Product Description

Designed by the renowned Yves Behar, Jawbone takes mobile style to new heights. Jawbone's perforated shield curves to match the outline of your face while the inside surface is made from medical grade plastic to provide a soft and smooth feel on the skin. Jawbone can be worn on either ear, and you can customize your fit by choosing an earloop and earbud from the several shapes and sizes provided. Jawbone's ergonomic design enhances the acoustic performance and keeps the device lightweight, stable and comfortable. How it works- Jawbone measures the ambient noise around you and automatically enhances the incoming audio and adjusts the volume to make every incoming call sound crystal clear. Using adaptive sound technology, the Jawbone uses two microphones and a voice activity sensor. When placed against the cheek, the sensor detects voice vibrations rather than picking up the sound from your mouth. Excellent sound quality, adaptive noise cancellation, catchy design and comfortable fit.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #471 in Cell Phone Accessories
• Color: Grey
• Brand: Aliph
• Model: CT725LAU3212

Features

• Advanced, military-grade noise-canceling system continuously adapts adapts to your environment
• Award-winning modern industrial design by Yves Behar
• Can be worn on either ear; includes four earloops and five earbuds for custom fit
• Charges via proprietary USB cable
• Jawbone's ergonomic design enhances the acoustic performance and keeps the device lightweight, stable and comfortable

Amazon.com Review
These days, it seems that wireless Bluetooth headsets are a dime a dozen, but Aliph's Jawbone stands apart from the pack not only due to its unique looks but also thanks to some seriously amazing noise canceling technology. Originally developed for DARPA (The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) to create a communication headset that would pick up voice in hostile environments, the Jawbone offers some of the best clarity from a Bluetooth headset we've experienced. This version comes in gray, but it's also available in red and black.

Sophisticated modern industrial style meets the next step in audio technology with the Jawbone Bluetooth headset.

It can be worn on either ear, and you can customize your fit by choosing from one of the included earloops and earbuds.

The first thing you notice about this headset is its rather chunky size and cheese grater-like texturing on the exterior. Designed by Yves Behar, an award-winning industrial designer who also contributed to the design of the OLPC (One Laptop Per Child, aka the $100 Laptop), the Jawbone certainly has that iconic modern look that will be copied for years to come. It's also a bit large on the face (due to the embedded technology and speech sensor), which reminded us of Lando Calrissian's assistant, Lobot. But then there's no easy way to disguise a Bluetooth headset, and it's probably an advantage as passersby won't think you're just muttering crazily to yourself.

The Jawbone can be worn on either ear, and it comes with four earloops of varying sizes to fit your lobe. Made of solid metal with a rubber cover, they're fairly comfortable around the ear. The trick, however, is getting it on over the ear, and this is the Jawbone's biggest disappointment. Because it's so stiff, you literally have to use both hands to try to slip it on over your ear. And since we don't wear our headset constantly, we missed a few calls while performing this dance. Also, the metal frame does bend (as we found after carrying it in our pocket), which can be viewed as an annoyance or as a feature--enabling you to form-fit the frame to your ear. It also comes with five ear pads of varying shapes and sizes, and we tried one of the teardrop shaped pads to secure the Jawbone inside our ear sans metal frame--it was comfortable and worked for awhile, but isn't a solution if you're moving around a lot.

As with Steve Jobs, Behar is not a fan of protruding buttons. Thus, the Jawbone's two controls are hidden within the headset, requiring you to press either the front or back of the unit to answer calls, adjust volume, or turn on/off the noise cancellation function. While we've read some reviews that complained about these hidden controls, we had no problem in accessing them and appreciated their tactile response. The Jawbone also comes with a custom-fit recharging cable that can either plug into a PC's USB port or into the included wall jack. We enjoyed the flexibility of the USB charging, but wished the cable could have been a more standard USB mini-jack (for those times when you forget to bring the cable along).

