(Photo: Paul Maljak)
For many people, Bluetooth headsets aren't an option, they're mandatory—especially for talking on the phone while driving if your car doesn't already have hands-free Bluetooth built in. So we test Bluetooth headsets with care. Here's a look at our testing process, both in PC Labs and out in real-world conditions.
Call Quality
This is, of course, the most important aspect of a Bluetooth headset. We place several different calls, both to live people and to answering machines, so we can hear how conversations sound on each end. We check indoor and outdoor volume levels, and how intelligible voices are in different situations.
Connectivity
We try to connect headsets to several models of cell phones. We'll typically run tests on multiple devices connected to the same wireless carrier, and then test with another set of devices connected to a different wireless carrier. We check to see if the headset pairs automatically, and how easy it is to pair and re-pair with multiple devices.
Range
Most Bluetooth headsets have a range of about 15 feet for clear calls and 30 feet for calls with static, but some improve on this. We walk 60 paces in a straight line away from the phone, talking all the while into an answering machine, so we can hear how much speech quality decays as distance increases.