Bluetooth headsets are
INTRODUCTION
one of the greatest conveniences available for your
mobile phone. Not having to worry about
tangling wires is a great thing. There are
several problems with most Bluetooth headsets,
however. The first complaint is the sound
quality for the receiving party and another
complaint is the sound quality on the sending
party’s side. Probably the most common
complaint though, is that most Bluetooth headsets
are just not very attractive and tend to make you
look like you’ve been partially assimilated by the
Borg.
Sony Ericsson is well-known for designing attractive
mobile phones and accessories. They have
provided one of their flagship Bluetooth headsets,
the
HBH-610a, for us to review – and it carries the unique bonus of Bluetooth 2.0 for when you get a phone that is capable with this protocol. Will this
headset overcome some or all of the common Bluetooth
headset complaints? Read on to find out.
The HBH-610a
WHAT’S HOT
definitely packs an impressive list of features
including:
Digital echo
cancellation and noise
Automatic Volume
Adjustment
Bluetooth 2.0
Auto pairing and
redialing
|
Bluetooth Headset
|
Talk Time | Standby (hours)
|
Weight (grams | ounces)
|
Approx Street Price
|
|
Sony Ericcson HBH-610a
|
6.5 | 300
|
20.0 | 0.71
|
$90
|
|
5 | 120
|
25.0 | 0.90
|
$60
|
|
|
6 | 300
|
10.0 | 0.35
|
$140
|
|
|
6 | 300
|
11.0 | 0.38
|
$60
|
|
|
30 | 700
|
25.0 | 0.88
|
$50
|
|
|
15 | 300
|
9.00 | 0.32
|
$80
|
|
|
5 | 150
|
15.0 | 0.53
|
$115
|
|
|
7 | 300
|
14.2 | 0.50
|
$80
|
|
|
6 | 300
|
11.0 | 0.38
|
$55
|
|
|
7 | 100
|
17.0 | 0.54
|
$150
|
|
|
5 | 250
|
20.0 | 0.71
|
$60
|
|
|
2 | 100
|
5.85 | 0.21
|
$250
|
|
|
8 | 1000
|
10.0 | 0.35
|
$80
|
|
|
4 | 200
|
12.0 | 0.42
|
$60
|
Compared to other headsets we’ve reviewed, the HBH-610a is a bit heavier than most, with solid talk time. Click on any of the above headsets to read a review.
SETUP
(all images link to higher resolution)
In
the box you will find (from the top clockwise) the
AC charger, 2 additional faceplates, a lanyard,
instruction manuals and finally the headset itself.
As with any product with a built-in rechargeable
battery, the first thing you need to do is charge
it. While the headset is charging a red LED is
visible and when it is fully charged the LED glows
solid green. The headset uses the standard
Sony Ericsson charger, which is nice if you own a
Sony Ericsson phone since you will only need 1
charger while traveling. The charging tip is a
bit hard to get into the port, though.
Next you will need to pair the headset with your
mobile phone. The HBH-610a supports auto
pairing, if you have a Sony Ericsson mobile phone
that supports that feature. I tested the
headset with the xv6700 on load from Verizon
Wireless. Since this device does not support
auto pairing, I manually paired it by pressing and
holding the main button on the headset for 5
seconds. The LED blinks red and green when the
headset is in pairing mode. From there on it
is the standard process of having the phone search
for devices and entering the password of "0000" to
complete the pairing.
One nice feature of this headset is that you can
pair it to more than 1 device. To pair it to
an additional device you press and hold both sides
of the volume rocker switch for 5 seconds.
PRODUCT FEATURES
The
HBH-610a is very attractive for a Bluetooth headset.
It is sleek and solidly built. On the front
the only control is the silver main button and the
microphone is located at on the front near the tip.
At the end of the headset is a loop where you can
attach the included lanyard.
The
back of the headset contains the ear loop, the
charging port and the ear piece speaker.
The
top of the headset has the volume rocker.
Pushing forward reduces the volume while pushing
towards the back increases the volume.
So, how is the sound quality? It is a bit
above average for a Bluetooth headset. On the
receiving end, callers complained that my voice was
too low and to compensate I had to speak pretty
loudly. On my end I found the volume to be too
low as well, even on maximum. The headset
features automatic volume adjustment and I think
that is partially to blame for both.
