Customer Reviews

Plantronics Voyager 520 Bluetooth Headset [Retail Packaging]

5 star:		(344)
4 star:		(264)
3 star:		(111)
2 star:		(102)
1 star:		(94)

 

 

In my search for the perfect bluetooth headset, they ALL require compromises... it sounds great, but it's uncomfortable to wear for extended periods... it's lightweight, but the person on the other end can't always hear me... works great, but the batteries die in the middle of an average day or the volume can't be raised loud enough... you get the idea.

Well, Plantronics has come out with the Voyager 520, and it requires, for me, the minimum amount of compromise of any headset I've tried, and I've tried a LOT!

First, it utilizes a soft rubber ear bud which is cone shaped to fit in your ear canal, but is soft enough to not irritate your ears. The hook is made of firm plastic near the head set, then transitions into a soft, clear rubber for the portion of the hook that rests on your ear, so that the hook conforms to your ear, rather then forcing your ear to conform to it! The ear bud directs the sound of the person you're speaking with into your ear, providing sufficiently loud volume while blocking out external noise! You'll actually need to lower the volume on this headset, if you're using it in a quiet environment! Now that's a nice change.

First compromise... (yeah, there are still compromises, even on this head set!), it's larger then many other bt head sets. BUT... it's lightweight, and it's size allows for battery life that goes on and on and on. While I'd prefer a smaller size (think Samsung WEP 200, Nokia BH 800), I'll take the moderately larger form factor, if it delivers better sound quality in both directions, and longer battery life, and the 520 delivers on both counts (again, compromise...)

Second compromise... noise cancellation. Yes, the Voyager 520 DOES have noise cancellation, but frankly, it's not as strong as, or as good as the Aliph Jawbone, or the BlueAnt Z9, but it does work. Will it eliminate the thunder of a roaring 747, while you're standing on the runway at LAX? No. Will you look like you have a cheese grater stuck to the side of your face while using it? Again, NO!

Compromise.

The 520 also brings with it a desk charging cradle (cheap plastic), offers the user to connect to two bt devices, displays battery level each time you turn it on, etc. etc. Go to Plantronics site, if you really need/want all of the minutia.

Bottom line... If you don't mind it's conservative looks and slightly larger size, and you want EXCELLENT sound quality, great comfort and long battery life from your Bluetooth head set, check this one out.

You just may find it's worth the compromise!

I've tried them all: Moto, Jabra, Cardio, Plantronics 320 (junk), Jawbone (2 stars), and nothing came close to outperforming my trusty old Plantronics 510. Funky form factor, but great battery life and excellent sound quality. The new Plantronics 520 comes close in sound quality, but is more comfortable and looks better. Overall, a solid performer and recommended.

Hello People. Here is an honest review for those who are looking for a good headset. I purchased the Voyager 510 over two years ago to go with my Katana phone. The problem I was having with the 510 was that the signal would drop a lot, so much that I called Plantronic and they told me that the Katana was not compatible with the 510. However, they're customer service was excellent. They told me that cell phones control headset, headsets don't control phones. Cell phones send out signals and headsets pick up the signal. But to make sure I didn't have a defected headset, they sent me a new 510 hoping that will solve the problem. However it didn't. So I was convinced that it was the headset, not my Katana.

My wife and I decided to upgrade our phones, so I purchased the Samsung Instinct and I wanted a Bluetooth headset that would work with my new phone, since I was convinced that the 510 was not a good headset. So I purchased the Plantronic Discovery 925. I really was excited when I received the 925.
However, here are my Pros and Cons of the 925:
Pros:
1. It looked great and its small size was great compared to my 510.
2. The recharging case was a neat feature.
3. One button controlled everything.
Cons:
1. It was the most uncomfortable headset I ever wore; so much that it hurt my ear.
2. The sound was not very loud compared to my 510.
3. The recharging case was very difficult to place the headset in.

Summary: I returned the 925. It just caused too much pain to my ear. In the meantime I continued to use my 510, which I notice was working pretty well, no drop calls with my new Instinct. Still not too sure about the 510, I purchased the Jawbone. Once again, I was really excited when I received the Jawbone.
However, here are my Pros and Cons of the Jawbone:
Pros:
1. It looked great and its small size was great compared to my 510.
Cons:
1. It wasn't comfortable to wear.
2. The sound wasn't very loud.
3. The buttons are hard to find and the fit was very hard to achieve.

