Lame Bluetooth Functionality

[Slugdoc]

No Bluetooth for anything other than telephone sound.
- Can't do bluetooth file transfers
- Can't activate voice dialing
My 3 year old blackberry pearl was able to do these things. :-(


And - not strictly a bluetooth issue, but a problem with having the End key also be the Sleep key --
When I have a bluetooth headset on and I make a phone call (which requires physically touching and using the phone, since you can't initiate voice dialing from headset), I like to put the phone back into my coat pocket once the call is initiated. That's the point of using a bluetooth -- to keep my hands free.
Problem is, I can't turn the screen off without hanging up on the call! So I have to have it in my pocket with the screen active, which ends up pressing buttons as I walk, etc.
Further, when I hang up (which I CAN do from the headset, thank god for small favors), the screen turns back on! While its in my pocket! Ready for the next step to bump the Call button or whatever.

Fail.

 

[jmastron]

Yes, Yes, and Yes! All of these are basic features to me too, and I don't understand why "smart phone" designers don't realize that. Not being able to Bluetooth-voice-dial with the phone staying in my pocket (or even put it back in my pocket after dialing, because there's no way to lock the screen in a call) is a major hindrance.

I really like almost all things about the Eris, and there's a good chance I'll keep it despite this, but it is a big draw back to the iPhone or any other dumbphone around (I have until Jan 13th to decide whether to port my number over, or return the Eris and stay with AT&T).

Ironically, I had the chance for a "free" iPhone after disassembling, drying out, and replacing the screen on my wife's phone she dropped in the...let's just say "water" and had to replace it, but didn't because the 3G has no voice dial (and it's amazing how much people were willing to pay on Ebay for a water damaged iPhone, with full disclosure). Then I didn't get a 3G-S this summer because it had voice dial but no BT voice dial. That was addressed in September, so what did I get? A Droid Eris without that feature, of course

Incidentally, I finally tried the Google Voice Search on the Eris tonight -- that's pretty amazing (way more accurate for random search terms than the onboard voice recognition is for a limited command set).