Wading through the packaging for the Nokia BH800 is a somewhat deceptive process as you gradually peel back the last bits revealing a very small and stylish headset, of course this triggers the standard question of is this gadget more than just a pretty face?  Often form over function is the result our our week with the BG-800 headset was set to prove if this is what we can expect from Nokias new range.

After a brief charging time we were able to pair the headset by holding down the MFB and entering the code 0000 from our Nokia 6280 test phone. To this point all was going well and then we set about getting comfortable with the BH-800 which is easier said than done. The earphone loop is very fiddly and takes quite some adjustment to gain a comfortable fit, but it is worth the effort as once you have got the right angle the headset fits snugly and is much lighter than the more hearing aid designs of the older generation of Nokia kit.

Tests to both landline and mobile numbers using both a Nokia 6280 and 6131 proved to be of good audio quality for both us and the caller who reported a clean signal although a little weak or confused when background noise is present. The range of the BH800 is a stated 10 meters as is common for most Bluetooth headsets of this class, however in our tests anything over 5 meters resulted in audio interference and break up which made conversations difficult. This occurred with both Nokias and also with a Sagem mobile which leads us to conclude that the range is not as stated and the unit is really only suitable for pocket or car distances, it will not work across the office!

Battery life is a claimed 6 hours talk time and 160 hours on standby, again we found this a bit wanting with around 4 hours use killing the battery and 100hrs on standby with moderate calls being made. Charging is via the new standard Nokia changer (the one with the very thin connector) and is rapid enough. The controls for answering a call, volume and the power button are all very small as a result of the reduced size of the headset and this makes using these tricky and you become tempted to use the phone controls which sort of defeats the object.

Nokia ship the BH-800 Headset with a neck strap that supposedly allows you to clip the earphone onto it when you don't want it in your ear and quickly replace it when a call comes in, this sounds good and does work apart from the headset is not that secure on the strap and we feared it falling off and getting lost.

Priced at around £80 it's not cheap either and even the Bluetooth 2.0 EDR (enhanced data rate) fails to justify this price tag for a headset that falls below our expectations in all but the design.

Published - 02/08/2006

More Bluetooth Headset Reviews-

[ Up ] [ Bluetooth Headset Reviews ] [ Jabra BT300 ] [ Motorola HS850 ] [ Motorola H500 ] [ Bluespoon AX ] [ Jabra BT500 ] [ Nokia HS-4W Bluetooth Headset ] [ Bluetake BT400 G5 ] [ Belkin Bluetooth Headset ] [ Bluetrek G2 Headset ] [ Motorola HS820 ] [ Sony Ericsson HBH-300 ] [ Logitech Bluetooth Headset ] [ nXzen Gennum 5500 ] [ Sony Ericsson HBH-GV435 ] [ LG Prada Bluetooth Headset ] [ Motorola H9 Review ] [ Qstick EVOQ ] [ Jabra BT330 Review ] [ Nokia BH-800 Review ] [ Jabra SP100 Speakerphone ] [ Jabra BT250V ] [ Jabra Bluetooth Headset BT200 ] [ Plantronics Bluetooth Headset M3000 ] [ Nextlink BlueSpoon Bluetooth Headset ] [ Sony Ericsson HBH-200 ] [ Nokia HS-11W ] [ HBH-600 Bluetooth Headset ] [ Jabra BT800 ]