Road Tested: Jabra BT500 Bluetooth Headset
posted Monday, September 18th, 2006 by Andy Gore
There are three things you want from a wireless headset: You want it to have great reception, be comfortable to wear, and be unobtrusive. This last point in particular seems to elude most makers of Bluetooth headsets, whose devices often offer all the subtlety of a Borg implant.
Not so with the Jabra BT500 – a full-featured Bluetooth headset that tucks neatly away behind your ear.
With laws coming on the books throughout the U.S. prohibiting cell phone use while driving, unless you use a headset or other hands-free device (California Gov. Schwarzenegger just signed such a law last week), it seems pretty likely wireless headsets are going to be a hot commodity. That’s why several members of The Geek Beat crew have agreed to take some of the more promising hands-free devices through their paces, and share their long-term results with you.
Road Test. The Jabra BT250, the first Bluetooth headset to utilize the tuck-behind-the-ear approach, was also my first cell phone headset (going back about two years.) And while it did hide it presence better than the light-up neon briquettes that comprised the vast majority of Bluetooth headsets at the time, the BT250’s truncated range (at times less than two feet), limited battery life and poor audio quality had it coming up somewhat short of the ideal.
The BT500, successor to the BT250, addresses many of its predecessor’s shortcomings. It offers longer battery life (up to eight hours talk time) and greatly extended range: It’s now possible to put your phone down and walk around a reasonably large conference room without dropping the connection. It also offers dramatically improved audio quality, although some people I called reported hearing distortion, and with at least one cell phone I tested with, the volume level was so low as to be usable in a car at highway speeds.
While the sound quality and level were variable, one thing never wavered with the BT500: comfort. It’s incredibly thin case made it very comfortable to wear, even for hours. And it offered all the features I’ve come to expect from a top-of-the-line Bluetooth headset: Voice dialing (assuming your phone supports this feature), one button paring, volume control, hold, mute, call waiting and call reject. The plug-in power supply beats the heck out of the BT250’s charging holster, which always seemed to get misplaced in my house. Now if only Jabra could come up with a way to keep attached the little rubber ear nibs that fit so snuggly in your ear, but also pop off and vanish with incredible ease. In their defense, Jabra does include several replacement nibs in various sizes, which pretty much guarantees a good fit and come in handy when the nib you’re using inevitably vanishes.
Geek-o-Meter: At $119.99, the BT500 is pricey, especially for a headset that had the kind of intermittent sound problems our test unit had. However, if you’re looking for a headset that’s unobtrusive and comfortable to wear, the BT500 is hard to beat. It scores a 7 on the Geek-o-Meter.
The Specs
Bluetooth compliance
- Bluetooth version 1.2 specifications
Operating specifications
- Range: Up to 33 feet (10 meters)
- Talk time: Up to 8 hours
- Stand-by time: Up to 240 hours
- Charging time: Approximately 2 hours
Weight
- 0.67oz. (19 g.)
Dimensions
- 4″ x 2.4″ x 0.6″
Microphone type
- 6mm omni-directional
Battery type
- Rechargeable lithium polymer
Supported special features
- Answer/end call
- Voice dial
- Last number re-dial
- Reject call
- Call hold/Call wait
- Mute
- Multi-colored LED lights for status on Bluetooth, low battery and charging
For More Information
- www.jabra.com
