Related
It's pretty good,
My first concern was that the sound quality was going to be rubbish, like when you listen to music with a mono BT headset, something I never did because aswell as being mono it also cut all of the clarity from the music ! fortunatly I can report the music makes it through in hi quality sound
My second concern was that the audio player was not going to work properly fortunatly although not perfect it's working quite well !! most notably the track listing is not showing in the screen, the biggest down side is that it stutters a bit from time to time, not so much that you want to throw it aginst a wall, but enough to be mildly irritating (seems to be linked to a bit rate issue) . also rewind and FF do not work with the universal, but next/previous track does, as does pause and auto pause on phone ring. I am a bit dissapointed that nokia did not include any kind of equalizer settings I personally would like some more bass.
The phone side is quite impressive I like the ability to quickly redial the last number or voice dial however due to the same limitations as the audio player it is currently not displaying peoples names only their number !! otherwise works quite well.
The FM RDS radio is a nice addition, it works well considering the aerial is the strap around your neck
my biggest overall gripe (ie wont be fixed by a firmware upgrade) is the shape of the earpieces, for a company that have been making headsets for this long these are awfull, it's like wedging big uncomfortable lugs in your ears, the real jasjar earpieces are way more comfy (and have better bass response)
So far only tested with media player as reports would indicate that for now A2DP only works with media player
Re: My Review of the Nokis HS-12W A2DP BT Headset
ice_coffee said:
I am a bit dissapointed that nokia did not include any kind of equalizer settings I personally would like some more bass.
So far only tested with media player as reports would indicate that for now A2DP only works with media player
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Once the Pocket Music and Pocket Player people get on top of it, you can have remote control with their programs, as both offer equaliser/preamp.
Both are working on it.
Cool I look forward to it !!!
I have got to the bottom of my stuttering !! it is nothing more than signal strength, but I dont see why it is happening !! its hard to explain but the signal is not as robust as when you are just using it for phone calls. it claims 10 Meters and its true that in an open area with devices able to see each other both phone call and music will just about manage 10M however if you put an obstacle in the way (like a door) , where as the phone would continue to work the music player will not !! infact for 100% reliable music you are looking at 1 meter (open air) , and half that again if your phone is buried deep in your pocket.
check my review here:
http://www.mobileplanet.com/forumthread.asp?code=121010&thread=2
Guys whats your range like, i get no more than a meter away from my phone and the sound drops out, also have a hiss in the background that is really annoying at low volumes any thoughts ???
I did mention the whole 1 meter thing in my second post !!! I can't hear any hiss ( none loud enough to degrade the music anyway !!) tested with my Exec at full volume and media player also at full volume but the headset at minimum volume, ( thus giving the headset the best signal to noise ratio to play with )
ice_coffee said:
It's pretty good,
My first concern was that the sound quality was going to be rubbish, like when you listen to music with a mono BT headset, something I never did because aswell as being mono it also cut all of the clarity from the music ! fortunatly I can report the music makes it through in hi quality sound
My second concern was that the audio player was not going to work properly fortunatly although not perfect it's working quite well !! most notably the track listing is not showing in the screen, the biggest down side is that it stutters a bit from time to time, not so much that you want to throw it aginst a wall, but enough to be mildly irritating (seems to be linked to a bit rate issue) . also rewind and FF do not work with the universal, but next/previous track does, as does pause and auto pause on phone ring. I am a bit dissapointed that nokia did not include any kind of equalizer settings I personally would like some more bass.
The phone side is quite impressive I like the ability to quickly redial the last number or voice dial however due to the same limitations as the audio player it is currently not displaying peoples names only their number !! otherwise works quite well.
The FM RDS radio is a nice addition, it works well considering the aerial is the strap around your neck
my biggest overall gripe (ie wont be fixed by a firmware upgrade) is the shape of the earpieces, for a company that have been making headsets for this long these are awfull, it's like wedging big uncomfortable lugs in your ears, the real jasjar earpieces are way more comfy (and have better bass response)
So far only tested with media player as reports would indicate that for now A2DP only works with media player
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Please tell me one thing: I've seen the unwired.net review state that the headset can connect simultaneously to a headset profile and A2DP profile, but only if coming from the same device, meaning that you cannot have A2DP coming from your PDA and Headset coming from your phone. Is this true? The guy said it was a preproduction model and firmware can be changed, so could you please tell me if this is in your model too?
Yes, this is true. It can only connect with one device at the same time.
roma said:
Yes, this is true. It can only connect with one device at the same time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That means this device is crippled, as it is very common for one to have music on one device and use another as a phone...
Do you know of any other product that offers the same opportunities in a similar form factor desides this one? I've found this one from Sony Ericsson http://www.sonyericsson.com/spg.jsp...der&php=php1_10394&zone=pp&lm=pp4_1&pid=10394 but it does not have radio.
I'm looking for something very close with this Nokia headset. Only one thing left, that I think very important. I want to be able to unplug the earphones from the unit. This is important, so that when we get to the airplane, we can unplug it and still use the same earphones connected directly to the Uni without the BT on.
Secondly, it will enable the unit to be plugged into Car Audio AUX input.
I have saw a couple of headsets that have this feature, from GlobalSat, and from itech. But both do not have caller ID screen.
http://www.usglobalsat.com/item.asp?itemid=98
In short, I want something like this Nokia, but detachable earphones like the Globalsat or itech.
I'll probably be getting this as well very soon. Just one thing, has anyone tried it with wizard and if so, what was it like?
Anyone know where to get one in the US? All links found so far are sellers in the UK.
im sure expansys US are selling it !!
Since my review I have tried it with a nokia phone and it performs better, the issue with signal strength from 50CM or less through you body has been improved. The main problem might be the positioning of the BT chip in the UNI, this may never be fully resolved !!! unless someone can hack the UNI firmware to tell the BT chip to broadcast with more power than it should.
ice_coffee said:
im sure expansys US are selling it !!
Since my review I have tried it with a nokia phone and it performs better, the issue with signal strength from 50CM or less through you body has been improved. The main problem might be the positioning of the BT chip in the UNI, this may never be fully resolved !!! unless someone can hack the UNI firmware to tell the BT chip to broadcast with more power than it should.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, i will look at their site.
I bought the Nokia a few weeks ago but havent really tested until today. After reflashing the rom on my BA and installing the A2DP cab it works very well. Range is good with line of sight and the controls work ok. Only thing is an occasonal sound dropout of under a second, which has already been mentioned. Not enough to be a problem so far. Sound could use a bit more bass but that can be solved with a player that has an eq. Overall im happy with the Nokia.
