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Choosing the right headsets to make daily communication easier

Finding the right headset is essential for a busy professional such as yourself. You want to move freely inside your office while avoiding neck strain when communicating with your partners and clients. Today, headsets come in multiple styles and are used with corded phones, cell phones, and computers. For large offices, there are headsets that work with PBX telephones (amplifiers are included) and for smaller offices, combination headset phones with the telephone and headset in one package to keep costs down. Headset customers also want Bluetooth technology which integrates cell phones, computers and PDAs through a short-range radio link.

Plantronics is a headset brand leader because of its research investment in sound quality, wireless technology and ergonomics. GN Netcom is another headset vendor offering noise-canceling microphones in its binaural (both ears) and monaural (one ear) GN 2000 over-the-head models.

Headset styles

How these devices are worn by the user is determined by the headset style. Your choice of style is based on your personal preference and perceived comfort. Headsets are available in these four different styles:

• On or In-the-ear -- This style is worn around the ear with an adjustable flex-boom extending from the ear/receiver piece. This headset style is ergonomic and can be easily detached when leaving your desk. Examples include the Plantronics H151DuoPro and the GN Netcom Contour LX-G models. Says Ronnie Batchelor, CPA, of Batchelor, Tillery and Roberts in Raleigh, NC, "My (on-the-ear) headset makes talking on the phone so much easier -- I’m not twisting or turning like I was with my handset."
   
• Over-the-head -- This style comes in two choices: binaural or monaural. The binaural headsets are ideal for call center use since the second earpiece blocks background noise. A monaural model such as the Plantronics H51 Supra Headset allows the user to hear what's going on in her environment while on the phone.
   
• Behind-the-neck -- Users who prefer this flexible style don't like wearing a headset over their heads or behind their ears. These models feature earpieces connected by a piece that goes behind the neck or under the chin.
   
• Convertible -- With these models (the Plantronics H141 DuoSet), the user can enjoy wearing their headset on the ear or over the head depending upon how many calls they are processing at the time.

Headsets for corded telephones

If you're in the market for a headset that's compatible with your corded telephone in your office, then you have a choice of either corded or wireless headsets. PBX phones can use a Plantronics Polaris headset which plugs directly into the phone jack, thus avoiding the purchase of an amplifier.

• Corded headsets -- With this model, you'll need an amplifier that is compatible with your headset's make and model. The Plantronics Mirage H41N with M12 Amplifier offers an on the ear headset connected to the amplifier which is connected to your multi-line office phone. The Quick Disconnect feature allows you to move around the room without removing the headset or disconnecting your caller.
   
• Wireless headsets -- These headsets come with amplifiers that allow users to roam up to 300 feet away from their handsets while blocking noise and holding a charge for 8 hours of talk time (Plantronics CS50).

Headsets for cellular or cordless phones

When using headsets for mobile phones, you can go hands-free and feel attached to your office phone. Wireless headsets for mobile phones such as the Plantronics Voyager 510S Bluetooth Headset System allow roaming professionals such as real estate brokers, executives and sales managers to easily switch back and forth between landlines and cell phones. The headset alerts the user when both a landline or cell phone call is coming through and it has a 30-foot range. The Plantronics CS351N Supra Plus Wireless does not use Bluetooth technology, but uses digitally encrypted DECT 6.0 technology, which gives exceptional sound quality with a 300-foot range.

Headsets for computers

Headsets for computers allow users to use VoIP technology, listen to music, and to play games. Headsets can either be compatible with an analog (3.5 mm computer jack) or a digital (USB computer port) interface, depending upon your computer set-up. With the digital headsets from Plantronics, no sound card is required and the binaural headset features a noise-canceling microphone.

Stay tuned for greater headset technology

Recently, a small start-up company called Aliph has created its Jawbone mobile phone headset, which is able to suppress background noise so your voice will be clear even in a noisy environment. This technology came from military research and uses a standard and a special contact microphone that uses vibrations to monitor when you're speaking. BluePearls entices female customers with Bluetooth headsets that only weigh 7.9 grams in seven colors with 18 hours of talk-time.

Plantronics is also leading the way in research for wireless headset technology, which should become lighter, more ergonomic, and hopefully cheaper when the technology becomes more popular among users.

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