Pama Hands-free car kit for Nokia 8210 Colour: Black

...my travels. I bought the Pama Plug 'n' Go from Amazon, it looked to be exactly what I wanted although it was quite expensive. However, reality failed to live up to appearances.

The kit came with a phone holder/base unit, an adjustable extension tube, a free clip on microphone and a cassette giving instructions on how to use it.

First of all, the cassette went straight in the bin. If it's that easy to use, it shouldn't ...
...not a fault with the Pama unit, but a warning that the unit draws power even with no phone plugged in and could be the last straw for a dodgy battery (as mine proved to be). So now I always pull it out of the lighter socket when not in use.

That's when the second problem occurred.....got back to the car, plugged in unit - no red light on the front. Pulled out the extension and saw the problem - there is a "nut" at the end ... more

Starting a new job that involved commuting on a busy motorway, I wanted a cheap and legal solution for calling home or work if delayed on my travels. I bought the Pama Plug 'n' Go from Amazon, it looked to be exactly what I wanted although it was quite expensive. However, reality failed to live up to appearances.

The kit came with a phone holder/base unit, an adjustable extension tube, a free clip on microphone and a cassette giving instructions on how to use it.

First of all, the cassette went straight in the bin. If it's that easy to use, it shouldn't need a commentary, surely. The base unit has a plug coming out of the back to go straight into the cigarette lighter in the car. Ooops, not in a VW Polo....with the unit plugged in, I couldn't select 1st, 3rd or 5th gears. No problem, plug in the extension tube, and the whole unit is lifted up out of gearknob's reach. It's not the most stable arrangement and the phone does flop around a bit. Clip the phone in, make a call to adjust the setting and you're finished. Tip: use the microphone supplied, the sound is a great improvement for your caller. Another tip I wish I'd known was to somehow tether the whole unstable arrangement to the dashboard with gaffer tape (but that's a later tale).

Two problems arose immediately. The first time I took the car out, I left the unit plugged into the socket (removing the phone of course). By the time I got back, the car battery was flat - which was absolutely not a fault with the Pama unit, but a warning that the unit draws power even with no phone plugged in and could be the last straw for a dodgy battery (as mine proved to be). So now I always pull it out of the lighter socket when not in use.

That's when the second problem occurred.....got back to the car, plugged in unit - no red light on the front. Pulled out the extension and saw the problem - there is a "nut" at the end that holds the end electrical contact in place. It had undone itself and when I pulled the unit out, the contact had pinged out unseen and was eventually discovered nestling under the passenger seat. The spring was also found somewhere else entirely.

So now I always tighten the nut every time I go to plug the unit in - or at least I would if I could. And that's the final problem that made me fall out of love with the concept. The cigarette lighter in the Polo is at the bottom of the dashboard. After a few months, the combined top-heaviness and weight of the extended handsfree kit and the phone, plus the jiggling about caused by motion, and the lighter socket plus housing broke free from the dashboard and ceased to function. So now I have the ultimate handsfree solution - keep the phone switched off whilst driving.....................

 

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