I made a visit to my local Apple Store today and purchased both the Plantronics Discovery 975 and the Jawbone Icon (The Thinker). My goal was to find an earpiece that would help me not only take phone calls while I work and listen to my music, but also increase the sound volume for me. (I have some hearing loss.)
I came home and charged the Discovery first. It took 90 minutes. That charged the charging case, too. It was real easy to sync the device with my iPhone 4. No problems there. Then I tried out a phone call. The sound was good and it appeared that this was the one I was going to keep.
Then, I tried to listen to music. No music would come through. I checked the website and discovered that you cannot stream music with the Discovery. Hmmm. Time to open up the Jawbone.
So, I plugged in the Jawbone. It comes with a USB connection that not only plugs directly into my computer, but also plugs into an electric outlet connection that is included. It took a short while to charge - seemed like less than an hour, but I can’t be certain.
As with the Plantronics, the Jawbone was simple to connect to my iPhone 4’s Bluetooth. Then, my husband, Bill, and I checked out the phone calls. The sound quality is exceptional. Bill said it’s better than the Plantronics. Since he hears better than I, I’m sure it’s true.
Next, I tried leaving my phone at one end of my house and talking. I discovered I could keep up the conversation all way to the other end of the house. Not sure how far that is – about 50 feet, I think. I tried making noise; Bill made noise; and the NoiseAssassin did a great job of keeping the noise to a minimum.
With a simple press of the Talk Button (one, two or hold for 2 seconds), I can answer the phone, end a call, find out how much battery life is left, redial, and activate voice dialing. I love voice dialing! I can say “Call Bill Downes,” and the Jawbone dials his number. Cool! I can also change the volume (3 settings – low, med, high) while talking or listening to music. Oh, I didn’t tell you that part!
I went to the Jawbone website and downloaded a software update that enable me to listen to music through the Jawbone. Easy installation! In no time at all, I was listening to my iTunes library, Pandora, and Livio Radio. How cool is that!
You guessed it! I’m keeping the Jawbone! I only wish I had a pink or gold one! Maybe I'll give this one to Bill and buy another?
I recently tried the
I recently tried the Plantronics 975 as well as my Plantronics Pro stopped working with my MacBook Pro. Guess what? The Plantronics 975 ALSO did not work with my MBP. I went to an Apple store and discovered it would not work with 3 computers there either, now would my Plantronics Pro. It seems to me some recent change with NEW MBPs prevents several Plantronics devices from connecting.
I also tried the JawBone. It worked fine with the MBP. However, it is essentially worthless due to limited battery capacity. I needed to charge it every 3 hours whether I actually used it for talking or not. Just being turned on would drain the battery within 3 hours.
Finally, I got the new BlueAnt Q2. It is wonderful. It works perfectly with my MBP and iPhone 4. The battery life is excellent. I can talk on it for nearly 6 hours without having to charge the battery. The noise canceling is superb.
Battery LIfe
The USB battery charger is a lifesaver for me. When it needs charging, I plug it into the USB charger and keep working. Very easy and convenient.
Out on the road, I can plug it into my car charger - I have an AC outlet that plugs into my cigarette lighter.