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Thread: Headphones with best Phone microphone?

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    Default Headphones with best Phone microphone?

    So you know how even cheapo earbuds these days have a microphone for making calls? Which ones are actually a decent quality microphone that doesn't sound like you are calling from 20,000 leagues under the sea? Ideally it's something that can block out wind noise too, since I like to make my calls when I'm out walking.

    I don't even know where to start, or what to start googling for this feature.
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    Also should clarify, I'm looking for "normal" attachment for existing android phones, not whatever the the hell the ghost of steve jobs is selling these days.

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    Have you considered just wearing a Bluetooth headset?

    The biggest thing that is going to make a difference is having a boom closer to your face, but that makes you look retarded if you are going to wear it while going for a walk. Sounds like the inline mic style also doesn't work for you which is the most subtle. Personally I haven't ever had much luck with the fancy unidirectional mics that don't have a boom. You are likely to find returns just diminish substantially past using a normal set of iPhone headphones (or whatever) with an inline mic.

    Maybe just look for a telemarketer style headset?

    Pretty much everything is going to be a compromise of some kind.
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    Believe it or not, those new Apple AirPods are awesome for talking on the phone while walking around. I ordered a pair to play with to see what the fuss is about and planed on returning them. Now I look like a moron with them on all the time. With the # of conference calls I'm on daily while walking around, it's made life a whole lot easier. I was on a call today while skating at the lake and the other end heard me loud and clear. I have no idea why they work so well with the microphone basically beside your ears but it does.

    They're kinda crappy for music tho, sound quality is on par with the cheap earphones that the iPhone comes with. They work great for android too.

    http://www.androidcentral.com/airpods-android-seriously

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    I agree with Rage, the AirPods surprisingly perform very well. Other end hears me loud and clear. My work requires me to be on the phone A LOT. I swear by the Plantronics Legend but that's a dedicated conversation only blutooth. For convo it's the best for clarity and battery life is good with at least 5 hours. Auto switching between phone and headset is sometimes flaky though.

    Only issue I have with AirPods is the battery life sucks. Drains super fast but with the charging case it's manageable. Also I use only one side and I just rotate them so I pretty much always have full battery. I have to say for conversation the AirPods may be slightly better than the mighty Plantronics Legend.

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    So seems like bluetooth setups are the popular way to do this. Any corded options? I suspect I'd end up running down the battery, forgetting to charge or something.

    Also, am I reading this right, those Airpods ar three hundred bucks?
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    Airpods are $220cdn. US exchange is killing us (they're $160us). Battery life is supposed to be 5 hours, but I've been able to drain it on nearly 3 hours of talk time. On the bright side, charging is fast. 5 mins of charge gets an estimated 3 hours of usage, so realistically a little over an hour of heavy usage. Since left and right are complete separate, you can use one and charge the other simultaneously as both have mics built in. The case charges the airpods, and it holds enough power where I can charge the airpods for around 4 days before needing to plug in the case itself to charge. You'll need a lightning cable (not included IIRC) to charge the case.

    I don't know of any corded option that works well but I haven't really tried enough to say for sure. The wired earpods were terrible outdoors, and my Sony set is pretty much useless for microphone but great for music.

    Like I said, buy, try, keep or return. Apple has an awesome return policy to try shit. Stock is pretty crappy/random with Airpods. I ordered my set last year and it wasn't due to be shipped till February. I got lucky one morning when the kids dragged me into the Apple store and they had a shipment in that morning and picked them up.
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    Hey, sort of related, I see that some phones list "active noise cancellation" in their specs, like the samsung S6
    "
    SOUND Alert types Vibration; MP3, WAV ringtones
    Loudspeaker Yes
    3.5mm jack Yes
    - 24-bit/192kHz audio
    - Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic


    Does this mean when using the phone without a headset, or with the factory earbuds/mic? What does it really mean?
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    That means the phone itself has a second microphone located somewhere else on the device that it uses to provide noise cancellation when you are using the handset during a phone call.

    On an iPhone 6S its between the camera and the flash, i think it used to be on top of older iPhones.

    I highly doubt the software uses it when connected to a headset.


    I think most phones have had this feature for years, such that they might not even bother listing it in specs.
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    Ok, makes sense. Would be wicked if that also worked with a headset.
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    If you're looking for AirPods, they went in stock 2h ago at both Chinook and Market Mall Apple Stores. You can order online or via app for pickup to reserve one right away.
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    Necro-bump, I had a few Bluetooth headsets in the last couple of years,and all worked very mediocre-ly. But decided to go full "call centre" and get a boom headset. These are Bluetooth v5, and have a separate microphone for noise cancellation. I have high hopes they will help with my 10+ hours a week I'm on the phone for work.
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    Quote Originally Posted by killramos View Post
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    will be curious to hear your thoughts.

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    Still love my AirPods. I do my morning conference calls roaming the plus 15 to get out of the office.
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    I don’t usually use my AirPods for phone calls, but when I do they work great.
    Originally posted by Thales of Miletus

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    Stop those neck pains and injuries.
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    Here's an actual photo of me using it.
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    Fit is so-so, and sound quality through the one speaker is not amazing, and most disappointing of all, the microphone is not that impressive. My phone microphone is quite bad, so this is no worse, but it's not much better.

    I think the best microphone I have is the one on my laptop, which is good for video calls, but that's only about half my work. Was hoping the bluetooth headset would be the solution, and maybe it could be, but not when you buy the cheapo $40 amazon version apparently. Or maybe the phone is just processing sound poorly and it's not the microphones problem? It is time for a new handset in a few months. we'll see if that makes any difference.

    Probably still use it, because I feel like I don't have to shout with the microphone right by my mouth.
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    I think this might be my new favourite crusade. One of my coworkers, that I spend hours a week on the phone with, has a truly awful headset for call quality. Noticeably worse than other callers who just use speakerphone on thier cellular phones.

    Is there any third-party testing of headset/headphone microphones? I want to send out a list to my team of what they need to buy. I know there are lots of "best of 2019" type lists, but they don't seem to be actually based on any kind of testing methodology, and the engineer in me can't trust them.

    Heck, if I bought a few different ones, is there a testing methodology that I could use to rate and rank them? I'm writing a testing procedure for a set of tools for work right now, so maybe that's why it's on my mind.
    Last edited by ExtraSlow; 10-21-2019 at 10:47 AM.
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    Quote Originally Posted by ExtraSlow View Post
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    I think this might be my new favourite crusade. One of my coworkers, that I spend hours a week on the phone with, has a truly awful headset for call quality. Noticeably worse than other callers who just use speakerphone on thier cellular phones.

    Is there any third-party testing of headset/headphone microphones? I want to send out a list to my team of what they need to buy. I know there are lots of "best of 2019" type lists, but they don't seem to be actually based on any kind of testing methodology, and the engineer in me can't trust them.

    Heck, if I bought a few different ones, is there a testing methodology that I could use to rate and rank them?
    Not exactly what you're looking for, but rtings tests gaming headsets which do what you want. Might at least provide some insight into some brands to look at:

    https://www.rtings.com/headphones/re...y-usage/gaming

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    Quote Originally Posted by Mitsu3000gt View Post
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    Not exactly what you're looking for, but rtings tests gaming headsets which do what you want.
    Do they really "test" them, or are these just reviews?

    EDIT: There are legit tests hidden in there. I'll check it out.
    Last edited by ExtraSlow; 10-21-2019 at 10:54 AM.
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