I've had this headset for a week and am very pleased with it. Before this one I had the bluetake i-phono mini 450rx and they weren't half as good. This headset connects quikly, plays music with good sound, the radio is good with the programming of the radio stations literally being a minutes work. And most importantly, I can have a decent conversation with someone without problems. I experience stuttering ebery once in a while. But as commented above the range isn't great, but it's good enough to live with. The only downside at the moment is that I have to use windows media player that needs the playlist to be set up every time and the remote control doesn't work after a while of listening to music or after using other apps. I hope that this is a software issue. Before I had my mda I always had nokia phones because they were the best developed in their music functions. This headset strikes me as being the same good technology combined with A2DP. So in the whole I am very happy with this headset. I don't mind the earphones, I think they're comfy (far better than the original mda pro headset which gave bad sound and wasn't stable or comfy), everybody their own preferences. If I had to go for an alternative to this headset, I would go for the sony ericsson HBH DS970, but I didn't have the patience to wait for it and it doesn't have a radio built in. The only downside to choosing the universal was that it doesn't have a radio (something I've had in my nokia's for a while). Now my universal it complete and I am one proud universal owner!
ng
you can use the pocketmusic.You have to buy it but it works fine with the HS-12W. All the AVRCP commands works.
The HS-12W its really great. The only downside its that the universal dont use all of his functions. No ID caller, no play list in display, no message alert.
I belive that there is a software problem. I hope someone finds the solution.
But dont getr me wrong: the HS-12W is great.
I wouldnt say the HS-12W was great at all
my review:-
*sounds quality is good, but you can't unplug and plug in your own headphones.
*completely unergonomic design, Nokia should take a lesson from Sony on ergonomic remote designs, each button should 'feel' different. Each time I want to do something on the nOkia I have to actually look at it.
* it's pretty ugly, anyway no where near as nice as the HBH-DS970 (or whatver it's called ) the sony ericson one.
but as far as the basic connection, streaming that all works very well.
all just my humble opinion so take with pinch of salt
Here is a link to a user review of the sony ericsson headset http://www.howardforums.com/showthread.php?p=7463154#post7463154
I personally prefer the Nokia as it has a radio and the construction is solid. Also no problems resuming music after a call.
Everybody his own opinion, it all depends on what you want from a headset.
In any case I'm happy with this headset but agree that the headset has more possibilities than the universal uses, maybe in time there will be an update or something. But untill that time it works fine.
About pocket music, I'm not sure it works so great. I downloaded the trial version and tested it with some music, but the remote control didn't respond. Maybe I should try it again. I want to be sure the software is worth it for me before I buy it.
DEFINITIVE ROUNDUP of 3 st. BT headphones: Nokia HS-12W,Plantronics Pulsar 590 & 260
Unfortunately, except for Mobileburn’s excellent Bluetooth Stereo Headset Roundup , PDAMania’s two related articles (English summary here), Fire Dragan‘s roundup and some other HowardForums and XDA-Developers threads (see for example this and this), there are no real one-to-one feature & compatibility & quality comparisons between current Bluetooth stereo headphones.
This is why I’ve set out and made some SERIOUS tests with three current and popular Bluetooth stereo headphones: the Nokia HS-12W, the Plantronics Pulsar 590A/590E and the brand new Plantronics Pulsar 260.
Unlike with most other tests ever published on Bluetooth headphones, I’ve tested all these three headphones with a heap of (mostly my) A2DP-enabled gadgets to get a clear picture of their compatibility and sound quality with each of them.
Why compliance testing is useful, in the first place? As you may know, A2DP (that is, stereo Bluetooth sound transfer) is pretty new. As with several other areas of Bluetooth, A2DP is still suffering from its infant illnesses; particularly, major compatibility problems. This means stereo headphones that otherwise sound excellent with one (set of) sound source(s) won’t necessarily produce the same results with other devices.
The major incompatibility issues also result in a lot of contradicting reviews and user opinions about current A2DP-capable headphones. For example, when a user "only" has A2DP sound sources of one set but not of alternative ones, he/she may find a given, otherwise not fully compatible set of headsets just great or plain awful and useless - all depending on what sound sources he/she has tested the headphones against. For example, if a particular user uses his or her stereo headphones with the Widcomm Bluetooth stack (see below), he or she most probably will never run into compatibility problems and may even consider the given model excellent. On the other hand, if he or she happens to test against the Microsoft Bluetooth stack and he/she happens to have an incompatible headset, he or she will probably find the headphones plain useless. This, unfortunately, makes most reviews & user opinions pretty one-sided or even plain unreliable.
This is why thorough, multi audio-source tests are extremely important when you test Bluetooth A2DP headphones.
The most important area of these incompatibility issues is the vast quality difference between the currently two major Windows Mobile Bluetooth (BT for short) implementations (so-called “stacks” ) with some (not all!) stereo headphones models. For example, neither of the two currently available Plantronics headphones are able to play back anything coming from the Microsoft Bluetooth stack at a decent quality, unlike (some) other brands / models (for example, Nokia headphones) – if they are at all able to connect to these devices (for example, one - the 260 - of these models couldn’t even connect to two of my test Windows Mobile PDA’s). Additional compatibility issues like the built-in display not being compatible with, say, the caller name or the song title are just an icing on the cake.
This is why I’ve made sure I’ve tested these headphones with all the A2DP-enabled sound sources I could get hold of (there are MANY of them!): many Microsoft and Widcomm-based Windows Mobile devices and several non- Windows Mobile-based ones like Nokia's new, cheap (!) and pretty cool model 5300 XpressMusicor the even cooler and even flashier Samsung YP-T9J, in addition to major Palm OS-based models like the Tungsten 3 running Softick Audio Gateway, the great A2DP client for the Palm. That is, this test is not only written for Windows Mobile, but also for Palm users - or, for people just wanting to get a cheap (!) A2DP-capable music solution, let it be either based on the Nokia 5300 or on the Samsung YP-T9J, both being excellent choices for the price. As long as you use them with a fully compatible A2DP headphones, that is - as can clearly be seen, the Nokia 5300, A2DP-wise, is NOT really compatible with the two Pulsar headphones.
Many will ask after reading the previous paragraph “Hey! Did you try to fine-tune your Microsoft BT stack parameters to make the Plantronics headphones sound better?” My answer is YES, I’ve tried very hard to enhance sound quality and have published many articles on this question (see for example this one) and stay assured: in no way can you get flawless music playback quality on incompatible (for example, the two tested Plantronics-manufactured in this test and a lot of other models from other manufacturers) headphones.
