Customer Reviews

Motorola H700 Bluetooth Headset [Motorola Retail Packaging]

5 star:		(221)
4 star:		(161)
3 star:		(79)
2 star:		(73)
1 star:		(97)

 

 

The H700 Bluetooth headset is the very best headset you can buy. How do I know? Because I have tested at least 5 bluetooth headsets now and none of them comes even close to this one. By the way, I own a Razr (Verizon) phone.

Of all the headsets I tried...

1. It is the most comfortable fitting

2. It is the lightest

3. It is the only one that does not have a problem reconnecting after it was turned off and back on. Nor does it have to be paired all over again each time I walk out of distance and back.

4. The controls are all very easy to access

5. I do not have anybody complaining on the other end that it echos or is hard to hear

6. I am able to hear very well without turning the volume up all the way. (My hearing has never been the best because I worked in a machine shop most of my life) Some of the other headsets are hard to hear when I am driving in the car but not this one.

7. I like the 4 different light colors that come on for various reasons. It lets me know what is happening.

I would like to end with two comments....

(1) You will not go wrong if you buy the H700 headset.

(2) You will get static if you get too far away from the cell phone but that is true for any and all bluetooth headsets.

Maybe in another 2-3 years technology will advance more in this area but for now the H700 is as good as any other headset when it comes to having static once a person gets further away then say 15-20 feet. (static is NOT a problem with this headset as long as you are within 10 feet. Don't expect anything more or less with any other headset - I know because I tried them.

After reading many conflicting reviews on the H700, I wasn't able to determine whether I should buy the unit or not as my next BT headset upgrade. Since I nailed one on eBay with a great price, I decided to write a review, offering some insights that I myself would have appreciated reading to help with my purchasing decision. Hopefully this will help some user new to bluetooth.

First of all, for new/newish bluetooth (BT) headset users, there are some expectations to note up front. These radio devices are far from perfect thus in certain conditions, all BT headsets will experience static, dropping connection to the phone, sudden quietness, echoes (both for the user of the BT device and/or for the person on the other end), not able to bond to other devices they are supposed to be capable of bonding to, interference from other electronic devices, as well as other inabilities to help you achieve complete enlightenment and utter happiness with your life.

Another thing to note is that not all BT headsets will work equally well with all BT phones. In fact some are very picky indeed about what kind of phones/devices they will work well with.

That's why reviews of the same BT headset can vary drastically because people use various phones to connect to the same BT headset and I'm sure they use them in different conditions. Not to mention people themselves come in different sizes and one headset will not fit well for everyone. There are simply way too many variables why any one of these reviews may not apply to you at all.

My recommendation is to simply try it out to see if it fits your ear, your phone, and the conditions you'll be using it in. Go to a local store that has great return/exchange policy so in case you don't like it, you can always get your money back or exchange for something else. At this point, I've just made my own proceeding review somewhat pointless, but I'll try to give enough specific details so people in some key decision making points that haven't been discussed in most of the reviews I've read.


Relevant user profile:
Experience: I've been using various Moto BT headsets for more than 3 years, HS801, HS810, HS850, and obviously now H700.
Phones used with BT headsets V80, Sony Ericson T610, P910a.
Conditions of use: city driving, in house with 802.11g wireless network, close proximity to TV, stereo, wireless keyboard and mouse.

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Review

FIT
As many have stated, this is one of the smallest BT headset Moto has produced to date. It does fit tight and even with my medium/smallish sized ears, I find that there's only a small window of wearing position that will both make the headset work well and for me to feel comfortable wearing this. I often find that after I open the ear piece put it on my ear, and clamp the ear piece to sandwich my ear between the ear piece and the headset, I would still need to pull my ear upwards and at the same time, slide the headset towards my mouth to get it to fit snug (I used the same trick for all the other Moto BT headsets as well since they have similar fit).

It won't fit if I just clamp it to my ear like the manual suggests. In fact, some people have complained that while wearing the H700, the boom mic is always touching their face and thus not picking the user's voice, and this happens to me as well if I don't adjust the fit of the headset AFTER I've clamped it to my ear.

