Is the headset I'm looking for extinct technology?

June 8, 2008 8:53 AM

I am looking for a headset for my phone. I cannot find what I'm looking for anywhere. Are you a bad enough dude (or dudess/ette) to help me?

I have a Treo 680. I am looking for a headset that has the following:

2.5 mm jack. I do not want to also need an adaptor, which adds bulk and can be lost.

Over-ear or on-ear headphones for both ears. No earbuds (they don't work with my ears), clip ons, or behind the back of the head (the latter two pinch over time).

Boom microphone. It's not hands-free if you have to lift a little dangly microphone to your mouth.

Stereo.

My current headset does all of the above (on-ear, boom mic, 2.5 mm) but stereo, and it's now dying. It's also going on 10 years old and was originally designed in the age of cordless (not cellular) phones. Now that cell phones are here and have been for some time, it seems impossible to find a simple headset like this that I can use for both calls (hence the boom-mic) and for listening to music (hence needing both ears covered).

I would like to avoid Bluetooth, due to the additional power drain and the need for yet another charger.

posted by Eideteker to Technology (6 answers total)

Could this be a possible candidate? Seems to fit all of your listed requirements, except it's not certain whether it would work with a Treo 680. (Have not dealt with the company, but it was the first result when I searched for "binaural headset 2.5")
posted by macguffin at 4:47 PM on June 8, 2008

Response by poster: I was hoping for something less expensive. I also didn't see any mention of stereo on their site, but it looks like they'd reply to an e-mail.

Will keep looking, and if that's the cheapest, so be it. I definitely will use the term "binaural" when searching from now on; I never thought to use it in this context.

Thanks for the (eponysterical?) help.
posted by Eideteker at 8:11 AM on June 9, 2008

Response by poster: Found some cheaper here.
posted by Eideteker at 3:54 PM on June 30, 2008

Response by poster: Whoops, looks like the only one there has a quick release. I think macguffin found the only headset of its kind left in the world. And it's made by the same manufacturer (Chameleon) as the cheaper one on the site I found.
posted by Eideteker at 4:15 PM on June 30, 2008

Response by poster: I received a reply to my e-mail in almost no time at all:

It's not stereo. It's for telephone use, and telephones are not stereo.

The same sound is fed throungh both ears to block out noise. The incoming voice seems like it's in the center of the head, slightly to the rear.

Michael N. Marcus
AbleComm, Inc.

If I can remember my login, I will check on HowardForums.com. I can't think of anywhere else I might be able to find what I'm looking for. Will keep this thread up to date, as I know at least one other user is looking for the same thing.
posted by Eideteker at 5:57 PM on June 30, 2008

I have a Treo 650 and found a $20 plug in over ear headset at Best Buy. It has a boom also. Ugly as sin, not very high-tech but works beautifully.
posted by Sophie1 at 10:36 AM on August 4, 2008