ANYCOM Blue Stereo Headset BSH-100

Gadgeteer Hands On Review by Judie Hughes

May 05, 2006

If I had to make a choice between earbuds and a set of in-ear earphones, my choice would be the latter because I have not yet found a set of earbuds that fit me well. But for true comfort, I will probably always prefer a full headset. Think old school headphones...the classics that had donut cushions over each side's speaker, a tightly coiled black cable with a 1/4" gold-tipped plug; the type of headphones one envisions when thinking of a DJ in a noisy club.

Today I am going to take a look at a fresh interpretation of a classic, the ANYCOM Blue Stereo Headset BSH-100. Compared to the full size headphones I described, these are smaller, lighter and they transmit audio wirelessly via Bluetooth - so there are no big back cables. But these also go one step further - they can function as a Bluetooth enabled mobile phone headset.

Designed to be truly portable, the BSH-100 headset can be folded into an approximately 3.5" tall x 3.5" wide x 2" thick package for storage.

Included in the package are the Bluetooth Stereo headset, the battery pack, the detachable microphone, a USB charging cable and an AC/DC wall adapter.

Specifications
Bluetooth SIG: Bluetooth 1.2
Frequency Range: 2.4 – 2.4835 GHz
Radio Class: Class 2
RF Output Power: 0 dBm
Sensitivity: -80 dB
Range: up to 10 meters ( 33 feet)
Supported profiles: A2DP, AVRCP, Handsfree and Headset profile
Talk time: Listen to music with medium volume: up to 12 hours; Connected to mobile phone: up to 12 hours
Standby time: up to 200 hours
Recharging: 3 hours
Battery: Rechargeable 300 mAh Lithium-Ion Polymer battery, Can be exchanged easily
LEDs: Two color LED for paring, call and charging status
Audio Frequency range: 20 Hz to 22 kHz
Audio S/N Ratio: > 90 dB Signal/Noise ratio
Audio Output power: > 20 mWrms
Options: ANYCOM USB-200 Bluetooth Adapter, ANYCOM General Bluetooth Audio Adapter, ANYCOM Bluetooth Adapter for I-Pod, ANYCOM BSH-100 Additional battery with UFO charging station

When fully opened, the ANYCOM headset measures approximately 14" from one end of the U-shaped neckband to the other. Its body is composed of a black plastic collapsible frame, and on each end of the neckband are two thick plastic disks measuring approximately 2" wide x  0.75", a quarter inch of which is soft padding.

The right ear speaker holds all of the controls, as shown in this diagram.

The left ear speaker holds the removable 300mAh, 3.7V Li-ion rechargeable battery pack...

...which is charged by inserting either of the included cables into the mini USB port on the right headset. While charging, the LED will glow red, and once it is fully charged it will blink blue. When the headphones are turned on and operating normally, the LED will blink blue every couple seconds, but once the battery gets low it will flash red once a second.

The headset ear pieces are designed so that they will fit around the back of the wearer's ear while the padded portion cover's the ear's front.

The headset's neckband fits against the U-shape of the wearer's neck; and the plastic loops above the earpieces hold the speakers in place. When worn, the headset feels secure and comfortable, even while walking or otherwise exercising. Unlike earbuds, or even earphones, there is no sense of discomfort while using the headphones. The slight pressure created when wearing the headset hooked over the ears is enough to keep it completely secure - and very comfy.

When used as a traditional audio headset, the BSH-100's only requirement is a compatible Bluetooth enabled audio device. For those that do not have a BT enabled audio device, an optional part called the BAG-10 may be purchased, which plugs into any audio device with a 3.5mm jack. I thought that my Bluetooth enabled Samsung MM A-900 multi-media mobile phone would allow the playing of music over the headset - but I was w-r-o-n-g. Evidently my (lame!) phone does not support the necessary Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP). Grrrrr.... Neither does my JasJar, although I am hoping that there will soon be an A2DP update for it - if there's not already.

