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Bluetooth recommendations?
- Thread starter djr7572
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I just ordered a jawbone icon HD. The Era is heard to be having some flaws.
As no device on the market now works perfectly with Siri, it makes sense to buy one which has software update capability.
But if you just need hands free feature, go for cheaper plantronics models. There is no need to invest too much money for so little quality improvement. Just find one comfortable on your ears.
I just ordered a jawbone icon HD. The Era is heard to be having some flaws.
As no device on the market now works perfectly with Siri, it makes sense to buy one which has software update capability.
But if you just need hands free feature, go for cheaper plantronics models. There is no need to invest too much money for so little quality improvement. Just find one comfortable on your ears.
Have a look at the Motorola HX550. $60 on Amazon.
Flip open to turn on instead of some tough to get to switch, multiple ways to wear it, does A2DP so you can use it to listen to podcasts, Bluetooth 3.0 for greater range (maybe not 300ft but I can just about get to the mailbox with the phone sitting on my home office desk).
Flip open to turn on instead of some tough to get to switch, multiple ways to wear it, does A2DP so you can use it to listen to podcasts, Bluetooth 3.0 for greater range (maybe not 300ft but I can just about get to the mailbox with the phone sitting on my home office desk).
I recently bought a Jawbone ERA for the iPhone and I love it. Call quality is superb, AD2P technology lets you listen to music or watch movies with it, and it works well enough with SIRI. It also shows you a battery meter when paired with the iPhone so you know when you need to recharge your headset. Double tap to end calls, dedicated on/off switch, and noise assassin are just neat bonuses. 
it might be pricier than most other headsets. I was lucky to score one from a third party seller on Amazon for 75 bucks.
it might be pricier than most other headsets. I was lucky to score one from a third party seller on Amazon for 75 bucks.I bought the Motorola HX550 and while it is a nice little headset, I have a couple of complaints:
1) It is impossible to turn it on while in the ear unless using 2 hands. The reason I even mention this is because I have bluetooth in my car which I use daily for streaming audio content during my commute. However it's awful for talking on the phone. So I wanted to get a headset I could just put on and then turn on if I got a call. Because you need 2 hands to flip the mic open while in the ear it doesn't work exactly as I had hoped. In my case a button to turn it on or off would have been better.
2) This doesn't have any kind of automatically adjusting incoming volume feature like my RIM HS500 does. I really love that feature and miss it. It worked extremely well with the volume of the person talking to me going down when I would come to a stop, and increasing as my speed increased. I didn't have to touch the headset to be able to continue to hear the caller.
Having said that, things to love about the Motorola are that it's very lightweight and is probably the best feeling headset I've ever used (doesn't fatigue/hurt my ear) and it has volume adjustment on the headset itself, which my RIM HS500 was lacking. It also connects to my iPhone EXTREMELY fast. Faster than any other bluetooth I've ever used.
For most people the issues I have with the headset are non issues, but I did think it worth mentioning. I'm happy enough with it I'm keeping it.
1) It is impossible to turn it on while in the ear unless using 2 hands. The reason I even mention this is because I have bluetooth in my car which I use daily for streaming audio content during my commute. However it's awful for talking on the phone. So I wanted to get a headset I could just put on and then turn on if I got a call. Because you need 2 hands to flip the mic open while in the ear it doesn't work exactly as I had hoped. In my case a button to turn it on or off would have been better.
2) This doesn't have any kind of automatically adjusting incoming volume feature like my RIM HS500 does. I really love that feature and miss it. It worked extremely well with the volume of the person talking to me going down when I would come to a stop, and increasing as my speed increased. I didn't have to touch the headset to be able to continue to hear the caller.
Having said that, things to love about the Motorola are that it's very lightweight and is probably the best feeling headset I've ever used (doesn't fatigue/hurt my ear) and it has volume adjustment on the headset itself, which my RIM HS500 was lacking. It also connects to my iPhone EXTREMELY fast. Faster than any other bluetooth I've ever used.
For most people the issues I have with the headset are non issues, but I did think it worth mentioning. I'm happy enough with it I'm keeping it.
@French: Fair comments.
To your point #1, I agree that it's awkward to flip it open while wearing it. Typically I flip it open before putting it to my ear; battery life seems very good so this hasn't created any issues of running down the hx550 battery. In car or not, if a call comes in I find I can open the headset and put it in my ear with plenty of time for it to pick up & answer the call; if in the car it's usually sitting in a cupholder or tray so it's easily at hand.
An automatic volume feature would be nice.
To your point #1, I agree that it's awkward to flip it open while wearing it. Typically I flip it open before putting it to my ear; battery life seems very good so this hasn't created any issues of running down the hx550 battery. In car or not, if a call comes in I find I can open the headset and put it in my ear with plenty of time for it to pick up & answer the call; if in the car it's usually sitting in a cupholder or tray so it's easily at hand.
An automatic volume feature would be nice.
I believe it was your glowing recommendation that convinced me to buy it and I don't regret it at all. My situation is very unique with the audio streaming factor. If I flip the mic open while driving the audio I want to listen to through my car speakers comes through the headset, which is why I was hoping to be able to leave it in ear and then turn on as needed.
However I completely agree with you that it's super fast to connect. I really just need to adjust my "habits" and I think I will be completely happy. I actually had time to dig it out of my purse the other day and turn it on and answer the call before it went to voicemail. In fact, the call was connected before I finished putting it in my ear. So I think just placing it in the cup holder for when I need it will be a fair compromise.
Also, you mentioned something I forgot to point out about this headset...it has the best battery life I've seen reported for ANY headset that I've considered. Usually 5 - 7 is the norm and I believe the Motorola states up to 9. I've had mine since least week and have yet to charge it and it's still "high".
Adjusting incoming volume would have made it my all time favorite headset.
Good note there -- my car stereo doesn't do A2DP so I have to live with the old fashioned dock port connector and ipod control from the stereo. It would definitely be a bit annoying to have the hx550 override the A2DP stream as you describe, and I've seen no way to selectively turn off/on the A2DP feature.
Agreed; after charging it initially when I got it two weeks ago, I finally made a point to try to run it down yesterday to do a full battery cycle. I had to leave it on and stream audio much of the day to finally get to to a low battery state. Far superior to my previous headsets, but then again I've not bought a new one in a while (prior one was a Motorola H700)
The range is incredible; leaving my phone on the desk I can go anywhere in the house with solid audio quality. With my H700, I had to have the headset and phone on the same side of my body else I saw issues with call quality.