Plantronics K100 review

Good value if your phone supports voice dialling, and if you can find a clear FM channel, the transmitter is a nice bonus.
Written By
Published on 4 December 2010
Our rating
Reviewed price £34 inc VAT

The K100 is a hand-free Bluetooth kit for in-car use. It has a large metal clip on the rear to hook over a sun visor and comes with a USB cigarette lighter adaptor and micro USB cable for power.

Plantronics K100 Side

It’s easy to pair with a Bluetooth phone – our iPhone 4 connected automatically as soon as the K100 appeared in the devices list. There are dual microphones on the top edge which help eliminate echoes. In our testing, this worked well, and the speaker proved loud and clear. Plus, with the rotary volume control, it’s quick to increase or decrease volume.

Plantronics K100 front

Unusually, there’s a built-in FM transmitter so you can listen to calls through your car stereo speakers – the frequency is read aloud so you can tune in. You can change the frequency by pressing and holding the FM button until a new station is announced. You can also hear streaming audio such as navigation directions if you have an A2DP-enabled phone. However, there’s no support for play, pause and skip track commands.

Call quality was good, but bear in mind there’s no dialing system or internal phonebook. Essentially, it’s great if your phone supports voice-activated dialling, but if not, you’ll be limited to receiving calls while on the move.

Details
Price £34
Rating ***

Written by

Jim Martin is an editor at IDG UK and holds a BSc in Computer Science from the University of Kent. Known for his product reviews and testing, Jim’s portfolio includes Tech Advisor and Computer Shopper.

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