Planet Technology

Motorola's compact Motopure H15 Bluetooth headset has a flip microphone, ignores background noise, and responds reliably to voice-activated dialing.

The $130 Motorola Motopure H15 is the only bluetooth headset I've tested with a folding microphone design. To talk or turn on the headset, you flip open the boom, which then sits on your cheek (a bit like a mini-clamshell mechanism); closing the boom conserves battery life.

The H15 is just a tad smaller than a chubby thumb. It's light and compact, but getting the fit right took a little while. Motorola provides various cushions to place over the earbud, and I settled on the smallest oval-shaped one available, which helped anchor the headset in my ear canal. Even though the headset did not feel 100 percent secure or comfortable, owing to my small ears, it sat unobtrusively on my cheek.

Place this great-sounding Bluetooth headset straight in your ear--the Plantronics Discovery 925 requires no fuss or adjustments.

The Plantronics Discovery 925 Bluetooth headset ($150 as of December 1, 2008) was a joy to use in my tests. This model, which lacks an over-the-ear piece, required very little effort to place in my ear. With one hand, I just popped it in and settled it into place: It stays put, even though it has no earhook.

The secret? The tip sports an extra (but tiny) loop-shaped piece of plastic that sits outside the ear canal. This piece has a stabilizing effect on the headset, and helps prevent it from slipping out. I was surprised at how snug and stable the headset felt; even when I threw my head back in laughter, the headset budged not an inch. Likewise, it felt solid in its position when I walked around. Another plus: The Discovery comes with small, medium, and large tips.

The headset has a long V-shape, making it look a bit like an old-fashioned bobby pin. Measuring almost 3 inches, this model is the longest one we reviewed for our latest headset tests. As such, I was constantly aware of the Discovery resting on my cheek--but given how sturdy the unit felt, that feeling didn't bother me. (As for visual appeal, one observer thought the Discovery looked dorky. I don't agree, but that's just me. You be the judge.)

The Discovery's audio quality was top-notch. Call recipients reported that my voice sounded crystal clear, as if I were standing beside them, and one described the quality as better than that of a cell phone handset. When I turned up the music on my stereo considerably, however, the other parties could hear it; they said it was a little distracting, but not bad enough to drown out my voice. When I used my phone's voice-dialing features (such as "call Bekah mobile"), I had to repeat my commands a few times before the Discovery would get it right. At the edge of the range limit (33 feet), my voice sounded crackly, but calls did not drop.

Accessing the big call control button at the top of the Discovery was easy. The skinny volume button, tucked away at the back of the earpiece, was harder to reach; its awkward placement took some getting used to.

One bonus I appreciated is the Discovery's rechargeable carrying case. The case, which can also act as a storage unit, comes with its own battery; when I was miles away from a computer or power outlet, I was still able to give the Discovery a full charge for 3 hours of use (though the case itself, at that point, needed to be recharged, of course).

For color-conscious headset wearers, the Discovery comes in gold, black, and cerise versions; the accompanying charging cases match the headset color.

The Aliph Jawbone Bluetooth headset may have a rugged look, but it offers excellent audio quality and a clean design.

When it comes to Bluetooth headsets, what's your definition of "sleek"? If you say it means "minimalist, understated, and textured," then the second-generation Aliph Jawbone fits the bill. But if you say it means "shiny, smooth, and dainty," well, cross the Jawbone off your list.

In my opinion, the $130 (as of December 1, 2008) new Jawbone is sleek--to the touch, and in the wearing. And I mean that as a good thing. The Jawbone topped our latest round of headset tests.

The front of the Jawbone sports a textured strip or outer shield, which looks and feels like a mosaic of miniature diamond-shaped tiles. To initiate or end a call, or to dial by voice, you press designated areas on the headset, going by touch alone--the Jawbone has no visible buttons. This is not a big deal, however, because the headset's design, which has a wide enough area on the surface, makes feeling for the correct portions easy from the get-go. And you're not totally left in the dark: You can see the indicator light (for the charging status, for example) through a slit in the shield.

In a nice touch, Aliph offers earhooks of four different sizes: two medium and two large (one pair is leather and the other is rubberized metal). And even though the earhook is fixed in position, it felt comfortable enough--and that's coming from someone for whom the earhook design rarely works.

In my hands-on tests, the audio quality impressed. My contacts reported that my voice sounded crisp and clear during calls almost all of the time. On one call, though, the person at the other end thought I sounded far away.

