently as an intercom, or as a Bluetooth stereo headset, (with the ability to use the cell phone in either case). Gadgets that do either function can be purchased less expensively. Even still, the unit operates mostly as advertised, and is a great investment.
BlueAnt Interphone F4 Stereo Motorcycle Kit
Price: $225
