Nokia CARK 91 Hands-free kit > Reviews > * The old hands free CARK Kit . .

Author's product rating:   

Sound & Volume	Excellent
Durability & Robustness	Strong
Value for money	Reasonable

Advantages:	Very good sound reproduction, always set up ready for use .
Disadvantages:	Needs an external anrenna, plus fitting .  Dated nowadays .

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

I recognise this, I very nearly bought one a while ago. I had a "play" with one, and I priced it up, and it was a lot more expensive then. I am surprised nobody has done a review yet, but as Ciao has allowed anyone to do just that, ever since they were introduced in 2005, so I will oblige.

Let me just tell you exactly what this kit does.
It holds your Nokia phone securely in your car, van, truck, to your dashboard or wherever you like.
It trickle charges your mobile battery.
It provides a mike and proper speaker, both separate to, and better than, the mobile phone's original ones.

This particular kit is specific to the following models:-
Nokia 6310i, Nokia 6310, Nokia 6210, Nokia 6110, Nokia 6150
Other kits are based on this, and can be found for many other mobile phones.

Yes I must admit this kit is a little out of date, (as are the phones is it made for) but the principle is brilliant, you have a phone holder that gives genuine hands free operation, with sound that is virtually as good as a radio. Your own voice is picked up and transmitted with the same clarity. The holder itself is very good, if a little large by modern standards, it holds the phone safely and securely, whilst recharging the phone battery. There is no vibration, and the phone will not fly out of the holder at level crossings.

I do realise that a lot of bluetooth headsets are replacing this type of kit nowadays, and they are very clear, but these kits do have their merits. The speaker is mounted wherever you want it, and so the sound comes equally to both ears, unlike the bluetooth that goes in one ear only.

The microphone is equally good, being able to pick up sound of very good quality. The kit is always there, ready for use, with no fiddling about trying to insert plastic probes in your ear, while also attempting to hook your ear with a loop of sharp plastic. All with your wrong hand of course, while under pressure to answer that all important call. Another boon, is that it will never run out of battery power at that critical moment.

This well packaged kit comes with comprehensive instructions, and a one year guarantee. One small snag, is that this equipment requires the use of an external antenna. Other than this, I can recommend it.
The kit is fitted with an automatic radio mute function, meaning it mutes the radio, CD, or tape player whenever a call comes in.

I have said that the sound quality is good, well with the optional "tele-mute loom" you can have the sound directly through your car speakers.

You can find these kit for less than Fifty Pounds nowadays, which compares with some bluetooth headsets. They used to be fitted to "Repmobiles" as standard, by the likes of Vauxhall.

All in all, a very good piece of kit, and safe too. I can recommend them, and if you think I am living in the past - I bet you Thirty Bob I am not!