The new Jawbone's ability to eliminate background noise was even more impressive. When I made calls in two loud situations (one with machinery whirring and another with loud music playing), the call recipients heard only my voice. When I stopped talking, one person could hear something indistinct in the background, but couldn't tell that it was music; the second person couldn't hear a thing. Furthermore, I stood 33 feet away from my cell phone, and the other parties could still hear what I was saying, with only faint crackling.

The LG HBM-760 is a basic and inexpensive headset with good audio quality.

The LG Electronics HBM-760 Bluetooth headset proved a pleasant surprise: This $60 model (as of December 1, 2008) stacks up well against the more expensive headsets we've tested--some of them more than twice its price.

Calls came through clearly and consistently, but lacked the sharpness of some better-performing headsets. Call recipients did not complain about voice distortion or echoes, but said some calls using the HBM-760 sounded muffled. Recipients also noticed background noise, specifically my funky dance music (with high-pitched female vocals and a good amount of bass), but they could still carry on a conversation with me.

As for fit, the HBM-760 did not feel terribly comfortable. The earhook is wide and loopy, so it did not wrap snugly around my ear. And the earbud is roughly the same size or a hair larger than those of other headsets, so I couldn't quite fit the earpiece in my small ear canal. Those of you with larger ears will probably fare better; a colleague with larger ears tried the headset and felt it fit just fine. LG, unfortunately, does not provide different-size earbud covers or earhooks--a feature I'd happily pay a little more to have.

The top of the HBM-760 has a dedicated power button that is easy to press while the headset is on your ear. The call button is nice and wide, and, although it is completely flush with the headset's surface, you can press anywhere on the upper part of the HBM-760 to activate it. The volume control rocker is harder to feel for, however. It's reachable with your thumb on the side of the headset, but the unit no markers or recessed indicators to help you land in the right spot; it took a couple of calls to get the positioning right.

A slightly more affordable headset in the Plantronics family, the Voyager 835 includes a car charger, but has inconsistent audio quality.

Of the Bluetooth headsets we tested for our latest roundup, the Plantronics Voyager 835 ($120 as of December 1, 2008) is nothing to write home about: Basically, it looks like a plain black stick in your ear. Despite its boring design, its clear plastic earhook clamps over my ear nicely, providing a secure fit.

The Voyager includes a single earbud cover, but I found this was a smidgen too big for my small ear canal. The cover does have a spout-like tip, which helped anchor it. And the earhook's solid feel made up for the one-size-doesn't-fit-all earbud.

To turn on the headset or to start or end a call, you press the call control button, which is a narrow indented portion on the unit. Easier said than done, however; I fumbled around trying to find it initially. Ditto for the volume buttons. One side of the headset houses the volume up and down controls; the tiny "plus" symbol is only slightly raised, with the down button (with no marker) below it. Once I became familiar with the buttons' precise locations, my experience improved. Plus, I liked the solid feedback I got when pressing them.

Unfortunately, during some calls, recipients had trouble hearing me. My voice sounded either far away or hollow; other times, my voice broke up a bit. Occasionally, my voice came through more clearly--but it was never as sharp as the quality from its cousin, the Discovery 925. On the plus side, background noise was not distracting.

The $120 Voyager comes with a car charger, a terrific extra, but the device is still pricey, considering the limitations of the overall package: No ear wear alternatives and no USB charger.

A slightly more affordable headset in the Plantronics family, the Voyager 835 includes a car charger, but has inconsistent audio quality.

Of the Bluetooth headset we tested for our latest roundup, the Plantronics Voyager 835 ($120 as of December 1, 2008) is nothing to write home about: Basically, it looks like a plain black stick in your ear. Despite its boring design, its clear plastic earhook clamps over my ear nicely, providing a secure fit.

The Voyager includes a single earbud cover, but I found this was a smidgen too big for my small ear canal. The cover does have a spout-like tip, which helped anchor it. And the earhook's solid feel made up for the one-size-doesn't-fit-all earbud.

To turn on the headset or to start or end a call, you press the call control button, which is a narrow indented portion on the unit. Easier said than done, however; I fumbled around trying to find it initially. Ditto for the volume buttons. One side of the headset houses the volume up and down controls; the tiny "plus" symbol is only slightly raised, with the down button (with no marker) below it. Once I became familiar with the buttons' precise locations, my experience improved. Plus, I liked the solid feedback I got when pressing them.

