Stereo Bluetooth Headsets and Bluetooth Headphones allow you to listen to your music over a bluetooth connection and generally have a range of around 10 metres.  This means that you can put your phone down and wander freely around your house with out having to take your phone with you – great if your phone is on charge but you want to listen to your music without having to sit on the floor next to a plug socket!

The big names in Stereo Bluetooth headsets tend to be Sony Ericsson, Nokia and Jabra as these all tend to have a large range of headsets available. Other manufacturers such as Samsung also make stereo headsets but tend to concentrate on just a couple of models, and I’m going to review one of them here – the Samsung SBH-650 Stereo Bluetooth Headset.

Samsung SBH-650 with iPhone 3G

I’ve used most Stereo Bluetooth headsets that are on the market, and recently compiled a list of my Top 5 Stereo headsets for the iPhone and iPod Touch. At the time of writing the post though we didn’t have the Samsung SBH-650 in stock which meant it wasn’t included.  When they arrived I  had a play with one and was pleasantly  surprised at how good this headset it.  I normally dismiss Samsung Bluetooth headsets and opt for Jabra or Motorola, but this is certainly one I’d consider when it’s time to replace my Motorola S9′s.

Design

The design of the Samsung SBH-650 is similar to that of the Jabra BT3030.  It’s a small control unit that you plug your 3.5mm wired headphones into. Now, you might be thinking that the whole point of bluetooth is that there are no wires – well, yes and no.  Bluetooth eliminates the need to have a wire going from the phone to your headset, you’ll normally find that headphones with wires do have a slightly better sound quality, and if you damage or lose your headphones it means that you can just replace the headphones not the whole unit.

The main unit is small and compact at 57 mm x 27mm x 8mm (excluding clip) and weighs 18g. Unlike the Jabra BT3030 that has all the controls on the front of the control pad, the controls on the SBH-650 are on the sides and front of the main unit.  On the left side is the play/pause button and the charging port. Depending on the phone that you’re using, the play button will launch your music player and start playback.  I tested this out on two phones, a Nokia N82 and the iPhone 3G.  The N82 worked brilliantly and the music player started almost as soon as the button was pressed.  On the iPhone, the play/pause function does work, but you need to be in the iPod app in order for it to work. This is down to bluetooth limitations on the iPhone, not the headset.

Samsung SBH-650 Controls

On the opposite side you have the track skip buttons, the power switch and the 3.5mm headphone socket. Turning the headset on is just a case of sliding the switch up towards the head phone socket. The size and shape of this button makes it difficult to turn off accidentally so you don’t need to worry about cutting people off mid-call. The track skip buttons were the one thing with this headset that I struggled with a little at first.  Most headsets I’ve used have track skip on the front and volume keys on the side, the SBH-650 is the other way round, so I did find for the first hour or so I was changing tracks instead of adjusting the volume.   A long press of the track skip buttons will fast forward/rewind a song where as a quick press will skip to the  next/previous track.

The front of the SBH-650 has the volume keys and the talk button. The talk button is used to answer/end calls and to activate voice dialling if supported by your phone.  Volume keys are straight forward and when you hit the upper limit the headset will bee p to let you know you’re already at maximum volume.

Headphones

Normally the headphones that you get included with an item are pretty awful, but I was impressed by the earbuds that came in with the SBH-650.  They’re extremely comfortable and are a sturdy fit. Even after jumping around for 5 minutes I still couldn’t get them to fall out. They block out a lot of the ambient noise too, so if someone is trying to talk to you when you’re listening to your music, you probably won’t hear them, so for that reason I’d say only ever use one earphone if you plan on using this in the car.  The headphones in the box are normal 3.5mm headphones and the microphone is built in to the control unit, so if you don’t get on with them or want to use your existing 3.5mm headphones, you can.

Audio quality was fantastic and you wouldn’t know that weren’t using conventional headphones.  The 10m range was just enough for me to wander around most of my house, although the audio did tend to break up and skip a bit when I got close to the 10m limit – this would be the case with any Bluetooth headset though. Call quality was near perfect, and the caller had no problem hearing me, even when the SBH-650 was hanging round my neck on the lanyard.

Connecting the headphones

Multiconnect

Not to be confused with Multipoint, Multiconnect allows you to pair the headset to a mobile phone and a music player at the same time, which probably doesn’t sound all that exciting, but what it means is that you can pair this headset to your phone and your PC, play music from iTunes and have it stream over bluetooth to the SBH-650.  If your phone rings, you won’t have to dash around trying to find the pause button in iTunes or turn the speakers off, the SBH-650 will pause the music for you, play a ringtone instead and allow you to answer the call using the talk button on the control unit. You can add Bluetooth to your PC if it’s not already enabled by using a USB Bluetooth adapter.

For me, this was one of the best features. I’m often listening to music off my computer, and have to pause the music and take off my headphones when ever I needed to go to another room, but with the SBH-650 I could move around the house freely without interupting the music.  It’s not just phones and computers that will work though, if you have a 2nd generation iPod Touch running iPhone OS 3.0, you’ll be able to stream your music using Bluetooth to the SBH-650 too.

Wearing the Samsung SBH-650

Carry Options

There are three ways you can wear the SBH-650, either on a lanyard around your neck  clipped to your clothing or just in your pocket.  Of the 3, I think using the lanyard is your best bet. Although the spring clip is quite strong, it doesn’t take much for it to come off your clothes, and the last thing you’re going to want to do is loose it.  The cable on the headphones is only about 50cm long, so if you are planning on putting it in your pocket, it will need to be a shirt or inside jacket pocket.  If it’s hanging round your neck, you’re less likely to lose it and its easy to access to answer calls/change track.

