Road warriors and those who spend an ungodly amount of time talking on their iPhone (or most any other cell phone), take notice! The Sony Ericsson HBH-PV705 Bluetooth Headset ($44.95), available now for your convenient purchase at the Phonedifferent store, may just take your breath away with it's long-lasting battery life! You may possibly run out of things to say before the HBH-PV705 runs out of juice! Boasting an impressive talk time and standby time, you may be able to get by without a car charger (which may explain why one is not included in the package).

Keep on reading for the rest of the review!

Out of the Box

It usually goes without saying, but when I try a new product, my user experience begins with the packaging. I'm usually not so interested with the aesthetics of the packaging itself (although shiny and sparkly always catches my eye), but if opening the packaging can be done without blowtorch, table saw or 'jaws of life', you've already scored points with me. Fortunately here, the packaging for this bluetooth headset is very easy to open and you have instant access to the goodies inside.

Inside the box you will find the Sony Ericsson HBH-PV705 Bluetooth Headset, a basic wall charger, and a strap for the convenience of wearing the headset around your neck, if so desired. As I often like to do, I plugged in this headset and charged it overnight so I could test it out the next day on a full charge.

The HBH-PV705 has a fairly "no frills" type of design: power button is conveniently located on the outside-facing side with a small, green-flashing indicator light, the charging port is on the back end, a volume rocker switch is located on the bottom (under the power button), and there is a detachable rubber-encased plastic ear hook so you can wear it on either ear. The included strap attaches on the end by the charging port if you wish to carry your headset around your neck rather than in a pocket. Weighing in at .50 oz. and measuring 2.38" x 0.69" x 0.50", the HBH-PV705 is nothing extraordinary in design, but the excitement is all under the hood!

Headset Performance

The Sony Ericsson HBH-PV705 Bluetooth headset boasts a whopping 12 hours talk time and 300 hours standby time. Now to be honest, I have not clocked the precise number of hours that I spent talking (12?!? Who would I talk to for 12 hours?? I don't even know enough people to spread it around!). I also haven't measured the precise standby time for my headset. However, I charged it that first night and have been using it ever since, off and on. After a few days, it's still going strong. Needless to say, for the money, you may be hard-pressed to find another bluetooth headset that has this kind of advertised talk and standby time.

Pairing the headset is easy. My iPhone instantly recognized the headset, I entered the standard 0000 code, and I was on my way. When engaged in a call, the HBH-PV705 sounds very clear and loud, which pleasantly surprised me. I've owned other bluetooth headsets that fit similarly over the ear. Normally I prefer a headset that utilizes an earbud that I can lodge in my ear for better hearing, but this headset has not problem in cranking out the volume. Calls are clear and the volume is loud on my end, and I've had no complaints for the caller on the other end. Everyone I've talked to on my iPhone hears me loud and clear.

My only criticism of the Sony Ericsson HBH-PV705 is the ear hook design. It may be just a consequence of my own ear design, but I found that the ear hook can become a tad uncomfortable when wearing for an extended period of time. This isn't a big drawback for me, though, because I don't usually wear a bluetooth headset unless I'm on a call, but if you usually wear one all the time, you may want to practice switching ears for comfort reasons. Perhaps if the ear hook had a little more rubber on it, this wouldn't be a problem, but then it would add more weight and bulk, so there's the tradeoff.

Conclusion

The Sony Ericsson HBH-PV705 Bluetooth Headset is a good value for such impressive talk and standby time. It is a cinch to pair with your iPhone and the power and volume buttons are easily accessible and easy to use. It has great call quality and volume, includes a handy strap to wear around your neck, and the ear hook easily detaches to wear on either ear. The ear hook can prove to be a little uncomfortable if worn for extended periods of time, but all in all, this is a small matter when considering BIG battery life.

Pros