Plantronics Explorer 320

DESIGN/COMFORT
A soft, swiveling, rubber ear loop fits firmly, but comfortably. We like that Plantronics opted for a charging adapter with a stubby power connector to prevent accidental break-away. A single jog lever serves as Volume control and Multifunction button. The stylish headset does about ten things, but the learning time is quick. Button pushes of various lengths and combinations trigger tones and flashes to set the different functions. The learning curve was less rigorous than we anticipated.

FEATURES
The usual suspects: switching a call to and from the headset, call rejection, last number redial, and voice dial. LED flashes indicate battery level upon power up.

PERFORMANCE
Speaker volume on the Explorer 320 is better than most, and clarity remained good at maximum volume. The headset delivered outstanding performance during our ambient music noise cancelation tests, with fine voice presentation as low as a whisper. Wind noise was average. Signal fuzziness starts at about 10 feet and was riddled with static, popping, and garbled speech by 30 feet. The best part is an epic talktime of 16 hours and 30 minutes.

VERDICT
The Explorer 320 is a terrific value. It’s stylish and comfortable, delivers solid quality, and lasts a very long time between charges.
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