Customer Reviews

Plantronics Discovery 665 Bluetooth Headset

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(26)
3 star:		(14)
2 star:		(15)
1 star:		(21)

 

 

In my mind there are only 2 bluetooth headsets to consider right now, the Aliph Jawbone and the Plantronics 665. I owned the Jawbone and this headset. They both are fine in terms of noise cancellation and clarity. Miles ahead of the competition. I prefer the Plantronics in the end though. I can wear it all day and barely notice I'm wearing it. The Jawbone starts to hurt the back of my ear after an hour. 'Pocketability' is better with the Plantronics as well. I can keep it in my jean pocket and not worry about breaking it. I thought it looks better as well than the Jawbone. I also find if I keep the headset in my pocket and pull it out the Plantronics is easier to stick in / on my ear than the Jawbone. Upgrading from any other headset you won't be disappointed with either headset but the form, style and charging options made me stick with Plantronics over the Jawbone.

I gave up on cheap headsets and spent the money on this one as soon as it came on the market. Overall I like it. The AudioIQ works pretty well, but not quite as well as I would have hoped. I still get complaints of wind noise and background noise when I'm driving. Still, I can definitely tell a difference in the clarity of incoming audio. It's far easier for me to hear the other end of a conference call or other conversation than it was with other headsets, or even with just the handset by itself.

Additionally, I have had complaints on numerous occasions from the party I was speaking to that they could barely hear me - as if I'm calling from halfway around the planet - and I've had to switch from the headset to the handset. I personally find that to be pretty much unacceptable for a higher-end headset like this one. It not only happens, it happens often enough that I've taken notice, and I may have to seek tech support to see if maybe mine is defective.

The buttons are badly positioned and hard to press. Especially the main button; if I need to operate it (which I do in order to do just about anything) I find myself grabbing hold of the unit with my thumb and middle finger, and using my index finger to press it. Otherwise it feels like I'm trying to drive the thing into my brain because you have to push *really* hard in a direction that's almost straight in toward your ear canal. The volume buttons are almost as bad, and are equally poorly placed.

The Bluetooth connection to my phone seems weaker than it ought to be. It seems that if there isn't a direct line of sight between the headset and phone, or if you're more than just a few feet away, you'll get static in the audio. If I have my phone in my shirt pocket and I hug someone, the connection is lost even though the two units are only about 10 inches or so apart. I can't say for sure if that's the fault of the headset or the phone (a Samsung A900M).

The unit is pretty light, and easy to wear. I wear it without the behind-the-ear piece, because I hate those (that was one of the main attractions to this unit for me; it doesn't require the use of one). It's very easy to put in, and once it's there it really does a great job of staying put, even without the behind-the-ear piece to secure it.

I have to admit after long periods of wearing it my ear does begin to get a bit bothered. I find myself switching it from one ear to the other several times throughout the day. Thankfully, that's very easy to do, and it doesn't bother me to do this. They include three sizes of ear piece with the headset, but having rather small-ish ears myself (or at least no larger than average), I find the unit cannot stay put unless I use the largest one. I have no idea who the medium and small ones are meant for. Children, maybe.

Battery life is outstanding. I wear the thing 4 - 8 hours per day (sometimes more), and I only need to charge it every week or two, depending on how much I actually talk on it.

The unit seems to be very solidly built. The manual is pretty clear and easy to follow, and the hands-free support the 665 has is very nice. I rarely need to touch my phone when I'm using the headset. Pairing it with my phone went flawlessly, but that isn't really a unique feature of this product these days.

I think Plantronics made an unfortunate decision when they elected not to include an AC charger with this unit, instead only providing a car charger and USB charger. That doesn't actually affect me since I bought it from a reseller who packages an AC charger with it, but it's something you should be aware of because yours probably won't come with one.

Overall I'm pretty happy with it. I use it a lot and I intend to keep it. If I were back in the market for a headset, though, I think I probably would look around a bit more at some other units. I don't know for sure if I'd buy this one again or not, but I'm not looking to get rid of it, either.

Update, March 23, 2009: I've been using the Aliph Jawbone I bought after this one a while back exclusively for a long time now. Over the weekend I managed to lose the earbud for it, so I'm using my 665 again until I can get another earbud for the Jawbone. As soon as I switched back to the 665 I started hearing "I can't hear you" and "What did you say?" and "You sound like you're far away" quite a lot. I had heard nothing of the sort when using my Jawbone for more than a year, ever.

I really want to like this Discovery. I love its styling (I think the Jawbone is ugly) and features. But sadly, at the end of the day these things are intended for talking on the phone, and if people can't hear me then all the styling and features in the world don't matter. I'm gonna get another earbud for my Jawbone (or maybe a whole new Jawbone if I'm feeling particularly saucy), and the 665 will be once again be relegated to a back-up role. It just doesn't do the job.

I previously owned a Plantronics 645 which I liked quite well, but it came time for a replacement. I typically only use the headset in the car, so I was looking for one with good noise cancelling features. After using this headset for about 2 weeks, I received so many complaints from the people on the other end of the calls, that I had to stop using the headset and use my handset directly - just so they weren't completely annoyed.

I really like the fit, feel, and weight of the unit, and the incoming sound quality was always excellent. When I was stopped at a traffic light, outgoing sound was very clear and nice, but unfortunately even the slightest road noise was a big issue.

I really wanted to keep this headset because I still have some older accessories that are compatible, but unfortunately I will have to return it. With the DSP technology and Audio IQ I expected this headset to be better than my 645, while it ended up being much worse.