In addition to A2DP (stereo sound transfer), I’ve tested them in “standard” phone headset mode too (that is, using them to conduct a phone call with a / the connected BT-enabled phone). I’ve paid special attention to checking whether the music playback is correctly resumed after terminating the call; whether the Call button is working as it’s supposed to; whether the volume and quality of the speech of both speakers’ are sufficient at the other side of the line and so on. I’ve also thoroughly tested the screen display compatibility of the Nokia headset, as far as its advanced features (caller name, music title, new SMS messages / unanswered calls / clock display). As can clearly be seen, these features are only compatible with genuine Nokia A2DP phones, NOT with Windows Mobile-based ones – or, for that matter, Palm OS / third-party sources like the highly recommended Samsung player. This, unfortunately, also applies to many? most? other Bluetooth stereo headphones with a built-in display – currently, I don’t know of any that really would work with all kinds of clients (most importantly, Widcomm- and Microsoft BT stack-based WM phones).
Note that this review isn’t a full review of / introduction to the three stereo headphones. The reader is kindly referred to the reviews in the “Notable reviews” row of the Comparison & Feature Chart. It’s there that you will, for example, see some nice shots of these devices. I just wanted to spend my meager time on some real-world, insightful, objective compatibility tests instead of wasting many hours on taking shots you can also see in other, already-existing reviews. Sorry for that, guys and gals - I think, given the lack of time I have, the information I provide here is MUCH more useful and, what is even more important, unique and genuine than just some flashy shots I would have wasted a lot of time on taking and, then, post processing.
The comparison chart
As with most of my other roundups, the vast majority of the information is in the Comparison & Feature Chart (CLICK THE LINK!). Make sure you open it in another browser window / tab, preferably maximized.
Explanation for the chart
Compliance report group: it’s here that I’ve listed the compliance reports of all the reviewed headphones.
Microsoft Bluetooth Stack-based Windows Mobile devices subgroup: in here, I’ve listed the MS BT stack-compliance of the three headphones, tested on many (!) Windows Mobile versions, testing both the older AKU2 (the first introduction of A2DP to – some – Windows Mobile models) and the newer, as enhanced-advertised AKU3+ (also delivered with Windows Mobile 6). (Please see this article for more information on what AKU's mean when not sure.)
As can clearly be seen, the Nokia headphones had absolutely no problem with either the A2DP (stereo sound transfer) or the headset (abbreviated as HS) modes. Not so with the two Plantronics headphones. The Pulsar 590, while still compatible with the stack, delivered pretty bad sound quality without any hope for quality hacking. The newer (!) Pulsar 260 was even worse in this respect: it not only sounds even worse than the Pulsar 590, but also fully incompatible (it won’t even connect) with two (Wizard, Trinity) of the test Windows Mobile PDA’s. Strange this model is newer than the venerable 590A/E and is even more incompatible with the, now, leading Windows Mobile Bluetooth stack.
Note that you will need to thoroughly read the HTC Trinity (or, for that matter, any AKU3) -related remarks for more information on making the sound stereo and high-quality. Fortunately, it’s just a simple registry key deletion (or, alternatively, running a free (!) tweaker app).
Note that, in the headset (NOT in the stereo A2DP) mode, I’ve also tested whether the microphone (see for example “mike / non-stereo sound transfer only” with the N560) of the headphones can be used to input sound to any sound recorder or Voice over IP (VoIP) application like Pocket Skype or Microsoft Portrait. This may prove very useful in cases; please see this article for more information on this question.
Widcomm/Broadcom Bluetooth Stack-based Windows Mobile devices subgroup: the second (and, unfortunately, shrinking) group of Windows Mobile-based devices use the Widcomm/Broadcom Bluetooth stack, which is, in general, far superior to the Microsoft one. Unfortunately, currently, very few current (WM5+) Windows Mobile-based devices use this stack (and not that of Microsoft): for example, all the HP iPAQ’s (including the WM5 upgrades of the originally WM2003SE-based hx series), the Fujitsu-Siemens phones (but, unfortunately, not the C/N-series non-phone models) and Acers.
Note that several, originally, MS BT stack-based Windows Mobile devices can be upgraded to use the Widcomm BT stack. With standalone (non-phone) models like the WM5-upgraded Dell Axim x50’s or the x51’s, this works just great. Note that I’ve linked in the available Widcomm upgrades from the chart. Of them, you will want to special attention to this article if you have a current HTC Windows Mobile phone – there are several HTC models already supported (to some degree – unfortunately, the headset mode doesn’t work with most of them) by the Widcomm BT stack.
Redial and voice dialing group: not only "old-fashioned", "dumb" mono Bluetooth headsets are capable of initiating calls from the headset (you don't need to fish out your phone from your pocket / bag but can initiate the call right from your headset), but also most stereo headphones. In here, I've tested how these headphones fare, compatibility-wise. I've tested: the "dumber" "redial the last number you've called" functionality (which can be activated by a double short press of the call button / button on the wire) and the much more advanced (it lets you call anyone) voice dialing feature. The latter works with both Microsoft's well-known, highly recommended Voice Command and Cyberion's well-known (it comes with most HTC Windows Mobile phones built-in, while Voice Command only comes with very few; for example, the HTC Trinity Dopod ROMs) Cyberon Voice Speed Dial app (see this thread for more information on the differences of the two apps and, in addition, Cyberon’s Voice Commander (not to be mistaken for Microsoft's Voice Command!) if interested).
Battery, recharging group: with stereo headsets, it's also very important to have as good battery life as possible. An example: while at work and I'm, say, working on a report or an article, I, most of the time, just put on my Pulsar 590A headsets and stream some music into it so that I can really concentrate on what I'm writing and not let ambient noise / calls distract my attention. I sometimes do this for 6-8-10 hours, during which I prefer NOT having to put my Bluetooth headphones on the charger. With my 590A (assuming I put it on the charger every night), which has a real, practical battery life of at least 11 hours (with even an outdoors volume level), I've never run into problems like "Hey, no batteries left; now, I really must put the headphones on charger". Unfortunately, other headphones not necessarily fare this good; for example, neither of the two ear buds-based models are able to play music for more than 7-8 hours.
Note that I've made these tests with repeating music and street-level volume. Fortunately, all the three headsets are capable of playing back music even at this comparatively high volume without noticeable distortion as long as you don't do any kind of bass boosting, which could very easily result in distortion. This may also mean you will have slightly (but not much! Think of 5-10% at most!) better battery life indoors, where you will want to use lower volume levels.
I've also benchmarked the time it takes the factory-supplied charger to recharge the headphones.
Note that, with the battery life and recharge time data, I've also given the official specs of the manufacturer, along with stating whether the official battery life / recharge time is over- or underestimated by the manufacturer (the first is definitely a positive thing with recharging and the second with playback). As can clearly be seen, Nokia has generally given worse specs than their headphones, while Plantronics did the opposite. (See for example the recharge time benchmarks!) A thumbs-up to Nokia and a thumbs-down to Plantronics.
