Try not to laugh... Would a Ziplock bag over my phone affect the sound quality?

I just got a Tour 9630 on Sprint, and I'm having problems with people telling me that I sound "muffled" or far away. I've only had it for about a day, and I use it largely for texting/emails/BBMs/etc. so my actual *phone call* use is limited -- therefore, I don't have much to go by.

Anyway, I know I'll sound crazy regardless, but let me at least try to explain the Ziplock bag situation: I do research in a microbiology laboratory (you never know where little microbes are crawling around in there, despite our best efforts), so in order to appease my OCD, when I know I'll be using my phone while I'm handling things in the lab, I'll put it in a bag and use it through the bag. :o LOL! This is the only thing I can think of that could be causing a muffled sound, but then again, I did that with my Curve 8330, and no one ever mentioned that I sounded muffled. :confused: Do you think that a thin plastic bag could really cause me to sound muffled, so much that people can't even make out what I'm saying?

The other thing is that I always sandwich my phone between my face and my shoulder ... could that be blocking the mic on the Tour but not the Curve, e.g. is the mic in a different location?

Thank you so much for any and all opinions! :)

Ummmm ... duh?

Come on, now!

You work with microbes so you obviously have some fairly high level of intelligence. So isn't it logical that sound waves would be muted if they have to travel through a layer of plastic?? ;)

Note that the microphone is in relatively the same location. Just look at the little tiny hole on the bottom.

Why don't you buy a POS phone for work and only use your bb when you're home or away from the lab? Talking through a plastic bag? Is that seal on the bag REALLY impenetrable anyway????

Just get something junkie for work and don't use your bb there.
Pretty dumb to pay all you do for a blackberry and then not be able to get crystal clear sound and use it as you would like...

Just my opinion anyway.

Intelligence when it comes to microbes and organic chemistry unfortunately =/= intelligence when it comes to everyday common sense. :o .... LOL! It's just that it's so...... thin! It's a little cheap plastic bag, literally almost no thicker than plastic/saran wrap... PLUS, I did this with my Curve as well, and never got a "you sound muffled" complaint. I've been experimenting with the phone though, and I'm leaving myself voicemails on my home phone (from my Tour), or making my husband go outside with my phone and calling me at our house, and then listening to how we sound -- and it sounds fine and not muffled. It might be the fact that I'm calling people cell phone to cell phone. :confused:

Originally Posted by jaydee5799

Why don't you buy a POS phone for work and only use your bb when you're home or away from the lab?

I still have my Curve 8330 that I could use ... would I need a second line though? Or can I switch back and forth (i.e. activate the Curve for when I'm in the lab and the Tour for when I'm not) through Sprint without paying an activation fee each time? :confused: That would be awesome if I could!

I've protected my BB with a baggie more then once - sometimes it's work related, other times it's beach related!

I haven't noticed a huge difference in call quality with the baggie, but I did notice a difference when I changed from the Curve to the Bold.

Did you change carriers?
Don't forget that you only have a limited time to switch devices/carriers.

I had to laugh when I read this because it couldve been written by my baby sister: she has a BlackBerry, does something with microbiology in a lab (? She's the smart one) and I've seen her baggie up her BlackBerry just for making cookies! Anyway, I hope you find a fix because that would ick me out, too...all those funky cooties in my shiny BlackBerry! Perhaps bleach wipes each day? That's what I do. Best of luck!

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Got a brainstorm. Why don't you get a bluetooth headset and keep the microbe magnet In Your Pocket! All problems solved.

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Instead of the baggie, why not saran wrap?

Tupperware-choice of microbiologists everywhere :D

Oddly enough a guy I dated a couple years back used to use ziplocs so he could check emails and and take calls in the shower. I don't recall him having a hard time hearing me when I was unlucky enough to call him while he was showering.

?? I don't get it.. Your afraid of it getting on your phone right? What's the difference if it gets on the bag and then you still use it? Your still coming into contact with it..

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Originally Posted by CaraP

The other thing is that I always sandwich my phone between my face and my shoulder ... could that be blocking the mic on the Tour but not the Curve, e.g. is the mic in a different location?

This is probably the issue more than the plastic bag. I also have a Tour and I have had my wife tell me that I sounded muffled when I am talking to her and have the phone tucked between my shoulder and ear, with no plastic baggy involved at all. As soon as I grip the phone again and hold it to my ear with my hand the volume she hears returns to normal. Havent been able to figure out the reason for this yet. :confused:

A regular ziploc (kitchen grade) is unlikely to have a major impact on sound quality, but it might reduce the vilume very slightly. Leisure boaters regularly use much thicker and heavier cases to protect radios and phones. Waterproof Phone and GPS cases

In reality you should be able to tell pretty easily. Go wash your hands, use your phone from the office for a test call, then bag it up and test again. Simple scientific test :)

I think it is more likely you are obstructing the mic by the way you hold the phone, or your phone is incorrectly assembled. Most BlackBerries use a small rubber sound guide between the external mic port (the hole) and the mic itself on the PCB. Maybe the phone has been dismantled and this is either lost or displaced?

can you spell double-blind test boy and girls? :p

Lol!

An idea: Use your headset, and set your phone to auto-accept calls. You can have your ear piece in your ear at all times and run the cable under your microbe-safe lab coat thingy. You can still wrap the phone in a plastic bag since you won't be talking directly through it.

You don't even have to set your phone to auto-accept calls - instead, you can just wrap the little button on the cord into sticky plastic wrap. Although, on second thought, that's where the mic is for the headset...

So the expansion pack would consist of a wireless headpiece that you leave at the lab at all times. And instead of wrapping the headpiece in plastic foil, you can apply sticky foil to the entire right (or left) half of your head, including half of your mouth... Ok scratch that. But the first part of this idea is solid!

I honestly hope you figure it out and would like to propose that you post pictures of your ingenious solution to this thread once you've figured it out :D

If its the phone itself your looking to protect, you may want to invest in an Otterbox Defender!

Its wrapped in a layer of plastic and another layer of thick rubber.

I love the OD and my phone never gets a smudge or spec of dust on it.

The speaker(along with everything else) is protected, however call quality is perfect.

It only takes a minute to assemble/disassemble so you can always quickly take it off when your at home.

And while I've never done it, I'd assume it can be wiped down without issue since it is just plastic and rubber.


Just a thought...

PM1

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I know you are able to switch between phones for no price when you want to but it would be kind of a hassle either calling into customer care every day to swap your phone back and forth!

Two words, bluetooth headset.

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This thread makes me lol.