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The best Bluetooth headset
By Marianne Schultz and Daniel Varghese This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter. When readers choose to buy Wirecutter's independently chosen editorial picks, Wirecutter and Engadget may earn affiliate commission. Read the full bluetooth headset guide here. After 80-plus hours of researching headsets and testing more than 18 models over the past few years, including testing three new models over 20 hours for the latest update, we've determined that the Plantronics Voyager 5200 is the best mono Bluetooth headset for making and taking calls, whether you're in a quiet office or a noisy coffee shop. The Voyager 5200 offers the most comfortable and secure fit and the best dedicated call-management controls of the headsets we tested. It also has better mic quality than stock earbuds or most Bluetooth earbuds, plus battery life that can last most of a workday. In our tests, the Plantronics Voyager 5200 provided the most consistently clear incoming and outgoing audio in a variety of settings. Its earhook design sometimes requires two hands to put on, but it's easily adjustable and comfortable enough to wear all day; its earpiece also provides a secure seal for optimal sound quality, and its battery gives you about 5 hours, 40 minutes of talk time. It's the complete package, unlike any other model we tested. The Voyager 5200 also has all of the software features that have made Plantronics headsets some of our favorites throughout the years, such as the capability to accept and reject calls with your voice. We recommend the Plantronics Voyager 3200 only if the Voyager 5200 is not available, or if the idea of possibly having to use two hands to put the 5200 on is a dealbreaker for you. The Voyager 3200 has a more conventional in-ear design that doesn't fit as securely as our top pick. Its audio—both incoming and outgoing—isn't as consistently good as that of our top pick, but the sound is clear enough in quieter environments. And although this model has longer battery life, it's only by 20 minutes or so. The Jabra Talk 2 isn't nearly as comfortable as our top picks, and its incoming audio quality isn't as good, but it's acceptable on both counts if you're on a budget. It also gives you much better mic quality for calls than you'd get from stereo Bluetooth earbuds that cost roughly $100. In our battery test, it offered almost 7 hours of talk time, lasting over an hour longer than our top pick.
