Plantronics Discovery 640 Bluetooth Cell Phone Headset

by Plantronics

Product Details

Product Manual [1.29mb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 10 x 3 inches ; 10.1 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B000BD3210
• Item model number: 68400-01
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (202 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #37,825 in Cell Phones & Accessories (See Top 100 in Cell Phones & Accessories)

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

The Plantronics Discovery 640 Bluetooth Cell Phone Headset lets you stay connected like never before. This device features a sleek in-ear design and an innovative pocket charger that gives you up to 15 hours of talk time. The unit's charger is powered by a single AA battery. The Discovery 640 weighs in at only nine grams and it is stylish, comfortable, and convenient. Plantronics combines cutting-edge technology to set a new standard in Bluetooth wireless headsets.

What's in the Box
Headset and pocket charger.

Product Description

Enjoy simplified mobility with the ultimate Bluetooth® headset – the Plantronics Discovery™ 640. With an innovative pocket charger that gives you up to 15 hours of talk time, you stay connected like never before. Combining cutting-edge technology and a sleek, ultra-light design, Discovery sets the standard in style, comfort and convenience.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

188 of 193 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars supper comfortable headset, October 14, 2005

By 

Mark W Scrivener (San Jose, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Plantronics Discovery 640 Bluetooth Cell Phone Headset (Wireless Phone Accessory)

I've been using this headset for over a month now. In the interest of full disclosure I should state I am a supplier to Plantronics (and other headset manufactures), but am NOT employed by Plantronics (or any headset manufacture). I was given a early production unit before they were generally available.

The Discovery 640 comes with much more than what is pictured here. The complete kit is quite impressive and includes:
The headset (shown)
Small, Med, and Large soft ear inserts (pic shows med insert)
Ear stabilizer loop (not shown in pic)
charging holster
AAA battery holder for charging off battery
cell phone charger adapters for using your cell phone charger (Nokia, Motorola, Sony, and ???)
wall transformer (if you don't want to use the cell phone charger)

All of this is supplied in a stylish metal case that measures about 6"x3"x1".

Pros:
The headset is very comfortable and surprisingly stable without the ear loop installed. After a few minutes you completely forget you are wearing a headset - it is that comfortable.

The sound quality is very good - as one would expect from a Plantronics headset.

While it is certainly the smallest most comfortable headset I have seen, it is the charging holster and AAA battery case that steals the show. With the AAA battery attached, the holster is about the size of a cigar tube or very fat pin. It has a clip for attaching to your shirt pocket or securing inside your purse. The holster provides the dual purpose of storing the headset when you don't want it in your ear, and providing boost charge (via the AAA battery). When done talking, simply drop the headset in the holster to store the headset and recharge the battery.

Oh, and the holster will vibrate if you receive a call while the headset is stored there! Removing the headset will answer the call.

Cons:
Talk time is short (claimed 5 hrs), but using the holster and AAA battery eliminates this problem (15hrs talk time). If I recharge the headset at night and use the AAA booster during the day I have no problem getting though the day - and the AAA battery lasts about a week.

Headset is so small and comfortable it would be easy to loose and not realize it. Of course using the ear stabilizing loop (or keeping it in the holster) would prevent this.

Conclusion:
If you want a small, stylish headset, this is the one! If you want lots of talk time and don't want to use the holster to refresh charge, get the Voyager 510.

86 of 89 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great unit EXCEPT for the sound quality!, January 16, 2006

By 

Dr. Sam Beckett "Hoping for that last leap home" (Huntsville, AL USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Plantronics Discovery 640 Bluetooth Cell Phone Headset (Wireless Phone Accessory)

A great headset - if used in a quiet environment. At the above price, it's a bit expensive, but an excellent value. It should have come with a USB charger adapter included; instead, this is supposedly available as an add-on accessory, yet can't be found for sale anywhere. My report card:

Design: A-, very simple and lightweight design. Buttons are few and usable, after some practice. Comes with 4 different adapters for OEM phone chargers, which is a novel yet cumbersome approach. Includes additional accessories for a more custom fit. Carrying pocket doubles as charging station; headset fits dangerously loosely inside, and the pocket itself doesn't clip securely onto shirt pockets or belts. An aluminum carrying case is provided to keep everything together.

Aesthetics: A-, it's a tiny and stylish piece.

Build quality: B+, the materials look more solid than they are. Construction is fair.

Comfort: A+, the most comfortable and stable headset ever. Multiple "ear gels" aid in attaining a custom fit that is quite secure. An earhook is also provided for added stability, but probably won't be needed.

Compatibility: A, no problems pairing or using this headset. Full handsfree functionality is available, but controls differ greatly for different functions and take some learning.

