Category Kewl Stuff
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I have always wanted a good Bluetooth headset for my cellphone. I have tried quite a few - Motorolas, Jabras, etc. They were all OK, but they all fell short in one way or another - either the background noise (i.e. noise shielding/cancellation) sucked, or the battery life was bad, or they were uncomfortable - or even a combination of the above. In short, none of them were worth the trouble, and eventually I wound up throwing them in my desk drawer, never to be used again.

That is, until now.

Last week I decided to give the Bluetooth headset thing one more shot and I bought myself an Aliph Jawbone. I had seen a demo of it at The Sharper Image store in our local mall, and was impressed. I decided to give it a try, and to put it simply, I am blown away.

The packaging that the Jawbone comes in is immaculate (here's a link to a Flickr image of the packaging that someone took of theirs), and the unit itself is nicely styled as well. The headset comes with four earpieces and four earclips (2 left, 2 right) to ensure a very comfortable fit - and fit is very important for this headset because of the best feature of this product, the amazing noise-canceling technology. From Aliph's site:

Not only does the Jawbone technology virtually eliminate all background noise from your call, but as your background changes it also seamlessly adjusts the speaker output so you can hear your caller’s voice better. Jawbone’s intelligent system of sensors, software, and ergonomic features allows you to use your mobile phone in any environment without shouting or straining to hear. The result is a clear, uninterrupted, and productive conversation.

Jawbone Technology Breakthroughs

• Jawbone identifies your speech: A proprietary voice activity sensor identifies precisely when you are speaking, in any noise environment. Unlike other headsets, Jawbone can easily separate your speech from other sound nearby.
• Jawbone eliminates noise: Jawbone uses highly directional microphones and powerful signal processing algorithms to remove background noise from your ongoing speech signal. This allows you to be heard clearly in any environment without the need to shout and disturb others around you.
• Jawbone automatically enhances incoming audio: The volume and frequency content of the incoming speech is dynamically adjusted to maximize intelligibility in any noise environment. No matter where you are, Jawbone will adapt to your environment.

Now, if you're like me you read crap like that all the time and think "yeah, riiiiiight". I decided to give this little headset with the big-boasting Web site a few tests, to see if it could live up to the claims. First, I called my wife at her work from my car with all the kids in it, and the radio going. I expected to get the reception I always get when talking to her in that environment - an immediate request to turn down the radio, tell the kids to be quiet, etc. She answered and we had our entire conversation without her ever mentioning the noise or kids at all. I asked her if she heard them, and she said no, she thought I was at home!!

OK, now I am VERY impressed. I decided to give it another test. We're home later in the day, and I put The Matrix on the widescreen TV, with the sound turned up, etc. I wait until the scene where Trinity and Neo are raiding the building to rescue Morpheus, and they are shooting the hell out of that building's lobby - probably the loudest scene in the movie - and I called my mom. Once again she can hear me just fine, she doesn't mention any noise in the background, and I can hear her just fine as well.

Wow. Just.... wow.

You know the famous quote from the late great Arthur C. Clarke...

Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.
Arthur C. Clarke, "Profiles of The Future", 1961 (Clarke's third law)

Folks, the Jawbone is magic.

Rock