Go Wireless On Your Cingular 2125
Many of you enjoy the freedom that a wireless Bluetooth headset provides. With no cables to get tangled in, you're able to move around unfettered. I enjoy not only a bluetooth headset, but I have a Parrot EasyDrive bluetooth car kit (http://www.driveblue.com/), which allows me to talk wirelessly in my car without even putting anything in my ear.
From a safety perspective, either solution can't be beat. You can't possibily be as safe a driver as you should be if you're holding a phone to your ear – its that simple.
All of this is great, but it doesn't let me enjoy the music and audio capabilities of my Smartphone to it fullest potential. I want to be able to workout at the gym, putter around the yard, etc. without wires too!
So I went shopping and bought a Motorola HT820 wireless stereo headset (http://direct.motorola.com/ens/BTStereoHS_Web_ProductHome.asp?country=USA&language=ENS). This neat device allows one with an A2DP compliant device to listen to their music, etc. in stereo wirelessly. But they're not just headphones, but a headSET as well. These headphones are really nice. The speakers reproduce sound well, the microphone is very sensitive and even better, you can use these even with non-bluetooth devices, because they have a cable to connect the headphones to other devices. Best of both worlds! I like the fact that they use a mini-USB connector as the charger too, as I only have to carry one AC adapter to charge both my phone and the headphones.
If you use the factory-supplied headphones that come with the 2125, you know that you can be listening to your music, and when a call comes in, it will pause the music and allow you to take the call by pressing the button on the mic. Now, image doing the same thing, but without the wires. Better yet, while listening to music, you can pause & un-pause music, and change tracks in Windows Media Player, directly from the headphones! Very slick.
But wait, I can't do any of that! My phone doesn't support A2DP, which is the protocols necessary to make this all happen. Cingular hasn't released the upgrade to the phone that support this. Well folks, that's not necessarily true.
In order to enable your 2125 to work with the HT820 (and many other bluetooth stereo devices), you'll need to install some files on your phone. You'll need to visit http://forum.xda-developers.com and REGISTER. You NEED TO REGISTER, or you won't be able to download the files you need. You'll need to be a little technical in order to make this happen, so be warned. Do all of this at your own risk! I'm just telling you what I did to make mine work.
Go to http://forum.xda-developers.com/viewtopic.php?p=275438#275438 and scroll down until you see where you can download the file called Tornado_A2DP.zip. Then go to http://forum.xda-developers.com/viewtopic.php?t=48502 and scroll down until you can see where you can download a file called Tornado_A2DP.cab. Notice that the two files are similar, but they aren't the same.
First, copy the cab file to your phone and execute it. Reboot the phone. Then unzip the zip file and copy the Tor_A2DP_cert.CAB to your phone and execute that file. Reboot the phone again. Now, if you have already paired your bluetooth headphones, the easiest thing to do is delete the pairing and re-pair. Then, just follow the directions that came with your headphones on how to pair it to your phone. Then you can see that you have two (2) options where you used to have just Hands Free, you also have Wireless Stereo.
You might need to choose the headphones from the Device list and choose Set as Wireless Stereo as well. But that's it. You don't need to install any new ROM or anything to enable wireless stereo headphones on your 2125 Smartphone.
Enjoy.
Thanks to the::unwired (http://www.theunwired.net/?itemid=3014) for starting me off in the right direction on this
52 Comments »
Leave a comment
About…
RichTech is actually many years in the making. Years ago, my original web site had many product reviews, editorials, etc. They’re gone now, but I still wanted an outlet for telling people about things I’ve found and thought, etc. I resisted blogging for a while as I didn’t want to be a “me-too”, but I’ve come to embrace blogging. I hope you find this blog useful and that you’ll come back frequently. Don’t forget that you can subscribe to an RSS feed (http://richtech.wordpress.com/feed/) so you can always know when new posts are up.This blog is starting out almost exclusively as a technology-related blog, but you will see other topics emerge as I learn to be more comfortable with sharing my ideas on other topics. They’ll be mostly around how to “be better” as my new career is all around coaching people on how to reach their goals and aspirations. To learn more about coaching, visit our corporate site at http://www.betterucoaching.com.
