Has anybody found the perfect Bluetooth in-ear headset for their cellphone yet?

I've tried many different units of Bluetooth headsets with no concern for price and still have not been able to find anything that sounded perfect on both ends.

Not sure of which models but one of the Samsung units sounded great on one end, but not the other, and my BlueAnt was the opposite.

Please share your experiences and suggestions freely and let's make it a better world to talk wirelessly!

What I'd really like personally would be a unit that is as discrete as possible without a mic extension.

Re: Has anybody found the perfect Bluetooth headset for their cellphone yet?

I've had a really fantastic wired earpiece by Plantronics that I've used steadily for about 3 years. It is super comfortable. Radio Shack salesman told me about 3-4 months ago that Plantronics Bluetooth headsets got the most positive feedback from purchasers. Hope this helps! (Plantronics literature points out that they made the headsets for the Apollo moon landings. Wow.)

Re: Has anybody found the perfect Bluetooth headset for their cellphone yet?

I've been interested in the Nokia BH-905 which is $300 retail . It seems to have the best noise cancellation available, courtesy of a 10-microphone array and a lot of DSP power. I just wish its battery was user replaceable. You didn't say whether you cared about size. The BH-905 is a stereo headphone like a fairly large mp3 player headphone, but not as big as an aviation or studio headset. Frankly from my viewpoint, external noise is the biggest obstacle to using a cell phone outdoors, so noise cancellation is the king, and I'd accept any size of headset that I could reasonably carry in my back. One of those honking aviation sized units (about 2x the size of the BH-905) would be fine.

Re: Has anybody found the perfect Bluetooth headset for their cellphone yet?

I recently replaced my Motorola H3 which I've been using for the last four years. After a little research I opted for the Plantronics Voyager Pro. First off I wanted noise canceling which is now much more commonplace than when I got my first bluetooth in 2006. Secondly I wanted to get away from the stick-of-gum funky look and find something with a professional appearance. Basically I wanted a form-follows-function design. I also wanted a model that attached around the ear rather than the type which anchors inside the ear.

Performance wise I'm amazed how much better the technology is now versus four years ago. I've yet to have it misinterpret my voice commands and it dials the correct name in my address book every time. The previous Motorola H3 got it wrong about 5% of the time. I can even speak the commands with the window open and driving and it always relays it error free to my iPhone. Others I talk too can't even hear my stereo playing loudly in the background... amazing! Nobody complains of road noise anymore, and about the only time someone has trouble hearing me is in moderate and above wind.

The Plantronics Voyager Pro stays on my ear securely with rapid head movements. Battery life is decent, but I had to buy new charger accessories as it uses a micro USB plug.

I also forget to mention the best feature of all, at least for me. The Plantronics Voyager Pro doesn't have that stupid annoying flashing LED when in standby mode or on a call. I hated that with a passion, and always turned it off whenever I powered up my Motorola H3. Instead the Voyager Pro's multicolored LED only activates to confirm certain functions. It is possible to turn on the annoying flashing LED feature if you really want it, and it will retain the setting even after a power cycle. Likewise, turning it off again will be retained in memory even after a power cycle.

Comfort wise it just feels a little itchy when I first put it in my ear, as I'm used to the Motorola H3 resting on top of and not into my ear. However, after letting the Voyager Pro sit for a minute my skin adjusts and I forget it's there.

The short boom mic pivots easily for left or right ear wearers. The primary button (answer/initiate) when pushed causes the ear piece to press harder into your ear. I found the way around this is to pinch and hold the boom mic with your thumb and middle finger while your index finger pushes the primary button.

All in all I'm very happy with the Plantronics Voyager Pro. I have only the outdated Motorola H3 to compare it to so my opinion probably isn't as informative as someone who has owned a lot of different bluetooth models.

Re: Has anybody found the perfect Bluetooth headset for their cellphone yet?

Well I just spent some time looking at reviews. The BH-905 is apparently not as great as it seemed at first. The Plantronics Voyager Pro is an earpiece (goes on one ear) rather than a headset (I think of a headset as something that covers both ears to block out ambient sound) and it got numerous reviews that all rated it highly for sound quality but several said unfavorable things about its reliability. Lowbat, does yours seem well built? Also, is it easy to put on and off, and drop in a shirt pocket or a small hard case without having it snag on things? I don't want to wear it constantly, instead of putting it on when I want to make a phone call.