In short, depending on the size and shape of the user's ear, there will be users who will never get this headset to work well or fit comfortably. Even after you've put a headset on, tweak the positions a bit to see if you can get it fit better! If you have big ears that protrude outwards, make sure you try this headset out first because this one may not be meant for you at all

Comfort
Because of the tight fit on my ear, it is a bit more noticeable to wear than all the other headsets I've had. But nothing to deter me from using it for hours at a time. In any case, the HS801/810/850 were more comfortable to wear for me. They also have a thin cushion around the speaker part of the headset that actually sits more comfortably on your ear, which also act as a seal to seal off sound going into your ear (although I question how well the thin cushion actually works as a seal), whereas the H700 doesn't. The H700 simply pushes the plastic headphone part of the headset against your ear just by the nature of its tight fit. So is this good or not? Well, you can't have your cake and eat it too all the time. The HS series are more comfortable to wear, but they are more bulky and more likely to fall off your face (especially if you don't use my technique to really tighten it after you put it on). With the H700, it's much tighter I can actually consider jogging with it.

Signal
After the H700 is paired with my phone, it holds on to the phones very well in the car while driving in the city. It does drop the connection to the phone very rarely but this happens less than with my other headsets. I've never used it beyond 10 feet from the phone, so I wouldn't know if this is a distance signal performer.

Voice Quality
Both the incoming and outgoing (testimony from people I've called) are superb when there is no interference. In fact it is the best in all the headsets I've owned. The sound is without static and without echoes (unlike the HS801 and the HS850 was the worst with echoes for the user), and in a relatively quiet house (with the usual background noise, TV and stereo on), both the incoming and outgoing voices sound natural and as good as speaking straight from the mobile phones themselves, without the use of any headsets.

With the H700, I don't detect the same audible, constant background hiss the HS810 and HS850 exhibited. Unusual but true in my case, the HS801 (the oldest of all my headsets) sounds more natural and has less hiss than both HS810 and HS850. The quality of H700 is better than HS801.

Static/Interference
In most cases, I find the sound static free and more pleasant to hear. There is static (low volume tick and/or pops that are constantly in the background) as with all the other headsets I've used in the same room where my wireless router is located. While I'm working on the computer with my wireless Microsoft Wireless Keyboard and Mouse Pro set (version 2, I believe), the static is definitely there as well. Again, low volume as well, but definitely audible. I can live with it. You should find out for yourself.

Volume
More subjective evaluation here, of course. I have a soft speaking voice (that grows louder exponentially as the level my anger rises), and most of the people (young, good hearing) I've called are in relatively quiet environments, they can hear me quite well with the H700. In fact when I speak to a person face to face outdoors, I usually have to speak up because my normal conversation voice is quite soft. But when I'm using the H700 over a phone conversation I can speak in my natural volume and people can hear me fine if they're not in a loud environment. Does this mean people can hear you speaking when you're using the H700, if they are in a loud, crowded mall? I don't know but I would suspect they would have a hard time. To be fair, those conditions are challenging with most mobile phones and their headsets.

Incoming voice volume is definitely not as loud as my HS850, which I find too loud for me and I was constantly turning it down. But then again, the HS850 also hissed loudly at all times, so I find the H700 a refreshing change. Being a part time musician, I take care of my ears so they are probably more sensitive than most. So I can suspect the H700 may definitely not be loud enough for others.

Keep in mind the incoming volume also depends on the phone and/or headset setup the person on the OTHER END of the phone is using. E.g. From my experience, I know if I get a call from the Sony Ericsson T610 that belongs to a friend of mine; the incoming voice volume I hear on my end will always be lound regardless of what phone/headset combo I'm using to talk with him, even if I'm using my home cordless phone.

Support
Never had to call Moto for support because none of my headsets ever failed before I bought the next one. (Although my HS850 has recently been having pairing problems with my Sony Ericsson P910a, and the headset is roughly under one year of use with the same phones). Since I only paid $30USD for the H700, it's cheaper than just the insurance the local stores offer me on this unit. I'll just buy another one when it breaks.

