 Just what I was looking for. |
| Review Date: May 23, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Coug Moog, York, PA, USA |
The Plantronics Voyager 855 is the best gadget I own.
I do not listen to music over bluetooth--bluetooth is simply too "lo-fi." It is mega-compressed and distorts your music no matter what fancy headset you get.
However, it is absolutely wonderful for podcasts of AM talk radio. I listen to that stuff all the time--and now I can do it in any environment. Best of all in this type of application, you can remove the stereo earbud and you have a single-ear bluetooth cellphone headset that can also receive A2DP signals from your phone--the only mono device I'm aware of that can do this.
The only time I attach the stereo bud is when I'm mowing my lawn and want the extra sound insulation. I use the triple-flange Etymotic eargels for it. It's a fight to get them attached, but the great sound insulation that results is an absolute wonder. Makes the noise of the mower nearly disappear, and lets me enjoy my favorite talk show at the time of my choosing, while getting actual, noisy work done.
If you like to listen to talk but don't want to bother those around you who may not prefer it, this is an elegant solution. They just think you're a geek with a bluetooth on the side of your head, and you don't have to tell them you're listening to Rush if they don't want to know.
And when a call comes through, I don't need to jam this thing further into my ear with the call button to answer it. I just extend the little mic boom, and it connects. Others mention that this action can pull the thing out of your ear. But with the Ety eargel it has a good snug fit that stays secure.
My favorite sports podcast sounds better on this headset than it does on my car, even with its expensive Bose system. Same for every other radio show I download to my blackjack. How nice it is to hear a 3-hour show in just over an hour and a half with no commercials, and over my bluetooth to boot.
As you may expect, I charge my 855 when I'm not using it. I've only had it run out of juice once, and that was after a very long session of listening at relatively high volume with the stereo bud in. It charges up fast, and goes for a longer time than it ought to. If you want to listen to podcasts on your mobile, this is the best piece of hardware out there to do just that.
I couldn't get any of the included eargels to fit with this device, but with my weird-shaped head, that's no surprise. the Ety plugs are a lifesaver, and you can buy them in bulk from Etymotic so you can have a supply of clean ones. You are, after all, sticking it in your ear.
I love this product. It does more than I hoped it would, and enhances my life far beyond its low cost (got mine for $35). If you have an mp3-enabled phone with lots of memory (like a Q or Blackjack with a good-capacity MicroSD card) and you like talk radio, get one of these and prepare for a great experience. You'll find yourself leaving the iPod and headphones at home because they're just too much of a hassle and this stuff works great.
Love the functionality this item gives to products and services I already had.
|
Good BT; Good price
|
| Review Date: February 25, 2008 |
| Reviewer: J. Alabi, |
After using my massive Jabra BT stereo headsets for over a year. I decided it was time to upgrade. I was specifically interested in sound isolation.
The voyager is amazing to say the least. I've been using BT stereo headsets since they came out about 6 years ago back when they cost about $300 bucks. Anway, the voyage is small, sleek and look good.
Of course looks aren't everything, sound and control are critical. Stereo sound is ok not great. Ok in that, I wish it was just a bit louder. Also, for in-ear earphones they certainly do lack in bass. In terms of answering/making calls. Nothing special there. The voyager takes calls excellent. Sound is great.
If you want to move into the next generation of BT stereo headsets the voyage is a good deal. By the way I use my voyager with my Sprint Mogul. It works seamlessly. I also havent experienced the skipping that others have reported. But then again I've always used high quality phones so maybe thats a factor. |
Well engineered headset.
|
| Review Date: April 6, 2008 |
| Reviewer: M. Bonanno, |
The voyager 855 is a well-engineered, stereo headset. It's designed in such a way that many of its' features are optional, and it is shipped with all the components you need to customize it to your specific needs and likes. To start with you can just use the single earpiece with one of the different size ear buds. (It's shipped with 3 sizes of soft silicone rubber ear buds, and one expanding foam option similar to the moldable foam earplugs you use for noise reduction.)
It fits well into the ear, is light, and the angle between the earpiece and the microphone boom seems appropriate. For a more secure fit you can add one of the ear hooks; it comes with 2 different sizes and they can be installed for use with either the right or left ear. They attach securely to the headset and while using the ear hooks there is little risk of the headset falling off, even during an entire day of construction. When using only the single earpiece, I should note that you do not have a true monotone broadcast; you are just listening to one side of the stereo.
