IOGEAR USB 2.1 Bluetooth Micro Adapter (GBU421)
by IOGEAR
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List Price: Our Price: $9.99 You Save: $6.96 (41%) Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Category: CE See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of IOGEAR USB 2.1 Bluetooth Micro Adapter (GBU421)
Customer Review: works great, linux compatible
Summary: 5 Stars
i got this primarily to retrieve the pictures & contacts from my cell phone (MetroPCS's Samsung SCH-r420). tested on both Ubuntu 10.10 32-bit and Window Vista 32-bit.
Ubuntu was simply plug&play, drag&drop as usual, and i was able to extract the pictures in about 2 or 3 minutes.
Vista was not so straight forward (sigh), and after the driver installation the phone wasn't even recognized. I had to install Samsung PC Studio 7, which still didn't recognize the phone, but the software did subsequently install a seemingly generic driver that eventually recognized the phone. the whole process took some tinkering and after a half an hour or so i was able to copy the photos.
couldn't find a way to sync/backup contacts for this phone, so as far as i can tell you're basically limited to pics, sounds and ringtones (for now).
overall it was well worth the 12 or so bucks for the plug&play linux support alone. oh and it is a bit wide for this laptop, so if you have say, a flash drive plugged in right next to it, the flash drive will go in, but not at a straight 90°. over-under usb ports should have no problems. anyway, it does light up a cool electric blue ;-)
Customer Review: Excellent device, super easy install with Windows 7 64-bit
Summary: 5 Stars
Purchased this item to be able to connect my ASUS UL50A-AG laptop to my HTC Snap phone without the USB cable connected.
I'm currently running Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit. Installation was a "Snap" thanks to some of the other reviews on installing this device (thanks, BTW!). On their advice, I ignored the package instructions that came with this product for Windows installation, and simply plugged this device into a USB port on my laptop. Windows 7 instantly recognized the device and automatically installed the correct drivers. The entire install on my laptop took me all of about 5 minutes tops. I then went to my HTC Snap phone and enabled Bluetooth pairing. Synced up perfectly on the very first try, again 5 minutes tops total to link phone with laptop.
I can now Active Sync my phone via Bluetooth and also use internet sharing when I'm "out in the sticks" without another wireless or wired internet connection available. I'm using that feature now as I write this review, so now I have my own personal internet hotspot. I haven't tested the max range yet for the hotspot, but my laptop is currently about 10 feet from the phone and works perfectly. Sometimes technology IS good!
Customer Review: Great little Bluetooth upgrade for a laptop
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this Micro Bluetooth adapter for my father-in-law's laptop (running Windows 7 x64) for use with his new Bluetooth headphones. It goes to an available USB slot and is intended to be left in the slot permanently (otherwise it is too easy to lose this small piece). It installs flush to the USB slot so no metal part is exposed.
I did not use the installation disk that came with the product. I plugged it and left Windows 7 detected it and installed some drivers. Next, I got Windows detect the Bluetooth headphones at which state the headphones failed to work. Windows Bluetooth troubleshooting suggested, I download a driver package directly from Broadcom website and opened the appropriate web page for me to download. I have downloaded the suggested driver installer from Broadcom site and ran the installer which updated the drivers (took some time downloading and upgrading) and after that the Bluetooth headphones were working properly. The range of this dongle is about 10ft. The additional drain on the laptop battery was not too significant for my case.
I think it is great value for the price and works well once the installation quirks are resolved.
Customer Review: Works like it's suppose to.
Summary: 5 Stars
First of all, I have read one bad review after another on this product. But I love IOGear products.
I loaded the CD into my laptop, plugged it in and it went right off the bat. I have no problems. Even when my computer crashed, I just loaded the CD, plugged it in and it works. Every single thing I paired with works.
However, I have read that this product really doesn't work with an XP. I plugged it into mine without the CD and my comp just says it's downloading the software when nothing is really happening. So I believe there is another product to buy for the XP.
But of the reviews I have read, it says this will cause Windows 7 to crash, and I noticed one person giving a link to another Bluetooth product. Not this product. And the reviews say that product causes Windows 7 to crash too.
So all-in-all, you're never going to find that perfect, flawless product. Some products work better with other devices, so if you're not sure on what is going to be good for you, do you research before you buy. I'm some what of a computer guru and know how to fix computer errors.
This is a good product.
Customer Review: Solid product, exactly what I wanted
Summary: 5 Stars
Got this mainly to play sounds through a bluetooth receiver (Sony HWS-BTA2W), and so far, so good. Sound quality is excellent. Good for people like me who don't care for the clutter of wires.
Just beware though, FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS. I have gotten used to not following the directions or installing the drivers that come on the CD and just lettings Windows find the drivers on its own and taking care of the install for me (I am on Windows 7 64 bit if anyone cares). This method works probably about 9 times out of 10, but this is that 1 time out of 10 that it doesn't. FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS AND USE THE DISC TO INSTALL THE DRIVERS, AND YOU WILL BE FINE.
I should note that it is, for lack of a better word coming to my mind, very unobtrusive, in that it hardly sticks out from the side of my computer, unlike, say for example, a flash drive or a larger bluetooth adapter. Therefore, I plan on keeping plugged in at all times. Great product, recommended highly to those whose computer did not come with bluetooth and want a cheap, practical, and good performing solution.