Ask Engadget: What's the best Bluetooth headset?
By Peter Rojas 
posted October 1st 2004 2:36PM
posted October 1st 2004 2:36PM
Ok, we screwed up and forgot to run Ask Engadget yesterday like we should have, but it's shaping up to be a very slow Friday so we're making amends and running it this afternoon instead. Hope nobody minds too much and we promise to fire a few interns rather than take full responsibility for the mistake. Anyway, last week reader Cody H. wanted some recommendations for a good gadget bag, this week Stephen D. wants to know:
Now that the Treo 650 release is in sight, what is the best Bluetooth headset? Small size, good sound quality, long battery life, comfort, and overall coolness are obvious traits of the best headsets.
We know that not all Bluetooth headsets are created equal, any advice for your fellow reader?
I've personally used 2 BT headsets.
Logitech mobile freedon headset
Sony Ericsson hbh-602
I returned the SE hbh 602 after 2 weeks use.. Very poor range. Couldn't even connect to my SE t630 phone in my pants pocket.
The Logitech is really good, but I've had Charging problem with it. (i'm using my 4th Logitech headset)
Great Clarity on the logitech, but battery life is poor (only about 20 mins continously)
Charging problems (never seem to be able to charge) (hence so many returns on my part)
Is the Nextlink Bluespoon Gold (5G) compatible with the Treo 650? Forgetting the cost, is this the best bluetooth headset out there?
Thank you for your reply.
I was reading a comment that the bluespoon gold may not fit in the ear properly. How can I test this before buying. My concern is that I spend over $300 and it not fit. I know many places that sell this headset say that there are no refunds or exchanges. What do you recommend I do?
I'm reading about the bluespoon AX. What is the difference between the AX and the gold (5G)
had the motorola HS820. all was well except the way it fit my ear and the price ($80). returned to the store the same week.
tried the jabra BT250 and it fit great, long talk time, but the range was about 6 feet. always had to have the phone in my pocket and on the same side of my body as the phone. total pain. sold it on ebay.
have the logitech mobile freedom and i LOVE it, except for the fit. the fit is horrible. ear loop is circular and hangs off my ear. this is the ONLY reason i don't like this device. otherwise, it's perfect. cost is perfect, too ($40).
trying next: bluetrek S2. hoping this one will be good.
i had the bluespoon AX and it was horrible. i had to have the phone nearer to my head to get good reception and out doors, for get it..lot's of chopping and staticy sound...with any sort of movement. i just put it in a corner of the house and looking for a new headset myself now...
Does anyone know if Motorola makes different sized ear hooks for their BT headsets? I have small ears, and this makes it very difficult to get the headset to feel secure - it just falls off!
I'm interested in knowing which wireless (bluetooth) headset is compatible with the treo 650: 1) Motorola HS -820
2) Sony Ericsson HBH 300
3) Scala 500 (Cardo System)
Thank you in advance for your time.
Hello everyone,
I'm looking for a bluetooth headset that is excellent for loud environments, I drive a Jeep Wrangler, Need something that will transmit my voice clearly with little echo. I've been looking at the Logitech Mobile Freedom http://reviews.cnet.com/Logitech_Mobile_Freedom_Bluetooth_Headset/4505-6514_7-31206153.html
Any suggestions?
I have had the Jabra BT800 and the BT250V. Both suck albeit for different reasons. The sound and range are acceptable for the 800. However, it is like trying to attach a brick to your ear with a rubber band. You walk around like you have a book balanced on your head trying to keep this thing from falling off. After awhile your ear hurts so much you just want to take it off and see how far you can throw it.
The BT250V, on the other hand, fits great. The range, claimed to be 30 feet, is actually more like 10 inches. To get a clear, static free, signal, you have to hold the phone up next to the headset. I figure at this point, I should just cut out the middle man and talk into the damned phone. I could not believe that the range could be this crappy, so I exchanged it. Same deal. Tried a discontinued BT200 (half price!)and it was, if anything, worse.
Apparently you can have comfort or performance. Not both. Reminds me of that engineering joke: you can have it on time, under budget, or to specification. Pick any two.
Sony Ericcson HBH-602
I am using this headset with my iPAQ, and it is extremely good. Very light and easy to use.
