My finance view

So you’re driving to work, sipping on steamy coffee when your cellphone rings.

Instinctively, your knees slide into position to take over the wheel as your free hand reaches to answer the call. You are now executing the highly treacherous chat-sip-and-steer move. If this were competitive diving, the degree of difficulty would equal the reverse-one-and-a-half-somersault-with-four-and-a-half twists.

Glance to the right and left in traffic and witness the burgeoning phenomenon: Drivers all around you are attempting the same unlikely telecommunications stunt while doing 100 km/h on the highway.

News reports last week confirmed the Ontario government is about to outlaw such behind-the-wheel multi-tasking with legislation aimed at the growing hordes of mobile communicators who cannot keep their hands on the wheel and their eyes on the road.

Stiff penalties are in store for anyone talking on a cellphone, holding a GPS device or texting while simultaneously negotiating traffic. Considering the obvious public safety risks associated with driving while under the influence of cellphones, it’s little wonder.

Here’s the irony: Legislation designed to limit use of technology in the car can be skirted by adding more technology in the car.

Wireless devices that harness your cell signal and invisibly transfer it into a speakerphone or transmit it into a hands-free earpiece are now legal loopholes for tech-demanding drivers.

Wireless Bluetooth car speakers clip to your car’s visor or, in some cases, plug into the cigarette lighter. I’ve been testing out Sony Ericsson’s HCB-120 car speakerphone ($100), a sturdy and simple box that sits out of the way directly above your head.

Establishing the connection to your phone is simple with any of these hands-free devices. Settings in your phone allow you to "enable" Bluetooth and "pair" the phone with the speaker. Think of it as instant spiritual connection in which your phone and the hands-free device intuitively understand each other and share everything.

Both my Sony Ericsson and BlackBerry phones paired nicely with the HCB-120. A button on the device lets you retrieve and hang up without ever losing visuals on the road. The only complaint here is the volume levels that left me craning forward, head tilted to one side in order to hear my caller in noisy traffic approved cash advance.

The Parrot Minikit Bluetooth Hands-Free Speaker ($99) has a less boxy look, with curved lines and funky design that doubles as a kind of in-car art installation hanging from your visor. Volume levels are much better here and the pickup and hang-up buttons are larger and colour-coded. In all, very slick.

As for in-ear options, the provocatively dubbed Jawbone and Sony Ericsson’s HBH-PV703 are two examples that tuck into your ear canal and deliver sound from your phone and transmit your voice back.

The Jawbone ($139) has a sleek look, jetting out from one ear as it hugs tightly to your face. When the phone rings, just tap on the device as it sits in your ear and you’ve answered the call. Another taps shuts it down. The big pitch here is the "noise assassin" feature designed to kill surrounding noise and purify your voice to your callers. It works. Sound quality here is remarkable.

Sony Ericsson’s device ($39) has a more standard look and price. Sound quality doesn’t match the Jawbone but it’s perfectly acceptable, given the price difference.

The main issue with earpieces is comfort. I don’t mind wearing them. But there are those who see attaching a plastic appendage to the side of their head for lengthy periods of time as a form of sci-fi torture. As well, you’ll need to be vigilant about recharging. The tiny rechargeable batteries die after a few hours of talk time and any prospects of in-car chatting die with them.

The choice between Bluetooth earpiece and speakerphone is a personal call, so to speak.

Whatever your preference, consider that neither option will address the far more fundamental problem: We talk on our cellphones far too much while driving.

Having narrowly avoided a 12-car pile up while jotting off a text message in downtown traffic recently (I’m not proud of it, I’m just saying …), I am (barely) living testament to the fact that we need saving from our tech-obsessed selves.

Robert Cribb occasionally reviews the latest products on the market. Email him at rcribb@thestar.ca

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