What consitutes a hands-free for mobile usage

ADSLUSER

I'm trying to understand what contitutes a hands-free in terms of the new leglisation over mobile phone usage in a car. I know it is ok to use a bluetooth device but can someone confirm if it's ok to use:

1) a wired handsfree headset
2) using the handsfree speaker on your mobile

Based on the text in the bill, I think this would be ok as you there is no required to "hold" the phone or "support or cradle it with another part of your body"

http://oireachtas.ie/documents/bills28/bills/2006/2806/b28c06d.pdf

Henry Ford III

No idea.

R.O.R

From my understanding of the new legislation a wired handsfree headset would not be allowed as technically you are connected to the phone (!)

Using the speaker would be OK, if you have someone to press the button to answer calls.

I think (from what I can make out) that you are not allowed to hold the phone at all, even to dial numbers or press a button to answer calls.

jhegarty

They had some senior guard explain it on the radio a few days back , anything you need to hold (with your hand or sholder) is out , everything else should be ok...

he said it was the act of holding the phone was the illegal bit....

mmenarry

Get one of those "magnet" thingys that stick to your dash, and use the speaker function on the phone. Sorted!

M.

dubtom

jhegarty wrote:

They had some senior guard explain it on the radio a few days back , anything you need to hold (with your hand or sholder) is out , everything else should be ok...

he said it was the act of holding the phone was the illegal bit....

So does that mean you can have the phone in a cradel on loudspeaker and not wired up. Actually I think the whole thing is a sham, even if you have a wired handsfree in the car, so you are technically not holding the phone, you still have to dial which is in itself distracting and probably the cause of most accidents where mobiles are involved. I had a wired setup in my old car (waiting for my new car to be wired) and it had a button on the dash for answering and volume, thats all it did, I still had to dial, which was dangerous because the phone was at the centre console, stupid place to have a phone I know.

Henry Ford III

I reckon they want voice dialling.

blorg

R.O.R wrote:

Using the speaker would be OK, if you have someone to press the button to answer calls.

I think (from what I can make out) that you are not allowed to hold the phone at all, even to dial numbers or press a button to answer calls.

Most phones with speaker function you can set to pick up automatically after two rings or so, to avoid having to touch the phone.

ninty9er

R.O.R wrote:

From my understanding of the new legislation a wired handsfree headset would not be allowed as technically you are connected to the phone (!)

I think (from what I can make out) that you are not allowed to hold the phone at all, even to dial numbers or press a button to answer calls.

1) From using a minidics while walking it is clear that wires restrict movement or else the earpieces fall out. So wired hands-free is in effect more dangerous than actually holding the thing as at least you can observe all round that way but it's still dangerous


2) What kind of idiot initiates phonecalls while driving. As far as I'm concerned hands-free is for answering calls or continuing calls you initiated while stationery.
Dialling is just plain dangerous