My factors for choosing this against Jabra, Logitech and Nokia were its sleek design and the earpiece which doesn't poke into the ear, but stays slightly outside.
Also, the sound is loud and clear, especially in open places. Indoors though, there is a slight problem, I haven't yet been able to fix it.. I guess one needs to be loud while talking over a bluetooth headset, since the mouthpiece stays back near the ear.
Posted Oct 20, 2004, 7:17 PM ET by Henry... The 'Spoon uses a sorta wishbone thingy that you wedge in your ear, not your ear canal.
. Posted Sep 22, 2005, 2:51 AM ET by Kurt... Zen @ gennum.com ($250 ouch !) or logitech 'Mobile Freedom' ($40-70) or Nextlink digital 'Spoon ($200-300 ?)
. Posted Sep 22, 2005, 10:22 PM ET by Jeff... what phone were Jabras used with?
If you're not a BT newbie, stay away from Jabra BT-110. AAA-battery & Jabra behind-the-ear comfort but dumbed down BT so no standby (turns off when idle) so no auto-answer possible. For outgoing call... make phone seek headset, turn headset on, wait for audible connect, dial phone. For incoming call when headset powered off... answer via phone, turn headset on, wait for audible connect.
Who is this designed for and why ?
My pursuits...
General use:
a) Jabra BT-200: behind the ear good comfort, ear gel good ear seal, more discrete than over-the-ear models; bad ambient performance.
Good initial HS for newbies or 2nd try for questors.
You will know within 2 headsets what features you're really looking for.
b)Motorola HS-810: generally solid performer, but need to press to ear in ambient environments, insecure feeling on ear.
Got flakey charger connections late in its year, rubber skirt tore where attached.
c)Jabra BT-110: dislike very much, must do all work from phone then transfer connection to headset. See rant above.
d)Nokia HS-37W (OEM BT-110 ? w/ standby): on order
e)Motorola HS-805: if Nokia HS-37W doesn't work out
Outdoors use:
a)Zen by gennum.com: on order
b)Mobile Freedom by Logitech: if Zen doesn't work out
For all you techno freaks out there, the ambient noise is quite often NOT the result of wind - you're steel belted radial tires create a radio wave sound that is picked up by the mic - to eliminate that you need to purchase a noise-cancelling headset - it will have holes on both sides of the mic - those are the only headsets that will block out ambient noise!!!!
I have the Motorola V551, and Im looking into buying a BT headset. Any particular one recommended for this phone. Ive looked at the motorola, HS-810, 820 and 805. Any of those recommended or should i look to another brand??
THE JABRA BT800 HAS SUPER DIGITAL NOISE CANCELING SOUND QUALITY AND IF YOU HAVE SMALL EARS IT FITS PERFECT. Unfortunatly .................. I wanted to use it for my LG PM325 (personal) and my indestructable Motorola i58sr company phone. My dream was to use the Jabra BT800 and the cell phone adapter A210 (for my toothless i58sr) and toggle between the 2 as needed. Sounds great but before you buy anything Jabra check out the web site and go to the check compatability link. Not all headsets work well with all phones. The BT800 has awesome sound quality and even though is states on Jabra's website it is not compatable it works great for voice dailing as long as u record in the headset. But forget toggling between the adapter and the Bt800. You see the beauty of the BT800 is it can switch back and forth between 8 devices (user needs to learn how to click the switches in the perfect order though or u will have to remove the headset). The LG phone however is a crippled bluetooth device thanks to Sprint and will forget the headset ever existed so you have to re pair them everytime. If I had gone onto Jabra's site before I purchased it I would have seen that the two were not compatable.
Logitech Mobile Freedom. Have been using one for the past six months. Great sound quality at both sides. Easy to pair (I use it with Nokia 6230 and Sony-Ericsson T610.) Does not look connection. Comfortable to wear although looks ugly. Keeps charge for days.
i hve the moto hs850.. i really like it for the most part but everyone on the OTHER end complains that they can hear their voice echoing.. i tried it for myself and yes i do hear a little tiny echo of my voice far off when i am talking to someone who is using the headset.. other than that i like it alot.. great for the car, love the "digit dial" function..sometimes its kinda static-y though not sure why. seems to work best when phone is very close to headset.. kinda bummed about the echoing though.. i wonder if anyone else has had this problem...but honestly i don't know how i functioned without a bluetooth before this... i can put on makeup, get dressed, wash dishes, do desk work, drive the car safely without distraction, write down directions etc. etc. etc. Dial a phone number using digit dial..love it!
