I received a SuperTooth Crystal Bluetooth Car Speaker to facilitate this review; however, all opinions are my own.

SuperTooth Crystal Bluetooth Speaker Review ad

Every time I test drive a new car I realize just how little technology my current car has. It’s so old it has a cassette player/radio for an entertainment system – that’s old! I choose to drive this old girl because she’s paid for, and at this stage of my life that’s  more important to me than having the latest and greatest car tech available. But that doesn’t mean I don’t miss the features I get to sample, so I’m always looking for something that will bring my van the comfort an security the new technology offers.

I recently added a  SuperTooth Crystal is a Bluetooth car speakerphone to tackle one of my biggest needs – being able to use my smartphone hands-free (which is required by law in my state), but with the added advantage of syncing with my phone’s GPS to make the turn-by-turn voice instructions easier to hear. Did it work? Mostly.

What is a SuperTooth Crystal Bluetooth Speaker?

It’s a tiny, wireless speaker that installs without any tools. It’s held to your car’s visor with a super strong magnet and clip so it’s easy to put in and remove. It’s charged via your car’s lighter outlet in about 3 hours and it’s battery lasts about  20 hours when actively used or 1000 hours of standby time.

SuperTooth Crystal Bluetooth Speaker: Performance

Battery use is generally determined by best-case-circumstances and in our case, the actual battery life was much lower.  I suspect that’s because we had to use it at full volume so the battery ran down in about 1/4 of the time.  We used it to stream music in our home and then later in our large van with the GPS navigation working simultaneously. Even in our home the speaker had a comfortable listening range of only a few feet. In the car, only the person sitting directly underneath it could hear it well enough to understand the instructions given by the Navigation program; the passenger only heard garbled noise.

The device allowed me to walk 15-20 feet away from the van while staying connected to my phone on the dasy; that’s some pretty decent connectivity. But using the hands-free feature worked best when the car was standing still and the air conditioner turned off.  While driving, the road noise was too loud for the caller to hear me, or I them. Granted it’s winter and we have steel-belted snow tires on, but then so do half of the cars across the country.

SuperTooth Crystal Bluetooth Speaker: Features We Enjoyed

SuperTooth Crystal Bluetooth Speaker Pairing ad

I did have some trouble initially getting the device to recognize my phone, but a quick Google search gave me the directions I needed to reset the device, which cleared up my pairing problems.We did love that both of our phones could be paired with the device (many make you pair it only with one with a reset and reconnect required every time you switch). Once it was paired, it recognizes our phones when we enter the car (if the unit is on). My husband’s iPhone has an additional feature in that it shows the battery level while I had to wait for a beep to tell me the battery was low.

SuperTooth Crystal Bluetooth Speaker: Buy It

This hands-free Bluetooth speaker retails for about $69 and is perfect for someone who has a smaller car that has reduced road noises. Our large van with snow tires mounted was just too much for it. The design is small and compact and weighing only 4 oz, it’s unobtrusive on the visor.

Connect with SuperTooth Online

SuperTooth makes a variety of Bluetooth in-car speakerphones and audio accessories. Find out more by visiting their website, friend them on Facebook, or check out their YouTube videos. You can also purchase their product in their online store.

Have you tried a Bluetooth hands-free unit? How’d it work for you?