Phone you don't need to look at...

[Little Darwin]

I have a friend with a Sprint plan who would like to start exploring the world of smart phones. However, most of her phone use is in the car, and she wants to be able to use the phone without taking her eyes off the road.

In looking at the Sprint phones available at Best Buy, she was possibly interested in a non-Android phone, the LG Rumor Reflex because it seems to have physical keys available to pick up and hang up the phone. This is obviously not a smart phone, but it does make me wonder... What options exist for an Android phone that can be answered without having to look down, and hopefully also has an easy way to call last number dialed?

Is there an Android phone for Sprint with separate phone buttons? Is there a phone that allows setting of hardware buttons to emulate this functionality? Is there an app that could emulate this by taking over the buttons (without rooting)?

Any other ideas?

 

[Mikey47]

Why not look at hands free bluetooth options? I can dial, answer, text, etc. all without having to touch the phone.

 

[VetteDude]

What kind of car does she have? Ford Sync is OK for talking (the myFord Touch software is....frustrating though) and GM has a good Bluetooth system in all their cars.

 

[Little Darwin]

The car blue tooth isn't available in her Honda (a few years old) although she did try it briefly in my new Subaru and I think that would work, but a new car isn't in her budget.

She has trouble finding wired ear pieces that don't bother her ear, so a BT headset she would be happy with wouldn't be easy to find either. However, the idea of a hands free "speaker phone" type device might fill the bill. Now to go browse the forum related to accessories, and other sites, to see which specific devices might work well for her.

Thanks for the comments!

 

[prolongExistence]

My wife and my mother both have this solar bluetooth speaker in their cars. Works great and never needs charging. They have never even taken the charger out of the box and my mother's car is garage kept.

Amazon.com: IOGEAR Solar Bluetooth Hands-Free Car Kit GBHFK231 (Black): Electronics