News

• The Good: Sound quality is good; Helium Digital's earpiece has a welcome caller ID display, while Nokia's has a better microphone
• The Bad: Nokia's forked ear-clip is awkward to put on and uncomfortable; Helium Digital's display sucks a lot of power
• The Verdict: It boils down to a matter of choice — especially if you worry how you come across in public with a Star-Trek device in your ear
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There are three schools of thought about Bluetooth cellphone headsets. The first see these things as Star Trek device; tap on the button on the rocket-ship-shaped thing in your ear and talk. Others treat them like hardhats or lab coats, a necessary part of their working lives.

And then there are those who believe Bluetooth earpieces make you look like a dork.

I'm in this last category.

No, I'm not being anti-tech here; my professional life doesn't require me to be on call always, and my social life isn't so exciting that I need to be always available.

The problem is that Bluetooth earpieces are not merely just a hands-free way to talk on the phone; they're even more annoying than cellphones for people nearby. In public, nearly invisible wireless gear can make you look like you're either talking to yourself or, if the earpiece is visible, then showing off.

I recall one cab driver whose cordless headset was not visible suddenly breaking out into peals of laughter shortly after I got into his car, and I was frantically looking for a way to free myself from this barking lunatic before I realized he was absorbed in a conversation. And the ridiculous thing that stuck out of Lieutenant Uhura's ear in the original Star Trek TV series was prescient, certainly, but it was also howlingly funny.

Perhaps it's just because our cultural norms have not yet embraced Bluetooth headsets, the way we finally made our uneasy peace with the more-obvious cellphones. Anyone driving, in call centres, or taking instructions on the phone about how to change a baby's diaper need these things. While in public, however, Bluetooth users will have to adapt to those unwritten laws of behaviour to discourage passing psychiatrists from handing out their business cards.

I can't promise that two recently released Bluetooth headsets won't make you look a little dorky — that part is really up to you and how you use them — but they will make hands-free cellphone calls easier.

Nokia's BH-900 and the HD-880, from Toronto-based Helium Digital, are pretty much alike, and vary in only a few respects — how they clip onto the ear, how the buttons work and, in a small way, the sound they produce.

They both have to be charged (they come with power cords), and have to be paired with the device they're communicating with, which is blessedly easy — most Bluetooth-enabled devices will walk you through the simple process of identifying all the Bluetooth devices nearby and selecting yours.

Two differences are immediately visible: Nokia's earpiece has a boom microphone that slides back and forth, and has a slightly scary forked device to hold it onto the ear. Helium Digital's behind-the-ear hook looks a lot more natural, but I can see why Nokia went with its design: The fork holds the speaker closer to the ear.

Despite its better snugness, however, Nokia's fork is difficult to put on (especially for people with larger ears), and takes some time to become accustomed to once it's there. Helium Digital's curved earpiece is not much easier to put on, but it's a lot more comfortable once there.

One critical problem with these earpieces is that users tend to forget that if they're calling from outdoors when there is even a mild wind, they can't hear the effect the wind has on the other person. In my tests, I was told by the people I called that both the Nokia and the Helium Digital worked well, but this was hardly a scientific study: The wind is a changeable thing. But at my end, the sound was good on both, though I would give the edge to Nokia, which supports both noise reduction and echo cancellation.

The display on the HD-880 shows all 11 digits of the caller's phone number (some Bluetooth devices force you to scroll the display), and various little lights on it will tell you whether the headset is pairing, connecting or connected — which is quite welcome — and also offers controls for redial, mute and voice dialling features.

Nokia's buttons are smaller, and offer a mute button, an on/off switch, volume control, and an answer button that is also used to hang up. One thing to watch for, however, is that it's very easy to mess with the Nokia's buttons while trying to get the earpiece on your ear.

The Nokia offers talk time of up to eight hours (and as much as 180 hours of stand-by time). But if the HD-880's caller-ID screen is an attractive feature, it does come at a price. Its screen has cut its talk time to about four hours , and stand-by time to about 30 hours.

Still, the screen has another benefit. Should the phone ring, it's not necessary to grab the phone to see who's calling, just the earpiece, which encourages you to keep the earpiece out of sight until it's needed.

And that cuts down on the dork factor.