[General Accessories] Menneisyys:
Microsoft Bluetooth Stack-based Windows Mobile devices subgroup: in here, I’ve listed the MS BT stack-compliance of the three headphones, tested on many (!) Windows Mobile versions, testing both the older AKU2 (the first introduction of A2DP to – some – Windows Mobile models) and the newer, as enhanced-advertised AKU3+ (also delivered with Windows Mobile 6). (Please see this article for more information on what AKU's mean when not sure.)

As can clearly be seen, the Nokia headphones had absolutely no problem with either the A2DP (stereo sound transfer) or the headset (abbreviated as HS) modes. Not so with the two Plantronics headphones. The Pulsar 590, while still compatible with the stack, delivered pretty bad sound quality without any hope for quality hacking. The newer (!) Pulsar 260 was even worse in this respect: it not only sounds even worse than the Pulsar 590, but also fully incompatible (it won’t even connect) with two (Wizard, Trinity) of the test Windows Mobile PDA’s. Strange this model is newer than the venerable 590A/E and is even more incompatible with the, now, leading Windows Mobile Bluetooth stack.

Note that you will need to thoroughly read the HTC Trinity (or, for that matter, any AKU3) -related remarks for more information on making the sound stereo and high-quality. Fortunately, it’s just a simple registry key deletion (or, alternatively, running a free (!) tweaker app).

Note that, in the headset (NOT in the stereo A2DP) mode, I’ve also tested whether the microphone (see for example “mike / non-stereo sound transfer only” with the N560) of the headphones can be used to input sound to any sound recorder or Voice over IP (VoIP) application like Pocket Skype or Microsoft Portrait. This may prove very useful in cases; please see this article for more information on this question.

Widcomm/Broadcom Bluetooth Stack-based Windows Mobile devices subgroup: the second (and, unfortunately, shrinking) group of Windows Mobile-based devices use the Widcomm/Broadcom Bluetooth stack, which is, in general, far superior to the Microsoft one. Unfortunately, currently, very few current (WM5+) Windows Mobile-based devices use this stack (and not that of Microsoft): for example, all the HP iPAQ’s (including the WM5 upgrades of the originally WM2003SE-based hx series), the Fujitsu-Siemens phones (but, unfortunately, not the C/N-series non-phone models) and Acers.

Note that several, originally, MS BT stack-based Windows Mobile devices can be upgraded to use the Widcomm BT stack. With standalone (non-phone) models like the WM5-upgraded Dell Axim x50’s or the x51’s, this works just great. Note that I’ve linked in the available Widcomm upgrades from the chart. Of them, you will want to special attention to this article if you have a current HTC Windows Mobile phone – there are several HTC models already supported (to some degree – unfortunately, the headset mode doesn’t work with most of them) by the Widcomm BT stack.

Redial and voice dialing group: not only "old-fashioned", "dumb" mono Bluetooth headsets are capable of initiating calls from the headset (you don't need to fish out your phone from your pocket / bag but can initiate the call right from your headset), but also most stereo headphones. In here, I've tested how these headphones fare, compatibility-wise. I've tested: the "dumber" "redial the last number you've called" functionality (which can be activated by a double short press of the call button / button on the wire) and the much more advanced (it lets you call anyone) voice dialing feature. The latter works with both Microsoft's well-known, highly recommended Voice Command and Cyberion's well-known (it comes with most HTC Windows Mobile phones built-in, while Voice Command only comes with very few; for example, the HTC Trinity Dopod ROMs) Cyberon Voice Speed Dial app (see this thread for more information on the differences of the two apps and, in addition, Cyberon’s Voice Commander (not to be mistaken for Microsoft's Voice Command!) if interested).

Battery, recharging group: with stereo headsets, it's also very important to have as good battery life as possible. An example: while at work and I'm, say, working on a report or an article, I, most of the time, just put on my Pulsar 590A headsets and stream some music into it so that I can really concentrate on what I'm writing and not let ambient noise / calls distract my attention. I sometimes do this for 6-8-10 hours, during which I prefer NOT having to put my Bluetooth headphones on the charger. With my 590A (assuming I put it on the charger every night), which has a real, practical battery life of at least 11 hours (with even an outdoors volume level), I've never run into problems like "Hey, no batteries left; now, I really must put the headphones on charger". Unfortunately, other headphones not necessarily fare this good; for example, neither of the two ear buds-based models are able to play music for more than 7-8 hours.

Note that I've made these tests with repeating music and street-level volume. Fortunately, all the three headsets are capable of playing back music even at this comparatively high volume without noticeable distortion as long as you don't do any kind of bass boosting, which could very easily result in distortion. This may also mean you will have slightly (but not much! Think of 5-10% at most!) better battery life indoors, where you will want to use lower volume levels.

I've also benchmarked the time it takes the factory-supplied charger to recharge the headphones.

Note that, with the battery life and recharge time data, I've also given the official specs of the manufacturer, along with stating whether the official battery life / recharge time is over- or underestimated by the manufacturer (the first is definitely a positive thing with recharging and the second with playback). As can clearly be seen, Nokia has generally given worse specs than their headphones, while Plantronics did the opposite. (See for example the recharge time benchmarks!) A thumbs-up to Nokia and a thumbs-down to Plantronics.

Also note that I've made sure the batteries of the tested devices had already been through several charge / discharge cycles, meaning they have delivered their maximal capacity (as you may know, Li-Ion batteries require some – not many: in general, 2-3 – recharge cycles to achieve their maximal capacity (see this for more info on Li-Ion charging if interested).