I had a difficult time finding a bluetooth headset that I really liked. I have spent a lot of time, and money, trying several styles. This is how I would rank the ones I own:

#1. Sound ID SM100 Ear Module Bluetooth Headset. Best ear fit, sound is sharp, clear & crisp. When not on the phone the headset changes to a listening mode and hearing through it is very easy. Overall my favorite.

#2. Plantronics Discovery(tm) 665 Bluetooth® Headset. This one also has very good sound but a bit muffled, not quite as crisp as the Sound ID but still very good. If you prefer a softer sound, not as sharp, this one would be best. It is also the lightest weight and fit was quite good.

#3. Aliph Jawbone Bluetooth Headset. I just couldn't take to this headset. I found it a bit awkward, the fit in my ear was just OK. The sound was tinny, kind of like listening through a tin can. I could hear but it was harsh sounding. This one did have the loudest volume.

I found myself mostly using the Sound ID, occasionally the Plantronics, and never the Aliph Jawbone.

VERY IMPORTANT: If you wear your headset a lot, and are looking for the ultimate in comfort, try a custom made earpiece from: www.averysound.com. They have a kit that makes an impression of your ear and can make it fit just about all headsets. The ear piece that you get is feels like soft latex, actually feels like one of those gummy candies. The fit is perfect and the earpiece stays rock solid in your ear. It also blocks out all outside sounds. This is both good and bad I guess. If you use the Sound ID this is less of a problem as it allows sound to pass through it when you are not on the phone. A nice feature. The only downside I found is that these earpieces are a little bulky. Otherwise these are really amazing and the ultimate in comfort.

I originally had one made for the Plantronics, and one for the Jawbone. I bought the Sound ID later. Since I do not use the Jawbone I put that one on the Sound ID and it fit perfectly.

Another headset I can recommend, for those who don't mind a full size telephone operator style is the: VXI BlueParrott B100 Wireless Headset System. These are really superb. Excellent sound and very comfortable. Only problem is the obvious; they are large. Great for use in an office setting. I can highly recommend these.

This headset delivers everything as advertised by Plantronics. I purchased this model because it is compatible with the iPhone. I really love that it is so lightweight -- definitely the lightest of all headsets I've seen. The one feature that I find most outstanding is that the headset stores in a clip-on tube that you can keep in your shirt pocket for easy access. Also this storage tube helps to protect the headset when it is in your pocket, etc...

My only critique is that the ear bud gets dirty very quickly and needs to be washed often. It is made out of a plastic material that is very soft to help hold the headset in your ear. But that type of material picks up dirt and dust.

I liked this headset so much that I also bought one from a friend's birthday. He has a Motorola RAZR and this headset also works great with that cellphone.

Take away the noise canceling and this is a great little headset. With the noise canceling feature turned on I am told that I sound like crap on the other end. Most people tell me they hear more noise (strange whooshing sound) than with it turned off. When it is turned off I have trouble hearing the person on the other end if there is any noise around even with the volume turned up all the way. With it turned on I can hear the other party better but because it makes me sound so bad I just keep it turned off. I bought this to replace a Jawbone that stopped working. It is much more comfortable and I actually like the charger/holder. However, since I need the noise canceling I will be replacing the Jawbone - the noise canceling on it works great.

Like a lot of other reviewers, I've also owned several different models of headsets. This unit is by far the most wearable and usable headset I've used which include the Jawbone, other Plantronics and Motorola models. The compact and light-weight design makes it possible to use this headset without an ear-band. This is particularly important for people, like me, who wear glasses. This headset is so easy to slip on and off your ear. No more two-handed operation. It is also very comfortable to wear and it doesn't bother my ear even after an extended period of use. In comparison, the Jawbone is not as comfortable and often pinches my ear after a while. The voice quality is good but not the best, I give the Jawbone an edge on this. Nonetheless this unit gave me the most reliable voice dialing accuracy. The other units, Jawbone included, are just not consistent enough for me to use voice-dialing.

This model does not come with an a/c adaptor. Rather you can recharge it through a computer USB port or a car charger and both of which are included in this model. To my surprise, my computer USB port is hot even when it is in sleep mode. So recharging can be conveniently accomplished this way.

Overall, I recommend this product to people who're looking for a light-weight headset that can be slipped on and off your ear easily, comfortable to wear, with good voice quality, and consistent voice-dialing.

This device performs as advertised, or nearly in most everyday situations. I was impressed with the number of charging devices (USB, AC, and DC 12-volt) and the handy pen-top like carrying/charging cradle. For the $130 retail price I don't think a Bluetooth headset on the market can live up to the price, but for the ~$75 that I paid for it from Amazon I'd say it's well worth it. Bluetooth as a whole still has some distance to go with signal strength and reliability as well as power consumption. For those who haven't had the ability to test as many headsets as I have, I am not surprised to see some 5 star ratings. To those who have had some issues with this device I would suggest trying another before giving up all together and be aware that no bluetooth headset will perform WELL at distances greater than 10 ft unobstructed and as little as 3 ft when obstructed. All-in-all, another good Amazon purchase.

I had heard great things about this headset but I think it is terrible. Although I could hear other people quite well (hence the 1 star), I kept getting comments like "are you under water?", "what's that swishing sound?", "do you have the windows open or the fan turned way up in the car", and my favorite "oh no, you're not on that horrible headset again are you?". Suffice to say, I'm looking for another bluetooth headset. Too bad, since I've loved my other plantronics headsets.

This is the first headset that I have bought and so far it has served me relatively well. There are times that I get to hear the person on the other end very well and at other times, the reception does not sound that clear.
Overall, this item has helped me when i'm driving and when I need to make a call or answer a call. Thanks.