Gifts Gadgets & Gizmos

Part 1 of a 3 (or maybe more) Part Series

It's that time of year again when everyone is shopping for that just right gift or accessory for the tech enthusiast on their holiday shopping list. Now while it is beyond me why anyone would wait several months for a cool gadget that was on the shelf today, apparently, there are others among you who consider things like food and clothing a priority, or at least that's what I've been told.

 In deference to those of you who insist on wearing shoes without holes, eating lunch on a regular basis and are in need of a special occasion to buy your technology, we give you, The Gift, Gadget and Gizmo Guide, Part 1, with suggestions for Bluetooth hands free devices.

A Word of Introduction About Bluetooth Headsets

Bluetooth headsets have been out for several years and have improved greatly in that time in design, utility and usable time (battery life between charges).  Manufacturers spew out specs and features touting everything from longest talk time to coolest fashion. All well and good, but like any other tool, either for business or personal use, it all comes down to utility.

In the case of Bluetooth headsets, our rating criteria are based on the 4 C's: Clarity, Comfort, Controls and Continuous usability (Battery Life). Anything beyond that, such as fashion and design or additional convenience features are just a bonus. If it doesn't do the job, I don't care how nice it looks, what colors it comes in or how fast it charges.

Just remember, ultimately what you're going to do is...

Stick it in your ear

Noise reducing Bluetooth headsets abound. You can find them ranging in price from about $39 to almost $200. The quality and performance varies tremendously, especially in the area of noise reduction, and not necessarily in direct proportion to the price. This article will focus on those products specifically designed for noise reduction and business class usage. We couldn't possibly test all of the products available but we offer 6 selections (in no particular order) that we feel offer the user both good performance and distinctive features. 

Jabra T5010

Jabra has been making wired and wireless headsets for years. They are one of the better known and respected manufacturers in this arena. They recently sent us their T5010 to test and, as would be expected, it did not disappoint.

The key design element of the T5010 is the sliding boom microphone. This feature allows you to answer and end calls and incorporates wind noise reduction technology to improve clarity. 

Another nice feature for business or personal use is the dual alert system. It has both a visual light and vibrating alert for those circumstances that require silent usage (I'm still not sure how I'm supposed to see a light flashing on my ear, but that's another issue). 

Other features include multi-device capability; so you can use it with 2 separate Bluetooth devices, and quick recharge capability from either an A/C charger or USB port. 

  We found the T5010's sliding boom very convenient to use. Sound and clarity were good and noise reduction was adequate to good. Calls can be answered and ended either by sliding the boom or with the push of a button. This can be especially handy on a cold day with gloves on.

Another nice feature is the separate on/off/pairing button. In the majority of cases we've found that a separate power button is much quicker and more reliable than headsets that require pushing a button differing lengths of time to achieve different results.  If you are not in excessively noisy environments and like the ease of a simple sliding boom microphone, this is a good choice. 

The Jabra T5010 has a talk time of up to 10 hours and standby time of up to 300 hours. At 20 grams with a flexible ear loop and external ear speaker, it is comfortable and easy to use. The T5010 retails for $79.99

Plantronics Voyager 520

Another veteran of the headset world, Plantronics also offers numerous solutions for the mobile warrior. We selected the Voyager 520 for review because of one of its key design elements, the one button control system. With one simple button you can answer, hang up or adjust the volume. 

The sound quality is excellent and noise reduction is very good. This model uses a simple windscreen to help filter wind noise along with its noise-cancelling microphone, which is quite effective. 

The Voyager 520 also uses a swivel ear loop so that changing from right ear to left ear doesn't require removing and replacing the loop. Also effortless and wonderful on cold days when you're wearing gloves. This is probably the quickest, easiest and simplest configuration we tested for moving the headset from one ear to the other.  I really like simple. 

 The 520 is also multipoint capable (you can use it with more than one device at a time) and at 16 grams, it is one of the lighter and more comfortable headsets we tested. 

The Plantronics Voyager 520 has a talk time of 8 hours and standby of 180 hours. It retails for $99.95

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