Jabra BT500 user reviews

Pros Lighter, more charging options

Cons Less comfortable than the BT250, whines when battery gets low

Summary If you are like me, you loved the BT250. It stood out because of the behind the ear design, above average sound quality and good value. So after mine broke (these things are delicate) I was really looking forward to the delivery of the BT500 which is lighter, thinner and has an even slicker design. It also boasts a superior sound quality and better battery life over its predecessor. My assessment is:

Design: The look of the BT500 is better and even less obtrusive due to the lighter grey/metalic color.

Comfort: I would question the benefits of the thinner form factor as there is simply less real-estate supporting the weight on your ear. For me anyway it seems to cut in slightly although this is only noticeable after a lengthy stint.

Sound Quality: I have noticed no improvement over the BT250. Jabra says it works within a 33ft range which is correct however they miss out the fact that it works great for about 10 feet, there after it becomes too crackly to have a reasonable conversation. The phone you use may play a factor here, I use a Blackberry 7520

Battery Life: Again seems to offer no marked improvement and seems to whine when getting low on juice.

Charging: There is an improvement over the BT250 due to the USB option for your PC but the whole process is still is a little quirky.

Usability: Pairing is one touch but who really cares! The volume controls are as hard to use as the old model but the on/off button does seem to be more accessible.

Bottom line: Good value, cool design but if you are a BT250 user I would not upgrade yet.

Pros Ear bud style speaker! Discreet look. Sound quality.

Cons Need more minigel sizes.

Summary Had to replace my Motorola HS820. Not because it was broken or lost, but because I was tired of pressing it to my ear in order to hear in slightly noisy conditions. Figured I'd go with something that sat in the ear as opposed to outside of it. I first looked at the Plantronics Discovery 640, but found it to be a bit on the "gimmicky" side. It didn't feel TOO bad IN the ear, but seemed like it would be easy to lose, and looked kind of strange sticking straight out like it does.(If you've seen it you should understand) I then looked back to Motorola, but the only one I found that seemed to be in the ear was the new Moto H605. It is an over the ear design much like the Jabra BT250 and BT500. I ordered the Moto H605 and received it in one day. Unfortunatly it was the most uncomfortable hunk of junk I ever tried! It sent me on a mission to find a replacement. That same day I was able to try on the Jabra BT500 and I saw what an over the ear design should feel like. Fortunatly, I was able to return it and get the BT500 as a replacement. It was also a few dollars less. It is a bit slimmer that the BT250, and MUCH thinner than the Mototrola H605. The sound quality is much better than either of the Motorolas I owned. This goes for the listener on the other end, and more so for the voice dialing feature. It recognised my voice commands on the first try unlike the Motos which took picked up the second try, or sometimes not at all. I also could now hear the other party clearly! I must admit, like to listen to my conversations a bit on the loud side. With the shorter of the 2 sized ear gels installed, I kept the volume at about 1-2 away from max. With the longer ear gel installed, that will pop your eardrum! Well it's not that loud, but it was too loud for me so I backed it down to 3-4 from max. These settings were under normal noise conditions. It is nice to know that you have the option to turn it up in case of noisy conditions.
Overall the BT500 fit the bill for me. The only complaint I have is that it could use a minigel sized between the 2 sizes that are included.

Pros Loud headset (use one of the bigger ear pieces provided) low profile doesn't fall off like other headsets

Cons a little pricy, but tried a bunch of others and it is worth the money

Summary Well, after my first headset, a fake motorola h500ish i bought on ebay was doa. i sent it back only to be screwed on a refund.
I was a bit frustrated, but did some surfing on all of the reviews and consumer reports picks, and decided on the plantronics discovery.
This unit was a nice enough unit, but kept falling off and looked dorky.
(I am not one of those people that want to go around looking like Captain Picard....)

The Discovery also had a seperate charging dock and other parts that i subsequently lost, then my dog got ahold of it and that was that (not the unit's fault, but i only had it a week).
Needless to say, I was a bit frustrated after these few attempts at being a blue tooth geek, but at least after all of that, I knew what I wanted: a headset that didn't make you look like a cyborg, one that didn't fall off everytime you looked behind you, and one that didn't have the appearance of a chew toy.

I did a bit more surfing, and decided I liked the low profile look of the Jabra BT500.

I actually originally was going to buy the BT 250, but liked the idea of the laptop charger and longer battery life of the 500.

I had read a few reviews on this unit, and after using this unit, all of the negatives posted on cnet I find to be unfounded.


A few negatives that I've seen on this forum:
Non standard charging adapter and usb adapter.
This is kind of weird, because they give you a laptop charger as well as a wall charger (most units only have the wall charger included in the package)in the package.
Sure, if you lose it, you have to buy a new one, that could be a bit of a bummer, but, hey...don't lose it!


Also, I've seen reviews stating that it is not that loud.
This unit comes with a few plastic earpieces that will help adapt to different ear types.
The standard one that came on the unit was a bit low, so I changed it out for one of the longer ones and "whalla" could hear perfectly! It just has to be in your ear.

I currently have the nokia 6256i.
It paired very easily, and the buttons are very easy to use.

Another thing I've noticed in reviews of a lot of headsets is hearing people say "it doesn't work when my phone is inside and I am in my backyard". I don't know if I am crazy, but I usually have the phone in my pocket and this unit works just fine.

Don't expect the bluetooth technology to work with your phone at home, and the earpiece at the laundromat!

I do live sound, and it is very hard wrapping cables and talking on the phone. This unit is very comfortable, and is very stable on my ear. You get the feeling that if you decided to go into headbanging mode, that this thing would not budge.
You wouldn't have that experience with some of the other "cyborg" models. Plus, when I'm walking down the street talking on my bluetooth headset, I'd much rather look like a crazy person talking to himself (low profile unit), than a cyborg or some wall street insider talking while ordering a super mega ultra premium half latte at starbucks (some of those other units scream "check out my high priced bluetooth headset")

This unit is a winner, and doesn't deserve some of the lame 3's and 4's reviews that it has had on cnet.

that is my opinion!

Sorry if i offended any wall street insiders.

P.S. Technology is a wonderful thing, but when you order your triple lappachiato at starbucks, or are in line at the post office, don't sit there talking while at the counter, turn the thing off, that is just rude (unless you are curing cancer or something like that)!

Pros Comfortable; Sound Quality; Controls; Battery Life

Cons None that I can think of

Summary CNET, what exactly did you review? It can't be the same product I bought. This is a great little headset. Its comfortable, I LIKE(!) the controls. They are much better than the previous model. As one of the other reviews said, the voice recognition is excellent. This is a very good product.