Jabra C820S Active Noise Cancelling Stereo Headphones Review

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(More customer reviews)I've looked and tried nearly a dozen so-called active noise cancelling headphones and was tremendously disappointed by all of them, except the Bose, which I cannot afford. Then I saw the Jabra and since they make the best Bluetooth headsets, I figured, let's try it...I can always return it.
Somewhat to my surprise, the quality was outstanding: the noice cancelling does exactly that and there are no irritating hissing sounds etc. The audio quality is absolutely great and the set comes in a beautiful case.
I have now used it for about 40+ hours, most of which in airplanes and am still on my first battery (it's rated for 50 hours).
Last week I swapped with a Bose QC2 that the guy in the seat next to me was wearing and we did a little testing. Our conclusion was that the Jabra was slightly better in noise cancelling (but Bose was very good too), that both were equal in sound quality and that the Bose was slightly better in comfort (but the Jabra was very comfortable too).
So for $150 less I'll take the Jabra.


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theBoom Hands Free Noise Cancelling Telephone Headset Review

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(More customer reviews)The hype is, in fact, true. The microphone on this headset is MILES better than any other at noise rejection; and I have tried most of the competition. You can in fact have a coherent conversation in a hushed voice while a semi trailer is driving past you on the street. The caller on the other end doesn't hear "nothing"---but they don't hear anything distracting. In addition, the clunky silicone "ear funnel" makes it easy to hear callers even in loud conditions, even at 50% volume on my Blackberry.
That said, there are several real drawbacks:
1) As a previous reviewer noted, the wind rejection is not great. The included windscreen is too small; it helps but doesn't solve the problem. I work on roofs in windy Illinois, so this is a problem, but it's no worse than other headsets. I will try a giant fuzzy ball on my next Boom, to see if that can totally eliminate the sound of a 30MPH gust.
2) The Mic is very directional, so the "fading" the previous reviewer saw was probably due the the mic drifting out of the sweet spot ~ 1" away from and slightly above your mouth. Outside of that zone, the mic eliminates the "noise" of your voice very effectively! =)
3) The ear holder is uncomfortable after many hours. This product is not "dainty", and it comes with a tenacious moldable thing that holds the headset in place. To get a snug fit, you bend it tightly around your ear. After a few hours, this HURTS.
4) Build quality SUCKS. My first Boom broke, so I super-glued it. After a couple months it got stolen, so then I waited (and waited!) for them to release the new version. The new one broke again (in a different place) after a month, so I super-glued IT. Then it broke again (in a third place), and I glued it again, and now the adapter cord is broken so I can't use it until I get a replacement.
5) Support SUCKS. It took me NINE MONTHS to get my v4 Boom. During this time, they were totally out of stock. Then, they forgot I was on the pre-order list. Then they charged my credit card and didn't send the item. Finally, they sent the item (along with some tasty chocolate as a mea culpa). Then I lost the "ear funnel", and needed a replacement. Took me six phone calls to reach someone. Then it started breaking (see above). Ten phone calls later, I haven't reached a single human nor recieved a callback.
BOTTOM LINE: Their amazing technology solves the big problem for me: project a professional phone presence while still getting the work done. I spend about 4 hours per day on my cell phone, mostly outdoors and driving, so this is a Must Have. So I'm going to just buy the damn things in bulk and live with the crappy support and fragility. If talking with customers in a loud environment is not a necessity for you, go with something that doesn't work as well but is cheaper and less breakable.
If they start giving better support, in a way that I can tell is not just to appease me, I'll ammend this review.

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Motorola HX1 Bluetooth Headset (Black) Review

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(More customer reviews)Danger!
The Hx1 from Motorola comes with 4 different types of earpeices. The bulk packaged products for some reason only come with one. Where I got mine from only included the ear spring for the left ear. The bone conduction technology only works correctly if you have a tight fit to the ear and that is why it comes from the factory with 4 different ear buds. The ear buds are not even currently an item available for order and it appears they may cost up to $20 each if and when they do. Also it won't come with a manual but it can be downloaded from Motorola.

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Jawbone ERA Headset (Silver Lining) Review

