Review on Sena Motorcycle Bluetooth Communication System by Jonah Riggle

Bought to replace 20S. The big plus for me was the mesh technology and the fact that it fits on the same base unit as the 20S. I have two helmets that I work between, so I put the new base unit on the helmet I use the most and the base unit from the 20's on the other. my. This is how I get the best sound and take advantage of noise reduction in my opinion. The speakers on the 20S were crap. I gave the Sena 50S a total of 3 stars because of the "buggy". Pros: The sound quality of the mesh intercom is excellent. The Bluetooth intercom is pretty good too. The iPhone app has a cool setting called "Smart Intercom Pairing" that lets you quickly connect to another 50S or 20S. Overall, the iPhone app is better than the 20S app because it's more intuitive, although I would have preferred Sena to come up with an app that works for both. I would recommend using the 50S configuration app; can be done on the device itself, but it's more difficult. Never try to change the configuration while driving. The battery life in Bluetooth intercom mode is 24 hours. Mine was on and connected over 12 hours ago with no issues. The flexible mic mounted on the base unit has pretty good noise cancellation, but I think the mic on the 20S base unit is good too. However, it can only offer so much noise cancellation when someone is driving at 75mph with an open helmet and no windshield. Cons: When trying to listen to your own music in network mode, the microphone sensitivity is too high, even when set to the lowest sensitivity. I was driving with 2 other people who have 50S and I couldn't listen to music for more than about 20 seconds before someone sighed too hard and turned the music down. There's a setting you can turn on to prevent the music from being muted, but then you'll have a hard time hearing what someone is talking on the intercom when your music is playing. Setting up the group grid is a bit confusing, so read the instructions carefully. I would recommend starting your group before your trip. It's harder to figure out when you and your friends are on bikes yelling back and forth under your closed helmets. The button on the 50S that turns the intercom on/off (press and release) is also the button that turns the microphone off (press and hold for 1 second) and is located on the top of the 50S, next to the antenna. It's almost impossible to find and manipulate the button when you're driving and wearing thicker gloves. I think in network mode, especially in the group grid, it would be MUCH easier to press and release the rotary switch to mute/unmute the mic, similar to how you start a bluetooth intercom conversation. Battery life is reduced by 2/3. If you are in network intercom mode, after 8 hours it is time to charge. The ability to share music over the network is a cool idea, but what I actually found was that the audio quality wasn't up to par and I kept getting dropped. .The firmware is still quite faulty. I always have the latest Sena setup program on my iMac, the latest app on my iPhone and the latest firmware on the 50S. And I always have the latest version of iPhone OS installed. Sometimes I accidentally lose the Bluetooth connection with my phone. When I checked my OS's Bluetooth settings, it says it's disabled, and the Sena app also says I'm disabled. It's a pain in @$$ when it happens while driving. Some people may point to the iPhone as the main culprit, but I've connected multiple Bluetooth devices to my iPhone and the Sena 50S is the only one I'm having trouble with. There's Sena 20S and 10S and you'll find that everything works to your liking. Stick with what you have. I had no problem connecting my 50S to 20S and 10S via Bluetooth. Update - 05/19/2021: I've been using the Sena 50S for a few months now. I'll back up my original review with a couple of updates... 1) When you're in Mesh mode and listening to music, the mic is always on. Even at the lowest sensitivity, wind noise or heavy breathing will still cause the music to mute. A setting that prevents music from being muted is fine, but then you hear wind noise etc all the time while listening to music. It's a bit difficult to talk to people when there's music playing at the same time. 2) Connecting with other people in my group in mesh mode is very easy. Just turn on mesh mode and everyone will be connected in seconds. 3) Speakers...my bike is loud so combined with wind noise I have to wear headphones while riding. When wearing cheap foam earbuds, I have to turn the volume up to 11 to hear the music and intercom. I found a company that makes custom foam earbuds for my earbuds that do a good job of reducing driving noise, but then I have to contend with cables, earbuds falling out when putting on a helmet, etc. 4) Battery Life: On-Mode Mesh You've got 8 hours, period. With a regular Bluetooth intercom, you have 24 hours... if you're not listening to music, that reduces to 12 hours. I think mesh intercom is the way to go, even with the downsides already mentioned. If it's just you and a buddy, a Bluetooth intercom is fine. You don't have to worry about "single click" to talk to person A, "double click" to talk to person B, "triple click" to talk to person C. (Read the instructions if you don't know what I ).6) The firmware seems to have gotten better. I've updated mine several times since my original review and haven't had any issues with my Sena suddenly shutting down while driving. 7) If you are new to Sena intercoms, I recommend practicing using them while driving. In the safety of your home, don your helmet and riding gloves (if you're wearing them) and familiarize yourself with using the Sena.