As instant messaging has gone from a novelty to a more essential business application, hardware manufacturers have endeavored to create products to facilitate the process. While any computer can handle the text duties of IM software, people use IM for voice, and even video communication. Now, with services like Skype, instant messaging blurs the lines with internet telephony to create a unified communications solution.
As most computers don’t have a built in microphone, and standard desktop speakers are often plagued by feedback for routine conversation, Kensington has introduced their Vo200 Bluetooth Internet Phone to facilitate voice communication via instant messaging.
Included in the $89 package is the phone, software on a CD, and the instruction manual. The unit’s lithium battery is permanently installed. You’ll notice that we don’t need a charging cable because the Vo200 is designed to fit directly into a notebook’s PCMIA slot. This will allow it to recharge without using any cables. By utilizing the PCMIA slot it makes it really convenient to charge the device, and to store it, but be aware that the newer ExpressCard slot is not supported, only the older PCMIA slot that most notebooks have. Still, it fits in nicely, and literally takes up virtually no room in a notebook bag when inserted into the slot on the laptop computer. They claim a three hour talk time between charges that is reasonable.
The Vo200 connects wirelessly to a notebook computer via Bluetooth wireless networking. While a handful of notebooks have this built in, most users will need a separate Bluetooth USB adapter like I used from a different manufacturer. As many better mice and keyboards communicate over this wireless protocol, you may already own one, but if not you’ll need to budget the adapter into the cost of this purchase so plan ahead.
The setup of the Vo200 proceeded smoothly, but users unfamiliar with pairing Bluetooth devices should read the directions well, and plan to follow along step by step. While the default is for an automatic installation, I had to use the manual one, and enter in the PIN that Kensington provided. This allows the handset to be assigned specifically to that one computer for communication.
While most competing handheld communication devices restrict themselves to one instant messaging service, the Vo200 supports any and all of them. As it is more of a generic handset, it is designed to integrate with Skype, Google Talk, Yahoo IM, and the MSN IM service. It should also work with just about any other IM service that supports voice communication. For my testing, I used it with the popular Skype software. After installing the phone, I simply had to designate Skype to use the Vo200 as my audio device for IM communication- easy enough. I think that it’s great that the Vo200 can work on different IM protocols as too much of this hardware is limited to only one service, and most of us have some contacts on a few different ones.
The device itself is kind of simple. It has three buttons on the front, and a volume rocker switch on the left side. The front buttons are for power, to put the phone into a discoverable mode for Bluetooth, and to answer a call. There are two LED’s on the bottom: the yellow one for power, and the blue one for Bluetooth issues. This is all housed in a matte, brushed black plastic that is functional, durable and hard to take issue with. Flipping the mouthpiece down extends the microphone into a position closer to the voice. It’s simple and effective, and makes one think the proverbial “Why didn’t I think of that!” refrain.
Part of me wishes that this whole gadget was designed more as a headset than as a flip style phone. However, then it wouldn’t fit so nicely in the notebook’s slot for charging or storage. Also, the Vo200 can be converted to a standup speakerphone by flipping the microphone all of the way around, and cranking the volume up. This makes that marathon chatting session possible without getting the arm tired from holding the phone up.
When an IM comes in, the phone beeps, and lights up in a not so subtle fashion. By pressing the leftmost button, the message is answered. Audio quality is on par to a old fashioned wired telephone handset. This is to say more than adequate for voice, but I wouldn’t want to listen to audio on it. Callers were able to hear me adequately on the other end, and I had no complaints whether I held the handset, or used it as a speakerphone.
In my case, with my new Shuttle desktop on the floor, most wired headsets simply are too short and require me to bend down to use them. The Kensington Vo200 Bluetooth Internet Phone offers a wireless solution to the problem. I’m not sure if the perfect communications handset exists yet, but for users the voice IM routinely, the Vo200 should be part of their communications arsenal. While it’s a niche product, for the right users it fills its mission very well.
–Jonas
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