News

Easy Bluetooth bonding for Sony Ericsson phones...

It was a Bluetooth SIG event - the Special Interest Group is particularly keen to make headphone setup easier - but the star was Sony Ericsson, which rolled out "Auto-Pairing.

Instead of having to press a blue button until it flashes, then flip a microphone cantilever arm out, then press "discover" on a hidden menu, the new HBH-610a headset will simply tell any "discoverable" phone that it's available.

And you say "Yes" on the phone, and they're bonded.

Considering what a complete pain PIN entry and discoverable mutuality can often be, it is rather surprising that this announcement got almost no coverage except for two or three sites who seem, mostly, to have used the press release. This could, of course, mean that nobody has had a chance to play with it yet.

It should sell some Sony Ericsson phones, because auto-pairing is exclusive to this headset, and the headset will behave in a normal way if you try to pair it with any other phone than a Sony Ericsson one. That, of course, could merely be a sign that they haven't got many of them available sell (headsets, that is) yet.