Finally got to play with the BlackBerry® Wireless Headset HS-700
First question that eveyone wants to know, what is in the box?
Pic taken with my Torch
What is in the box
The packaging was nice, putting the HS-700 on a nice floating pedestal display and hiding the contents of the accessories, But we don’t care about it now after being been opened. Let’s get to the good stuff. The HS-700 comes with two loops of different sizes, if you are lucky like me, the long one will be a spare. I knew from my HS-500 that the pointy ear gel was the way to go. Four Ear gels should offer enough choices to fit many ears. The HS-700 is as comfortable as the HS-500. The charger might be a disappointment to some as it is a wall unit only with a short USB cord. I don’t know about you, but I use mine in the vehicle about 96% of the time and an auto charger would have been a better option.
First pairing and use
First I turned on the HS-700 by twisting the ear piece and it was nice to hear a voice explaining what to do for pairing. I find the twist to power on a much welcomed feature. I cant tell you how many times I have left other devices on all day long. Second power up and you are greeted by a voice “welcome, you are now connected, you can use your headset now”.
The top control button is nice to get to the voice command prompt, but you can also quickly tap on the outer earpiece to answer a call. There are more tap commands in the manual, but doubt I will ever use them.
Voice Commands
This is a nice feature, I can knot tell you how many times I have thought that StarTrek like actions would be making it to the real world. Tap the top voice command button and say “what can I say?” and a list is given to you. OMG it is Sweet! Why look for a manual if it can be put into the device. If you have a BerryBerry smart phone, you know that there is an Options area on it. So click the voice command button and start talking to it. You get a Battery command with an amount in hours and minutes left, Redial, Call last and Play. When playing music you can ask what can I say, and get enough commands to distract you while driving. See what happens if you don’t answer it, LOL. When listening to music, you will get a notification with a voice with who is calling and the handset will ring as well. And how do you answer it? Just say Answer or Ignore, it is totally hands free to answer a call.
Call quality
Well its hard to do better than the actual device you are paired with. The Torch sounds great with calls and so does the HS-700. I drive a truck and even with the louder than car interior noise, I find the volume and call quality great. Music play was nice to hear even though it is in mono. Nice bass and clean treble. Another welcomed feature is listening to music from the last song I was listening to before, it just picks up where I left off. BBM notifications play along with music is a nice addittion.
Design
This is a tough one, almost all of the head sets start looking the same after a while, but placing this next to a Torch or a Bold and you can see where they got the design from. Similar faux black leather, brushed aluminum and black plastic, makes for a nice match. Simple click controls with voice options are a nice plus. It is almost like having an assistant with you.
So big thumbs up on the HS-700 over all. RIM, I hope to see you out do yourself again on the next design.
AH!! you beat me to it! I was just about to post my review!
/Shakes Fist!
So Instead of starting another thread, i'll add here if you dont mind.
The only thing I would add to this is what I mentioned to you earlier. The voice commands allow you to play/stop/pause your songs aswell. The audio quality is exceptional considering its bluetooth streaming. It has auto volume increase which works great when you enter a noisy area.
The only issue I had was I had to move my audio files from a subfolder to my actual music folder in my media card for it to pickup the voice commands... but thats understandable.
The only down-side to my entire experience is the earpieces.. the plastic hooks were not comfortable for me and didnt feel secure. but the Medium size rubber bud seems to work quite well and feels quite secure (short of wearing it for a rollercoaster ride)
All said and done, great review Knotty... I personally give the HS-700 a 9.5
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Ktorch,
Outstanding article dude! Very informative and well written.
Now can you use that golden prose to write a note to my wife as to why I have to have one?
Bifocals
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Install BlackBerry Protect it's a free application designed to help find your lost BlackBerry smartphone, and keep the information on it secure.
Great points as well Raelic!
Come to think of it, you write the note to my wife.
You live farther away and will be safer!
Bifocals
Be sure to click Like! for those who have helped you.
Install BlackBerry Protect it's a free application designed to help find your lost BlackBerry smartphone, and keep the information on it secure.
HAHA!
I will definately do so... let me just finish writing my Will and increase my life insurance 
Shall I send a bullet-proof vest for you, with the letter?
1). Please thank those who help you by clicking the
beside the 'Reply' button.2). If your issue has been solved, please resolve it by marking "Accept as Solution" on the correct post!
3). Remember to have fun! We are all in this together!
4). Follow me on
Raelic wrote:
HAHA!
I will definitely do so... Let me just finish writing my Will and increase my life insurance
Shall I send a bullet-proof vest for you, with the letter?
Save the money for the vest, I've been a "dead man walkin" for 30 years.
In this case, "Keep the gun, mail the cannoli"
Bifocals
Be sure to click Like! for those who have helped you.
Install BlackBerry Protect it's a free application designed to help find your lost BlackBerry smartphone, and keep the information on it secure.
knottyrope wrote:
Bifocals wrote:
Great points as well Raelic!
Come to think of it, you write the note to my wife.
You live farther away and will be safer!
Bifocals
Did she get the letter yet or was Raelic too scared?
I don't know if Raelic sent it, but I know she hasn't received anything.
She hasn't offered any subtle suggestion about what I can stick in my ear!
Bifocals
Be sure to click Like! for those who have helped you.
Install BlackBerry Protect it's a free application designed to help find your lost BlackBerry smartphone, and keep the information on it secure.