One highlight of the headset is that it does an
excellent job with echo cancellation, which is a
common problem in Bluetooth headsets. Also,
the headset does a nice job at noise reduction with
its’ digital signal processor. It is not as
good at noise cancellation as the
NxZen 5500
or the
Plantronics Voyager 510, which is what I am
currently using. The HBH-610a definitely looks
much better than either of those headsets though.
There is also a bit more static in the background on
your end of the call than those other 2 headsets.
The
ear loop twists and flips. It flips so you can
wear it on either ear. It twists so that you
can put it on.
This headset fits strangely. Normally,
Bluetooth headsets place the speaker over your ear
canal. The HBH-610a places the speaker further
back in your ear. On my ear it rested a bit
uncomfortably. After a while I got used to it,
but I probably would not want to wear this headset
all day. I let a few friends try the headset
on and had varying degrees of success. Some
thought it was OK while others could not stand it.
Partially contributing to this is the fact that the
ear loop is not flexible. I would suggest that
if you are interested in this headset you try it on
first or purchase it from somewhere with a liberal
return policy.
Here
is what the headset looks like when it is on.
It is not the biggest headset nor is it the smallest
I have used. I found the size to be just about
right.
If
you are a fashionista you probably won’t be caught
dead wearing a Bluetooth headset. For the rest
of us, Sony Ericsson includes 2 extra faceplates to
customize the look of the headset a bit. The
faceplate that is pre-installed is matte black with
ridges. The extra faceplates are slightly
shiny silver and matte silver with ridges.
Popping the faceplates on and off is pretty easy and
the faceplates fit securely.
Sony Ericsson claims 6.5 hours of talk time and 300
hours of standby as the battery life of this
headset. The numbers seemed reasonable based
on my testing.
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Sony Ericsson includes a
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HELP SUPPORT
plethora of instruction manuals in a whopping 10
languages. The instructions are pretty clear
with lots of diagrams to follow.
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
Any mobile
phone that supports Bluetooth should work fine with the HBH-610a. This
headset is one of the first Bluetooth 2.0 devices available. I do
not have a Bluetooth 2.0 equipped phone so I tested the headset in
Bluetooth 1.2 mode. I know that Sony Ericsson is planning on
releasing mobile phones with Bluetooth 2.0, but I do not believe they
are available yet. Since the headset supports Bluetooth 2.0 it is a little more
"future-proof" than most.
BUGS AND WISHES
I did not encounter any serious problems with the
HBH-610a. As I mentioned before, the charging
tip is somewhat difficult to insert into the port on
the headset. Also, the charging tip is
2-pronged. I am not sure how durable it will
be, but since Sony Ericsson uses the same tip on all
their products I assume it is OK.
From time to time while using the headset it would
have difficulty picking up a call from the xv6700.
I am not sure I can blame this on the headset
though. Considering Microsoft’s flakey
Bluetooth stack it is just as likely that the xv6700
is responsible. I will note however, that the
Plantronics 510 I normally use does not have this
problem.
PURCHASING
I found the HBH-610a listed anywhere from $85 to $100 on
Froogle.com.
PROS
cancellation and noise reduction with DSP
2.0
CONS
calls is not loud enough
voice volume is too soft
Value
Ease
of Use 
Features
Overall
OVERALL IMPRESSION
The HBH-610a rectifies some of the main problems
with Bluetooth headsets. Namely, this headset
is good-looking and the echo cancellation and noise
reduction work well. It is held back
somewhat due to the soft volume on both ends of the
call and the odd way it sits on your ear. I
deducted 2 points from the Ease of Use rating
because of the slightly uncomfortable fit, so it’s tough to get used to. As
I mentioned, you should definitely try this headset
on before you buy one.
At $85-100 this headset is an average value.
It is certainly cheaper than many others that do not
have echo cancellation and noise reduction.
Plus, you are getting a Bluetooth 2.0 product.
I’d be curious to test how much better the sound
quality would be using Bluetooth 2.0. If you
are looking for a good-looking headset that is
somewhat future-proof, then the Sony Ericsson
HBH-610a could be a good choice… provided you find
it comfortable to wear.
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