But the true test of the Jawbone is how its "noise shield" performed. First, a little about this technology. The Jawbone has a small piece of rubbery plastic that protrudes from the bulbous microphone and sits flush against your face, and this sensor tells the Jawbone whether or not you're speaking and can remove background noise from your ongoing speech signal. It can also dynamically adjust the volume of the incoming audio from your call.

We tried the Jawbone in a number of different situations, and for the most part it worked flawlessly. Sitting at our desk with the stereo volume cranked up while playing The Chemical Brothers, our call partner was none the wiser. She didn't hear any of the music coming through, and our voice came through strong on her end. While standing on a street corner, the undulations of traffic noise never made it through to our caller, while we noticed an uptick in volume with an increase in traffic noise.

However, the Jawbone wasn't perfect, as it doesn't do a great job in windy situations. Still, for the good majority of situations you'll find yourself in--from busy airports to talk-heavy coffeehouses to traffic-laden city streets--the Jawbone should perform very well, masking the surroundings to improve fidelity for you call partner as well adapting your ear volume to the surrounding environment. We just wish the ear frame was a bit more flexible.

Pros:

• Amazing background noise masking capabilities--even when faced with loud, thumping music
• Outstanding adaptive volume as the environment around you changes
• Options for customizing the fit

• Metal earloop frames are hard to quickly put on
• Non-standard USB connection is a bummer if you forget the cable at home

Customer Reviews

Doesn't quite fit in and work properly.
I purchased the Aliph Jawbone in 2008.

This product seems to be accustomed to negative reviews which I concur. The Jawbone it self looks expensive, which obviously it is, and looks like it does it's job. Unfortunately, the Jawbone is made from seemingly cheapy plastic that is thin and easily breakable if you tried. The Jawbone is a little on the heavy side and does not fit comfortably. It really is true that, even though there are different sized earpieces and over the ear hooks, it doesn't fit well and is stiff. It is very difficult to keep the jawbone on and put it on with one hand. since the hook is made from metal, it is not easily bendable. The hook seems to be spring loaded, which means that it's suppose to help with pressing the voice sensor nib onto your face, but it's assists in pushing the Jawbone away from your face also.

I did uncontrolled tests in my bedroom with the Jawbone and came to conclude that your voice either cuts out or isn't captured. This is due to the voice sensor nib, the white part that touches your "jawbone", not properly touching your "jawbone". I played music while calling my friend and my friend said that they could hear the music and my voice cutting out when the Jawbone was attached to me. When the Jawbone was just resting on my table with the voice sensor nib not being touched, my friend heard nothing, but then I wiggled the nib while not attached to me and they heard the music and my voice clearly.

It seems that the voice activation doesn't exactly work properly, and isn't necessary if you can already talk on your phone without it. The design is simple and elegant, but is cheapy.

Reliable Bluetooth headset with fantastic noise reduction capabilities!
Quite simply, the Aliph Jawbone Noise Shield Bluetooth Headset totally rocks! Believe me, I've gone through quite a few Bluetooth headsets in the last couple of years, and so I have quite a few to compare this one to.

First off, the design of it looks a bit off-putting. It uses military-grade noise reduction technology and the look of the headset makes me believe that this particular headset may have been originally intended for such use. It's not exactly the most attractive headset out there - definitely not the most feminine.

But to be completely honest with you, after trying a number of `prettier' headsets that either break easily, lose their pairing with the phone frequently, or just plain don't work as well I am all for sacrificing form for function.

All that said, while it may not be the most aesthetically pleasing Bluetooth headset, it is not the ugliest either. It is interesting to note the design differences in the newer Jawbone model that Aliph just released, however. They've presented a much more attractive version with a sleeker, less obtrusive style, seemingly proving that the manufacturer recognizes the customer's desire, frivolous though we may be, for a headset that is pleasing to the eye.