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(More customer reviews)I have used more bluetooth headsets than I can count from a range of manufacturers. Jawbone typically proved the most frustrating: excellent technology, good controls, and brilliant packaging marred by heavy weight, large size, use of proprietary chargers, poor fit, and weak sound. Over time, as the already incredible noise-canceling technology improved, the size and weight decreased, and output volume increased, leading to the small, featherweight Icon. The Icon also saw the first use by Jawbone of the micro-USB standard for mobile device charging. Sadly, the Icon still suffered from an unstable fit and tinny sound.
Enter the Era, and at last, Jawbone has reached perfection (almost). Most on-line reviews will gush over Jawbone's ability to pack a larger, fuller-spectrum speaker into the same-size housing, and it's true: it is louder, and voices sound more natural, now that they have the "warmth" lacking from the Icon. What they don't tell you is that the eartips are much improved. First, there are four of them now, not just three; what was the Icon's largest one, is now the second-largest packed in the Era's box. Interestingly, the second-largest eartip for the Era is also slightly larger than the Icon's largest, leading to - at last! - a stable, secure fit. One that also remains fairly comfortable for extended periods of time.
One will also read much about the built-in accelerometer. While it seems a bit gimicky, I have to admit, the "tap-tap" to answer and end calls is actually pretty slick. I can't wait to see what other control-ability Jawbone will devise for the Era in time.
Which is one more point you don't find in on-line reviews: through Jawbone's MyTalk site, not only do the Voices and DialApps continue from the Icon, but you can now adjust nearly a dozen of the Era's settings there, too. For example, I disabled the "double shake-shake" pairing function (still accessible via the multifunction button), and changed the button-hold behavior from volume adjustment to Noise Assassin dis-/en-abling. Very cool.
There are just two issues, both minor and not nearly worth the loss of 1 star. An extremely minor nit is the eartip design. I don't understand why no one uses the excellent design of the Plantronics Discovery 640 or Jabra EarGels, which fit more easily, naturally, and comfortably, and guarantee the proper pointing of the headset at the user's mouth. The other issue is Jawbone's insistence on including only one stupidly short USB charging cable. Yes, you can use your own USB/micro-USB one, or buy Jawbone's $15 "cable kit" (which includes a 5' cable and an additional 3" one). But given the $130 price tag and the inclusion of an A/C wall charger (aren't most outlets on or near the floor?), why not include the 5' cable as well?
The best headset I ever had to this point was the Jabra JX10, but now it is second-best - by a long shot - to the Jawbone Era. The fun starts with the very cool and eco-friendly box, and goes from there.
PS: My phone is an iPhone 3GS, for those that may be wondering, and both mono and stereo sound work flawlessly


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Meet Jawbone ERA, the world's First Intelligent Motion Equipped Headset. Specifications: Talk Time: Up to 5.5 hours Standby Time: Up to 10 days Charge Time: 30 minutes (80%);60 minutes (full) Wireless Range: 33ft (10M) Bluetooth: 2.1+EDR, HSP 1.4

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Lightspeed ZULU Premium ANR Aviation Headset (Battery Power, Straight cord, Standard Dual GA Plugs) Review

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(More customer reviews)I owned a Bose X headset for about half a year. When I began flying regularly with other people, I picked up a Lightspeed Zulu headset. I found that the only advantage the Bose has over the Lightspeed is that the clamping force is MARGINALLY lower with the Bose. This has not created a problem for me or my passengers, at all.
I have now sold my Bose X, and picked up another Lightspeed for my passengers to use. It is by far the superior headset, for MANY reasons. Let's review!
- NOISE ATTENUATION: Bose X is just not as good as Lightspeed Zulu at this. If you are flying behind a high-revving engine such as a Rotax 912ULS, you will find that the Zulu is just as good at 5500 as it is at 2000 - which is to say, quite good, and better than Bose. This is quite a big deal by itself, and more than enough to get my attention and my future business, but Lightspeed didn't stop there.
- MUSIC: For $850 (formerly $1000), you would assume that Bose could afford to spend ten bucks (or less) integrating a simple 1/8" jack into the control box so that you could pipe in some music. For some strange reason, Bose elected not to do this. Not only has Lightspeed given you a 1/8" jack for music, but they have also put a really nice DSP into the control box that lets you turn a sort of surround sound mode called Front Row Center on and off. It also has a mode where it will cut out the music if someone calls you up on the radio, although I have not been able to get that to work particularly well, so I leave that feature turned off. The sound quality is very good for an aviation headset. If your airplane is already wired for music, or you don't mind wearing earbuds (which I tried with the Bose and found painful, as the Bose pressed them into my ear canal), this may not be a big deal to you. If you are a student pilot and have enough to worry about without music, this may not be a big deal to you RIGHT NOW, but once you've got a hundred or two hundred hours and you have enough free attention to enjoy some tunes, it WILL matter to you. The 1/8" jack supports normal stereo input as well as two-way cell phone plugs.
- BLUETOOTH: You may not care about this, but isn't it telling that Lightspeed - for $850, at a time when Bose X still cost fully $1,000 - was able to integrate a Bluetooth transciever? This is useful for picking up an IFR clearance on the ground, closing a flight plan, letting your SO know you're taking off or on the ground without having to shut down the airplane first, etc.
- SERVICE: You'll be paying well north of a hundred dollars to get your Bose X fixed out-of-warranty. Lightspeed routinely goodwills repairs outside of the warranty period. I have sent two different headsets (an OEM verison of their XC, as well as my older Zulus) in for service. The XCs were YEARS out of warranty, and I had lost my receipt for the Zulus. Both were repaired, FREE OF CHARGE, and shipped back to me. The only thing I had to pay for on either of these was the shipping costs to get the headsets to them - Lightspeed covered the shipping back to me. Now, which is better - paying $150 + shipping, or paying $0 + shipping? I'll let you do the math on that one.
Bose just does not have it together on the X. It doesn't do as good a job at attenuating noise as the Lightspeed Zulu. It doesn't have an audio in port, which is ridiculous on a headset of this price range. It doesn't have Bluetooth, which you may or may not care about, but which is nice to have. And - the final nail in the coffin - the service is nowhere as good.
Lightspeed, you have done a fantastic job on this headset, and because of it, you have earned a repeat customer. Keep up the good work!

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