Charging & Battery

The SBH-650 uses it’s own mains charger, so you won’t be able to use the same charger as your phone, but you can get an SBH-650 Car Charger to keep it charged while you’re in the car.  I found that charging the headset fully took about 2 hours, and once charged I got over 8 hours of music playback from it before the battery died.  Standby time is quoted as 170 hours and talk time is 8.5 hours.

Charging the Samsung SBH-650

Overall I’d say that the SBH-650 is a great Stereo Bluetooth Headset.  If I was to rate it, I’d say 9/10,  It does everything that you’d need it to do very well, but for me the positioning of the track skip & volume keys should be the other way round. It’s only a small niggle and once you’re used to using it I can’t see it being a problem.

For the price, you’ll struggle to beat it. Audio quality is excellent, Batttery life is great and it looks stylish too. If you wanted to compare this headset to others, then the closest in terms of spec and price are the Jabra BT3030, Sony Ericsson DS 200 and the Plantronics Pulsar 260.

If it’s not quite what you’re after, why not take a look at the rest of our Stereo Bluetooth Headsets.

For a number of years now it has been possible to use a Bluetooth Headset with your phone and more recently we’ve seen the introduction of Bluetooth Headphones and Stereo Bluetooth headsets that allow us to listen to music and make calls on our phone without the need for wires, but what if we want the same amount of freedom when using other devices such as PC’s?

We’ve compiled a list of our top 10 Bluetooth Headsets and Bluetooth Headphones / Stereo Headsets.

i-Tech Arrow X:
A budget headset with some great features. The Arrow-X is a multipoint headset which means you can connect this to your PC and your phone at the same time. If a call comes in from either device, you can answer the call quickly and easily on the headset.

Profiles Supported:
HFP (Hands Free Profile)
HSP (Headset Profile)

Jabra BT2020:
The Jabra BT2020 is one of the most comfortable Bluetooth Headsets available. Its unique design means that the bulk of the headset is behind your ear.

Profiles Supported:
HFP (Hands Free Profile)
HSP (Headset Profile)

Jawbone 2:
Jawbone headsets are all about noise reduction. They were one of the first to develop noise cancelling headsets, and are perfect for use in noisy environments (busy offices, sports events etc..)

Profiles Supported:
HFP (Hands Free Profile)
HSP (Headset Profile)

Nokia BH-102:
Attractive, reliable, and easy to use. The Nokia BH-102 is a great starter headset. It has simple controls, upto ten hours talk time and weighs just 11g.

Profiles Supported:
HFP (Hands Free Profile)
HSP (Headset Profile)

Jabra BT530:
The Jabra BT530 is a compact headset with simple controls, noise cancellation and multipoint. The BT530 has upto 5.5 hours talktime and weighs just 10g.

Profiles Supported:
HFP (Hands Free Profile)
HSP (Headset Profile)
A2DP – Single earpiece only

Bluetooth Headphones & Stereo Headsets

Qstik EVO Q:
The Evo Q is a 2 in 1 Bluetooth Headset. Use it on its own as a standard Bluetooth Headset, or connect the stereo headphones to it to get a Stereo Bluetooth Headset. In addition to the Desk/Car holder, the Evo Q also includes a Bluetooth Dongle for your PC making it an ideal headset for VOIP.

Profiles Supported:
HFP (Hands Free Profile)
HSP (Headset Profile)
A2DP – Stereo Audio
AVRCP – Playback Controls

Sony Ericsson IS-800:
The HBH-IS800 offers an extraordinary music experience – unique design,
essential function and high sound quality fused to create a sensational
stereo headphones.

Profiles Supported:
HFP (Hands Free Profile)
HSP (Headset Profile)
A2DP – Stereo Audio

Jabra BT3030:
Bluetooth just got cool thanks to the BT3030. Not only does it look good,
it sounds great. The Jabra BT3030 is a ‘dog tag’ style headset that lets you use any standard 3.5mm headphones with it.

Profiles Supported:
HFP (Hands Free Profile)
HSP (Headset Profile)
A2DP – Stereo Audio
AVRCP – Playback Controls

Nokia BH-504:
A unique folding design with advanced audio and call features make this headset a great choice for music lovers. The Nokia BH-504 lets you control your phone calls and music from the buttons integrated into the headset.

Profiles Supported:
HFP (Hands Free Profile)
HSP (Headset Profile)
A2DP – Stereo Audio
AVRCP – Playback Controls

Sony Ericsson DS-980 & DS-220:
Both of these headses are similar to the Jabra BT3030, but with a few significant differences. The DS-980 has noise cancellation and multipoint, where as the DS-220 lets you use any standard 3.5mm earphones, but doesn’t support multipoint.

Profiles Supported:
HFP (Hands Free Profile)
HSP (Headset Profile)
A2DP – Stereo Audio
AVRCP – Playback Controls

For a number of years now it has been possible to use a Bluetooth Headset with your phone and more recently we’ve seen the introduction of Bluetooth Headphones and Stereo Bluetooth headsets that allow us to listen to music and make calls on our phone without the need for wires, but what if we want the same amount of freedom when using other devices such as PC’s Stereos and TV’s?

The way that Bluetooth has been advertised is that it’s only for mobile phones – but this really isn’t the case. With more and more of us making calls using VOIP services such as Skype, the need for a wireless headets that you can use with your PC is just as strong as it is to have one for your phone. What you may not realise, is that the equipment you need for your PC, is in most cases, exactly the same as you need for your phone.