Also note that I've made sure the batteries of the tested devices had already been through several charge / discharge cycles, meaning they have delivered their maximal capacity (as you may know, Li-Ion batteries require some – not many: in general, 2-3 – recharge cycles to achieve their maximal capacity (see this for more info on Li-Ion charging if interested).
Separate A2DP source / HS support group: in here, I've elaborated on whether the given headphones are capable of connecting to separate A2DP (music) and a headset (phone) sources at the same time. This will be of little relevance to anyone wanting to play back music off a capable Windows Mobile phone.
A side remark: By capable phones you will probably want to stick to as an A2DP player, I mean for example the HTC Wizard, which has unbeatable battery life because it decreases by 7-8% an hour (!) while playing back WMA's and MP3's by the built-in Windows Media Player and transferring the music via the "hacked" Widcomm BT stack to an A2DP headset and NOT overclocked (that is, run at the default 195 MHz). Note that the battery life would be even more stellar with a multimedia player consuming even less CPU cycles; most importantly, 40th Floor's iPlay or TCPMP / CorePlayer; read this all-in-one article for more info. Note that if you overclock the Wizard to, say, 240 MHz, the battery life will, while continuously playing back music via A2DP, definitely decrease; it still remains pretty good (11-12% decrease an hour).
Most non-TI OMAP-based phones or standalone PDA's (the Wizard is a TI-based phone, as with, say, the GPS-enabled HTC Artemis), on the other hand, will have much worse battery life - think of 20-25-30% charge drop an hour with most Samsung- and Intel XScale-based phones (assuming you use the factory battery and not a thick, heavy extended one), which is even made worse on some models with an utterly buggy A2DP implementation; for example, the HTC Trinity / P3600 (see this). Compare all this to the much more stellar results of, say, the Nokia 5300 (I've listened to music for some two hours on it via A2DP and the phone didn't show any significant battery level drop) or, even better, the, in my opinion, absolutely the best standalone multimedia player of today, Samsung YP-T9J. The latter has some 23-24 hours of music playback via wired headphones and some 15 hours via A2DP. Excellent battery life, I'd say - even better than that of the non-overclocked HTC Wizard, let alone most other current Windows Mobile-based devices.
Unfortunately, the Nokia headphones are NOT capable of multiple connections. That is, you can only conduct calls via your headphones on the same device you're also listening to music on - and not on another device. This, unfortunately, also means that, should you device to go for the Samsung YP-T9J (I most definitely will as I'm really-really fed up with the Microsoft Bluetooth stack incompatibility of my expensive Pulsar 590A - and with the bugs and inherent problems of the Widcomm BT stack hack for the Wizard, my, because of the stellar battery life, main A2DP source. Do check it out if you see it some time, it's definitely worth giving it a try!), you won’t be able to listen to some music while also being connected to your (other) phone.
Volume group: with stereo headphones and Bluetooth headsets, it's also very important to know whether it's able to produce a volume that is significantly over the ambient noise level of even the loudest street. That is, you'll want to consult the results here before you buy the headset and find out it's just plain useless because, say, of the very low maximal volume.
As can clearly be seen, both the Nokia and the 590A excel at this area; the Pulsar 260 really doesn't.
I've also examined the granularity of volume setting. The Nokia has 10 volume levels and is, therefore, a bit less sophisticated than the two Pulsars with 16 volume levels each. However, in practice, I haven't really run into situations when the less volume levels would have caused any problems with the Nokia, particularly if you also consider the fact that, with the Microsoft Bluetooth stack, the system volume (the volume you set on the Windows Mobile device) has a direct impact on the Bluetooth volume too. (This isn't the case with Widcomm.)
Feedback, responsiveness group: some headphones (particularly the Pulsar 260) produce very annoying beeps when you press any hardware button. This is why I've added an Audible feedback: button sounds row in here, where I've also listed how the tested headphones behave in this respect. As can be seen, both the Pulsar 590 and the Nokia are far better in this regard.
Visible feedback: The Pulsar models are also well known for their strong, blinking LED (Light Emitting Diode), which, unlike with some other manufacturer's headphones, just can't be disabled. This may be a stumbling block for many - for example, the blinking LED on the 590A/E will make it almost impossible to be used at evening / in the night with all the lights shut down.
Finally, the Responsiveness: data rate change back to HQ mode after it switching to low-quality mode and, then, back. This only applies to better, fallback-capable BT stacks (in the test, I’ve used the Widcomm one); the MS BT stack doesn’t support “falling back” to lower bit speeds to extend range (which means the range with the MS BT stack is much more limited than with the Widcomm one). test tests how quickly the tested headphones switch back to the fastest (in general, 320 kbps) Bluetooth data rate (meaning the best sound quality) after a "fallback" to a slowest, still available (around 180 kbps) speed. This parameter can also be important if you, say, often walk around / leave your current room, leaving back your sound source, AND you’re using an advanced, fallback-capable A2DP sound source like a Widcomm-based Windows Mobile device. The less the recovery time (as is the case with the Pulsar 590 and the Nokia but not with the Pulsar 260), the better.
Note that it's only the Widcomm stack that uses speed fallback to greatly extend the operation range; the Microsoft BT stack is far-far worse in this respect (too). This is why, if you move a lot without your sound source (as is the case with MS BT stack-based Windows Mobile device), you will encounter skips even when you are only 15-25 feet away from your PDA in the same room, let alone in another room (where the sound transfer will almost surely completely stop). With the Widcomm BT stack, you won't encounter any skips (in general), because it will just "fall back" to a lower transfer speed to extend the range (and avoid skips).
As can clearly be seen, the Nokia and the 590A switch back to the highest transfer speed (and, conversely, best audio quality) very fast, unlike the 260. In addition, I've found a small annoyance with both Plantronics models (but not the Nokia): if you play with volume changing too much (you, for example, turn the volume up entirely from being next to silent), the BT transfer speed will be reduced (meaning lower sound quality). Of course, this will, thanks to the gradual transfer speed (and, conversely, quality) increase, only temporarily have a bad effect on the sound quality. Again, don't forget you will only run into the consequences caused by the bug with the Widcomm BT stack - the much "dumber" Microsoft BT stack doesn't support speed fallback.
Finally, the Misc group lists a lot of unrelated information; for example, physical dimensions, the existence of a dongle shipped with the unit, the presence of a built-in FM radio, the charger type (in which, the 260 is the best), how good the supplied / online manual is (one of the stumbling blocks of the 260) and the reviews available on all these three headphones. This is closed by the Cons and Pros sections, which just recap the major problems and advantages of each model.