Summary: I read several reviews and a lot of people recommended getting Jabra mini eargels and it would fit perfect. So I order the eargels. However, I said to myself, "why should I pay an extra $10 to get a headset to work correctly. I already spent $90 on the headset. The eargels should have come with the headset." So after I gave it some though, I returned the Jawbone. I wasn't impressed with the Jawbone at all. My 510 worked better than the Jawbone. At this point, I started to believe that it wasn't my 510 at all; it was the Katana, just like Plantronic customer service said, because my 510 is working great. However, since my 510 is over 2 years old, I'll try one last headset and use the 510 as a backup headset. So I purchased the Voyager 520, which was supposed to be an upgrade to the 510.
However, here are my Pros and Cons of the 520:
Pro:
1. The 520 is the most comfortable headset I ever wore.
2. One button controls everything
Cons:
1. You must keep the headset close to the phone. It says you can go 33 feet away from your phone using this headset, but that's not true. It's more like 9 feet and I'm being generous with the 9 feet. With my 510, I can go a long distance and the signal is still strong.
2. Not very loud compared to my 510.
3. There is a lot of static compare to my 510.

Summary: Needless to say, I was very disappointed with the 520 and returned it.

Conclusion: I must say out of all these headsets, my Plantronic Voyager 510 worked best and out performed all of these for my needs. I'm not saying the rest of these headset are not good headsets. However, for my needs, none of these headset are better than my 510. The 510 has to be one of the best headsets ever made and I would recommend it to anyone. Just make sure your phone is compatible with it. And yes, the 925, Jawbone and 520 all are compatible with my phone, but the 510 still out perform them all.

[Updated 12/29/2010]:
I have had two of the 520's now. Beyond my initial comments below (items 3+), over time, I have learned two things of significant value.

1) The rubber ear hook will detach itself from it's base (black arm) over time. The first time I tried using adhesive to reattach it; using super glue (my error) dissolved the rubber right in my hands. Replacing it, the second 520's rubber hook in almost totally detached...Plantronics will not assist in giving any guidance...other than 'buy another headset.' Was rather disappointed they wouldn't provide 'any' guidance. As the rubber progressively detachs, the phone is increasingly prone to not staying on your ear (duh<g>).

2) Handset-to-Headset ange is deplorable. With my 510, I could leave the phone on my desk, and wander through the house during a call, and easily get 30' (with doors/walls in-between) before audio started fuzzing out. With the 520s, range is -very- short. There are occasions where, if I've had the phone on my belt, and the headset on the opposing ear, I'd get static when turning my head. With the handset on my desk, the 520 headset will not let me go more than about 6'--direct line of sight--from the handset (iPhone 4). Even with the iPhone 3G previously, range was deplorable though not 'quite' as bad as with the i'4.

3) The concerns about the docking station that have been made are way overblown and don't quite represent the situation. It's not that they give you something you have to 'put together', per se. Rather they send you the docking station (assembled) with the charger separate. By the way, it's the exact same charger you get with the 510, in case you are upgrading.

Basically you get another '510' type charger -and- a docking station. If you decide you want to use the little docking stand, you just take the rubber foot off (it's only a two-piece unit), insert the adapter end into a little socket, and put it back together. In short, don't let all the reviews about...why didn't they give it to you assembled...bother you in the slightest. If they had, then we'd see reviews about...why didn't they give it to me separate...I don't need a docking station for travel.

4) As for the 520 itself, I find it definitely has superb sound quality compared to the 510. The 510 seemed to lose its edge during its life. The 520 has a noticeably better sound quality for recipients of my calls (I've asked...after the call), and it is also better for me on my end.

The earpiece now is more of a shaped 'waveguide', channeling the audio more directly into your ear. I can see how it might not work for everyone, but in my case it works beautifully.

I originally purchased another Plantroics product sold under the Blackberry wrapper and was disappointed in the Noise Cancellation. I went through several models and almost picked up the Aliph headset but I couldn't get passed the looks or the issues concerning it's fit to the ear.

I finally picked up this headset and it's outstanding. The multi-point blue tooth feature made it possible for me to test it out on both a Blackberry 8700 and an AT&T (HTC) 8525. I did 2 simple tests:

1. Called from my blackberry and left a voicemail on my 8525 with the radio blaring inside a car. Surprisingly, very little background noise left on the message.

2. I called from my 8525 and left a voicemail to the blackberry, driving with the windows down at 70 mph. Again, surprisingly, most of the noise was absent.

If that isn't enough, the 8 hours of talk time and the amazing standby time make this an awesome value. I'll admit the size is significantly larger than some of the really tiny units out there, however it fits really well on the ear with barely any pressure and yet it is stable enough to wear all day. And I think it's because of its size that it has significantly better performance characteristics to other competing products. You won't be disappointed.

It is a nice fit. I have trouble with other earpieces, they always fall out of my ear, but this one is comfortable, no pinching and stays put. Sound quality is really nice. No one complains that they don't hear me either. The button took a bit of getting used to.. just one and its sometimes difficult to press it "in" and not "left" or "right." But after a few days I got the hang of it. Battery lasts me all day, sometimes more. Easily paired with 3 of my cell phones and also my desktop VoIP phone.

