Bluetooth Headset Review
My Motorola H850 was lost, so I've tried three of the latest & greatest headsets, here's my review...
| PlantronicsDiscovery 640E | Motorola H700 | LG HBM-730 | |
| Pictures | |||
| Online Price | $65 @ PriceGrabber.com | $66 @ PriceGrabber.com | $63 @ PriceGrabber.com |
| CNET Review | 8.0 Consumer | 8.0 Editor, 5.8 Consumer | n/a |
| Other Reviews | Amazon.com | Amazon.comMobileTechReview | Apartment 305 |
| While Charging | Red light | Red light | Red light |
| Claimed Talk Time | 5 hrs | 6 hrs | 4 hrs |
| Claimed Standby Time | 70 hrs | 200 hrs | 150 hrs |
| After Charging | No indication | Green light | No indication |
| On/Off | Press button | Flip boom (or press button) | Press button |
| Charging Comments | Uses an docking sleeve to charge | Uses standard USB type connector | You must remove a little dust cover |
| Unique Features | Can get an extra 10 hours by using the included AAA charger | Had a flip boom to answer and turn on | Very tiny |
| How Does it Stay Up? | Gel ear insert (3 sizes) | Over the ear clip | Light over-ear and light in-ear (both required) |
| Speaker Design | Soft gel ear insert (3 sizes) | On/Over ear design | Simple ear bud (like ear bud headphones) |
| Speaker Quality | Clear, even at high volume | Clear, but distorts at high volume | Not as clear as the others, sounds "small" |
| Microphone Quality | Loudest | Strong | Medium (not as loud as the others) |
| Usage Notes | Feels like the ear-piece is going to fall out, but it hasn't yet. | Can't just flip it open to answer a call. | The indicator LED is right under the button so you can't see when you're using the button. A pain for turning it on or off. |
| The "Mom" Test | Best audio quality! | "It sounds like you're off in electronic land." | Sounds muffled |
| CONCLUSIONMy Review Comments | This is my favorite and the one I ended up keeping! I like the small footprint and in-ear design for better audio and comfort. If you don't mind the ear bud feel, this is a good choice. It still hasn't fallen out once yet in the last month, but I wouldn't push it by going jogging with it. | A good option if you like an ear clip. It did not answer the phone quickly when turned on by opening the flip boom. Probably works best with a Motorola phone. | It's small. That's about it. Real small. Nothing fancy, poorer audio quality, and a few small design inconveniences make this an easy 'no'. |
Hope this helps someone out there...
Comments
- Anonymous
February 07, 2007
Nice review, Noah. I got a chuckle out of your "The 'Mom' Test" review category. That was interesting. You are knowledgeable, creative, and down-to-the earth all at the same time.