All Articles Tagged headset

The BlueAnt Q1 voice controlled Bluetooth headset for iPhone [$109.95 - TiPb Store] is the higher end version of the BlueAnt V1 I tested last month, and came away impressed with. How impressed? It’s a piece of hardware I would recommend it to anyone in the market for a new bluetooth headset. Now that the good folks over at BlueAnt were nice enough to send me the Q1, will I make the switch? For all of the juicy details follow us after the break! Read the rest of this entry »

The BlueAnt V1 Bluetooth Headset for iPhone 3G/3GS [$68.92 - TiPb Store Link] has been a pleasant surprise as I did not think I’d find another Bluetooth headset that I would prefer over the highly regarded Jawbone PRIME.

For the full scoop follow us after the break! Read the rest of this entry »

With WWDC 2009 right around the corner, there is excitement in the air. The iPhone OS 3.0 software and a highly possible next generation iPhone are right around the corner. Now what does this have to with the Plantronics Voyager 855 Bluetooth Headset? The answer to that question is simple – A2DP (Advanced Audio Distribution Profile). Finally A2DP is coming to an iPhone near you… unless you still plan on keeping that first generation iPhone. (Sadly, for A2DP, you guys will need to upgrade to a current 3G model or the soon-to-be-announced next generation hardware.)

So, iPhone 3G owners, what better way to get a jump on things than by picking up the Plantronics Voyager 855 Bluetooth Headset?! It is available in TiPb’s sibling store WMExperts for a cool $69.95. After the break, a full review! Read the rest of this entry »

Come this “summer”, iPhone 3.0 — see our walkthrough — will allow iPhone 3G (and perhaps next-generation iPhone users) to enjoy new Bluetooth functionality including stereo headsets, both the A2DP audio and ARCP control protocols. For consumers, the Motorola S9 Stereo Bluetooth headset (available from our sibling store, WMExperts) may be an option you want to consider come release day. For developers testing using the A2DP/ARCP profiles on the iPhone 3.0 Beta, they might even be something you want to consider now.

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UPDATED: ZDNet retorts, and says to chill.

ORIGINAL: iLounge (via Engadget) is reporting that the new iPod shuffle ships with headsets that not only include advanced (read: complicated) on-wire controls, but with lock-down chips that may prevent third parties from making compatible alternatives without ponying up licensing fees to Apple. Whether this is a money grab in exchange for technology Apple has patented and feels they deserve compensation for, or just another internet controversy that ultimately goes nowhere isn’t fully understood yet (least not by me!). iLounge says:

This is, in short, a nightmare scenario for long-time iPod fans: are we entering a world in which Apple controls and taxes literally every piece of the iPod purchase from headphones to chargers, jacking up their prices, forcing customers to re-purchase things they already own, while making only marginal improvements in their functionality? It’s a shame, and one that consumers should feel empowered to fight.

When the iPhone 3G came out, there was some noise that the new component and composite video cables that came along with it contained proprietary chips that would prevent 3rd parties from creating cheaper alternatives to the Apple-proper cables.

Launched along with the 2nd generation iPod touch was Apple’s new in-ear headset with mic and remote control, allowing music to be started, stopped, and skipped, along with volume to be controlled right on the headset. They worked not only with the iPod touch, but with the new aluminum unibody MacBook family, and to a lesser degree with the iPhone 3G. Was there a proprietary lock-down chip in those headsets?

Either way, are we sharpening our pitchforks and lighting our torches, or waiting to see how this develops before storming the streets of Cupertino?

The BlueTrek Mini Bluetooth Headset is available in two flavors, “Chrome” and “Gun Metal”, and can be purchased at the TiPb Store for $59.95 here. There are a ton of different bluetooth headsets to choose from for your iPhone, so when you have such a wealth of choices and different prices, how does the BlueTrek Mini compare? I’ve been using the “Gun Metal” headset and let me tell you what I think after the break.

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Ha! No iPhone news indeed! We knew Steve Jobs wouldn’t abandon us completely, not his baby, not his “third-leg” love child! Jason Snell, putting the new MacBooks under the microscope for Macworld, discovers (via Daring Fireball):

Yes, it’s true — these new MacBooks work with your iPhone headphones. If you click the button on your iPhone headphones, iTunes pauses. Click again, and the music resumes. A double-click advances one track, and a triple-click moves back a track—just like on the iPhone. What’s more, the headphones’ built-in microphone appears as the input device “Microphone port” in the Sound preference pane.

How awesome — and completely Apple-like is that?

(But is it enough to make you order a new MacBook?)

Bluetooth headsets often offer the same feature set, the same styling, and the same performance. Plantronics is known for offering unique takes on Bluetooth Headsets and often add a new wrinkle to each headset in their product line. Popular because of their comfortable fit and Audio IQ technology, the Plantronics line constantly innovates.

With the Plantronics Voyager 815 Bluetooth Headset ($89.95), the innovation is an in-ear earbud and a sliding boom mic. Do they create a better Bluetooth Headset? Or are these features just bells and whistles? How does the Plantronics Voyager 815 perform?

Read on for the rest of the review!

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With more and more Bluetooth headsets looking alike and new releases feeling like old ones, the Plantronics Discovery 925 Bluetooth Headset ($129.95) offers a much more unique take and infinitely more appeal. Its futuristic, luxury look was eagerly anticipated and has definitely shaken up the headset industry, putting all makers on notice.

Is the Plantronics Discovery 925 all show and no go? Or does it perform as good as it looks? And does it even look THAT good in your ear? Well read on for the rest of the review!

Read on for the rest of the review!

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Not a fan of the stock headphones bundled with your iPhone?  Me neither.  Sadly, the quality of the headphones packaged with the iPhone and most other devices emitting sound are a fair representation of the profit-by-any-means-possible culture.  I think Apple figured they had such a hot product with the iPhone that they could bundle it with two cups connected by a string and it would still sell (and I suspect they’re right!).

Fortunately, other enterprising companies have stepped up to the plate and given unto us some worthy replacements for the stock headphones: enter Maximo, the makers of the iP-HS1 iMetal Stereo Headset for the iPhone, available at our Phone different store for $69.99.  Continue after the break for a full review! Read the rest of this entry »