-
Archives
- February 2008 (1)
- January 2008 (1)
- December 2007 (1)
- November 2007 (1)
- September 2007 (3)
- June 2007 (1)
- May 2007 (3)
- April 2007 (4)
- March 2007 (3)
- February 2007 (1)
- January 2007 (4)
- June 2006 (1)
-
Categories
-
RSS
Entries RSS
Comments RSS
This is awesome news!!! I couldn’t find any information on whether my Cingular 2125 supported A2DP/AVRC. I emailed/call Cingular and HTC-USA to no avail. I’ve been holding off buying BT headphones until I knew for sure they would work with my phone. Looks like it’s time to start tinkering with my phone.
What is the compatibility of this software upgrade? Can you do this with any bluetooth phone or is it designed for specific phone models i.e. Palm Treo or Blackberry devices?
This information is specific to Windows Mobile 5 smartphone devices and doesn’t even apply to Windows Mobile Phone Edition per se. So no, it doesn’t apply to just any bluetooth phone. And I can’t speak to specific headphone compatability, as I only own and have tested the Moto HT820. Hope this helps.
Hey Rich, does this addon work with the latest rom that cingular/htc has released (the june 20th one that enables microsoft exchange push email)
http://www.howardforums.com/showthread.php?t=937955
Good questions, but unfortunately, I don’t have the answer. My phone is working just fine the way it is and I don’t need push email, so I haven’t installed the latest ROM update. I’d suggest checking some of the other forums, as I’m sure someone has already tested this…
I just got this to work with my Jensen WBT212. Works like a champ!
I just went through this installation procedure and it is confirmed to work on my Cingular 2125. I have Jensen Bluetooth headphones. Sounds great!
This works great for wireless stereo – thanks! Has anyone been able to use their Jenson WBT212 as a wireless headset tho? I still need to pick up the phone when a call comes in. My friend with the Motorola Q can use the Jensens as both bluetooth stereo headphones and headset – works seamlessly.
How do I copy the files from my laptop to the cingular 2125. Then, how do I execute them once on the 2125. Sorry for the need for the basic info, I must not be doing something right.
I got it working. Thanks for the great info.
Does anyone have a good opinion for a bluetooth headset for the Cingular 2125?
Hey…I really appreciate this explanation. I was trying to figure it out from the posts on forum.xda-developers and for a non-technical guy, it wasn’t clear, step by step, what I needed to do.
I applaud you for putting the pieces together in a quick and easy way. Awesome. I’ve got a Cingular 2125 and bought a Jenson WBT212 stereo bluetooth headset a while ago. Couldn’t get it to work. Too lazy to enter all the reg hacks, too cheap to buy the reg tool to import reg settings. Your two Cab file installs did the trick. Tell Lucas above, it works.
I’m experiencing the same problem as Lucas… My Jensen WBT212 works as wireless stereo, but not as a wireless headset. When I try to pair my WBT212 with my 2125 just as a headset (only one check box checked), the status LED continues to blink rapidly as if it isn’t paired at all even though the phone thinks it is paired. If I pair it as wireless stereo only, the status LED blinks slowly and I can play music. I can also hear ring tones and it beeps when the phone hangs up, but the phone call isn’t broadcast to the WBT212’s. It does the same thing when paired with both check boxes checked. I’ve tried rebooting and re-pairing multiple times to no avail. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I’m going to check the xda forums to see if anyone has had this problem.
Yany kudoss to you and your concise documentation; works well with my 2125 and Brookstone Stero headphones, thanks
Thanks for this very easy and quick solution! I was *very* disappointed my phone didn’t ship with this capability back in February. My only regret is not finding this site sooner
Good karma to richtech!
yup good karma to you my friend! hopefully this works; i don’t see why not, though. I’ve tried a couple other ways to get this outcome, however the end result has never been sucessful. I’m using a 2125 as well with a similar headset, so I don’t see why this won’t do the trick. Thanks for sharing this with everyone Rich!
Thanks Rich! I have the 2125 and my music plays but my headphones keep pausing is this my head phones or my phone?
Tim, The only suggestion I can make to you would be to reboot your phone and then try reconnecting the headset and seeing if that will work. You don’t need to reinsall though, so don’t go through all that effort. I typically need to do that with mine as this A2DP setup wants a lot of memory and too little memory will cause your output to skip and pause. Good luck!
should i have put the a2dp on my 2gig storage card instead of the phone memory?