Verdict
If you have the Microsoft Bluetooth stack and won’t / can’t “hack” the Widcomm BT stack on your Windows Mobile device, then, forget the two Plantronics headphones at once. For you MS BT stack users, the Nokia headphones, which are of the few ones that are compatible with the stack, are pretty good when it comes to sound quality, even with pre-AKU3 devices. It’s, however, a bit overpriced and starts to become outdated – after all, it’s a one-year-old product. Also, it lacks some high-end features like support for two concurrent devices. As I'm not really sure you won't want to get for example the new Samsung YP-T9J to get rid of the low battery life of most Windows Mobile devices in A2DP mode, I'm not really convinced you should go for the Nokia either: should you ever get another A2DP sound source without a built-in phone, you won't be able to use it together with your cell phone while listening to music.
This also means none of these headphones are future-proof. As BT stereo headphones are still pretty expensive, I bet you won't be very happy when you purchase your next gadget, let it be a MS-based (without any chance to "hack" the Widcomm BT stack on it) Windows Mobile phone (which the Plantronics headphones have severe incompatibility problems with) or a non-phone-enabled A2DP music player like the Samsung YP-T9J (which the Nokia won't support in multiple device mode).
This means you should only get ANY of the tested headphones for your existing setup if you're absolutely sure you won't switch A2DP source platforms in the near future (you won't get another MS BT stack-based phone if you go for any Plantronics headsets OR won't get a separate, non-phone-enabled A2DP source, which you'd still like to use concurrently with your phone, if you go for the Nokia), which could easily render your expensive headphones useless.
Of course, I'll report on newer headsets and their compatibility issues in the future too; I really hope I'll be able to find some without major compatibility issues and with a far higher level of future proof than the three reviewed headphones. Keep reading my articles!
Recommended links
Highly recommended HTC Trinity-related thread (also see this for the Trinity + HBH-DS970 combo)
Wizard + A2DP
Jack Cook’s excellent BlueAnt X5 review (brand new & highly recommended!)
Fire Dragan’s roundup
Official BT Profile Overview - recommended if you'd like to know what Hands-Free Profile (HFP) or Headset Profile (HSP) are.
Mobileburn’s Bluetooth Stereo Headset Roundup (also linked from here)
Which Bluetooth Stereo Headset are you using?
Logitech Releases Next Generation Bluetooth Stereo Headphones (over a year old! If you’d like to know what Logitech will release in the near future, check out for example this). There is also Logitech FreePulse Bluetooth Headphones Review by The Register.
Bluetake's i-PHONO mini Bluetooth Headphone Kit Reviewed (over a year old!)
Lubix NC1 Review (new & recommended!);
Ubixon's Lubix Bluetooth stereo headsets: the magnets make the magic (a VERY short overview)
Tech Digest’s brand new Motorola S805 review
Motorola S9 Bluetooth Headphones - news only
Southwing SA505 Headphones
Etymotic ety.8 Bluetooth earphones reviews from both CNET and iLounge
Motorola HT820 review by IGN
Review: Koss Cobalt Bluetooth headphones are lousy, wireless
A Comprehensive list of A2DP Phones & Headsets
Sony DRBT10CX-stereo Bluetooth earbuds - another, highly recommended, new thread on the new Sony earbuds. It also compares these earbuds to the HBH-DS970 (related thread here), which has decidedly lower battery life (as opposed to the whopping 11 hours of the DRBT10CX) but is also less bulkier. As far as Sony’s future BT models are concerned, the DR-BT21G and the DR-BT50 need to be mentioned.
VERY short Pulsar 590 review.[/b][/b]
UPDATE (03/09/2007):
while the previous beta(s) didn't work with the Nokia HS-12W (see this user report), JETware Hands-free Extension for Windows Mobile phones may receive real Nokia HS-12W support in the future, meaning you'll also see the caller name on your Bluetooth headphones, not only the number. Other users have reported success with Sony's HBH-DS970 (see for example this thread for more info).
You can not upgrade the firmware (to, for example, fix the Microsoft BT stack-related, major issues of the Plantronics headphones or to add multiple source support to the Nokia) on any of the reviewed headphones. This is diametrically opposed to, say, Motorola's approach, who fixed the skipping problem present in early HT820 revisions with a firmware upgrade flashable to these models (see this thread for more info if interested).
Another HS-12W thread here. I also highly recommend the thread Sony Ericsson HSD-DS970 vs Nokia HS-12W.
wow good stuff! i was planning to buy a bluetooth headset and this really taught be a lot!!! i'll certainly be coming back to you for more information!!!
nunuxx said:
wow good stuff! i was planning to buy a bluetooth headset and this really taught be a lot!!! i'll certainly be coming back to you for more information!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, you're welcome
Great! Just on time, I was planning getting a Stereo BT headset for my Universal and Hermes.
Plantronics Pulsar 260
I received mine in yesterday and I can confirm they work with my Dash/Excalibur which has been upgraded the WM6 - beta/hack. Although about every 20 seconds or so there was audio dropout for a split second.
I don't know if that was due to the WM6 beta or the Pulsar. However, since this does NOT happen with my old Sony/Ericsson DS970 I'll error that it's Plantronics issue.
It sounds like you got a pre-production model because you didn't mention the extremely long cord which connects from the dongle to the headphones. Mine is about 43"!
What was the length of yours?
It would be helpful to know how long the cords on the other headsets are if applicable since this is the main reason I'm returning the Pulsar 260.
-John
Several new Plantronics Pulsar 260 reviews published
It was over a month ago that I’ve published an all-in-one comparative review & compatibility report (available HERE) on three A2DP (stereo Bluetooth) headphones. Now that the headphones have also arrived at the U.S. too (at last, something we Europeans got way earlier than you Americans ), a lot of reviews have surfaced on well-known headset / headphones manufacturer Plantronics’ new Pulsar 260 also featured in the above-linked roundup.
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Unfortunately, as has been emphasized numerous times by me and a LOT of other mostly XDA-Developers and HowardForums users (I really recommend following the BT & A2DP-related posts in these two forums, there are some very knowledgeable people there; for example, Fire Dragan in the latter forum), the current state and implementations of the A2DP standard are far from perfect and interoperability is REALLY reduced. This means on paper A2DP-capable headphones are not guaranteed to co-work with any A2DP sources. An example of this, in addition to the major sound quality problems with the MS BT stack, is the constant reconnection problems (resulting in annoying beeps and pauses) with the Nokia 5300. And, of course, the sound quality issues...
