[misterS3]

Just browsing for my next phone and thought it would be the N96 but DVB tv isn't going to be available in the UK till 2010 (i think) so i took a look at the N85

http://europe.nokia.com/A41201481

And there's an interesting (if you're sad like me) part under bluetooth profiles

Bluetooth profiles:
# Dial Up Networking Profile (Gateway)
# Object Push Profile (Server and Client)
# File Transfer Profile (Server)
# Hands Free Profile (Audio Gateway)
# Headset Profile (Audio Gateway)
# Basic Imaging Profile (Image Push Responder and Initiator)
# Remote SIM Access Profile (Server)
# Device Identification Profile
# Phone Book Access Profile (Server)
# Stereo Audio Streaming:
- Generic Audio/Video Distribution Profile
- Audio/Video Remote Control Profile (A/V Remote Control Target)
- Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (Audio Source)

However when you look at the N95 or N96 there isn't such detailed description of the Bluetooth.
Just wondered if the above meant the N85 actually implemented PBAP properly so it would sync contacts with Idrive without a progman upgrade and the push 601/801 application.
Or have they just been slack in their description of bluetooth with the other phones?

[Husky]

I would like to know about the Nokia N85 too as I am waiting for the phones release here in Australia in Q1 2009. If anybody has anymore insight or news it would be appreciated.

I just want Bluetooth to work correctly however have read in other posts that some of the 'N' series Nokias are not fully compatible. The only Nokia phone I have at the moment is a 6280 and it allows dialing via BMW in car voice commands when connected via Bluetooth (which works very well). Very convenient to talk to the car while driving rather that messing with buttons or a phone.

[ramm]

Hey folks -- I am in the US and have suffered for the last 1.5 years with an N95 (North America version) and iDrive Bluetooth in my 2006 E90. The best I can do is make and receive calls; no phone book sync and no caller ID at all.

I have an N85 (also North America version) on the way, it should be delivered by tomorrow (12 Dec) so as soon as I get it all set up, I will pair it with the car and will report the results. My iDrive firmware was updated about 1 year ago -- not sure of the version, but I have the one with the lighter fonts and graphics (where the Nav system allows you to search for POIs), if that helps others as a reference.

<Fingers crossed...>

[misterS3]

Originally Posted by ramm

Hey folks -- I am in the US and have suffered for the last 1.5 years with an N95 (North America version) and iDrive Bluetooth in my 2006 E90. The best I can do is make and receive calls; no phone book sync and no caller ID at all.

I have an N85 (also North America version) on the way, it should be delivered by tomorrow (12 Dec) so as soon as I get it all set up, I will pair it with the car and will report the results. My iDrive firmware was updated about 1 year ago -- not sure of the version, but I have the one with the lighter fonts and graphics (where the Nav system allows you to search for POIs), if that helps others as a reference.

<Fingers crossed...>

Thanks Ramm.......

[Husky]

Thanks ramm - it will be great to get some feedback, lets hope it works!

[ramm]

Well folks... Bad news. I just came back from trying to pair and connect my N85-3 with my 330i, and I am sad to report that the results are even worse than what I had with my old N95-3. The phone pairs with the car successfully, but a few seconds later, it disconnects. The car attempts to reconnect with the phone periodically (I see the parenthesis around the Bluetooth "B" in the phone display) but it fails to connect again. Initiating a connection from the phone's Bluetooth menu results in the message "Unable to create Bluetooth connection."

I tried some of the tricks that allowed my N95 to stay connected, like changing the Sync settings to not allow all sync requests. No dice. I tried pairing and re-pairing several times, each with the same exact result. So, in summary, never mind the address book not copying to the car, I can't even have the phone and the car stay connected for more than a few seconds.

Extremely frustrating. Here we are, with fancy cars and (the latest) fancy phones, and Bluetooth does not work at all. And it is inexplicable to me how with a new release of S60, this issue still has not been resolved. What miracle has to happen for Nokia N series and BMW to be fully compatible? It is a good thing I don't spend much time driving my car, otherwise I would have given up on N series (or Nokia altogether, for that matter) a long while ago.

Oh well. YMMV. For what it's worth -- my N85 has the latest firmware in it (v 11.047). Lovely phone otherwise, by the way...

[Husky]

Unfortunately not as hoped but as expected

Nokia go and produce another great feature packed 'N' series phone and its useless to new 3 series owners. I can understand missing some of the more advanced features BUT to not even make a simple bluetooth connection

Thanks ramm for the update and detailed info.