So instead, I paired the ANYCOM headset with my PC. I have an itty bitty Kensington USB Bluetooth Adapter plugged into my desktop, and a quick pairing was all it took to listen to music wirelessly over my PC. Yay!

There are two ways to pair the headset to a new device. Either the headset's battery can be removed and replaced, guaranteeing that the unit is turned off, or the ON / OFF button should be pressed and held for at least six seconds, until the LED quickly flashes red. With the device that is to be paired in seek mode, the headset is turned on by holding the headset's Volume Up and the ON/OFF buttons together for about six seconds, at which time its LED will begin to flash red and blue. When prompted on the pairing device, enter the PIN number 0000 (natch!) to complete the coupling. The headset may be paired with up to ten different devices.

How was the sound? Surprisingly good! The bass was deep and rumbly, and the headset didn't feel like it was bottoming out while listening to Nine Inch Nail's Only. M.I.A.'s 10 Dollar had incredibly crisp trebles while the bottom bass line stayed strong, and Kasabian's Clubfoot sounded huge - their intentional distortion was not muddied. I noticed no degradation of sound quality in the couple of feet between my computer and the headset when I was sitting at my desk, and I could get up and walk about 15 feet from my desk before the headset cut out. To make a couple of slight understatements, I really like the BSH-100's sound...and I can't get over the fact that they are wireless! These headphones would be awesome on a long flight while watching a DVD on a laptop...too bad it's probably illegal. :0P

The buttons on the headset are limited when operating with iTunes - I was able to control the volume up and down with the corresponding buttons, pressing the ON / OFF button did nothing, and pressing the Multi Function Button would pause or start the song. An option to advance to the next song would have been a nice touch, but I'm not complaining.

Functioning as a wireless set of headphones is not the extent of their capabilities, however. Plugging the detachable microphone into the headset's mini-USB port turns the music headset into a BT enabled mobile phone headset.

For this review, I tested the headset with my BT enabled Samsung MM A-900 multi-media mobile phone.

When coupled with my mobile phone the buttons on the headset did more than just connect or disconnect my calls or adjust the volume of the calls up and down. When pressed once, the Multi Function Button turned on my phone's screen. Pressing twice brought up my recently called list, and pressing the Volume Up or Down buttons on the headset caused my phone to scroll through and highlight the previously placed calls Pressing the Multi Function button a third time placed a call to the number highlighted.

I mainly used the headset while sitting at my desk to answer calls, because to be honest - I would never go out in public with such a huge headset on. With that said, I felt that the headset's reception was extremely clear and according to my two test subjects, Steve and Sarah, I could be heard perfectly without raising my voice. Because I was using the headset indoors there was no wind noise, but I did step outside while on the phone with Steve. Perhaps because the day was not windy at all, he said I sounded like I was talking on the phone - not through a headset. I will admit that I felt a bit self conscious standing outside and talking with the headset on. I guess I can be vain like that...

Anyway!

I was able to couple both my mobile phone and my desktop PC with the ANYCOM headset at the same time, although the resulting sound from the music was suddenly choppy. Even so, incoming calls were announced over the headset by a multi-toned trill, and when I pressed the Multi Function Button the music immediately stopped and I had a clear voice call. Pressing the button again returned me to the broadcasting music. Even though I couldn't test it because of my lame phone, I am going to assume that if the A900 had A2DP capabilities, the sound would have been clear when listening to music as it was when taking calls. I would love to hear from other ANYCOM users that can comment on whether or not this is true.

As mentioned, because of its size, I would not personally want to use the ANYCOM as my primary mobile phone headset. However, it was certainly comfortable enough that I wouldn't mind wearing it while sitting at my desk. Even with it's phone headset capability, I'll most likely use it primarily for listening to music on my desktop while working - it really is perfect for that.

If you have been looking for a comfortable Bluetooth headset that will allow you to listen to your music wirelessly, and yes - answer and make calls on your BT enabled phone, then the ANYCOM Blue Stereo Headset BSH-100 may be just what you need.