This also means you WILL want to read my review & comparison. Believe me, no matter what some people state, these headphones deliver REALLY BAD sound quality when used together with the Microsoft Bluetooth stack coming with almost all current Windows Mobile-based devices (except for the Acer models, the HP iPAQ’s (including the hw6915) and the Fujitsu-Siemens T830). I’ve also elaborated on these issues in this PPCT thread – it’s REALLY worth giving a read to see why I state they are incompatible with the stack. You’ve been warned – don’t come telling me you’ve shelled out $50…$100 for a really bad-sounding pair of BT headphones because I haven’t warned you
OK, the new reviews, packed with photos:
The Gadgeteer review
GearDiary review
Digital Trends review
CTIA 2007 Blog post; related PPCT thread
BTW, upon the European release of the 260, Plantronics still didn’t have the promised and, in the leaflet accompanying the headphones, referenced online documentation. Now it’s out and available here.
Thank you for the great reviews!
Any success on getting the widcomm stack working on the trinity. I have tried the hermes version and am able to get it going without the memory errors but it does not seem to actually invoke the bluetooth radio(even though the driver loads)--no sensing of / or discovery by other bluetooth devices.
Just bought the Moto S9 stereo bluetooth headset
After trying out the headset in the store to make sure it would fit around my large noggin, I splurged on the Motorola S9 bluetooth stereo headset. I'm using it with my 8525 (Hermes).
The headset works just like the manual says, no surprises. It paired instantly, and stays paired. I use another bluetooth accessory (my car) more often, and the phone switches between the two without any issues.
The sound is very good; better than the supplied wired headphones, and significantly louder. The callers on the other end say it sounds just fine. The microphone is actually in the right earpiece, so during calls, the sound only comes out the left earpiece. There's no microphone hole on the headset, so it must use the ear canal for acquiring the voice.
I can skip tracks and pause playback in WMP from the headset, and I can answer/end calls. Supposedly you can mute a caller, do voice dialing, etc. but I don't really use those features, so I haven't tested them
I called my home answering machine and left a message to hear what I sounded like. Whether I was talking quietly or loudly the volume stayed consistent. The microphone must offer some level of compression to make this happen. That's convenient because these things are almost invisible when I wear them (kinda long hair) and talking softly keeps me from attracting too much attention.
All in all, a very good purchase even though I already have 2 other bluetooth (mono) headsets. (Which will probably never be used again.)
Now that WM6 is officially coming for Dopod D810 (asian Trinity) http://www.dopodasia.com/global/SEA/news/20070503_WM6_upgrade.html
Does anyone know if there is any change of / improvment to the MS BT stack for WM6?
I have VERY good new for most WM6 users: make sure you read http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=1296053
hi guys, my first post
i have recently purchased plantronics pulsar 260, so im writing my thoughts down:
1. optic:
- earphones: looking like some random crappy earphones
- receiver: is ok
2. clips:
- microphone clip: is ok, holding strong
- receiver clip: well, now i know why plantronics gave us such long cable, i didnt found any suitable place on my shirt to fix it into, clip is uselles, so it went to ... my pocket
3. setup:
- pairing: no probs
- led: annoying, it shows battery status only while starting the device
- keys: beeping on every key-press - annoying while listening to music
4: sound quality
- htc hermes: with different roms, diferrent a2dp settings (jointstereo, bitpool, etc) - was just torrible
- se w950: same as hermes easy to pair with poor quality (w950 dosnt allow any advanced settings)
in both cases, sound was bad, similar to a bad tuned radio station,
there is a huge gap between w950 wired (hpm-82) and pulsar 260 earphones, in favor of w950
well im dunno, if those earphones are fake or are supposed to be this way ..
for now, im not going to buy anything more from plantronics
ps. support was really nice to speak with, but in the end could not help at all, anyway my + to them
ps2. sry for my bad eng
My Plantronics Pulsar P590 works great with all my A2DP enabled WM devices including my beloved Trinity, not sure why you don't recommend them with MS Stack, they do work great for me under both usages (music or calls)!!!
I'm really pleased with it's performance!!!
Happy owner of a Plantronic Pulsar 260 since a week, I confirm that it works perfectly with my trinity. (ROM AXEL 2.8.0.1 - HTCustom Join stereo 58)
Sound is load and clear, no disconnection.
Very good autonomy. (more than 8hours playing music)
I'am very satisfied with this headset, very good buy.
What headset are you all using with your HC Touch?
Let us know what audio quality is like for handsfree phone function and listening to music/MP3s. Please also share your experiences in using the included HTC headset (which I think is appalling)
darthbane2k said:
What headset are you all using with your HC Touch?
Let us know what audio quality is like for handsfree phone function and listening to music/MP3s. Please also share your experiences in using the included HTC headset (which I think is appalling)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Had it two days - Sony DR-BT10CX Bluetooth stereo/handsfree - great for running and excellent sound quality for both calls and music.
Cheap too!
http://www.mymemory.co.uk/memory/Sony/DR-BT10CX/Bluetooth/Stereo/Headphones
That looks great.
Unfortunately I have already a great headset... with 3.5mm connector.
Is there any MiniUSB-to-3.5mm-adapter?
Thanks
Here
http://www.expansys.com.au/p.aspx?i=149937
Yes, but this is without microphone. Just for listening music.
fenderbender said:
Yes, but this is without microphone. Just for listening music.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Doesnt have a button but it has a mic
http://www.expansys.com.au/p.aspx?i=149936
Thanks, but the description says:
Description
Use this adaptor to convert the HTC Touch extUSB socket to support any 3.5mm stereo headphones. The adaptor also has a hangup/answer button for normal voice calls through a stereo headset.
So I think it has a button
Thats great
Jawbone headset is amazing
I have ordered one of these after hearing from many people just how good these are. I got mine from Expansys.co.uk
http://www.jawbone.com/meet.html?utm_source=site&utm_medium=promo_demo
All the best,
Sam.
PianoSam said:
I have ordered one of these after hearing from many people just how good these are. I got mine from Expansys.co.uk
http://www.jawbone.com/meet.html?utm_source=site&utm_medium=promo_demo
All the best,
Sam.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Man, those things look/sound badass...I might have to pick one of those up - I don't really have a quiet car, and I LOVE driving with the windows down! Hefty price tag on eBay though - pay to play though, right?
If you are looking at the DR-BT10CX, I suggest you get the DR-BT20NX instead because it got a remote for music - same earbuds and receiver essentially.
darthbane2k said:
What headset are you all using with your HC Touch?
Let us know what audio quality is like for handsfree phone function and listening to music/MP3s. Please also share your experiences in using the included HTC headset (which I think is appalling)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The HTC headset works fine for calling and music. For use in the car I have a jabra BT5020 and quality is good, auto-pair ofcourse.
I'm thinking of DIY-ing the usb to 3.5mm audio jack, does anyone have any idea how the usb connectors corresponed to the audio outputs? thanks!
