Sony MEX-BT5000 car stereo with Bluetooth

This isn’t the first time we have seen Bluetooth in a car stereo, but the new Sony MEX-BT5000 has a lot of features packed into it. Its most prominent feature is probably that it can act as a handsfree unit for your Bluetooth-equipped mobile phone.

You see, it has an integrated noise-reducing microphone to pick up your voice, and a high resolution screen which you can use to access up to 50 of your contacts and 6 speed dial entries. I’m not sure how looking at the display on your stereo in safer than looking down at the display on your phone, but that’s another issue altogether.

Besides the phone-centric functionality, you can use the stereo to do something radical – play music. Go old school and pop in a CD, or use a Bluetooth-equipped DAP to stream music through your ride.

The Sony MEX-BT5000 head unit is due to hit the shelves in August, and will cost in the neighborhood of $400.