Price
All the latest Moto headsets lack the relative `value' you used to be able to get with your dollar. The old HS810 retail package came with a tailored-fit carrying case with belt hook, a charger, and a detachable neck strap with the Moto logo on it (HS850 owners, ever wonder why there's a hook thing at the back end of your headset, just behind the Moto logo? Well, now you know it was designed to secure it to the neck strap but they've obviously went cheap on you and didn't include the strap nor the case with the headset while charging you more $). But the H700 doesn't come with anything else other than a charger. Oh well, at least it's much cheaper now at the time of this writing. I'd strongly recommend at least looking into eBay to save $, if you're budget conscious and are eBay savvy (as in, you can find a reliable seller without getting ripped off) AND if you already know it will fit your needs. I paid $30 USD in total that includes shipping and insurance at time of writing. If you haven't even tried it, I suggest buying it from a local store with a good return/exchange policy.

Talk time and stand by battery life
Like most people my headset usage varies each day, between 45min to 3 hours across multiple phone calls and mostly while driving. I find that if I charge my phone once every week, I never have problem of it running out of juice for my usage. In fact, I've been doing this with the older HS810 and 850 so the H700 should hold up just as well, if not better. The one unique advantage the HS series and now the H700 have is the ability to converse talk time battery life by closing the boom to turn the device off. I definitely take advantage of the off `switch' whenever I put the device down since it's as easy as flipping the boom mic. This most likely explains the reason why the longest usage before charge with my HS850 was about 2 weeks before it drained. If you need a headset to survive, always keep a spare WIRED headset where you'd need it.


Manual
I'm both a software developer and a tech writer in one of my many job roles. My view on the manual is that isn't going to win any tech writing of the year awards, but I do believe it's clear enough for the average mobile phone savvy user to get to know how to operate the unit. It would have been nicer for Moto to have a visual demonstration of it using video but then again, it would also be nice if the manual can just complete the bonding process with my phone all by itself and make me a latte and iron my shirts while it's pairing up with my phone. Come on! What do you guys expect out of a Moto manual? They can't even design an intuitive interface for their mobile phones (compared to Nokia, and newer LGs), do you think they have time to worry about their manuals for a headset?

I can definitely see my parents (who only use simple mobile phone functions) getting stumped by the pairing process.

But to be fair, half the success of using any BT headset equation falls on the user's ability to know how to engage in Bluetooth device search from their mobile phone/BT device of choice. Get to know your phone, and the Moto headsets. The pairing process between any of my Moto BT headsets with the phones I've owned was quite easy.


On line purchase note
There is an OEM version (I believe meant for domestic Chinese market) and a retail version of the H700. I don't think there is a difference in the actual unit itself, just different packaging. I bought the OEM version and it came with the same muti-language manual and a charger.

Did my rambling miss anything? If I did, I'm sure you would've read up on it from another reviewer. Hope this helps some of you.

Once gain, the bottom line: try it for yourself! Have fun shopping!

I use this unit with my Palm Treo 700w, which has a pretty lousy BT radio, so that may explain part of the reason why the range is so awful with this headset. Max range with clear line of sight is about 6 feet, but usually less then 24 inches. It is barely usable if the phone is on my waist in its holster. Major disappointment. My Jabra BT250 is better with the Treo, but not hugely so.

My biggest problem with this headset is that people are constantly telling me that they can't hear me. I have to lift the mic boom away from my cheek and then they will say "Ah! Much better!". When that is only the case while I stand there like a dork with one hand holding the mic boom away from my cheek and the other hand holding the phone within a foot of my head. This looks pretty silly walking down an airport terminal, and rather defeats the purpose of having a headset in the first place...

I'll say this, though - the H700 performs the feature that I was looking for which was so bad with the Jabra BT250 - it actually stays on my ear. I have small ear lobes, and the Jabra won't stay put - if I lean down it falls off. The H700 stays on very well, and you hardly notice it is even there. Very comfortable!

Too bad the mic gets blocked by my cheek, which makes it worthless about 50% of the time.