Been shopping around now, since I saw that Jawbone...but I'm wondering...
Is there a Stereo Bluetooth headset with noise-canceling technology out there that anyone knows of???
I've been searching, but to no avail.
Motorola S9 for Stereo and Plantronics 665 for phone
If I am not listening to music I use the Plantronics 665. If I want to listen to music and take calls I use the Motorola S9 stereo BT headphones. The S9 is amazing for quality and fit. Don't let the strange (to some people) design fool you. These are high quality headphones. I have compared these to the Motorola 805s (DJ style) and HT820 (behind the head) and expected the S9 not to sound as good - not true. All 3 Motorola headsets sound great, but for the size the S9 sounds overall just as good if not better. I didn't like the sound of the Jabra BT headphones and the Plantronics over the head (590A) headset sounded good, but not as good as the S9.
By the way I tested a Jawbone and was not impressed at all. Didn't like the fit, sound was only OK and if you need the noise cancellation you have to press a button on the unit for 3 seconds to turn it on - each time. Certainly this is good technology, but for me the Plantronics 665 fits better and over all sounds much better.
I am using a Jabra BT620s for music and calls. Sound quality is very good. Nice fit, good battery performance and fits nicely on my head It has blue leds on both sides that blink when in use, its a bit weird at first but once you get past the oooohs and aaaahs from everyone its great
Has controls aswell (next, previous, volume up/down, accept call/hang up, play/pause) The accept/hangup key has the extra function when not in a call, it activates the voice command program so you can talk commands to your phone
has anyone tried SE HBH-DS970 with this ? comments ?
thx
sorry this is a double post
Anyone tested the HTC Touch E100 or W100 Wired Remote Control?
http://www.expansys.com/htc/p_htc_item.aspx?i=147565
http://www.expansys.com/htc/p_htc_item.aspx?i=150194
-Does it work on the Touch?
-Does it work with HTC Audio Manager?
-Does the FM Radio works?
What's the difference between E100 & W100 model?
Regards,
tigabert
I have a Nokia CK-7W buildin carkit in my car (company carkit) which also had bluetooth. Unfortunatly this bluetooth connection gives alot of problems when calling.
I can hear people fine but they hear constant break-ups in the connection. I tried it with a Sony bluetooth headset and everything worked fine.
So dont use the touch combined with a Nokia CK-7W
I'm using the Sony BT20NX and theyre absolutely the best. High quality stereo audio with AVRCP (?) remote profile which works with Windows Media Player, Audio Manager, and TCPMP. The headset is comfortable to wear, blocks outside sound so you can enjoy music at a low volume. The sound is clear and the connection is solid. The buttons are easy to use and I use it for MS Voice Command too, which is awesome. Perfect headset, if you can still find them (I heard theyre discontinued).
What stereo blue tooth HEADSET do you recommend for Wizard? I am interested into a head set not very expensive ...but I want also to be able to listen music or to speak at the phone with it.
Sony DR-BT30QS
http://www.play.com/Mobiles/Mobile/...30QS-Bluetooth-Headphones-Silver/Product.html
Only £17.99 delivered, from play.com
Jabra BT620s
About 60 euro's here in the netherlands. Great piece of headset Good quality audio, has buttons to control the mediaplayer (WMP as well as the HTC Audiomanager work ) and can offcourse accept calls and control voice command.
what about sony ericsson HBH-DS970 ?
thx
well I am answering my own post, ,
the working features are,
1. smooth A2DP (skipping in case of high proc. usage e.g. wifi brosin and stereo bt music simultanous)
2. after a call music resumes and in the earphone.
3. AVRCP
4. Caller ID ! u can see both the name & the number on the lcd ( with jetware ).
regards
I'll have the Jabra BT620s in the mail today... I'll post a review asap.
Jabra BT headphone
As promised;
I got the Jabra headset yesterday, and last night I was able to try it. First of all, sound quality is better than expected. Setup was somewhat confusing, since the manual is not so clear. But, I managed. Made a couple of phonecalls, all fine. Overall, nice set of headphones. Luckily, the flashing blue leds can be turned off.
Hi
I use the Anycom BSH-100. The Headset is not bad at all, with HS/HF/A2DP/ AVRRCP and a up to 200 h standby + upto 12 h music playtime.
Tech data here: http://www.anycom.com/products/bluetooth_audio_video/stereo_headset_bsh_100/?id=102&partno=CC3300
There is no buildin Microphone. A small (about 3 cm) mic is attacht to the side mini usb-jack. This mini usb-jack is also used to charge the batteries. Most of the time i forgett the mic, when charging the Headset, so i use the Headset often to listen to mp3s and recive calls without using the headset. ( a bild in Mic would be better) The headset goes to mute when a call comes in.
picture here: http://files.anycom.com/images/products/lifestyle/cc3300_lifestyle_01.jpg
+ (plus):
Handling is very easy.
Long Standby & playtime
small transport size (faltable)
- (minus):
seperate Mic
Sound Quality is OK but not as good as a normal wired-headset. (maybe normal for BT)
no option to turn of the flashing blue led
best regards Oliver
Hi, Anyone using Jabra Bt320 with the Touch? I tired to connect for stereo headset but its fails. I had the same problem with Dopod 810 but some after making some changes in the registry the problem was solved. I tired the same tweaks in Touch but it fails. Any suggestion from the forum? Thanks
I used the BT320
and the stereo was fine. I also made the adjustments to the registry and it carried on working fine.
However, I sent the unit back because I bought a Jabra 120s with it and found that, after initial pairing problems (which went away), there was an audio lag which made watching TV rubbish!
When you pair with the BT320s, you should have the option to use it as either
1. a hands-free or
2. wireless stereo.
If you don't, delete the device from your Touch then...
...plug the BT320s into it's charger, three times, for 4 seconds each time.
Now pair again and the option for wireless stereo will magically appear.
Try Motorola S9. Nice and solid. Matches Touch design too.
www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826555005&Tpk=motorola+s9
EmilianM said:
What stereo blue tooth HEADSET do you recommend for Wizard? I am interested into a head set not very expensive ...but I want also to be able to listen music or to speak at the phone with it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You get what you pay for comes to mind with BT headsets.
I have yet to come across one headset that plays great stereo sound
and gives you great call quality. However, for stereo sound the Motorola
S9 kicks arse over anything out there and the Jawbone does the voice
calls better than anyone out there. S9 is around $100US and the Jawbone
is $130US ish. Not cheap but you won't be looking to replace them because
they don't do their job. Now if you have a big melon the S9 maybe a problem.
AE!
Hi.
I got the HT820 from Mototola.
Sound is good.
