Wireless headset recommendations

[haravikk]

Okay, I've another product-type I'm looking for recommendations on.

I'm hoping to buy a good wireless head-set for use with my computer for things like Skype. My requirements are:

• Rechargeable battery rather than having to change all the time, preferably with a little dock to charge for convenience.
• Comfort - as while I may not use it often, when I do it will likely be for a few hours at-a-time.
• Design-wise I'm not fussy, personally I like the one-ear types, mainly for the next point.
• I'm hoping for one that integrates well with OS X; so I can have my chat going to and from the headset, while I continue to play music etc. on my speakers, but with the option to easily redirect all sound to the head-set if I want to, without going into system preferences or whatever. I realise some of this will depend on the particular application.
• Bluetooth is preferred but not required, as I'm not fussy about phone-integration. Do bluetooth headsets work with the XBox360 instead of the supplied wired-ones? If so then bluetooth could have an extra bonus, but still, not a requirement.

So, people with wireless head-sets or aware of good-ones please let me know your thoughts!

As an aside; are there other Skype clients for Mac? I already have a regular IM client (Adium) but it doesn't seem to offer Skype support, understandable but it'd have been nice to have an integrated one. As such what I'd like is an app that will integrate nice and cleanly in the top-right corner of my second screen, preferably as a contacts list with no buttons or title-bar, super-minimal.

 

[haravikk]

Anybody have an luck with bluetooth headsets? I foolishly bought a Plantronics Discovery 925 only to have to send it back as OS X.5.x screws up the microphone and sends awful quality sound to the earpiece! A real shame as it's a really good headset! I've been hunting around but it's starting to sound as though Apple have done an excellent job of making every bluetooth headset on the market either unusable with OS X, or reduce the quality of sound to the point you may as well not bother!

Anyone know of any that do work correctly, or alternative wireless headsets that work better? For example ones supplied with their own USB dongle? I can't use any wired solution as I use an HDTV as a main-screen so don't sit close enough to the computer, and I really don't want a cable anyway.

 

[miles01110]

I'm hoping for one that integrates well with OS X; so I can have my chat going to and from the headset, while I continue to play music etc. on my speakers, but with the option to easily redirect all sound to the head-set if I want to, without going into system preferences or whatever. I realise some of this will depend on the particular application.

I'm not even sure you can do this- you'll only be able to specify one audio output, meaning that whatever channel your music will be coming out of is the same channel that the voice of whoever you're talking to will come out of.

What kind of computer do you have? Apple notebooks have built-in mics and I believe iMacs do as well.

As an aside; are there other Skype clients for Mac? I already have a regular IM client (Adium) but it doesn't seem to offer Skype support, understandable but it'd have been nice to have an integrated one. As such what I'd like is an app that will integrate nice and cleanly in the top-right corner of my second screen, preferably as a contacts list with no buttons or title-bar, super-minimal.

You can download the MeBeam plugin to get a/v chat with Adium. Yahoo Messenger has a/v support, but Skype is probably your best bet.

 

[haravikk]

I'm not even sure you can do this

You can with applications that give you the option to choose a different input/output device from the system default. Skype and Second Life (two main voice-enabled apps I want to use) can both do this.

What kind of computer do you have? Apple notebooks have built-in mics and I believe iMacs do as well.

Mac Pro, no mic for me! I have an old wired Mac kicking about from my ancient Performa, while the sound-quality is actually really good, I'm looking for something a bit more convenient