**Update 5/11/2006**
- solution to muffled sound problem...
I trimmed a tiny piece of adhesive-backed felt (the kind you put under bowls/vases, etc. you will have on your coffee table)and placed it on the little gray bump on the boom, just behind the tiny mic opening. This creates an air gap between the mic opening and your cheek - problem solved!

A great headset with pretty good reception and wonderful form factor. 5 stars if they fix the mic hole clearance problem!

While the Motorola H700 headset is a FANTASTIC headset, the headset that this seller is selling are not the real McCoy. I ordered two headsets from this seller only to get them and find out that neither headset worked properly. Both produce a horrific crackling quality that none of my other Motorola H700 headsets have ever produced. I emailed the seller several times to make right on the situation only to be ignored on all occassions.

With nowhere else to turn, I turned to Motorola's warranty department. Unfortunatly according to Motorola these are not authentic Motorola products so they are not covered by warranty.

If possible avoid this "OEM" headset and seller at all cost. It might be inexpensive but trust me, the extra couple of bucks for a working bluetooth headset is worth it.

The H700, some love it, some hate it. Wherever you fall, a lot of people are talking about it.

PRO's / CON's

It is comfortable and light. / Depending on the size of your face, your cheek may block the microphone resulting in muffled sound.

If you are a lady with long hair that falls over your ear it will get caught in the boom microphone and snagged by the rubber tip as you flip the boom open and closed to answer calls.

Distance is quoted as up to 30 feet / Some phone combinations have distance issues if the headset and phone are not on the same side of your body.

Pairs well with my Motorola Razr V3 and Cingular 8125. / Other phones and PDA's have problems SO your mileage may vary.

The controls are small, multifunction (each button does may things) and are easy to access but hey, they are on the side of your head.

Microphone is Very sensitive / People have complained about wind noise, echoes in rooms, and "Who else is in the car with you ?"
Headset volume is loud, louder than most / Its adjustable so this is a good thing.
The headset lights up in four different colors to show various status (charging, pairing, standby etc) / You can turn off the flashing blue 'I am using a fancy headset dork lamp' but it will come back on after the headset is turned off and on again.

A note a caution
1. This is a young product and the complaints and returns have resulted in two versions (Version A and Version B) of this headset in the market. Version B fixes a number of problems that version A had with certain phones.

2. Distance is POOR compare to other headsets and even other Motorola Bluetooth products. I have changed my headset and Cingular has replaced the phones (Razr V3 and 8125) twice with no improvement. Distance is less than 10 feet with Static and dropped calls. Do not expect to leave your phone in the car and pump gas or get the mail without complaints. Some folks with the Verizon V3C Razr have reported getting better distance but few past 10 feet without the call degrading or dropping.

SUPPORT
3. Motorola gives you 30 days to try and return with refund, However the return shipping is ON YOU. So with shipping / tracking / insurance expect to spend another $5 even if its their problem. If its longer than 30 days, you are stuck with it.

UPDATE 6/1/06
Product was returned as defective and received by Motorola 6/15. A new one was to go out 2 day FedEx. 22 Days later I received it today 7/7, NOT NEW, just a refurbished headset. NO charger, manual, case, or warranty card.

UPDATE 11/18/06
Died again. Will not pair, make, or answer a call. Motorola will not send a replacement until old one is received. No free-shipping this time.

BOTTOM LINE
Google "Motorola H700 problems", make an informed decision. If you can, try before you buy.

I would give it 5 stars for Style, 3 stars for execution, 2 stars for how well it works, and 1 star for their support policy.

I also have the hs850 that I've been using with my Motorola v710 phone. I decided to get a second bluetooth because I've started using one with my computer and got tired of switching it back and forth. Since I was pretty happy with the 850 I figured I'd give the h700 a try.

SIZE
First thing you notice is that it is smaller and lighter. I was a little concerned that it would hit my cheek from the other reviews in here, but it is at least 3/4 - an inch away from my cheek (I do not have a thin face -- probably average fullness). I also thought because it is smaller it might be difficult to put on. This is also is not the case at all.

