[[Jabra Stealth]]
Jabra recently launch two new Bluetooth headsets – The Jabra Stealth and Jabra Storm. These two headsets are the next generation Bluetooth headsets from Jabra with microPOWER battery technology; a tiny battery that allows for a relatively smaller design without omitting the importance of battery life and ergonomics.
We will start off this review with the Jabra Stealth. The name Stealth says it all about this headset. Discreet, small and you barely notice the weight on your ear. Its so lightweight and small that it makes you look more stylish compared to previous versions of Bluetooth headsets that encases your entire ear with a weight that numbs your ear.
Enclosed in the packaging is the Stealth itself with a right eargel attached to it. Extra eargels and earhooks are available in the packaging, so you can easily change the eargel to a left one if you prefer to pick-up your phone calls on your left ear. The design of the Stealth is what Jabra calls a candy bar design. It measures 65.2×15.4×24.2mm and weighs 7.9grams only. Setting up the headset is pretty much simple. To charge the device, simply flip open the tiny flap on the inside of the device to reveal the micro USB port. It takes approximately 2 hours for a full charge with standby time of up to 240 hours (10 days) and talk time up to 6 hours. You can pair the it to 8 different Bluetooth devices and stay connected to 2 devices simultaneously.
The Stealth has three switches on it. The tiny switch located on the inside of the device is the power switch that turns the device on. On the side of the Stealth is a button that enables Google Now and Siri on your smartphone. You can just give voice commands to dial a number. This is pretty much a plus point when you’re on the road or when you don’t have an extra hand to scroll through your phone book to dial a number. The third button is the one that you use to pick up your calls, end your calls, reject call or check on your device connection. The Stealth comes with Bluetooth 4.0 technology for pairing.
Besides pairing the device via Bluetooth, you can also pair it via NFC (device dependent). The NFC zone is located at the microphone area. The Stealth has an operating zone of 30 meters, so rest assure you can walk around your house or office without worrying about losing connection. The Stealth also comes with Noise Blackout technology – noise cancellation technology that filters out all ambient noise apart from your voice for a clearer sound at both ends of a call. Incoming calls and outgoing calls made with the Stealth are crystal clear without interruption from surrounding sounds. The microphone is a 4mm omni-directional microphone and the speaker has an impedance of 32 Ohms.
Performance wise, the Stealth does a pretty darn good job with crystal clear voice calls from both ends. Pairing it to your phone is pretty much simple and follows the same set-up procedure like all other Jabra products. The microphone receiver is very sensitive and rest assure you won’t need to increase your voice even though you might feel that the device is minute and the other person might not hear you. Jabra’s Noise Blackout technology makes your voice calls crisp and clear and you won’t hear the background noise, wind noises or buzzing sounds. Besides receiving voice calls, you can also listen to music when no phone calls are made or received. That is if you’re on-the-go and you need music while waiting to make those important phone calls. Of course you won’t have the effects of great bass, but hey, you can’t complain when you can discreetly listen to music and work at the same time.
With the Stealth in my right ear all the time, with a connectivity range of up to 30 meters, I can leave my phone in the room, walk to the living hall or kitchen and still be connected. I left the music on while walking around the house for connectivity range test and the music did not turn choppy at all. So, if you’re a busy person that needs to tend to your house chores and work at the same time with no extra hands to pick up your phone, the Stealth is definitely a must on your list of Bluetooth devices. Not to mention if you have long hair to cover up your ears, no one will notice the Stealth is there.
[[Jabra Storm]]
Next, we move on to review the Storm. The Storm comes in the same plastic packaging as the Stealth. Since these two products are not Jabra’s premium products, they are not enclosed in a solid plastic casing as the Rox and Revo Wireless.
In the box you will find the Storm itself, one USB charging cable, one extra eargel, one wind sock, one quick start guide, one warranty leaflet and one register paper. The Storm has a slim, sleek and curved design unlike the candy bar design the Stealth has. The Storm also comes with microPOWER battery technology for longer talk time and a lighter hardware. Unlike the Stealth that you’ll only have to stick it in your ear, the Storm takes on the “behind-the-ear” wearing style. I personally prefer the Storm as the “hooking it on your ear” part could get a little annoying. The curvature part of the Storm is made of silicon rubber, so you can adjust it until you feel comfortable with the position it is in. The Storm, like the Stealth is pretty much light; weighs 7.9 grams and measures 8.4×1.6×6.2mm. It is light enough to put it on the whole day or when charging is needed.
A tiny flap is located at the spine of the Storm which opens up to reveal a micro USB port for charging. It takes approximately two hours for a full charge. Like the Stealth it has a connectivity range of up to 30 meters, talk time and standby time up to 10 hours. It pairs up to 8 different devices and can pair up to 2 different devices simultaneously. Speaker and microphone drivers are the same as the Stealth.
The Storm adopts Wind-Noise blackout technology unlike the Stealth. This technology blocks out wind noise from your calls in windy conditions and reduces background noise. If you find the wind to be really strong, simply put on the windsock for clearer voice calls. You can pair your device with the Storm via NFC and use voice control to make and reject phone calls. This is of course again phone dependent.
To turn on the device, simply flick the switch upwards to switch on the device. The battery indicator and Bluetooth indicator will light up indicating its ready for pairing. A volume control is present on the spine of the Storm as well. However you might find it a little annoying if the Storm does not fit your ear nicely and it moves around when you adjust the volume. To pair, pick up and reject calls, simply press down on the “answer or reject” button. It is located at the bottom part of where the microphone is located.
Performance wise the Storm is comparable to the Stealth – providing crystal clear voice calls and noise cancellation. It pretty much comes down to which design suits you best for the Stealth and Storm; whether you like it in-ear or behind-the-ear.
Both the Stealth and Storm comes with a limited one year warranty.
