BLU Logic Hands-free System

So, if you are getting a P3 or higher, you do not need this system.

 

Re: Dealer Add-On Blu-Logic Phone System

I think I found the answer. if you are getting a P3 or higher, you do not need this system. Right?

 

I purchased the add on Blu Logic system, dealer installed. However, dealer bait and switched with me. He installed a Crux Neo Bluetooth BTY22. It seems like it would be better because it uses the steering wheel stereo control for the bluetooth, yet it has not worked several times, and keeps demanding to be linked to a phone every time you get into the car. It wastes a minute or so before you can listen to the music. If you have a phone, it acknowledges that it is ready, and later acknowledges that it is connected. I hate it. Sound quality is poor and people on the other end say I sound like I'm in a tank of water. The voice caller ID reads out the phone number, not the name in the phone book. It does not stream music from my Motorola phone. Pure Junk. I feel like the beta tester. It probably costs half as much.

The question I have, does the Blu Logic remind you when get into the vehicle and it links up every time or it just stays silent (like it should) patiently waiting until you place a call or receive a call?

Thanks for your help. I am new to Prius ownership (1 week) and enjoy the car except for some poorly thought out functional designs (that I am sure I will just accept at some point). What you asked:

1. Stereo and climate control LCD is unreadable. Toyota should spend another 10 cents and make them a flourescent blue display like the dash. Then it would be readible. Like my 99 cent calculator has.
2. Rotate the steering wheel touch controls 45 degrees, where volume UP is facing UP, and channer over is over. Duh.
3. The nice dash display tells you what you press, but it doesn't tell you any more. The car display should change to show what you just changed. Like a Volume control bar with the number or the air temperature, or the radio station and smaller on each side the previous or next station. Pretty simple stuff but way safer than having to adjust you focus looking down away from the road to an unreadable LCD.
4. The transmission selector should straight up for forward, right and down for reverse and left and up for B. What are they thinking, push forward to go back?!?

:focuslease ignore my rant and answer my Blu Logic question. I should have posted the suggestions for Toyota elsewhere.

Thanks

 

I don't see any specific Prius answers, but I will chime in on BluLogic. I have it in a 2010 RAV4, dealer installed. All it does is beep once about 15 seconds after I turn on the ignition. Then it's connected.

 

Is the beep very loud?
Is there a way to turn the beep down and still keep the next call volume up?

 

I have the BLU logic and there are quite a few things i dont like about it, but I scored it for free because I bought my 2010 in the height of anti-Toyota mania, so I cant complain too much... but here are my top problems with the system...

1: only works with front 2 speakers... OK for phone calls, but crappy for music streaming.

2: Music streaming sounds horrible... the high end (IE: cymbals/guitars) sound very distorted sounding at any volume. I had an 99$ aftermarket Sony head unit in my last car that streamed bluetooth and it sounded nearly as good as a CD, so i know its not the phone that is making the sound bad.

3: mic sucks, and speakers dont get loud enough. In a Lexus it may work, but due to the ambient noise of the Prius on anything but new pavement, it is nearly unusable at freeway speeds.

4: no way to easily control volume/doesnt use stereo knob for volume control. The system is independent of the stereo (you can use it when stereo is not on) so i understand they are seperate systems, but it doesnt mean you wont try and adjust the volume knob while you are using the system.

The only positives i have to say about the system is that it is very simple to use once you are synced initially. It always works, but it never really works well. Still better than nothing and its nice to be able to listen to podcasts without using any cords. I wouldnt pay one red cent for the system though, you could get an aftermarket headunit for the same price as the dealer charges and then you would have a far better stereo system overall, even if it didnt quite look factory.

That being said, i dont know why people down on the base model stereo, i think the thing is far and away the best stock stereo i have ever had in a a new car. 6 speakers, great bass, loud, easy to use, and will play MP3 cd's or use aux input... Its the first stock stereo I have had that i didnt want to rip out on day one.

 

I have blu logic. It works and provides a beep on start up that the link has been established. On my leaving my garage in reverse the beep happens about the same time that the engine starts up.

I can control the phone volume ( as played through the speakers) using the blu logic up and down buttons on the call switch that is mounted on the dash and use my hands free calling that is built in the phone to dial more stored numbers. It works ok but not as well as the integrated system I had on my last car a BMW. That also did suffer a bit from noise making it hard to hear and some mike issues. This ok but slightly worse. We have used the music streaming as well as the aux plug. I prefer the aux plug.

Blu logic volume control http://www.blulogicupdate.com/?page=volumecontrol&lang=eng

 

Have you tried raising the volume with the dash blu-logic switch, or it is not loud enough with the volume at full on rough freeways?

 

The beep is audible--lasts maybe less than one second, and there's only one volume adjustment-- which affects call volume, I can't detect a change in the beep.

 

That's not Toyota's fault, just to be fair. It's a limitation BT. Something about A2DP. I don't know the details but the fidelity isn't there for stereo audio.

 

I had them change out to the Blu Logic BT system. All in all it is fair. You have to really speak up at highway speeds for the listener to hear you well. The noise cancellation circuits are not yet perfected.

Is it my imagination, or did the stereo (FM, CDs, MP3s etc) get quieter after they put this in. I find myself now setting the volume around 30 and above for average listening, when it used to be below 20. I have often had to bring the volume up to MAX on quieter passages. (It is a shame the stereo does not have a compress button or midrange) I don't recall bringing the sound levels this high prior to the BT install. It might be the internal switching within the BT unit that is attenuating the output or ??? Chime in if you too noticed this anomaly or if there is a solution. Also, radio reception went way down too.

 

For streaming, I prefer AUX because of the better sound quality, but Bluetooth is fine if you're just listening to podcasts or audiobooks. For phone conversations, my BLU Logic systems works reasonably well when I'm not on the freeway.

My biggest complaint is the fact that it's practicably unusable at highway speeds. I can hear people fine, even at 70+mph, but they can barely hear me at those speeds (due to static), even when I'm practically yelling. This is a really annoying issue because generally the only time I'm in my car for long enough to actually want to have a long conversation with someone is when I'm on the freeway. I often just get frustrated and take it off hands-free when I'm on the freeway.

Has anyone had better luck with this system on the freeway? Maybe it would work better if they were able to replace the microphone with something that cancels noise better.

 

The Blu Logic I removed from my Model II Gen 3 had at least 10 feet of wire on the microphone. You could improve things by moving the mic to a better position. Closer to you mouth should help. A noise canceling mic should be even better. FWIW, there are no markings on the stock mic to indicate what type it is.