Re: Has anybody found the perfect Bluetooth headset for their cellphone yet?

canseeclearly said:

I've had a really fantastic wired earpiece by Plantronics that I've used steadily for about 3 years. It is super comfortable.

Click to expand...

My wife has one of their Discovery 925 headsets, and it is indeed comfortable, but sounds horrible on the other caller's end. It's so bad that quite a few people who talk to her regularly (myself included) ask her to call back when she's done driving.

I'd settle for a BT headset that just sounded decent. (I've all but given up the search for "perfect".)

Re: Has anybody found the perfect Bluetooth headset for their cellphone yet?

If you're a user that also enjoys listening to music once in a while then i can recommend the SE BHB-DS205. I've been using this set-up for about a year now and its been great for me:



And yes, i know the Shures are a bit overkill for the Bluetooth setup but its the only proper set of plugs i have atm (usually the Shures serve my direct-out iMod w Meier Corda2Move low gain amp).

I dont know about the quality on the new models, but this bluetooth headset is great!

Re: Has anybody found the perfect Bluetooth headset for their cellphone yet?

I don't understand the purpose of those bluetooth-to-wired IEM adapters. Why not just use a corded setup, if you want IEM's with wires? I thought the idea of bluetooth is to get rid of the wires.

Re: Has anybody found the perfect Bluetooth headset for their cellphone yet?

paulr said:

The Plantronics Voyager Pro is an earpiece (goes on one ear) rather than a headset (I think of a headset as something that covers both ears to block out ambient sound) and it got numerous reviews that all rated it highly for sound quality but several said unfavorable things about its reliability. Lowbat, does yours seem well built? Also, is it easy to put on and off, and drop in a shirt pocket or a small hard case without having it snag on things? I don't want to wear it constantly, instead of putting it on when I want to make a phone call.

Click to expand...

It's advertised as a headset, but I do see the confusion in the definition. I guess the OP should clearify it they're looking for a one ear or two ear model.

The Voyager Pro (VP) seems well built to me. It's got some soft rubber surfaces and some flexible rubber tubbing that maybe some think isn't sturdy because it isn't completely solid. The flexing is on purpose for adjusting to your ear. It could also be that the pivot points seem loose to some. I think this is just the way the rubber joints works. Taking it off is very easy, but getting it on takes a bit of training. Since the bulk of the VP rests behind the ear you need to slide it on your ear from the top and rotate the unit as you slide it down. Then you need to insert the speaker part in your ear.

The VP is bigger than most headsets (or earpieces), but fits in my shirt pocket just fine. You can fold the boom mic in if you want a more compact profile. It could snag on something else in a pocket but that really depends on what it's sharing the pocket with. Once you get used to it, putting it on takes only a second or two longer than the familiar candy-bar style bluetooth. I usually don't wear it all the time unless I'm at work or driving, otherwise I keep it in my shirt pocket.

It has other neat features like a built-in voice to tell you when your battery is low or when you mute or unmute the unit. I think the makers in Santa Cruz (Plantronics HQ) really put some thought into this model. Some reviewers say it looks goofy. I say it looks traditional and more business like, but not as obvious as say the boom mic Madonna wears.

I'm sure I'll have and use this VP for many years, unless I lose it first.

Re: Has anybody found the perfect Bluetooth headset for their cellphone yet?

LowBat said:

I guess the OP should clearify it they're looking for a one ear or two ear model.

Click to expand...

Thanks for all the posting so far and sorry for not having taken time to eliminate confusion about what I was actually hoping for. I'm using a BlueAnt and a Samsung unit, both of which are in-ear discrete types appearance-wise.

I'm going to check into some of the units listed here tomorrow when I'll have had some sleep and will also have a quicker connection. :thumbsup:

Re: Has anybody found the perfect Bluetooth headset for their cellphone yet?

paulr said:

I don't understand the purpose of those bluetooth-to-wired IEM adapters. Why not just use a corded setup, if you want IEM's with wires? I thought the idea of bluetooth is to get rid of the wires.

Click to expand...

