Larry Garfield looks at the latest Bluetooth endeavor from Motorola, and finds ample evidence that good things come in small packages.
Long a major player in the phone handset market, Motorola has been making a push into the headset market of late as well. It's latest entry is the low-profile HS850 headset, offering an overall good product in a small space.
The black and oblong HS850 is vaguely reminiscent of a bug or insect when closed, but we found no reason to swat it away. It's small design is due in part to a unique and welcome folding boom microphone that folds back against the earpiece or flips out easily when in use. Opening the headset takes only a second, and also serves to power it on so that, combined with a relatively short boot up, the headset is ready to go by the time it gets to the ear. Opening the headset also starts a call, so that when paired with a voice-controlled phone the "say the name" beep comes through with no further intervention. Closing the headset also transfers the call back to the phone without ending it. In all, the folding design is a very welcome addition.
 | The HS850's flip-mic is a novel and useful feature
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In other respects, the HS850 is more traditional. The over-the-ear loop is comfortable and hangs well, and at under 20 grams can be worn for long periods comfortably. On the down side, it does hang a bit loosely which affects audio quality and causes some flapping. The single call button on the outer face is easy to find, and the volume buttons on the top and bottom are easy to push as long as the hand is braced against the rest of the headset. The ear loop can be removed and reversed for use on either ear, and the volume buttons reversed via a method tucked away on page 22 of the manual. Also removable is a small rubber skirt around the large speaker to keep out ambient noise, if the user finds that more comfortable.
Pairing is a bit tricky given the usual design. Although not well documented, it requires pressing and holding the call button while the microphone is folded closed, then quickly opening it up once the blue LED comes on to put the phone in discoverable mode. Pairing then proceeds normally, with the HS850 capable of pairing with up to eight devices at once. As has become typical of current headsets, it supports both the Handsfree and Headset profiles, whilst Bluetooth 1.2 support yields lower power consumption and reduced interference - all while maintaining Bluetooth 1.1 compatibility.
As previously mentioned, there is a single blue LED behind the grey plastic translucent cover surrounding the Call button. The LED pulses periodically whenever the phone is in use to warn others that the user is on the phone and not talking to voices in his head, but unfortunately also pulses when the headset is on and in standby mode, which can prove distracting to others nearby.
Audio quality was overall good, but could be improved. Although range was good at 7 meters line-of-sight and 3 meters obscured by the head, the audio did have a somewhat "hollow" sound to it. Wind was not a major issue, but background noise reduction could be improved. The former may also be related to the flapping problem, as pressing the headset gently against the ear noticeably improved audio quality.
On a more positive note, however, the HS850 is rated for 8 hours talk time or 200 hours standby. In practice, however, closing the boom will turn it off completely and the boot up time is short enough that it is rarely in standby mode, thus saving power, easily allowing for a week of regular usage without remembering to recharge it. The included charger is the standard Motorola power adapter used by most Motorola phones as well, a bonus for Motorola users who can then carry only a single power cord (although it will charge only one at a time).
Availability
The Motorola HS850 will be available by the end of the year, and will sell for $99.99 USD. The US version will come in blue while the European version will be black.
Conclusion
The Motorola HS850 is small, light, stylish, long-lasting, and very convenient. The folding microphone design deftly combines compactness with functionality for a novel and well-implemented approach. On the down side, while comfortable the HS850 does flap a bit more than we'd like when moving around a lot, which we suspect is why the audio quality is only acceptable, not great. Nonetheless, for the price the HS850 offers a light and novel headset that we can genuinely recommend.
- What's positive: Folding design, light, good battery life
- What's negative: Some flapping, audio quality is only decent
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