I bought the 520 to go with my RAZR2 (not that it matters much - just for reference). This is a nicely designed and excellent performance BlueTooth headset. I'd like to lay this out with the positive/negative setup:

POSITIVE:
1) Great sound clarity - I could hear everything quite clearly without any hiss or voice artifacting from BT compression
2) Great voice clarity - nobody could even tell I was on the headset*
3) Nice looking - not over the top or obnoxious like some
4) Very Long Battery Life
5) Fairly Comfortable*
6) Good controls for volume and power
7) Easy to connect - though it does require a passkey for pairing. Some devices may not be able to do this, but my phone did it automatically.
8) Very good range - no problems with keeping the phone in my pocket - but keep it on the same side of your body, or you may notice bad signal

NEGATIVES:
1) The earpiece doesn't come off if you wear glasses - I think it can be pried off with a screw driver, I'm just not willing to experiment with it yet
2) If you are outside and it's windy, it sounds pretty bad, but I don't know any of these that can handle this issue perfectly
3) If there's an obstruction, the signal gets bad - not really a complaint as BT isn't designed for this.
4) Could have used another (hidden) button and indicator as all of the controls and statuses are through the same button and LED, though it does have differing colors.

*If it's windy or your phone is on the opposite side of your body, this isn't the case.
*The earpiece isn't too noticeable with glasses so its removability isn't too much of an issue - but after wearing it for a several hours, it can grow a bit uncomfortable. After a brief rest, it's not bad.

All in all, a great headset. I took off a star to cover all of the issues. A removable earpiece would have bumped this to 4.5 and if it had any capability to block the wind noise or eliminate it electronically, it would be a 5 for sure. Don't hesitate to buy it.

I have tried several brands and models of Bluetooth headsets and still have not found one that meets my requirements. I want a headset that is comfortable, light weight, fits snug and does not flop around, has good sound/voice quality and decent range. I tried three models of Motorola and all of them had very poor sound quality. I then tried a Sony, but the volume was far too low. I also tired a Nokia, but the forked shaped earpiece did not feel secure. I tried other brands and models, but all of them were either poor quality or had too many negatives. I have concluded that they do not make a headset that meets all of my needs. Therefore, I am going to settle for one that at least comes close. I guess that I am just too picky.

The one I am currently trying out is this Plantronic Voyager 520. My first impressions are that it is comfortable. The sound quality is good. It is lightweight and stylish. The noise cancellation is about average. I did notice something odd though. The directions say that you can answer and end calls, but nothing about redialing. Since most other headsets do have this feature, I decided to try redialing and see what happened. I simply pressed the button twice and sure enough, it did redial the last number. It seems strange that they do not tell you about that feature in the directions.

After test driving this Plantronic headset for a while, I have found this headset just might meet most of my requirements I listed above so I may keep it. However, I am still going to look around and try more headsets because I want two so that I can switch occasionally just for a change.

This seems to be a very good headset and I suggest you try it for yourself.

UPDATE: It has been several months since I posted this review. I stopped looking for the perfect headset, for now at least, and I am keeping this Plantronic 520. Since I have used it for so long here are my final conclusions. This headset is by far the most comfortable and the voice quality is very good. In fact, in quiet areas I can hear the other person just as well on the headset as I can on the phone itself. The only problem I have found is with the noise cancellation. In windy conditions or noisy environments the person I am talking to just can not hear me clearly or understand what I am saying. All they hear is mostly noise. However, I do like everything else about the headset. Therefore, I will still use it until, or if, I find one that is better.

The product is very good. Fit and finish are excellent. The battery lasted almost 8 hours of talk time. Very impressive.I even purchased a car charger for this headset. Its very noisy when talking outside the car in windy conditions. Also the volume rocker button is tight when pressing up to increase the volume. But is just fine when decreasing the volume i.e pressing down. My friends said the sound quality is excellent for them , they felt like I am using the phone not the headset. But it was not excellent for me,just good. Overall its a good product. Worth my $50.00.

I was very disappointed with this headset after reading such positive reviews. It crackled a lot no matter how close the phone. The person I was talking to said they could hear tons of background noise when I was in a busy area and that my voice sounded "tinny" when it was quiet. The thing is bulky and the single button is a bad idea -- it is easy to do the wrong thing especially since it requires a heavy finger (which also forces you to secure the device well with your hand before pressing it). It doesn't even work with call waiting. Maybe I got a bad one, but I can't say anything good about this device. Save your money.

I have since purchased a Motorola H680. It is much sleeker and better designed. Light on the ear. Buttons are simple and have the right tension. Sound quality is much better. Has a nice case/charger. Like night and day these 2 devices. Go with the H680. BTW, I have a Blackberry Pearl 8130.