For me its not as black and white as to get rid of all wires (trust me, a 20cm wire going from the back of your head to your collar wont get in the way of anything) but its more about having you phone free aka unwired. So i can still put the phone in my bag and throw it on the backseat of my car, i can put the phone on its cradle on my desk, i can use it for navigation on my car or just to quickly show websites or pictures to friends/colleagues without having to unplug/replug the device every single time!

And the advantages are quite obvious; Sound in both ears (so you can hear better without distraction in noisy environments) with earplugs/IEM or oldschool headphones of your choice (aka comfortable). I also found that the sound reception for a device located under your chin works way way better than any microphone growing out of your ear and control wise this center location also beats ear-only devices because the buttons are easier to reach with both hands.. You dont have one of those clamps or pressurizing pads on your ear, i for one wear glasses and found that combining this with one of those clamp things or oldschool headphones will start to irritate sooner rather than later and lets not forget to mention that you dont look like a complete geek (just like someone listening to his ipod talking into thin air ). But one of the main reasons for staying with this setup is that i'm able to use it under a motorcycle helmet! I can make calls and listen to spoken navigation whilst driving! No other single device setup can do that!

Mind you, this is all 100% personal preference, i tried quite a few different setups form the single earpiece with horrible sound quality both ways that also makes you look like an idiot to the high audio quality big full ear covering road-worker protective lookalikes (that dont give you the safer single ear option for in traffic) to of course the classic wire and i found that in my situation the adapter combines the best of all these minus all the disadvantages!

But than again, all personal really......

Least i forget, the watch also makes a great addition to this setup! CallerID, Reading text messages/Mail/calendar notifications, checking what band that one song is from again and stuff like that just completes any headset experience!

Re: Has anybody found the perfect Bluetooth headset for their cellphone yet?

kaichu dento said:

Thanks for all the posting so far and sorry for not having taken time to eliminate confusion about what I was actually hoping for. I'm using a BlueAnt and a Samsung unit, both of which are in-ear discrete types appearance-wise.

Click to expand...

Oh I see. Hmm. The BlueAnt has gotten some good reviews. I wonder about the Jabra Extreme, which looks discreet (there are different styles) and supposedly has advanced NC. But I think very small units are going to be more susceptible to noise.

I also have the impression that ANC at least for larger units is getting more powerful. Older units use two microphones (one for your voice and one for external sound) but the new Wolfson/Nokia system has ten mics so they can do fancy DSP stuff. Maybe they can go even further with bigger units. But that gets away from what you're looking for.

One theme I find in reviews is that the reviewers tend to try a lot of different ones. That suggests none are really satisfactory.

I really hate sticking anything into my ear canal, so to get good sonic isolation I probably have to use a sealing-type headphone with ANC.

Hey Pete:wave:

I have the Jawbone icon & it's pretty decent so far tho I admit this is my first.

Good reviews here:

http://reviews.cnet.com/best-bluetooth-headsets/

I'll second the Jawbone Icon.

I use it everyday, all day.

Great sound, great noise canceling and very lightweight.

:twothumbs

Re: Has anybody found the perfect Bluetooth headset for their cellphone yet?

Im also using a wired Plantronics. My wife says the sound quality is much better than any of the wireless ones I've had.

Re: Has anybody found the perfect Bluetooth headset for their cellphone yet?

Maybe I'll end up buying a wired unit but I'd really love to find a wireless solution that gives wired sound and don't mind if I have to pay a bit more to get it.

I tried a bunch of them and just gave up. They all stank. :sick2: The one that stank the least was the Aleph Jawbone. One set I had had a vibrate feature. I was cutting grass the first time I received a call on it. I almost jumped out of my skin, I thought a bee flew into my ear! Since then I've just been using a set of stereo headphones with a mic. Much easier, cheaper and far less aggravating.

Mark

Hybratech Orb...if it ever materializes.

I have a Jawbone Prime I picked up from Buy.com for around $40. It's been the only bluetooth headset I've actually used more than a day. It has amazing noise canceling (the videos on their website are actually quite accurate) and it comes with a lot of fitting options so it's comfortable to wear.

The Icon looks pretty nice, too, especially if you have an iPhone.

If you shop around, you can even pick up the Icon for cheap.