Click here for more information My last Bluetooth headset, a Cardo Scala 500 featured great sound, wonderful battery life but a poor, floppy fit and very crummy construction. The poor thing literally fell apart after three months.
I replaced the Cardo today with a Plantronics Explorer 320 and I'm pretty satisfied. First, recognize that there is no such thing as a perfect all-around headset for all phones and all users. It's pretty important that you buy from a source, like Amazon, where you can try things and return them if not satisfied. EBay may have great prices on stuff, but unless you know you'll like something, I wouldn't suggest buying a BT Headset there... way too hard to return.
The Plantronics 320 is a budget version of their upper end headsets, but it is hard to see where they scrimped. The fit and finish of the product is excellent. The power connector is solid and snapped in and charged the unit quickly. It paired up to my Treo 650 on the first try and was identified correctly by name.
Using the 320, I made several calls to automated numbers. All connected quickly, except the one where my phone automatically follows a script to punch in passwords. In that call, there was a considerable delay before the 320 took the audio signal from my phone. My old Cardo had the same delay, so I think this is a function of the phone.
The fit of the headset is great for me. The unit has a small portion that inserts gently in my ear, and the wrap-around portion holds the device closely to my ear without any pressure or discomfort. I've been wearing it all day and it is light and very comfortable. Your mileage may vary.
So what's not perfect? The sound quality isn't quite there. I pick up some static between the device and my Treo and it gets worse when the phone is on the other side of my body or when I move more than five feet away. It's not horrible, but it's there in my setup. Again, your mileage may vary. Plantronics Explorer 320 Bluetooth Headset
About two weeks ago, I purchased the Plantronics 320 from a local cell phone store. I had been working at a location that did not have phone service and needed to free up my hands.
I did absolutely no research on Bluetooth headsets, and wound up buying this unit because it was the least expensive. I had to choose from the Plantronics 320 and several Motorola headsets that cost nearly twice as much.
This is one of those rare times when I decided not to spend more money to buy the more established brand and I am actually satisfied with the purchase. I have had no problems setting it up and using it. My only gripe is at times the sound quality is not as good as I would like it to be. I do get some occasional static, which is why I have given it four stars. But that could also come from my cellular provider, Verizon. It's also all plastic, but for the price, I cannot complain.
If you are looking for an inexpensive Bluetooth headset to use with your cell phone, I would recommend the Plantronics 320.
I recently bought a new cell phone (Sony Ericsson Z520a) with Bluetooth. I spent a few days researching the various headsets out there, and soon discovered that only a handful appeared to be worth buying -- and all were between $100 and $150, which I did not want to spend. I came across these by accident, and couldn't find any of the negative comments common with headsets in this price range. Granted they're only Bluetooth v1.2, but they're light, have a built-in rechargable battery, are quite comfortable to wear, and have very good sound quality. In addition, the pairing process is quite simple.
If your priorities are quality sound, comfort, built-in battery, and reasonable price, these will be hard to beat. I like it so much I bought a second one for my wife.
I really wanted this headset to work out because it is being sold at such a good price relative to most others. Well, it prooved to me that you often get what you pay for. Let's consider the following in why I am returning this headset: pairing, sound quality, ease of use, and comfort.
Pairing - this really belongs with ease of use, but it is really your first experience with a headset other than charging it. It was hard to figure out if I was holding the multifunction button down long enough to get the headset in paring mode. After 4 attempts, I got it right. My LG VX-9800(see my review)was able to pair with it easily after this. However, it shouldn't take 4 attempts just to get a headset into pairing mode.
Sound Quality - this is actually the area where the headset does the best in my opinion. With the speaker resting inside my ear, I didn't have to have the volume turned all the way up in order to hear the people I called. My wife reported that she could hear me clearly with one exception. When I had the AC fan speed in my car set to 3 (out of 4), she said that it sounded like I was in a wind tunnel. Kicking the AC down to 2 fixed the problem, but once we hit the Texas summer that could be a problem.
Ease of Use - I think that Plantronics' attempt to make this headset easy to use backfired. I would go to turn on the headset, but I would always have to check my phone to see if it was connected. Initiating voice commands also required multiple attempts before I would hear the familiar "Please say a command" from my phone. However, what really drove me nuts was trying to turn it off. I would hold down the multifunction button for what I thought was the amount of time specified in the instructions, but I kept getting "Please say a command". Compare this to the Motorola HS850(see my review) where on/off is controlled by the folding boom while the multifunction button simply handles pairing, voice commands, and call connecting. I consider my self to have technology savvy and able to fight through things to make them work, but this headset *still* frustrated me. If you like things to work simply, this headset isn't for you.
Comfort - I was willing to put up with the flaky operation of the headset because of the cost; however, I realized after two days that I was not going to be able to stand to wear it for any extended period of time. The speaker pipes its volume into a rather hard earpiece that fits inside your ear. It is not removable, and try as I might to adjust it, I could not find a comfortable position. The ear hook is also fairly rigid. These two things combined made for an unpleasant comfort experience.
I have to consider this headset to be a failure. On the box, it touts "Comfort" and "Ease of Use". As you can see from my results, it doesn't deliver on either of these. It's a shame because it does deliver good sound quality at a reasonable price. Unless you have the ear it was modeled after, though, I would not buy it. - Plantronics - Bluetooth - Headset - Hands Free
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