Jabra

By Ian Urie

I have a mobile paid for by my company.
Now this might sound really great, but what it does mean, is that I can be reached at any time.
This usually turns out to be when I'm driving.
We all know how bad this can be (apart from the safety aspect).
I don't really want to get fined or gain points on my license.
Then again, I'm of a generation that just can't ignore a ringing phone.
So, I decided I might as well get a bluetooth headset.
This was quite a novelty to me, as my phone is generally a fairly basic model and , so far, had never reached the heights of having bluetooth.
Apart from that, I've never been that greatly motivated to learn much more than how to answer and make calls.



I had a browse through the usual suspects in the High Street, I won't bore you with all the names, I'm sure you'll all know who they are.
Bluetooth headsets are available in a bewildering range of styles, options and prices.
Now, I simply wanted something that would answer calls  and have a  reasonable  talktime.
The first thing I noticed is the size of these babies. I picked the Jabra BT135 as shown above.
A very simple unit, it comes with a charger, and , wait for it, interchangeable coloured slots.
These swiftly followed the packaging into the bin.
Weight : 14grams. nice and light!
Talktime: 8 hours. This is more than ample for me. As I said, it's to answer calls while driving.
If I'm talking for 8 hours inside a week, I'm not driving to and from work.
Standby time: 170 hours
Again, this is ample. I usually stick the unit on charge for an hour every week, and it hasn't let me down yet.

How well does it work?
I'm glad you asked that, it works wonderfully.
I switch it on and fit it to my ear. Thanks to the flexible earclip, this isn't much of a problem and once fitted, it doesn't irritate.
To show it's active, it  pulses every few seconds with a small blue light.
The phone automatically switches to incar profile and I'm set.
Pairing the headset to the phone , once I had a quick look through the  manual turns out to be as simple as holding the on button until the light  comes on solid,
and telling the phone to "discover" it.
Job done.
Sound quality is excellent, and can be turned from a whisper to a roar.
The mic part works extremely well, with anyone ,so far, hearing me loud and clear.
The 135 was one of the cheapest I looked at .
In the shops I checked, it was around the £20 mark, so not exactly a bank breaker.
Controls on the unit are few and simple, consisting of  a volume control and a multi selection switch.
The multi selection switch is a matter of holding the switch for different times depending on what you wish it to do.
Jabra, according to the sales assistant, is one of the more dependable and simple units.
After saying that, it can also be used for voice activated dialling, can reject, last number redial (I hate this feature as I've accidentally activated this a couple of time), call hold/wait.
Answering a call is a matter of tapping the switch, same to end it.
The light as I've mentioned is a handy way of seeing what the unit is doing.
When on charge, the light stays lit until it is fully charged.
All in all, a very handy little gadget.