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Headset Cordless Phones?
PeteCool asks:
"Lately my phone calls, mostly the technical ones, are getting
longer and longer. The usual phone set isn't acceptable, and the
'shoulder trick' to hold the phone when using the keyboard isn't
enough anymore. I've been looking in stores in the area for
all-in-the-headset handless cordless phones - the ones with a little
box wired to the headset that holds on your belt don't look
comfortable at all - but I haven't found anything really great.
I've found this
all-in-one model from GN Netcom, but it's way too expensive for me.
I'm certainly not the first one looking for that kind of phone.
What have you guys found, what do you use, what do you recommend?"
I know you said you didn't like the cordlesses with a box and headset, but what about a normal cordless phone with a headset. Most Midrange 900 Mhz and 2.4 Ghz models allow you to plug in a headset that looks like the one you showed, and attach the handset to your belt or drop it into your pocket. This gives you the added bonus of not needing the headset for short calls, and being able to switch back and forth.
BD
You could always use a mobile (cell!) phone and plug in a hands-free kit. Of course, this may be impractical in some countries where mobile call rates make it too expensive.
When you talk on a regular phone, you have to flip ears every so often, right? Well the same is true when you wear one of these after a while. Get one with two ears and you'll never have to do that... and it's a very cool effect. It sounds like they are right there with you!
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When I worked on a console at a network control center, we used Plantronics Starsets. They were very comfortable. You would have to plug it into a cordless phone.
Mea navis aericumbens anguillis abundat
I use a Radio Shack phone - had it for over 3 years. It works great and is not cumbersome at all. The mic swivels to either side so that I can "change ears". It set me back less than $100.00 at that time.
at the plantronics website.
http://www.plantronics.com/home/index.html
On Plantronics or GN Netcom.
If you get a cheap headset, you'll suffer from poor clarity and a sore ear. You'll sound like you are on a payphone in a bus depot to whomever gets to talk to you.
Conformity is the jailer of freedom and enemy of growth. -JFK
I haven't found anyone making one of these yet but what i'd like to see is a set of headphones that are usable both as a hands free set for a phone and for listening to music from my computer. It seems like an obvious device but so far I have not been able to find such an animal.
Alternatively a simple box that plugs into your handset jack on your phone and then lets you plug in a set of head phones, a mic (or combo of both) and line out from you pc, would do the trick. I could have a simple selector button on top to choose between phone and audio.
The difference between Canada and the USA is that in Canada healthcare is a right and gun ownership is a privilege.
The plantronics CT-10 is a VERY nice phone for these situations. Easy to dial, nice small and not too heavy.
Runs about 130$+ from CDW and well worth the cost.
Telcos have alot of dark fibre in the States. Most people assume that's optical fibre...but it's actually moral fibre.
I found that a $20 cordless phone (900MHz - 2.4GHz interferes with 802.11b) and $12 headset works perfectly for me. Make sure the cordless has a belt clip and headset jack. A hold button is nice...
-Adam
I telecommuted for 14 months (From canada to UK), and much of my day was spent on the phone (Don't believe people when they say that telecommuting == e-mail correspondence).
After literally getting backaches, I purchased a Plantronics (clip on belt) style phone. Has headset with boom mic.
I love it. Seriously, it was / is (nearly) perfect for me. The sound quality is superior to normal phones, and the convenience is great.
If only it had Caller ID. I found (and people differ so YMMV) that the headset-on-a-wire was not perfect, but it was good enough that I could put the 'block' in my pocket, and wonder through the house making coffee etc. while in the middle of a conference call... it has a 'mute' button which is a must... For me the price/convenience/performance ratios were good, and the next level o functionality was prohibitively priced (at the time) although in retrospect I would have got CallerID.
Anyways, IIRC, it was about $170CND.
gus
P.S. I have no other relationship with plantronics other than a happy customer.
.. if only.
Hello Direct just sent me a junk catalog where they were touting a new Bluetooth enabled headset, but, of course, I'm not in the market for one, so I threw it out. There doesn't seem to be anything on their website about it. How's that for informative?
In my experience, I have found that the ultimate freedom comes through utilization of a widely available feature on many phones - the hands-free speaker-phone!!!
Now, I know what you are thinking...noisy, impolite, and hard to understand!!! Well, as is true with ANYTHING, quality is a direct function of price... There are sets that have cheap speaker-phone capabilities and then there are some (such my own...) that have high quality speaker-phones. With my current setup, I have NEVER recieved a single complaint from a co-worker or a client!!!