[schlagmeister]

I just received my N85-3 (N85 NAM) a couple days ago and paired it with iDrive successfully. All of my contacts copied to the car. I could dial from iDrive's address book (A-Z). The contact names appeared on my screen when I would receive incoming calls. The signal meter displayed the number of bars. The bluetooth signal disconnected on me once during a call. It lasted a few seconds. I did not lose the call. The other person on the line just heard silence for a few seconds.

I'll give an update as I use it more.

[misterS3]

Originally Posted by schlagmeister

I just received my N85-3 (N85 NAM) a couple days ago and paired it with iDrive successfully. All of my contacts copied to the car. I could dial from iDrive's address book (A-Z). The contact names appeared on my screen when I would receive incoming calls. The signal meter displayed the number of bars. The bluetooth signal disconnected on me once during a call. It lasted a few seconds. I did not lose the call. The other person on the line just heard silence for a few seconds.

I'll give an update as I use it more.

Cheers for the info

What phone did you have previously? And did you manage to pair (with contacts) that too?

Just from looking at the sigs of you and Ramm, i'm guessing the progman version is the key here again.

[schlagmeister]

I had 2 Sony Ericssons (k850i and w810i). They both worked without any problems. I decided to switch to the N85 because of its features.

I tried the Nokia E71 and N95-3 with my car. The E71 worked fine just like the N85-3 and Sony Ericssons. The N95-3 didn't work so well. The N95-3 did not display the signal strength and did not sync contacts.

My Progman was upgraded earlier this year around the time Progman 29.2 was released.

[ramm]

This is an interesting coincidence... Last night I drove to dinner and when I arrived at the restaurant, I realized that my N85-3 remained connected the entire trip (I noticed that the iDrive display was showing signal strength, but thought it was my wife's iPhone! ). I thought this was a fluke but then noticed that the N85 remained connected the entire return trip! I did however check the Contacts list in the car and none had transferred at all, but at least it did not show the message "Please wait..." which used to display with my N95; instead it said "no entries available."

So... this is a breakthrough of sorts. My theory on what made my connection work all of a sudden: the N85 handles Sync profiles differently from the N95; now you have to choose an "active sync profile" which remains active until you choose another one. The default sync profile out of the box was PC Suite (data bearer: Bluetooth), but I had changed that to my Ovi profile earlier in the day (data bearer: Internet). So perhaps the car "stopped fighting" with the phone due to this active profile change and established a basic connection?

Sure, my contacts did not transfer, but at least the phone seems to remain connected to the car, and with the iDrive display not stuck in "Please wait" as it was before, the system will build some call history that I can at least use to dial frequently-used numbers. Perhaps my next step is to find a good excuse to have my Progman updated, which will be very difficult as my dealer here in Chicago does not do updates at the drop of a hat...

I remain convinced that the problem here is not only with the car but also with the phone: Nokia Nseries phones use SyncML technology to sync information with other devices; someone out there has to have some information on how to set up a proper sync profile that allows contact info to flow to the BMW iDrive system. However, based on schlagmeister's report above, newer versions of Progman seem to play nice with the default PC Suite profile in the N85...

[misterS3]

Can those with the n85 confirm something for me about the micro-USB charging.

Can you plug the N85 into the USB port of your PC/Laptop (with the appropriate USB->MicroUSB cable) and charge it, or does it have to be plugged into a specific charger with a micro-USB connection?

Ta in advance.

[ramm]

Originally Posted by misterS3

Can you plug the N85 into the USB port of your PC/Laptop (with the appropriate USB->MicroUSB cable) and charge it, or does it have to be plugged into a specific charger with a micro-USB connection?

All you need is a USB port on a laptop or desktop computer, and the proper micro-USB cable for the N85 to get a charge. Very convenient, and wonder why Nokia only has this one model where USB charging is possible...

[misterS3]

Originally Posted by ramm

All you need is a USB port on a laptop or desktop computer, and the proper micro-USB cable for the N85 to get a charge. Very convenient, and wonder why Nokia only has this one model where USB charging is possible...

Thanks Ramm, i'd read otherwise...so good to know that this works.

Mate a firm works at calculated the amount of electricity that plugged in chargers use overnight (i.e when not plugged into anything) and it was well into 5 figures. This would obviously not be the case with USB charging when your desktop was powered down. Great feature - should be on more phones.