Fuze With Skype: What to Consider When Choosing A Web Conferencing Headset
Just this afternoon, some of the team here were in a Fuze Meeting webinar and I noticed almost all the callers were on Skype. That said, either they were home alone, annoying the rest of their office with loud voices emanating from their computers, or on a headset. And since I’ve done my best to swear off telecommuting, I’ve been on a constant search for the *perfect* in-office web conferencing headset experience.
I’m not in love with my headset choice YET (Freetalk Everyman Headset – more on that later) – but 4 headsets in the last 3 months make me somewhat of an expert on headset rejection – so here’s a short list of features to consider when finding an online meeting headset solution.
#1 Connection
Headset rejection #1 was because, foolish me, didn’t realize that not all computers have a mic jack. Headphone/mic jacks and USB connections both work really well in terms of sound, but you’ll probably have to mess with the input/output settings a bit if you use a USB connection. On the other hand, all computers have a place to shove a USB cable, so you won’t be stuck there like a cross-eyed buffoon staring at your headphone jack in the headphone port with your mic jack dangling of the edge of your laptop. (Sore subject) My recommendation: go with the USB.
Found yourself with the double-jack and a computer that won’t work with it? Don’t worry – they have converters and (let’s be honest) it’s probably not a bad idea to have a stereo headphone converter handy in case you only have your iPhone set with you.
#2 The Boom Boom
Chances are, you don’t really notice that your headset mic isn’t working for you until you start getting annoyed with all the ‘could you speak up’ complaints. Finally, someone had the good sense to suggest that the problem was my mic and headset #2 was out the door. I switched from an on-cord mic to a boom mic, and the audio complaints went away. A plus side of the boom mic? Feeling like a pop star and asking people if they’d like fries with that. My Recommendation: Boom
#3 Headphones
Headset #3 got the boot because it only had a speaker on one ear, and I just decided I’m a surround sound girl.
But – there’s all TYPES of headphones. In-ear buds, foam headphones, and the very intense gamer-style foam padded headphones. This is a personal choice, but, for me…the buds fall out and the gamer headsets do too good a job of cancelling out the noise. I work in an office, so I actually like the ambient noise and currently use the Freetalk Everyman Headset that SKYPE suggests, but…I’m not in love.
Why, you ask? They’re a bit flimsy and they only come in black. I’m still on the hunt for the perfect headset and I gladly take suggestions!
Note: Fuze doesn’t necessarily endorse the products shown or mentioned, but – if you’re looking for them here are the links: Input/output Converter, Stereo Converter.
Wow Dale! Took me a bit to get around to researching, but thank you so much for your helpful post! Part of me doesn’t want to drop $50 on a headset, but the rest of me can acknowledge that I’m in web conferences enough to really warrant getting one. Or perhaps…(now that you so helpfully supplied the part number) I’ll just scan for a sale!
My suggestion would be the Plantronics .Audio 480 USB Virtual Phone Booth. It’s been out a few years, and prices vary considerably but they look to be about $40-$50 at most places these days. Note there are a couple of different models – the one I use (Part Number 77681-01) includes two earphones with different size ear buds, a boom mic, and headphone/mic mini-plugs. Also includes a USB adapter, and a carrying case.
I snagged a sale at point and picked up a few – I keep one plugged into my desktop machine, and carry another set around with my notebook. Sound quality is good, and while they are sound-isolating, you can leave the ear bud without the boom mic out if you want to be able to hear what’s happening around you.