Of course, YMMV, but I have evaluated several different form factors of phones including the Plantronics heads sets, cell phones with hand-free capabilities to the standard hand sets; all in a wide price range. IMHO, none compare to the total freedom provided via speaker phone!!!
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I haven't worked there since I left for college, but I remember AT&T or VTech making a decent headset cordless phone, and it wasnt that expensive if memory serves.
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I'll parrot the crowd saying "Cordless + Headset", and toss out "Cordless + Speakerphone." I use a Siemens 4200. It has no headset jack, but it has a speakerphone on the handset (not the base). People can't tell when I have them on speaker, and it doesn't freak out when there is heavy background noise. Panasonic sells a similar unit (with headset jack to boot), and I believe AT&T does as well. They can all be found at your local Best Buy or Office Depot.
Take a look at a 43-007 at your local Radioshack. Its a combo Desktop and Headset Cordless phone. The headset looks very weird (the headset speakers don't actualy touch your head..take a look) but is very comfortable. Orig. Retail was $199.99, now disc. for $89.99.
Anybody know if the Plantronics headphones can be unplugged from one of their amplifiers and then plugged into the handset of a cordless (Siemens Gigaset), or even combined with an adapter for a cell phone (Qualcomm)?
The VTech model VT 1511 phone has 4 pieces in the box: a desktop phone (sort of lightweight, but no problems so far) with the transceiver; a desktop charging stand which uses inductive coupling to handle passing the EMF around; a headset (two ears, molded parietal-region battery/transciever area -- no wires of any sort!); and a credit-card sized, neck-strap having dialer unit with an IR interface to the headset.
I think it's a damn great model. The MSRP is like $199, and Staples.com delivered for $99, but I ended up getting a price match for $69 each on two.
It's 900 MHz digital, and its range has been as far as I have had opportunity to use it (about 100 feet through 1 internal, 1 external wall still sounded more or less crystal).
No belt clip, no nothing. I like it a lot. It does feel rather cyborgesque to see someone who has forgotten they're wearing the comfortable headset unit.
Shop around, they should be well under $100 now online (delivery non inclus). Also, check your standard product rating sites, etc, if any exist which are either still funded or noncommercial.
R
Uhm, what are you talking about? That All-In-One Model you mention, ISN'T a phone at all. It is ONLY a wireless headset that you can connect to a phone.
Well, I'd say search Radioshack.com, often they have a lot of models online that they don't have in their stores.. and different sales, availability, etc.
As far as a corded model, I recently got the 43-2151 or ET-2151 which is a good CORDED model. It's got Caller ID & Call-Waiting ID (for those of you not in the know, a phone or other device has to be capable of Callwaiting ID to receive the caller ID data for the second incoming call, which a lot of devices don't have.), is small, and is just well designed. I was also able to get this on sale for $29.95.
I think it leads to a number of aspects to look at.. the size of the keypad/control on your wireless device, the headset (how particular are you, is there one type you like over another, does it have interchangable headsets - in other words a standard jack, so you can change the headset if you want?), what type of batteries or battery pack does it use?, does it have caller ID/call waiting ID, how durable is it, and of course, what is the price?
First, determine what you want, and need, and then go shopping. Personally, the cordless models for what I want are not yet in a price I wish to pay. I've noticed that you can get some good ones at a decent price, however, they are the lower end 900mhz and such models, and their security isn't as good as I would like it to be.
Just get some headphones with a microphone on them and dial up through your computer - or even just use your speakers and mic you have now. 'Course, you may need to be online. My modem has two jacks on it. I've never used the second one, but I assume you could set up the second line to call through. (Or hey, you may be using broadband).
Hello Direct's headset page in their catlog
They seem to have really expanded their selection since the last time I saw it.
DRACO-
Consider yourself blessed if you are sneezed on by a dragon and only get wet, it could have been a fireball.
I've had this one for about 15 months now and I really like it.
It's comfortable, the battery last a long time, and the range is good. Because we have a two year old (1 year when we got the phone) the style of phone that had a cord down to the belt cliped pack was terrible. She would grab the cord and rip it off my head (or my wife's head).
The only downside is that lately when we adjust the mic it makes static. It's only while we're moving the mic so we consider it livable. However, it's not ideal.
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