Sena SMH5 Bluetooth Headset and Intercom - Product Review (Photos)

I reviewed this product over a 15-day ride that covered 4,704 miles through the states of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada and California. Geographically it was used in the desert, farmland, hill country, cities, mountains and Redwood forest. The weather conditions endured ranged from dry and hot to cold and wet with days being sunny or overcast and because it matters to this review, days with hundreds of miles of strong and gusty winds.

This product arrives in four basic parts requiring minimal assembly. The mount, bluetooth unit, microphone and speakers. Installation is simple and took only a few minutes with the modular helmet I used. If your helmet padding/inserts are not snap-out or designed for quick removal, your installation may be a bit more complicated. The headphones are wired to a single type plug that connects to the SMH5 unit. The microphone can be placed wherever you need it and itself connects to a wire that is part of the single plug that connects the headphones to the unit. The units arrived with a partial charge and will require a full charge prior to use. The user manual stated 2.5 hours for a full charge but neither of the units I had took this long. A handy feature is that the unit has a red indicator light that turns on when charging and turns blue when charging is complete. USB charging cables were included in the package. I used different adapters for charging, using my iPhone charger USB wall plug and accessory/USB adapter plug on the motorcycle.

Features:

Bluetooth Specification v3.0
Bluetooth Intercom up to 400 meters
Multi-Pair Bluetooth intercom
Voice Prompts
Bluetooth stereo headset by A2DP
Bluetooth music playback control by AVRCP: play, pause, track forward and track back
Easy operation by versatile Jog Dial
Sufficient sound level with integrated audio booster
Bluetooth hands-free for Bluetooth mobile phones
Bluetooth headset or stereo headset for Bluetooth GPS navigations
Water resistant for use in inclement weather
Crystal clear and natural sound quality
Up to 8 hours talk time, 7 days stand-by time
Can be used while charging on road trips
Individual volume control for each audio source
Firmware Upgradeable
2-year warranty

While the manufacturer claims 8 hours of talk time, from my experience this is probably a conservative estimate. I forgot to recharge my units after a long day of riding and continuous intercom use but they lasted nearly the entire next day of riding, with only one voicing a low battery announcement. This second day of riding was also continuous chatter on the intercom as well as taking a call on my cell phone over a period of about six hours. I have to say I was impressed by this. Since I mentioned the cell phone call, I should also provide my experience with that feature. After initially installing these units on my helmets, I paired the units together with each other, then mine to an iPhone 3G S and my passengers to her LG Optimus V android phone. Pairing and Bluetooth linking was quick, simple and worked with the first attempt. As mentioned earlier, I did receive calls to my phone and after a volume adjustment, the Bluetooth phone connection worked perfectly and had great sound quality. I had to go back to the manual to verify, but each audio sources volume is individually controlled. Sound quality with both intercom and cell phone usage was clear and the volume levels were very good. At no time did I have to turn the volume up to maximum, not even on the days previously mentioned that had strong and gusty winds.

If you are a long distance rider with a passenger and you would like to communicate with them, if you receive numerous phone calls or ride with other riders or small groups and would like to communicate on the move then this product will probably fit most if not all your needs. It connects to several different types of audio sources such as Cell Phones, GPS units and MP3 players as well as other Sena SMH5 units. Four riders each using this product would be able to communicate with each other when linked together, something thats great for small group riding. I think the only limitation with these units at this point may be their range. Sena claims 400 meters but I did not test this myself. For my needs, I only needed to talk with my passenger and be able to answer incoming phone calls which the SMH5 accomplished flawlessly. One more thing I learned was that when paired to an iPhone if you are trying to listen to your iPhone music through your motorcycle stereo system, you will have to tell the phone to play through the speakers. "The essential to budget travel is to prepare onward. When it occurs to family trips, globetrotting, well-deserved vacations and/or going to see new destinations we have never been before, the truth of cost and budgeting is often in the back of our minds. Organizing and consuming our travel budget carefully is a consideration for most families. Lowering expending and expenses, while still savoring your vacation to its fullest, is the key to confirmed accomplishment and fiscal liability. Your pocketbook and family will thank you! The thought behind economizing money while travelling is simple: Even if your personal budget is extremely small, you can still take a break and enjoy life! Simply put, life is just too short to never step out of the door or leaving the homestead! Also recalling that while traveling, whether on a budget or not, even the smallest of things can all add op to a huge vacation or travel charge!..". Otherwise, it is automatically played through your SMH5 helmet headphones. For single up riding this is great but when both rider and passenger want to listen to music it means one additional step before going kickstands up.

For full product information and specifications you can go Senas website. While you can purchase directly from Senas North America online store , they also maintain a list of authorized dealers and you may find one of your local dealers on that list. Priced at $249 for the dual pack (two complete sets), I think you will find this one of the better priced products of this type on the market, and in my opinion, a great price for the performance.

Sena SMH5 Intercom - YouTube
www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YhB1KHmwCo
See http://www.webbikeworld.com/motorcycl... for the full review, more photos, all the details, discussion and our conclusion.
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