Don't buy IOGear Bluetooth, i just returned mine because the outgoing voice is so bad. I got it for $ 26.95 in Buy.com (There was huge discount and free shipping at the time).
The advantage of it:
1. Very light, easy to wear...that's all
The disadvantage..S of it:
1. The outgoing voice is not clear (All of my friends could barely hear my voice)
2. No noise cancellation, make it even worse
3. The blue light is disturbing (Can be so bright at night when you turn off the light before sleep, like the ones in jet airplane)
4. Battery life is not that long. Only 3 hours max (Listed: 4.5 hours) after you charged it second time and it goes on like that.
Don't be fooled by the low price. It is not worth it to buy. I'd rather spend more money and have a nice chat rather than putting IOGear bluetooth in front of my mouth all the time so that the other party can hear clearly.
Now, i'm in process of looking another nice bluetooth out there. Nice posts guys, thanks a lot!
The undisputed champ in price and quality is the PSS from SoundID.
Never heard of it or the company that makes it? Get in line, nobody else has either.
It's brand new, available for shipping at the end of November, and only available through your local audiologist.
MSRP is $1499.00 (that's not a typo).
This thing has to be tuned to your hearing requirements similar to a hearing aid.
It's an amazing bit of technology that has NO equal and is worth every penny!
I have Moto v551 as well - in the past I have had horrible luck with headsets, none of them fit my ears right so I never use them - any suggestions? I am a woman so maybe my ears are small? I dunno...any tips/links would help
I am having a hard time finding a wirelss earpiece to fit my small ears. All the ones that I have tried fall off and way down my ear. Does anyone know which one is geared more at a smaller ear?
Thank You
I'm having the same problem as Ruth. It's very annoying... my headset falls off all the time. When I"m driving it's particularly bad b/c it falls behind my back and i can't turn it off... Probably is a way to disable from the phone but when you are driving on the highway I try to minimize messing with my phone. I need advise also. I currently have the Plantronics 320 model that I can't wait to return.
Anyone try the Tekkeon Eztalker series? CNET seems to give the mini a great review.
i just got my first BT enabled phone and am shopping for a BT headset. I would like high quality sound, of course, and voice dialing, noice cancellation. Anybody out there happy with a headset with these features?
I've been using Jabra BT-200 and BT-250 headsets for over two years now, and after reading the supposed problems others were having with range, sound quality, and battery life I have to say I'm very surprised.
My experience has been fantastic overall, first with a Sony Ericson T610, and now with a Nokia 3660. I will admit that the connection to the Nokia is sometimes problematic (haven't checked Jabra's compatibility list yet), with occasional loss of connectivity, but even so the performance and durability have been nothing short of amazing!
I've beaten the c$&p out of the BT-250 ... it's even come apart and been screwed back together, and still it functions without complaint. I get excellent battery life, even after more than a year of use, and nobody ever complains about the sound quality. The only time I experience difficulty in this area is when there is a lot of wind outside. If Jabra would only provide a foam windscreen for outdoor use I believe they would cease to have major complaint.
Having said all that, I DO intend to see if a compatibility issue is causing the connection problems with the Nokia, but it certainly isn't a range issue. There have been times when the phone was on the top floor of my two story house while I was in the basement, and the headset still worked (albeit with some static).
Don't discount the Jabra until you've tried it ... it's definitely a LOT of bang for the buck if it works for your application!
Regards,
Steve
You guys should check out the new Plantronics 590:
http://www.headset-plus.com/plantronics-590a-pulsar-bluetooth-headset-stereocell-phone-p-281.html
It's the coolest BT headset out.
This have been around for awhile..
http://www.mobilefun.co.uk/product/5177.htm
I want to use a Bluetooth headset for speech recognition on my PC. What's the bluetooth headset with the best audio quality?
thanx for any help!
> The undisputed champ in price and quality is the PSS from SoundID.
> Never heard of it or the company that makes it? Get in line, nobody else has either.
Hmmm... don't suppose that's why it's the "undisputed" champ, do you???
I vote for the Plantronics 640 as the best BT headset