Now for the important part: how it works. The Jawbone was simple to pair with my cell phone (HP iPaq 6945 Unlocked Cell Phone with Wi-fi, GPS, MP3/Video Player, SD--U.S. Version with Warranty (Silver)), as most Bluetooth headsets are. More importantly, I've paired it once and it has maintained that pairing without issue ever since, unlike the previous headset I owned which lost its pairing at least once a week, usually while mid-conversation. This is annoying, certainly, but for a user that won't use their cell phone while driving without a hands-free device, this is very unsettling. If I wanted/needed to continue a call while on the road, I disconnected the call, pulled over to re-pair the two devices, and then started my call and my trip again. This is a major issue for me, so I am extremely appreciative of Jawbone's reliability.

Next feature: Noise Reduction. Aliph makes a big deal about their noise reduction technology, and having now used it with amazing results, I understand why. They DESERVE to tout their success in this arena. Yeah, it is that good. Watching the videos they have on their website demonstrating the quality made me curious, but I admit to having my doubts that it could really eliminate background noise to the extent that they promised.

I've purposely stress-tested it in some pretty noisy situations. First of all, my own vehicle. I have an older car, and it seems to pick up all of the outside noise there is, even with my windows up. If it is raining, my callers could hear the rain on the windshield when using other headsets. When a semi drove alongside my car, the noise of the big truck distracted my callers from our conversation.

Aliph's Jawbone headset changed all that. My friends and family no longer even suspect I'm in the car when I use it. If they call me while I'm in a grocery store or department store, they hear neither the hubbub of the store nor the announcements over the building intercom. Then I went to my favorite wing restaurant, which keeps the music pretty loud. I stood directly under one of their speakers and asked my friend if she could hear it. She thought she heard some people speaking faintly in the background. She had no idea I was standing under a speaker with music blaring at me.

As for the fit of the headset, it is very secure on my ear. Like most others, it hooks over the ear, which makes it fit a bit oddly with sunglasses or eyeglasses, but it isn't uncomfortable. When I get a new headset/earpiece, one of the first things I do is to put it on and shake my head around a bit to test how securely it fits my ear. This one didn't budge. For me, this is a very important factor. If I can't move my head naturally as needed while driving, then the headset impedes my ability to drive and I won't have that.

Some of you probably want to know about how it charges. I use mine quite a bit for both personal and business, and it isn't rare for me to wear out the charge before the day is out. I've only managed to drain my Jawbone twice, and it charges so quickly that I was able to use it again within an hour or so. It comes with a cable that can charge through an electrical outlet or a USB port on a PC. It does not have a car charger, but since I have a power inverter for my car, I can simply use it to charge it while driving should the need arise, so this isn't a deal breaker for me.

All in all, I highly recommend the Aliph Jawbone Noise Shield Bluetooth Headset. When I finally break or lose this one, I will look at replacing it with another Aliph model before any other manufacturer.

Most recent Headsets I've used:
Plantronics Discovery 925 Bluetooth Headset - Black
Jabra BT250v Bluetooth Headset with Vibrating Alert [Retail Packaged]
Logitech Mobile Freedom Bluetooth Headset
Motorola H300 Bluetooth Headset

Over Time, I Grew Less Impressed
I spend quite a bit of time on the phone for business. I purchased the Jawbone thinking I had found nirvana after 3 prior bluetooth headsets. After about a year, it really turned out to be an 'also ran' contender in bluetooth.

Out of the box, the Jawbone had the worst fit I have seen after using multiple headsets. I found that using Jabra eargels solved that problem. All seemed well.

At around the year mark, I noticed that I was having a hard time hearing people. They sounded somewhat like they were underwater or mumbling. Once I got to that point, I had to ditch the Jawbone in a hurry. Talking to people while conducting business and having to regularly ask them to repeat what they said is not a good thing.

I dusted off my old Plantronics Voyager 510 (which still worked but has a short battery life) until I could find a replacement. Did I replace the Jawbone with the Jawbone 2. Absolutely not! A headset should last for more than a year.

Since the Voyager was still functional, I decided to give Plantronics another shot and picked up the 925. There is no doubt that the out of the box fit is 100 times better than the Jawbone. I didn't have to resort to convoluted tactics to get a decent fit. We'll see how the performance of the 925 is over the next few months.