COMFORT AND FIT
This unit is comfortable. Typically these types of headsets don't fit well on my head -- I don't know if it is because I have small ears or whatever -- they usually fall off all the time. This set (as with the 850) fits snug like it won't fall off. I must admit the H700 is more comfortable than the 850 because it is lighter... I often forget it's on.

QUALITY
One problem I've had with the 850 is that it doesn't work well with outside noises -- like if I'm walking in the wind or riding my bike or scooter. Although the other person can hear the wind with the h700 they can still understand me.. a HUGE improvement over the 850 since it was completely useless in these situations (great in the car or at home though).

Additionally, I love that I can turn the volume up so that it is almost too loud -- I often had difficulties hearing on the 850 if there was noise in the background. Admittedly, I don't have the greatest hearing - but this is definately not a problem with the h700.

Overall... the sound on the 850 is good and in quiet settings there is not much of a difference between the two units (I tested them out by swapping them in the middle of a phone call) -- HOWEVER, in noisy settings the 700 is definately superior in clarity and noise reduction. Furthermore, the 700 is more responsive and the features are easier to utilize.

If you don't have a headset already and you are debating between the 850 and the 700 -- I found the cost difference to be between $10 - $20 and definately worth the extra money.

After many weeks of research for my first Bluetooth headset I decided on the H700. Like many professionals today I spend many hours on conference calls while on the go, so I was seeking a headset that was full featured with a small form factor, comfortable and extended talk time. I found the best price on Amazon and made my purchase there. The order arrived on time. The first headset turned out to be defective, would not hold a charge and introduced static into the calls. I notified Amazon and they immediately shipped a replacement unit that has proven to perform much better. Amazon also paid for the return shipping of the defective unit. Thanks Amazon! That having been said let me get to the rating

Pros: This headset is very well designed. It fits my ear well and I can wear it for extended periods of time without even noticing I have it on. I love all the features, especially the mute function. Call waiting, conference calling and call hold all work perfectly with my V3. I like the fact the headset and my V3 use the same charger, i.e. mini USB. This is very convienient feature. I don't need a multitude of chargers for my home, car, office etc. All I need most times is the mini USB and a computer. I have not experienced the volume problems reported by many owners. The volume port for the boom is positioned on the front of the rubber node at the boom end and as such is not blocked when resting against my face unless the attitude of the headset from my ear to my face is at too steep of an angle. A rare condition, easily corrected by minor adjustment of the headset on my ear.

Cons: Range of headset is not as good as my HS850. 15-20 feet at best. Battery life tends to be less than I expected. Unit is rated as up to 6 hours of talk time. My experience is more like 3-4. I say this tongue in cheek understanding that with a unit with this small of a form factor I was not really expecting 6 hours of talk time. 4 to 5 would have been nice. Lastly the fast connect feature does not work with my V3 as well as I would like. If an incoming call has rung 2 or 3 time before opening the boom on the headset, by the time the unit completes connection with the headset the call will go to voice mail. Most times I answer the call on the handset and just wait for the BT connection process to catch up with the headset. If headset is on my ear with the boom open the answer feature works fine. Lastly, a major advertised feature of this headset is the noise cancellation features. I find that the echo cancellation works well, wind and other cancellations do not. Noise cancellation gets a D+. This problems is consistant with two other colleages experiance with this headset.

Summary: All in all this is a fine headset. Given the extra comfort and features, I would gladly would trade the extra range and talk time of my HS850 for the features, comfort of the H700, despite it's short commings. Noise cancellation that actually works would be very nice, but like most folks, I can live with the problems for now given all the other pluses for now.

Previously tried an HS850:

PROs:
1. User's voice sounds good to caller in most environments- performance acceptable in car with freeway speed background noise - cell phone sounds better as it picks up less background noise.
2. Paring worked first try (Phone: LG VX8100).

