I'll be switching cellphone services in a month or two from SprintPCS to Verizon. Are there any recommended phones that are compatible with the Prius' hands-free system? TXT messaging & color screens are definite plusses. Perhaps flip phone, too ;)

Not yet. They keep saying "soon" we will see.

My Verizon dealer keeps telling me Verizon is not interested in bluetooth technology because they think it will be obsolete soon. I'm considering switching to cingular so I can take advantage of the BT support in the car. Problem is, cingular doesn't work at my house or my office. I guess they still have "blind spots".

The talk "on the street" about Moto's V710 (due out soon) is that the OBEX will be disabled on phones going to Verizon. Follow recent discussions on the Yahoo prius boards for further info.

FWIW, YMMV
Matt

Quick update on the V710:

I just got home from a RadioShack in Skokie, IL (suburban Chicago)
and had a long chat with the Verizon rep at the store (not a Radio
Shack employee). V710 is on sale there for $319 less a $70 mail in
rebate. Additional 10% off if you pena Radio Shack charge account.

Anyhow, the Verizon rep confirms that all the Blue Tooth features of
the V710 will opperate except that it cannot be used as a wireless
modem for your BT laptop (ie if you're in a WiFi hot spot without a
built in or PC card wireless modem. I asked specifically regarding
transfering a phone book to the Prius and she did not know but called
her "Blue Tooth guru" (whoever that was) and he confirmed the
functionality. Also mentioned that I had heard from several sources
that Verizon would hav e Moto disable the OBEX portion of the phone,
effectively disabling the BT functionality. Was assured that this
would *not* occur.

The Verizon employee also confirms that "corporate stores" will not
have the V710 for several weeks. Earliest in large metro areas will
be mid to late August. The Shack seems to be the only place it's
available for now. I was advised to purchase soon (today) before the
store supply is depleted. After they sell out, its back to a waiting
list with a $50 deposit. (Seems somehow appropriate for a phone
compatible with the '04 Prius. Did someone mention Deja Vu?)


For further details and other posts regarding this see discussion in
2004-prius@yahoogroups.com


FWIW, YMMV, etc.
Matt in Chicago

Nice phone, but I think it's a bit of overkill, no?

I had a V710 since August 3...it's ok, there is a software update scheduled for september.

"it's ok, there is a software update scheduled for september. "

How do you know there's a software update scheduled? I have seen this mentioned on several boards in different threads, but nobody cites an authoratative reference to this. It would be great if there really is an update scheduled, but I guess I'm just an "I'll believe it when I see it" kind of guy...

Meanwhile, I sure enjoy this phone. Only shortcoming is the lack of ability to transfer the phonebook into the Prius and the lack of ability to create a phonebook in the Prius independently.

Just drive it,
Matt

I have T-Mobile with Sony-Ericsson T610 and have had no problems linking, calling, etc. with the car.

My new toy, however, will be the new HP IPAQ h6315 which I expect to receive sometime this week -- I am really excited, as I have been carrying around a Dell PocketPC and my phone banging together in the same pocket for a year already.

It's funny that the car I bought is mandating the other electronics around it.

Re: Verizon-Compatible Bluetooth Phones
 

I just switched from Verizon to Sprint because of the crippled bluetooth in my Verizon Treo 650. We have high speed Power Vision here and Verizons high speed network is 90 miles away. Verizon/Palm have promised an upgrade for bluetooth since they did all of the other carriers Palms back in Oct-Dec 05. Verizon is a bad deal here. I paid the early termination $175 to get away from them. Now email, web, picture messages, and connected to my 06 Prius via Sprint. Things are really getting better.

Re: Verizon-Compatible Bluetooth Phones
 

I have the Motorola E815 with Verizon and it syncs great with my Camry Hybrid. I would think the Prius would be similar to the Camry for Bluetooth connectivity.