Many of us are working from home and would be using some sort of audio device to connect with the team members over Teams / Zoom / Google meet etc. It would be great if you can mention what you are using.
For me, primary and only device is Samsung Level U bluetooth earphones and I like them due to their non in ear canal design. My company has provided us with Jabra Evolve2 40 wired (USB-A) and they are great and have nice features which work in teams but I am just not a fan of wired and “headphone” designs so after using for one day, I put it as it is (practically brand new still) in box.
Using 1More Stylish TWS for online classes - excellent range, although I use the built-in laptop mic since Windows’ handling of mic for Zoom calls from bluetooth mics is atrocious, likely due to A2DP. Otherwise I use my HE400i
Been using the buds regularly for over 2 years now, still get excellent battery life of 4hrs or so (compared to 6.5hrs when new). Fast charging is a boon as well, a 10-15mins charge lets it go for an hour.
I use a mix of devices - A company provisioned Sennheiser wireless headset , A personal monopod (Jabra Talk45) , airpods and Pixel buds A series.
Headsets with boom arm are unbeatable when it comes to mic quality so I use the first one for all important calls .
For normal work calls, I use the other lighter options.
One thing I learnt during this period is that very few TWSs cut it when it comes to professional calls - Airpods and Pixel buds are the only exceptions although they are also not as good as call focused equipment.
Other older/ cheaper TWSs I have including a Jabra 65t and a couple of cheaper Boats are atrociously bad - they will sound alright at your end but are really bad for the other parties on the call
So 2 Headphones - BOAT Wireless, some cheap ones for 1700 Bucks, got it at 50% from LandMark (Forum Mall - Kormangala, Bangalore).
Second one is Jabra - Bluetooth and with good noise cancellation.
I totally agree with you. TWS keep losing the connection between left and right during the call. I Tried many TWS, neckbands(boats mainly). The key issue is that the audio was not clear on the other side. After a lot of experiments ended up in two economic devices that are satisfactory : pTron Rover and One Plus Bullets Z
Plantronics voyager focus UC → jabra evolve 75 → epos adapt m563 and then back to the jabra.
I have my sister’s jabra evolve 40 usb I use sometimes with my office laptop as bluetooth is disabled and i find it alright, just not as comfortable, but sq is better in calls
There is a dongle from avantree that shows up as a USB audio device to the PC - and then links to your BT headset.
I got it from amazon.in but avaialbility can be iffy.
there is a local make also called cubetek - that works fine too for calls but has a annoying code issue that makes it go to sleep in 10-15 mins after disconnecting from headset and requires a replug to come back to life.. annoying but not a deal breaker
Either of these will solve your office laptop BT problem
I primarily use my Sony WH-1000XM3 + V-Moda Boom Pro Mic + Creative Sound Blaster Play 4 (with smart comm kit).
Have used several headsets earlier like the Plantronics C3220 & C5220, Jabra 20UC, although these have good mics, the headphones are open-ended and not comfortable for longer periods.
With my current setup, I get the best of both worlds, noise cancellation in and out.
There is an additional feature in the smart comm app to filter background noise from the caller’s end as well.
Not so effective but works good if the other party has too much of background noise
For quick ad-hoc meetings, I use either the OnePlus wireless Z or Jabra 65t.
I use Cloud Alpha Pro. Sound and mic clarity is goos however the pads wear off very quickly. I wish i can switch to Airpods Pro, but Linux support for Headsets is terrible and stuck with wired set
Is there any great bluetooth earphones (non ear canal) / headphones that you consider stellar for taking office calls? I know wired ones work great always but I am looking for wireless. With my recent increase in responsibilities at work, I am more time on teams calls entire day.