Outbound sound quality: B+, callers can hear me great, along with any other noises in the environment. Lack of noise cancellation makes this headset worthless in, for example, a crowded room. No echo whatsoever, though.

Inbound sound quality: B, volume is beyond plentiful. Inbound voices are rich in bass but *completely* lack crispness. Frequent static regardless of range or line-of-sight.

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Everything is relative...., October 14, 2006

By 

J. Guo "qbo12" (California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Plantronics Discovery 640 Bluetooth Cell Phone Headset (Wireless Phone Accessory)

this might seem to be a long review but i believe it would be of help to you =) and i am going to say lots good things about this headset but please be advised that your milage may vary, and more importantly there are cheaper headsets out there, which is probably a concern for many of you.

i have been researching for HOURS and thought it might be helpful to write a review since i know how frustrating it is to find a bluetooth headset...let's start with few general points...

first of all, you have to realize the limitations of bluetooth technology and how a headset can not bypass that, this means:
the max distance is 30-35feet(right now) and even that is technical, your milage may vary based on factors such as other wireless signals. this means no matter what kind of headset you get, you WILL experience minor static, minor delay, etc in Comparsion to your phone speaker. however a good headset should not add excessive distractions to your conversation. and plantronic 640 worked out nicely for my RAZR.

second of all, comfort. It really is the more important factor in purchasing a headset. One phrase sums it up: people have different ears... this means that all clip on headsets can either be the best or worse or possibily in between... all motorola over the ear design flaps over my ear and i feel it's falling off, but apparently it's fine on lots people othereise product recall? so the best solution is to try them on before you make your purchase online inorder to avoid the return over snail mail problem. what i realized is that the "in ear" design of Plantronics along with the three different size of gel insert has the best chance of fitting most ears, of course there are other companies with this design, such as sony, jabra...etc. my 640 is very comfortable, however many people does not like the in ear design, because you do feel it more compare to the over the ear design. again, it's relative, and your milage may vary. i choose to wear mine without the ear hook, it stays in my ear nicely, i do notice it sometimes but it's not heavy at all.

last but not least, please don't read EVERY review on amazon, that's what i did and it didn't help me much because one review would give it 10stars and other would wish there was a -10, what really helped me is to simply try on the headset. for example if a friend has it, that's great.. or maybe a store. must sales person would be happy to let you try them on. not best buy tho, they lock them up in a nice perfectly transparent plastic box... =)

ok thanks for being so very parient, now it's the review for this particular headset... i will just ignore facts like looks etc since people have different taste, i promise you it look exactly like the picturea above, fair enough? =)

sound quality
incoming = i am a average teenager owning a ipod for about a year, so my hearing is definitly not the BEST. Due to the in ear design however, this headset does block out lots noises, and i can hear my conversations fine, in doors (definitly), out doors(with no problem), and while driving.(with windows up of course) For those of you owning a RAZR, it is louder than the standard audio of RAZR,(not speaker phone) For me that's good enough. what i have realized looking at many reviews complaining about audio is that can you really hear your phone with the phone speaker going 80mph with window down in a car to begin with? of couse lot of indoor reviews too, but those are mostly over the ear design.

outgoing call-
very good quality, people do not realize that i am on a headset, as many reviews have pointed out. however it is a bit too sensive and when i close my car door etc, people on the other end can hear the noise probably more so than the RAZR H3 headset i had. i even got some complaints that i am too loud??? O_O that's really a first... just a point of reference, with the RAZR H3 Bluetooth headset, i did have to repeat sometimes even in my room. with plantronics it's all clear.

Connection, pairing etc-
connected to my RAZR no problem, easy to use, however a important point is that i can not speak for all the phones out there, for example, a treo... but there are lots of reviews regarding treo, so there you go. no complaints about about battery, quick charging etc... again, no matter which headset you end up getting, the max as for right now is about 10hours talk, technically...

comfort
basically the theme of this review, what works for me might not work for you, but you do have a better bet with this particular design than the over the ear once. you can wear without the earhook, which eliminates many potential problems, with the trade off of security. it does stay in my ear perfectly fine tho.

in conclusion, Plantronic 640, or in ear design provides a much better incoming call volume and comfort. outgoing call plantronic 640 is great, unless you are worried about backgroud noise etc(however phone mic has backgroud noise, so does all headsets). It is not excessive, but it's there.(maybe the plantronic 645 with DSP technology would reduce the backgroud noise, it should show up on your amazon search)

Finally, everything is relative. it really depends on what you want. there are cheaper headsets out there(lots motorola once works just fine) but if you want the extra performance and comfort over all, this is the one to get. or you can wait a bit until they get cheaper and more importantly perfect the bluetooth technology... i still think it's rediculous to make 4 transactions in order to find the one that I like...