CONs:
1. Talk button hard to depress and unreliable.
2. Caller hears their echo when volume is set higher in quiet environments or when mic boom is touching face.
3. Connection to phone is slow cutting off first few words of voice guidance when call button is first pressed.
4. Fit on ear feels less secure than H700.
5. User's voice is muffled if mic boom touches face too firmly embedding mic opening into face.
6. NO included case.
7. Earpiece sound and volume not loud enough in some situations.

Here's my experience with the H700 (second revision) #SYN1311B:
(I previously had the first revision #98686H and returned it as it had very bad sound quality issues)

PROs:
1. Talk button easy to depress and reliable.
2. Caller hears NO echo.
3. Connection to phone is quicker; no words of voice guidance get cut off when call button is first pressed.
4. Fit on ear feels more secure than HS850.
5. Paring worked first try (Phone: LG VX8100).
6. Earpiece volume much better than HS850.
7. USB charging port.

CONs:
1. User's voice is louder with more background noise heard by person at the other end of call if user is in any noisy environment like a moving car. Mic seems to be more sensitive to surrounding noise and user's voice. This problem can be helped a bit if user's caller turns down thier phone volume.
2. User's voice is muffled if mic boom touches face too firmly as it closes off the mic opening on the face side of the boom.
3. NO included case.

Conclusion:
The H700 is a much improved version of the HS850 but still could use some more tweaking.
If Motorola can improve the sound quality in noisy environments, fix the mic opening so it stays open when the boom is pressed against the face and include a case, it will have a 5 star winner in my book!

1. Four and 1/2 STARS really. I've been using this with my Cingular Black RAZR for about 3 weeks now. It works beautifully.

2. No problem at all with the microphone touching my cheek as others have commented here. There's about .25 inch clearance between my face and the mic and I can't even get it to touch my face unless I shove it in (and even then, it won't stay touching my face. Go into you local store and try it on before you buy. Also, my girlfriend tried it and had about .25 inch between her face and the mic). The result:
- My voice comes through CRYSTAL CLEAR indoors and outdoors(not muffled like other comments I've read here).

3. It's got GOOD VOLUME. I can HEAR people very CLEARLY. Sometimes, you even need to turn down the volume, even when driving in your car (with windows opened or closed).

4. Very small and lightweight. The result:
- I barely notice I'm wearing it, even with my glasses on.
- feels secure on my ear like it won't fly off because the clip easily holds the weight of the headset.
- doesn't weigh down my pockets when added to my cell phone, wallet, and other junk I carry around.

5. The Bluetooth signal pairs very solidly. No problem with signal strength walking around my house when the my cell phone is in the next room. (I wouldn't try it farther than that though.)


DRAWBACK: Be aware, when you flip open the headset mic to answer the call, it will not answer the phone as quickly as just flipping open your cell phone - there will be a 2 second delay as the headset goes through its "Quick Connect" cylce to connect you to your phone.

Tip: I've found that if I want to answer my calls before it goes to voice-mail, I have to flip open the mic by the 1st or 2nd ring or already have the mic flipped open and therefore already have the unit on ( and just hit the headset's answer button). Now I know why so many people are walking around wearing this thing already flipped open - It's very easy to answer the call at that point by just hitting the answer button on the headset. All in all, a very good product, that makes talking on the phone a lot easier.

Did a lot of research before purchasing this headset. Discovered it is such a popular and high value item that there are many cheap knock-offs being sold. The knock-offs do not work well, but look almost exactly like the genuine article, and are being sold as the "real thing". There is info on the web on how to tell the difference, but it is not easy to find. If you find a "bargain price" that is substantially less than 50% of retail, you should check the item very carefully. I purchased two H700s directly from Amazon at a good price, and verified with Motorola when they arrived that they were indeed the genuine article. They work very nicely, thank you.

If you buy a fancy watch in Hong Kong for "really cheap", you don't expect it to be the real article, and if most of what you care about is the outward appearance, you might be perfectly happy. A bluetooth headset that looks just like the real thing, but does not work very well is worse than useless.

The fundamental issue is that there are so many discount outlets and bargains on the web that many people think it is quite reasonable to find "the real thing" for 20% of the retail price. As has always been the case, beware of bargains that seem "too good to be true".