Review - The Jawbone 2 Bluetooth Headset by Aliph

[ctcost]

Review - The Jawbone 2 Bluetooth Headset by Aliph

By ctcost

California 's new hands free law went into effect last month. Not that it did any good, but then again, who really thought it would? People are still flying down the freeway with a Starb...I can't bring myself to say it...in one hand and a phone in the other. If those drivers decide, after a few tickets, they want to get legal, here's a way to do it.

I've been through many in ear headsets, most I thought just plain sucked. Some faired better. The last one worked great until I dropped it; then it seemed the noise canceling worked in reverse, every time I stopped talking people could hear a whisper in the background like it was an artillery shell going off. Yup, for the most part, I hate headsets.

Enter the latest version, the Jawbone 2 Bluetooth headset by Aliph. I have to admit I'm really impressed here so far. I received my unit on Friday, 5 days ago, this is my story.

The design factor on this headset is great! 1/2 to 1/3 slimmer than the original jawbone which, I thought was reserved for the more flamboyant among our culture. The jawbone 2 looks like it stepped out of a high line Mercedes, or is ready to step into a 65th floor corner office. Sleek, stylish, and best of all, shiny black (or silver white if you prefer)!

After charging, the little devil, it was time to pair it with my Blackjack. No problems there. Simple steps and instant connection.

Talk quality in test calls ranged from sometimes sounding like "I had a plastic bag over my mouth" to "Perfect, like I was in the same room." The guy with the first comment thinks a big part of his problem is with his phone and connections.

The microphone on the Jawbone 2 is a vibration mic. That means there is a little piece of plastic sticking out of the end that must contact your face in order to carry on communication. Not new by itself as this system was used in WW II to cover noise made by rotary engine planes. However, when you pair it with the dual pickups designed by Aliph, you have a very capable system for carrying on conversation in a noisy environment.

Mix it with the NOISEASSAIN hardware and you have a winning combination. My guess on NOISEASSASIN...I couldn't really pry alot out of the people at Aliph is similar to noise canceling headphones, the hardware can compensate for environment by introducing white noise to block out the surrounding noise. Don't quote me on this though as I did not set out to get a PHD in audionics.

At any rate. The test call for the system came rather suddenly, in the form of a weed whacker running at full speed less than 20 away. When the gardeners decided to pull this nasty trick on me, I just happened to be in a call on the patio...Guess what? Number one, the test caller COULD NOT HEAR A SIGN OF THE WEEDWHACKER, AND, AND I SAY, I COULD HEAR HIM FINE; the conversation went off without a hitch even with that god forsaken piece of equipment whining in the background.

Let's talk comfort for a minute:Most headsets at some point create serious pressure points on my ears. This set comes with a total of 4 ear clips and 3 different sized ear buds. Over the weekend I went through what I thought were all of them trying to get a fit I could live with. FINALLY, thinking this might be the sticking point between having my ear torn off having a great functioning headset, I used the biggest ear bud (I was thinking smaller is better... wrong direction), All of a sudden the headset fits great and is 85-90% comfortable to wear for more than 30 seconds.

The one flaw, if you can call it that, is that you have to get used to putting the Jawbone into your ear while holding onto the sides. The micro buttons are covered by a piece of medical grade plastic that gives the Jawbone it's sleek look. It's easy to hang up on people if you're not wearing the headset and try to put it in your ear to answer the call in a hurry.

The Jawbone 2 by Aliph, at least at this point, has proven itself to be one of the most comfortable, capable, well designed in ear headsets I've ever had the displeasure (read it works, and works pretty well so far) to stick in my ear! Your milage may differ a bit but once setup...I don't think by much. Face it folks at least here in California, it's a small price to pay to know you'll eliminate on more reason to get a ticket, and/or ending up on an episode of COPS!

Best for now guys. ct

Price is around $129 - $149.

Here's a link to the Jawbone 2 site.