USB Fever also sent me a Bluetooth headset. Is it as good as my Insignia headset? How does it stand up to the Jaybird? We’ll find out!
The USB Fever Stereo headset is a simple affair; it wraps around the back of your head like a lot of Bluetooth headsets do. Initially, I had to struggle to get these on. It’s a bit weird, as the cable which connects the two buds is springy: it kept springing out of my hand all of the time when I tried to put them on. The upside is once they are on, this springy cable holds the headset tightly on your ears. The cushions on each bud are only one size, but they happen to work well for me.
The charging cord for this headset is a USB cable; it has a rather plug which plugs into the headset, that does seem to be a smallish standard plug, but the other end is a regular USB plug. It’s not a standard cable, so if you lose the cable, you may be SOL on charging them back up. The upside to the one end of the cable being a USB plug is you can leave the charger behind if you want to, as it will charge off of any USB port on a desktop or laptop.
The volume controls are on the left earbud and the right earbud had the phone button and skip back and forward buttons. They work just as you would expect. When using this as a headset with your phone, you just press the phone button to answer phone calls; the phone button is the one on the very bottom of the right headset.
The volume of these is the real problem. While it is fine in a office environment, when I was standing next to the bus the sound would wash completely out even when the volume on the headset was maxed; these would not be very useful to those who commute.
Phone calls were not as clear on these as they would be on a headset specifically made for phone calls. I could hear the other person just fine, but they had difficulty hearing me even though I was sitting in a quiet office. In a noisier situation, the headset wouldn’t work at all for phone calls, so it is best to just use these for music if possible.
Battery life on these is better than the Jaybird JB-200′s, but not as good as my Insignia Bluetooth Headphones. These won’t get you through a day at work, but will work fine for commutes and workouts.
These are also more susceptible to interference and are very sensitive to the side of my body I put the device on. The sound would cut in and out with my Insignia Pilot in my shirt pocket; my right hip pocket seems to be the best place for any device.
These headphones may not be as good as my regular ones, but they do work pretty well. At only $34.99 plus shipping from USBFever.com, they are the least expensive stereo Bluetooth headphones I have found. If you’re just about saving money, and you don’t care about the volume level coming from them, these just might be the Bluetooth headphones for you.
What I liked: They where economically priced and paired up just fine with everything I tried except the BT Adapter and the iPod adapter from the Jaybird set.
What needs improvement: They need to be a bit easier to put on. They also need to be a bit higher in volume. Otherwise they work well.
Related posts:
Review: Jaybird JB-200 Bluetooth Headphones and Adapters
Headphone Review: Arctic Sound P311 Stereo Bluetooth
The Gennum nXZEN PLUS 5500 Bluetooth Headset Review
The nxZEN 5000 VoIP Bluetooth Headset Review
Review: BlueAnt T1 Rugged Bluetooth Headset
Review: The Motorola H790 Bluetooth Headset
Jabra Supreme UC Bluetooth Headset and USB Adapter Review
Unboxing the Plantronics Pulsar 260 Stereo Bluetooth: The review