Easy installation on Touch.
Noise cancelling.
Looks a little bit spacy but fits good.
AND I payed 12€ for it on ebay.de.
I use BT320s
Hi,
I am using Jabra BT320s, It just works fine with my Touch. I did the in pairing initially, but after I upgraded with latest firmware I don't have any problem in pairing.
firmware can be found here
http://rapidshare.com/files/51865424/JabraBT320swebupdate_1077.zip
Please read the instruction to update the firmware
Well i got the Motorola BT820 last week, very satisfied
great sound nice volume, little weakness but accepteble by my standard
when theres a lot of static noise the build in mic does piick up on that a bit.
i use it for mp3 mostly, and o yeah its comfortoble too
price is nice if i compare to other headsets,
still thinking about trying the new logitech headset
is there anybody who has experienced it
I have posted a question regarding a small problem with the Bb20s right here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=326489
This is a description of my problem, as posted. Does anyone have an idea?
---
Received my Jabra 620s yesterday. First impressions: it is quite big and heavy, but it is better than earplugs ;-) Sounds quality is quite good.
Here is my problem: After pairing the headset with my device, everything behaves as expected until some event (this happend on multiple occasions, different trigger but the same result): the headset controls still function (i.e. I can skip songs etc), but the HTCs audio is routed to the HTC speaker instead of the headset. I cannot fix this, the only way is to remove the bluetooth connection, repair and I am good to go again.
I'd second the comment on the Motorola S9. I got the S9 to go with my old magician, but now that I've upgraded to the Touch, things are even better.
The S9 workd flawlessly for stereo music and also as a regular hands free headset. I can't tell you how many times I've been out jogging, litening to music and I get a cal from people. They say the call sound quality is good, but always wonder why I'm breaking fast.
I hve changed to HTC BH S100 (in-ear is better for jogging)
sound quality is good, no problems...yeah should be no problems when using HTC stuff only ;-)
i found the Motorola S9s to be outstanding. I have never been so happy with a BT headet.
Sony DR-BT30 Q
Got it for 34 euro's and they make me happy.
Good reach on the touch compared to my wizard
I am looking for a bluetooth headset with loudness. I need wireless headset but with good sound. Please suggest me the best bluetooth heaset for music. I require loud music level and not soft music. I know that bluetooth headset does not have loud volume but if anyone can suggest me loudest of all available in the market it would be helpful. My main purpose is music and not calls. Wired headphones are very difficult to listen to music. I had few options
1: Sony SBH 80
2. LG Tone HBS 750 or 800
3. Plantronics Back beat
4 Motorola S11
Any headset would do for me as far as it has loudness. I have checked reviews for all but no where they mention loudness of the device
As far as my experience goes and giving that probably there's no mention of sensibility in the specs, I would go for IEM's. The speaker is closer to the eardrum and there's also the added benefit of phonic insulation.
It seems no one is ready to suggest me I was expecting reply frm ppl using from any of above models mentioned.
I reviewed in this forum a lot of wireless bluetooth headsets (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2192333), including HBS-730, HBS-800, BlueBudsX, BackBeat 2, Sync by 50, ROX, and Pump HD. They all sounded equally loud. With wireless connection you have two levels of volume control, using volume on BT headset (about 7-8 clicks) and volume on your phone. Sometime people forget to adjust volume on their phone. Also, making it very loud distorts the sound, bt headsets have their limitations.
Among the one I tested, BlueBudsX, BackBeat2, and ROX all have good sound. I prefer ROX. HBS-800 is also great, but it's more conservative looking, not for extreme activities.
vectron said:
I reviewed in this forum a lot of wireless bluetooth headsets (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2192333), including HBS-730, HBS-800, BlueBudsX, BackBeat 2, Sync by 50, ROX, and Pump HD. They all sounded equally loud. With wireless connection you have two levels of volume control, using volume on BT headset (about 7-8 clicks) and volume on your phone. Sometime people forget to adjust volume on their phone. Also, making it very loud distorts the sound, bt headsets have their limitations.
Among the one I tested, BlueBudsX, BackBeat2, and ROX all have good sound. I prefer ROX. HBS-800 is also great, but it's more conservative looking, not for extreme activities.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Kindly suggest me one brand that I can purchase straight away. It is very difficult to check reviews and ten go buy one. I want a direct answer to take one. I want to know about HBS 800 ....I heard that the loudness is reduced in 800 compared to 730/750 is it true or it is equally loud as the previous models ?
skhan33 said:
Kindly suggest me one brand that I can purchase straight away. It is very difficult to check reviews and ten go buy one. I want a direct answer to take one. I want to know about HBS 800 ....I heard that the loudness is reduced in 800 compared to 730/750 is it true or it is equally loud as the previous models ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Equally loud, and in HBS-800 they updated drivers to use premium one from JBL. Much better sound. HBS-800 is all around great bluetooth headset since it sits around your neck, has extra long battery life, all dedicated controls, good phone call quality, and with a right selection of eartips the sound quality is pretty good. You can also do some running around with it, just no crazy jumping For sports and exercising, I like ROX better, but sounds like you better off with HBS-800.
I have and enjoy a Philips SHB4000/28. They are on-the-ear, light, run long enough, comfortable, and sound fine. I mostly use for podcasts, but they are fine with casual music listening. If you like on-the-ear (I don't like in-ear), then I recommend them for their price.
anyone know of any of these headsets that has no earphones included, meaning you can use your own?
I've seen plenty but they all seem to use the older bluetooth standards that had very low quality.
I reviewed one from Antec (check my sig with review links), but it was an old BT standard and sound quality even with my best headphones was crappy So far, I haven't found any bt receivers without headphones with a high quality sound. Often, companies fine tune headphones and receiver and use either their own proprietary DSP decoding or aptX with BT4.0 - that's why the best wireless sound quality available only from a "bundle" of receiver and headphones, for now...
I have the hbs 750..bad bass ...also had 700 and 730 both lost volume over time
skhan33 said:
I am looking for a bluetooth headset with loudness. I need wireless headset but with good sound. Please suggest me the best bluetooth heaset for music. I require loud music level and not soft music. I know that bluetooth headset does not have loud volume but if anyone can suggest me loudest of all available in the market it would be helpful. My main purpose is music and not calls. Wired headphones are very difficult to listen to music. I had few options
1: Sony SBH 80
2. LG Tone HBS 750 or 800
3. Plantronics Back beat
4 Motorola S11
Any headset would do for me as far as it has loudness. I have checked reviews for all but no where they mention loudness of the device
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I drive for a living so these are the best option for me with text readout but i gave found they lose volume level after a while... Need to figure out if it's hardware or software... Try the others let me know about sound and text readout please