My Cingular 2125 works great with the itech clip s35, but I bought the Motorola 820 stereo headset and its doing the same thing as a previous poster described…every few seconds the music stops for a few seconds. Does this headset just require more resources? I really want to use it but was getting ready to get rid of it. Really I guess I want to know if anyone is having success with this phone/headset combination so that I will know I can do something to make it work right. Thanks – Mike
Krautdog – my experience is that there is not quite enough memory to do A2DP some of the time. So for instance, when I’m going to use my 820 headphones for working out, I will reboot my phone first and THEN pair it up and fire-up WMP. Then I don’t get the skips. If I just try using them after having the phone running for several hours or days, I’ll get the skips. It works fine at any time as a headSET, but as headPHONES, you need to reboot to avoid the skips. That has been my experience. Your milage may vary…
richtech – many thanks for the knowledge. As of yet I have not had the chance to experiment so I thought I might ask you a couple more questions. Do you think it matters (re:memory drain) if we are using the stock WMP or a third party music player? I have been using Pocket Player 2.8 – the latest version. I would miss the EQ control but I would go back to WMP if it would help.
Also, do the track controls on the right side of the 820 work for you? Mine never did.
Many thanks again…Mike
I have used Pocket Player in the past and its worked OK for me. I didn’t really get any different results from using PP than I did from using WMP as far as the bluetooth went. And yes, I’ve been able to successfully use the track change buttons and the pause/play button. BUT, what I found was this: when first starting to use the 820s in session, I had to start everything from phone, pause the listening from the phone, and then, when I started playback again from the HEADSET, my play/pause worked. It didn’t work otherwise. I’ll be honest folks, its not the ideal situation and it certainly would have the average consumer throwing up their arms in frustration, but it is a workable solution and it IS really nice. Just last night I was using my 820s while preparing dinner. The phone was left on the kitchen table and I was walking all around the kitchen and most of the house. You can say anything you want, but THAT is just plain COOL. Hope this helps.
Well unfortunately none of this helped. I can’t even get the controls on the right ear of the headset to work like you have following your instructions. I guess there is a small chance I have a faulty 820 but I doubt it considering others are having the same problem. Maybe I have too many other apps running, but I really don’t think so. I have the “Don’t Forget” call reminder app running, but I always thought little apps like that don’t take up much memory at all. I also have Chronos set up to reboot the phone in the middle of the night. I can also cancel that since I want to reboot the phone anyways just prior to playing music. Basically I have a lot of things installed on the phone but only a couple of small apps are actually running. I still can’t figure out why the other stereo bluetooth headset I have, the itech Clip S35 works perfectly. Maybe because it doesn’t have any track controls and needs less resources from the sender? The problem is you still have the wire from your headphones you are using with the unit, and I would much rather use the 820. Battery life is also a HUGE improvement with the 820.
Any further suggestions before I finally give up?
I forgot to mention I have been using xBar also. I am going to try one more time by uninstalling those small apps I mentioned, uninstalling the Tornado A2DP, unpairing the 820, then reinstalling the Tornado A2DP and re-pairing.
Nope, still skipping. I’m giving up on the 820 headphones. I’ve done everything I know how. I’ll stick with the iTech phones.
I can get everything to work with my Jabra BT620S but I am having the same problem with pausing. Honestly it sometimes sounds like the track is moving slow, like the BPM is slower than the real speed of the song. What headphones work without pausing or slowing? I don’t care about the advance and reverse features cuz I listen to really long tracks for the most part. I’m taking the Jabra back to Cingular tomorrow.
Hey Rich,
First and foremost, thank you so much for posting this step by step explanation on how to use bt headphones with the cingular 2125. This is just another thing that makes this phone perfect. I have spent countless hours, like many of the others, reading forums which talk about manually editing the registry and such, something too risky for something not definite. So once again thank you for your help.
chiming in with another thank you.
I got the HT820’s before i even knew that the phone did not support a2dp out of the box. Every method i’ve tried before here was annoyingly convoluted.
Unfortunately, there’s this everpresent high pitch ringing sound throughout every song file i play. Anyone notice/fix this yet?
IT WORKED!!!!!!! I have been trying to figure this out for days. I had been hesitating to get a stereo Bluetooth headset exactly because I was afraid it wouldn’t work (also, I couldn’t get a good set of photos online to see exactly what the headset looked like overall, just parts of it – it does not come with colored faceplates as the descriptions at Sony indicate). Also, it’s hard to find a store where you can actually see and handle the devices that support this (I haven’t seen the Jabra BT620S on shelves anywhere). Even if you find one, you can’t usually try and make sure it works, and the store employees usually don’t know enough to help either. Cingular was worthless on this, telling me that my phone doesn’s support A2DP, whereas it says it does right on the box. The missing link was this fix. Mine HW is an HTC (Cingular Branded) 2125 Smartphone with a Sony-Ericsson HBH-DS970 headset.