If you want to listen to stereo you plug in a different ear hook, which has the wire leading to the second earpiece coming out of the end of the ear hook. It loops from the top of your ear hook, back around your neck and to the second earbud. They've used a very nice braided wire, which remains flexible, does not kink, and seems to be the right length so as to give you freedom of movement, without getting in the way. If you are using both earpieces and you want to pull out the second earpiece to talk with one of your coworkers, it easy drapes around your neck and is small enough that you hardly notice it is there. The quality of the sound is good, although I have to admit I researched stereo headsets carefully before purchasing and this is the only one I've tried. But, it has a much better quality even for voice, than the single Samsung earpiece I purchased with my Samsung Sync.
The controls on the voyager are small, but I have found them workable even when wearing nitrate work gloves. You have a mute/play button on the top side of the headset, and a volume rocker switch underneath which can be used for volume adjustment, or to select next or previous songs on your play list. There are two ways to answer calls. The microphone is located on the bottom, leading edge of the headset, and there is a sliding boom extension, which gets the microphone closer to your mouth and contributes to talk quality. (I've had very few complaints from those on the other end of our conversations.) If you receive a call you can either slide the boom down, which will answer the call, or press the power button on the top middle of the headset. I've found that sliding the boom down can dislodge the earpiece a little, especially if you use the tabs on either side of the boom which are intended for that purpose. A better way to extend the boom without moving it in your ear is to pinch the boom extension and the body of the headset between your thumb and forefinger, top to bottom, and while squeezing them together, slide the boom down using your finger or thumb. This holds the headset in place and still extends the boom.
One interesting feature of this headset, which I do not remember reading anywhere, is that when you turn it on the next day, it remembers what you were doing during your previous use and starts up right where you left off. As I head to work and turn it on in my truck, it connects with my phone and starts the music automatically. If I'm not ready for the music, I just hit the mute button and wait until I am. This headset is shipped with a handy little drawstring bag, which holds the ear hooks, second earpiece, and spare ear buds.
My only complaint about this headset is the battery life. If I want to use to it all day and I'm listening to music, I need to remember to charge it during lunchtime and it takes a good hour plus to fully charge it. It does not come with an automotive charger so you need to carry the one AC charger it's shipped with or purchase a second AC charger or a 12-volt charger to keep it working throughout the day. Other than that, the voyager is a great headset, and I cannot think of much I'd change about its' design........ good job Plantronics!
|
Great Product, Great Price
|
| Review Date: October 10, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Michael D. Pilkington, |
| I have tried five or six different blue tooth devices ranging in cost from $65 to $150. None of them were satisfactory. Many were hard to keep connected and/or hard for people to hear me on. This one works great. Also, the stereo works great. I can use it for music while around noisy equipment and hear great. This sells for over $140 at all the retail stores I could find it at. Great product. Great Price. |
Inexpensive and feature-packed
|
| Review Date: June 19, 2009 |
| Reviewer: esanta, San Jose, CA USA |
The 855 package contains the headset itself, an earhook with secondary earbud attached, a worldwide charger, a neckband, and a little pouch containing additional ear inserts of different sizes as well as two plain earhooks (without stereo earbud wire).
Even as a standalone mobile phone headset, the 855 is a spectacular value. It's small, sounds great and the sliding boom mike picks up your voice very well. Sliding the boom open when a call comes in automatically picks up the call, and sliding it close ends the call.
The headset also features an action button, mute button and a volume control. Each action is signaled by a corresponding chime.
Plantronics switched from their proprietary connector to a standard micro USB (the same as on the Kindle 2). The bundled neckband cleverly features a micro USB plug so you can easily attach the headset when not in use.
If you want to use your headset in stereo mode (your device must support stereo bluetooth, of course, like most stereo telephones, iPhone 3.0, etc...) simply attach the earloop accessory and use the second earbud. Note that the stereo device does not have to be the same device as your phone: you could pair the 855 with your phone as a headset, and with your iPod Touch (with 3.0 OS) as BT headphones. If you're listening to music and a call comes in, you will hear the ring. Extend the boom to pick up the call, the music will pause and resume when you close the boom to hang up. How awesome is that?
This headset is close to perfect and I found very few flaws with it:
- Second earbud is fragile and cumbersome. It would be nice to have a better way to carry it, maybe something that would attach to the neckband.
- Previous track/next track control is combined with volume+/volume- button and requires a long press on those keys. Skipping tracks takes 3 seconds, that's way too much.
These are extremely minor gripes considering the excellent performance of this great headset and its remarkably low price. Considering it comes with Plantronics's spectacular customer service, there really is no reason to look anywhere else for a stereo bluetooth headset. This one is a winner. |
Discount for
" Plantronics Voyager 855 Bluetooth Headset (Black) ", Today on Sales Plantronics Voyager 855 Bluetooth Headset (Black) + Free shipping. Get Plantronics Voyager 855 Bluetooth Headset (Black) Now! |
No video reviews found for this product.