Plantronics Discovery 925 Bluetooth Earpiece
![Plantronics Discovery 925 Bluetooth Earpiece (Cerise) [Retail Packaging]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41zpHiXE0LL._SL500_AA280_.jpg)
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At last, a high-performance Bluetooth earpiece that’s also designed to make you look good. With an elegantly simple VFrame design and a cerise-pink, diamond-shaped earpiece, the Plantronics Discovery 925 Bluetooth Earpiece lets you communicate hands-free with comfort and crystal clear performance. The elegant storage case has an integrated rechargeable battery that keeps your earpiece charged. View larger. The Discovery will have you looking fashionable and turning…
Buy Plantronics Discovery 925 Bluetooth Earpiece at Amazon
Oct 3rd, 2009 at 6:30 am
I agonized over these two items before picking the Plantronics 925.
Why Jawbone is better (in my opinion):
(1) better noise canceling capability (if there is some turbulence in the air, you can hear it with the 925 but not Jawbone).
(2) more masculine design (though the 925 black version is slightly more masculine, the overall design looks like a hair pin. the gold & cerise designs gear toward the female fashionistas).
(3) cheaper (by a few bucks if you shop around).
Why Plantronics 925 is better (in my opinion):
(1) smaller, lighter, & fits nicely in your ear.
(2) gel ear tip works very well. doesn’t feel insecure like the Jawbone. i have free range of movement without feeling like it’s going to fall off.
(3) ambidextrous – can change from right to left ear without adjustment (unlike Jawbone).
(4) the charging case provides extra juice on the run (however, it looks girly (sincerest apology to the female readers). the micro-USB port is an inconvenience as you cannot use your standard USB charging cable and I have many of those around the house already).
(5) very fast syncing.
(6) audio quality of the 925 and Jawbone is superior compared to their peers.
(7) distinct design. some of my friends already have the Jawbone, but none has the Plantronics 925 yet.
0–0–0–0–0–0
after three months’ use – - -
(+) very light-weight. comfortable. hardly feel in your ear(s) at all.
(+) good volume.
(+) there is a useful function where you can (re)establish BT connectivity after answering call by pressing talk button on the phone rather than the headset, allow easy (re)connection if you accidentally answer the call using the phone and not the headset, especially on the road.
(-) headset battery runs out after ~2 of non-use.
(-) the recharger holder is nice but i don’t use EVER after 2 months. a hassle to carry / insert / remove. only useful if you go on a 2-3 day trip to the boondocks.
(-) i dropped it once from 3-ft height. got scratched. but still works.
Oct 3rd, 2009 at 9:21 am
I am a much heavier user of bluetooth headsets than most. My job requires me to spend long hours consulting on the phone, so a comfortable, reliable, BT headset that will last all day without a charge is a requirement for me. I typically buy a new cell phone every 6 months (Current is a Nokia E51, next will be a 3G iPhone
, and a new headset (I compared this one to a Jabra JX10 which I used previously) nearly as often. Some of my criteria may not be something you need, so keep that in mind as you read through,and as with any product, choose what features you will use, and which are “cool” but unnecessary.
What’s in the Box:
-An extremely light headset (8 grams!)
-Three ear pieces (small, medium, large)
-Wall Charger
-USB Charger
-Nice looking Case that also charges the headset
-Short, Simple, Clear Instruction Manual
Pros:
Looks – The Plantronics 925 is a very attractive headset. It doesn’t have the goofy, bulky, flashy “star trek” look that a lot of headsets do. The smooth, attractive lines, and the thin mouthpiece are very low key and elegant. The headset also comes in 3 colors: standard black, fashionable gold, and feminine cerise.
Charging – Plantronics included not 1, not 2, but 3 ways to charge this headset: through the wall, by usb, or with the extremely cool charging case. The case has it’s own lithium ion battery, and it will actually hold a single charge for the headset without being plugged in. This means for an overnight trip all you have to bring with you is the headset and the case, and you’ll still be able to recharge it once.
Pairing – The 925 connected quickly and easily to my phone, this shouldn’t be a challenge for anyone to do after a few minutes skimming the manual.
Comfort and Fit – I prefer the “in ear” style of BT headsets to the “over the ear” style, so the 925’s setup was great. The customizable earbuds should ensure a comfortable fit for most people, although there will be some who will experience irritation with all the sizes. The earbuds are a tad fragile, so be careful when handling them.
Stability – The plantronics feels really light and loose, but it also stays in place! Nothing is more annoying than a headset that falls out, but this one does a great job staying in place.
Range – The headset does well out to about 20 feet, any further and distortion begins to occur. Bluetooth is rated for 33 feet maximum, but in real life you will seldom get this far, and the 925 does excellent compared to other headsets.
Sound Quality – The 925 does very well in this area. No one could “tell” I was on a headset, and both incoming and ougoing sound were crisp and clear for me and the person on the other end. The one exception was in wind, which I will discuss later.
Battery Life – The 925 is rated for up to 5 hours of talk time and 7 days (!) of standby time, which is great for a BT headset. Although battery life does typically decline over time, in my experience it definitely lived up to the promise and I was very impressed by the amount of time I could go between charges.
Cons: (Keep in mind these may not be important to you!)
Controls – The 925 has 2 buttons: One large multi-purpose button on the side, and one smaller one on the top for volume. While the multi-purpose one is pretty standard (answering or placing calls, voice dialing, etc), the volume control is somewhat lacking. It only has 3 levels (high, medium, low) which it cycles through. This is in contrast to competing headsets (such as my Jabra) which have both “+” and “-” for volume, which can give more precise control over the volume.
Wind Noise – This is something that is a problem on most headsets, and while this one did better than most low end headsets, it didn’t do as well as competitors at half its price (such as the Aliph Jawbone). Such a pricey headset should not experience such bad feedback and voice choppiness when outdoors or on the highway.
Price – The 925 is definitely on the higher end of the price range for BT headsets. The features for the price may or may not be worth it to you, and you could be just as happy with a much lower priced headset.
Overall:
Overall the 925 is a great looking premium headset which is packed with features. Comfort, ease of use, battery life, and sound quality were all excellent. The charging methods provided were exceptional, and the charging case is just plain cool. This headset is certainly better than most of the cheap headsets out there. Still, the price is high, and the controls and wind noise performance could be better. These aside, there is an excellent chance you will look great in and love this headset.
Oct 3rd, 2009 at 11:07 am
I’ve been extra pleased with two things concerning this product lately. For one, it is in the November 2008 issue of Consumer Products as having made the “Top Products” list.
Then last weekend I saw it in the Sunday ad’s at Best Buy on sale for $115. I paid under $80 for mine here, and it qualified for free shipping to boot!
The Consumer Reports says,
“This mono Bluetooth costs more than most, but it’s among the lightest and smallest and earned very good scores for talking and listening. Noise-canceling technology reduces background noise to facilitate the conversation. It supports multi-point pairing – the easiest way to pair your headset to a phone.” (BTW – they have the list price at $135)
Now for my opinion.
I have very small ears and have had a hard time finding a bluetooth that would stay on so I wanted to give this ‘in ear’ design a try. It fits great with a nice secure feel and more importantly it sounds great and (I’m told) sounds great to the caller too. No one has asked me yet if I’m on speaker or bluetooth. So far, no complaints from anyone. I’m very happy with all of it’s features as well.