Rich,
You ROCK!
My 2125 is BlueTooth HeadPhone Capable
(Anycom Stereo Bluetooth Headset)
Thanks to this bitchin’ article !
Woo Hoo!
There is NOTHING like listening to the Eagles Greatest Hits on my BT Headphones Through my PHONE and instead of my Laptop, as I commute on the MAX to Downtown PDX every morning.
Thanks again!
-Marlon
HI,
.
thanks a lot. precise instructions… I got my 2125 with HT820 working…well PARTIALLY.. the headset works but I am not able to get the music part working. ie when i play songs in Windows media player they still play out loud
ne ideas what I mit have done wrong? DO I need to upgrade to the AKU2 rom from i-mate? I had already upgraded the ROM to the one provided by HTCAMERICA.
THanks,
UPDATE: GOT IT WORKING!!…….awesomee sounds. thanks a lot.
I just had to go to MENU->Connections->Bluetooth->Devices and set it as Wireless Stereo. PLus controlling WM from the headphone is awesome !!
Wonder what happens now when someone calls. Guess will work fine.
THANKS a Lotttttttt
Fantastic!
Wow, this is great. Thanks a million RichTech!
Thanks Rich. My wife bought me a Moto HT820 for my birthday. (I have a Cingular 2125.) She did her research and was not happy to find all the reports on the Internet about problems with BT on this phone. She also talked to the propellerheads at Radio Shack who told her that a lot of buyers returned the 820 because they couldn’t get it to work. Then she discovered your page. She gave me the headset and your link. I did the deed and everything is working beautifully! She and you are geniuses! Thanks. My confidence in technology is restored and I can’t wait to tell the techies at work.
Has anybody tried this with the new Motorola S9? I tried, but it won’t work. I’m using the Cingular 2125 as well. Thanks.
Did you ever get it to work on the S9?
AMAZING! I just got the Motorola s9 headset and I can actually use it! This was soooo easy and works perfectly.
What wont work for you? Could you get it to pair at all? It was tricky to get it to pair just because you have to mash the button and guess, but other than that I dont know what wouldnt work for you
you know how many people you made happy dude? Great job!
This worked with my Oakley O ROKR as well. Only addition was having to reboot the phone AND the headset for the settings to work.
Now I don’t have to replace a perfectly great phone just to listen to music on my O ROKR’s!!!
First lemme say this site is GREAT! Luckily, I found it early in my searches and used it to update my Cingular 2125– and it looks like I’m not the only one who’s been helped!
I’d love to hear comments about the s9, especially with the 2125.
I have one and when it works, its awesome. But 80% of the time I use it I have to deal w/ the music dropping out every 5 seconds or so– even when the phone is in my shirt pocket. It does seem to get better when the phone is closer to the headphones, but what good are “wireless” headphones if you have to hold the phone up to your head??
Also, the sound is great– but only when it is working. It could be the best sound in the world, but if it cuts out every 5 sec, its worthless.
Rebooting the phone seems to help sometimes, but not every.
This is Fantastic!!!
Thank you so much!!!!
Amazing sound quality!!!!
i love it….
Vitalijus Stonys
Thanks for putting this together Richtech. I was able to get my 2125 running Pocket Player to play tunes and take calls with my new Moto S9. While the call and volume buttons work great, the play/forward/rewind buttons do not work with either Pocket Player or WMP. This is minor, but I’m confident that a solution will pop up for this (might be as simple as button mapping?). Thanks again!
Follow up post: Resolved play/pause/next/back buttons issue on S9 with Pocket Player. Conduits has a plugin on their site here: http://www.conduits.com/products/player/plugins.asp
That said, my 2125 fully works with the Moto S9. Life is good.
This worked perfectly on my HTC P4300 and Motorola S9 headphones. Thanks!!
Thanks. My 2125 works beautifully – paired with a
logitech sterio bluetooth headset (from a logitech
ipod kit). I will have to get my bluetooth sterio
now to try streaming to it.
Thanks for putting this together.
I just wanted to say Thanks…
Works like a charm.
Thanks. Being the great procrastinator I only just now…finally…bought a stereo headset. After having the 2125 for two years! But I’ve used the Jabra X10 for talking on the phone since nearly day one.
Happy to report the Jabra BT620s functions flawlessly and fully with the 2125. Great fidelity. Why did I wait so long?
Thanks for your help!