Unfortunately, during some calls, recipients had trouble hearing me. My voice sounded either far away or hollow; other times, my voice broke up a bit. Occasionally, my voice came through more clearly--but it was never as sharp as the quality from its cousin, the Discovery 925. On the plus side, background noise was not distracting.

The $120 Voyager comes with a car charger, a terrific extra, but the device is still pricey, considering the limitations of the overall package: No ear wear alternatives and no USB charger.

The tiny and lightweight Nokia BH-804 Bluetooth headset offers a sturdy fit, but its call quality regularly took a hit well within range.

Smaller and far narrower than my stubby thumb, the Nokia BH-804 Bluetooth headset ($120 as of December 1, 2008) feels superlight. Of all the headsets I've tested, the 0.25-ounce BH-804 is the lightest--but not by much. (The Plantronics Discovery 925 weighs 0.28 ounce.) Factor in the headset's dainty size, and the BH-804 feels even lighter and, not surprisingly, very discreet.

You can place the BH-804 directly in your ear without the supplied earhook. It felt comfortable to me, even though the smallest earbud cover I used was slightly oversize for me. The earpiece shifted a bit when I bopped my head around, and it also tended to dislodge when I was walking and talking.

Turning the BH-804 into a hook-based headset requires some effort, especially if you're as klutzy as I am. I attached an itty-bitty strip--Nokia calls it the earloop holder--into the back of the headset, and then inserted the hook through the hole in the strip. After moving the hook around, I found a workable position, though it was not comfortable. The hook is like a wide-shaped U, with no give, so in my case it felt like it was just hovering there. I'll take the loopless version any day, thank you.

Call quality varied. Most of the time, calls sounded crisp and loud. Calls were equally clear in the car--the people on the other end couldn't tell I was on a noisy freeway. Great call quality is all very well, but I felt like I had to carry my cell phone around with me constantly to keep it that way. That's fine in the car, as my phone is just sitting there in its nook below the steering wheel. But at my desk, it was often a whole other story. On many occasions, when I moved away from my handset, 9 feet or farther away, call quality deteriorated rapidly. My voice sounded scratchy and some sentences became garbled. The BH-804 also did a so-so job dealing with extraneous noise: Callers could hear the music--particularly the beat--in the background, but we could still chat.

The BH-804 has two buttons: a multifunction key (which allows you to activate voice dialing, for example) and the volume rocker. I would have preferred the multifunction button to be closer to the top of the headset, but I got used to its placement quickly. The slender volume rocker button took a while longer to get accustomed to, but both gave good feedback when pressed.

Earhook die-hards will like the Motorola H780's sturdy fit and comfort level, but expect the call quality of this Bluetooth headset to fluctuate.

The Motorola H780 Bluetooth headset costs $100 (as of December 1, 2008), $30 cheaper than its cousin, the Motopure H15. The H780 comes with a flexible clear plastic earhook and three ear cushions of different sizes. The smallest cushion felt comfortable and pretty snug.

I also liked the dedicated, sliding power switch at the side of the H780--it's always obvious whether this headset is on or off. The call button is too small for my taste, but the pressing mechanism is responsive. The volume buttons sport notches on the surface, making them easy to find and operate.

The noise-cancellation button sits farther down the headset; it's on by default, but you can switch it off if you don't need it (if you're in a superquiet environment such as an empty office). You have to be on a call to turn it off, though, and doing so doesn't save battery life, so there's no real reason to do so. This button is teensy, and I found it tricky to push with the pad of my finger (perhaps it's easier if you have strong, pointy nails).

In my hands-on tests, the H780's call quality was mixed. Sometimes it was very good. But even though call recipients' voices sounded loud enough to me, I sounded tinny or muffled to them some of the time, yet crisp and clear on other occasions. One person I spoke with was dismayed to encounter some reverb on her end, and she found it too distracting. Background noise, such as music, sounded faint when I started talking. I turned off the noise-cancellation feature when I was in a quiet environment, and for the other parties it was hard to tell whether the crispness in my voice improved.

Wearing the Jabra BT530 with or without the earhook provides a secure fit, but its audio quality isn't consistent.

Though the voice-control interface of the BlueAnt V1 is limited, this Bluetooth headset offers mostly solid call quality.

Though reasonably priced, this Samsung headset delivers mediocre audio quality, and the lack of extra earbuds and hooks limits its appeal.