I live in a part of the world (Ontario) that has recently enacted a “headset while driving” law. It’s about time. Although studies have shown that people that talk on the phone while driving are more accident prone, the same studies have shown that people that use headsets are slightly less accident prone. The fact is, if you’re on the phone you’re not completely focusing on the road.
That might explain my last 2 accidents !
I’m joking.
That might explain my last 2 tickets in 6 months (and I’m not kidding).
If I’m driving, I’m on the phone. Calling clients, catching up with the office, friends, and of course, calling my wife ! And for as long as I have had a cell phone I have had a headset for my cell.
Problem is, ever since I switched from a wired cell headset model to a Bluetooth I have struggled with the quality and technology. So I am left believing that Bluetooth headsets suck.
Just for reference purposes, I have owned:
- The Plantronics Voyageur 510. The sound quality was OK. The little ear bud piece hurt my ear after a while of wearing it.
- Samsung (I forget the model number). The headset drove me crazy. It never stayed on my ear. If I turned around to check my blind spot the headset would fall off.
- Motorola HS820 is the headset I am using now. It’s actually a decent headset, but people constantly complain they can’t hear me. So I guess it’s not really a decent headset.
So I am coming to you for advice.
I spoke with a client last week about Bluetooth headsets and they highly recommended the Jawbone. Seems like a decent headset, a little pricey, but, I am wondering about the quality. Spoke with someone else and they recommended BlueAnt (pictured right). Also a pricey headset.
So do any of you have any recommendations ? If so then how’s the sound ? Mic ? Wearability ? Does your headset maintain it’s sync with the phone or does it need to be constantly re-sync’ed ?
Yes, I know, I’m in the phone business so I should know the answer to this. I also sell office headsets which makes this post even worse. But, I’m stuck and looking for some feedback !
I will share my experience with you once I have tested it / them.
Written by: Jeff Wiener. www.digitcom.ca. Follow TheTelecomBlog.com by: RSS, Twitter, Identi.ca, or Friendfeed
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I’ve been using the Jawbone for over a year now and switched from a Motorola. It’s a great headset. Would highly recommend it. Good luck.
I use the Plantronics Discovery 975 with my iPhone and it rocks !
I am curious to see what you figure out. I am having the same problem with my Motorola headset. People are always complaining they can’t hear me and I am trying to find a new headset. Please fill us in.
Kelly
I have heard many good things about the Jawbone, however the Blueant Supertooth 3 looks pretty awesome. I like the Blueant simply because I wouldn’t plan on using a headset for anywhere else other than my car, check it out yourself:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u308OnVGhUo
Blue Ant is really good. It’s small, the sound quality is really good and no one has complained they can’t hear me. It is just expensive. I have never had a problem with the headset falling off my ear either.
I have heard mixed reviews on the Jawbone, apparently if it is not touching your face tightly it has difficulty differentiating your voice from the surrounding environment so you may need to hold it with one hand while talking (which defeats the purpose of a headset).
I like the idea of a car mounted hands free and recently stumbled upon this unit at BestBuy:
http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?logon=&langid=EN&sku_id=0926INGFS10125103&catid=28658
It has a solar panel on the back so you don’t have to worry about recharging it, seems to have good reviews as well. My only concern is that a windshield mounted device is begging for attention from thief’s.
I actually use the Plantronics Voyageur 510 with a Nortel 1140e at work and it’s very clear and works within about 30′ of my desk. I’ll be interested in your follow-up post Jeff. Here in Pennsylvania there’s a similar bill, recently passed in law, that requires “hands free” use of any cellular phone while driving.
I have noticed that enabling Bluetooth will on your cellular phone will generally have an impact on the battery life ultimately altering the max standby time and talk time.
Cheers!
The new Plantronics 975 is an excellent headset. It is very comfortable and has a very long battery life. – I bought mine from http://www.headsethome.com and have only had it a few weeks but it is much better thean the previous Motarola headset I had.
I have a Maverick Nica Sunrise and it works pretty well. The best thing about it is that there’s nothing in my ear. I haven’t had any problems with it. It’s super comfortable and I would recommend it to anybody. I bought it off their website – mavericklifestyle.com.
Jawbone works ok if you can fit it in your ear. The earloop is a joke. I lost one jawboen because of the ear loop has a poor weak connection. take off your glasses it seperates. scratch your head it seperates. If you are driving you need to take into account the possibility of losing the jawbone. And of course constantly paying for new ear loops.