******
- Verified Buyer
B450-XT reviewI've been a fan of the Blue Parrot line of headsets for years. As a trucker, noise cancellation and battery life are two of the biggest concerns for me, and no one has been able to come close these headsets in the past. My prior one lasted 4-5 years before finally breaking, so I upgraded to the newest model, the B450-XT.So let's start with performance. In a word, it's great. Blue Parrot headsets are famous for their noise cancellation, and have improved upon it with the B450-XT. To give you an idea of how well it works, I can roll my window down while driving down the interstate, and the person I'm talking to would still hear me clear as day. There may be a slight noise in the background in extra noisy environments like that, but for normal situations the person on the other end would think I'm in a quiet room. You can't truly appreciate it without hearing it first hand, but unfortunately I don't have a way to demonstrate it. If you have this headset, the Blue Parrot app gives you a test function to record and play back for your own demonstration. I will clarify that this only applies to the microphone. It is not a noise canceling headphone, and it only has one ear cup anyway.Sound is top notch for a headset. Its speaker is large and loud, so you'll not have any problems listening to a call. With A2DP support, you can also stream audio. Music comes through crisp and clear, with a solid low end and a good overall balance of sound. If you want an even greater audio experience, there is a stereo version with two speakers (keep in mind this wouldn't be advisable if you plan to use it while driving, and likely illegal). Be careful turning up the volume to max, though. When you hit the highest volume setting, it plays a high pitched and very loud beep to let you know. It's actually way too loud in my opinion, to the point of being uncomfortable. Thankfully it's rare I need it that loud due to how effective the ear cup is at blocking ambient noise, and you can get around this by controlling the volume via your phone instead of the headset volume buttons.Battery life is also stellar thanks to the large battery, which accounts for the bulk of the headset. I talk on it for a half hour to an hour each day, and I can go just over a week between charges. It should also be noted that their current models use Lipo batteries, and you may want to practice good lithium based charging habits for the best long term use. That means trying to not let it drain all the way and not fully charging it. The good news is it will transmit the battery level to your phone if your phone supports it. Also, one of the voice commands is "Check battery," which will tell you if the battery is low, medium, or high (and say your phone's battery level as well). Charging is via a USB port, so you can power it from the included USB charger or any standard USB charger.The range has also improved over the last one I had. This is advertised as a Class 1 Bluetooth device, giving you a range of 300 feet. This is a little deceptive, as you have to pair to a Class 1 device as well to get that sort of range. Phones are not a Class 1 device and you won't likely see that kind of distance. In real world use of my last headset, I would sometimes have trouble using it if my phone was in my pocket opposite the ear piece, and I could only get about 20 feet away before breaking up. With the B450-XT, pocket use is a non-issue, and I can get 50+ feet away before things started to break up.Comfort is where things start to get questionable. The padding around the ear cup and on the headband are soft and comfortable, but the size of the ear cup leaves a little to be desired. It's designed similar to an "around the ear" cup, but smaller. It actually sits on top of my ear, pressing in on the edges of it.That in and of itself isn't too bad, but it really becomes an issue when wearing my sunglasses (which is often while driving). Because the cup is pressing in right on the edge of my ear, I can't fit the ear piece of my glasses in right. Most of the time, I have to rest that one on top of the cup padding. This makes things a little more uncomfortable and makes my glasses sit crooked. Not enough to be a deal breaker (after all, it'll be rare I'm using this outside of my vehicles despite looking a bit silly), but noticeable and it does affect extended wear comfort.Other areas of comfort are good. The headband fits snug without being overly tight. The instructions say you can gently bend it open more if it's too tight, but I didn't feel comfortable enough to risk it due to the plastic. It does allow you to extend the headband if needed, though.Microphone placement is a bit of a trade off. On older models, it was attached on the outside of the body and was easy to reach when moving it up or down. This time it's mounted between the headband and ear cup. It looks a little odd, but I think it's functionally better overall. With the old mounting style, it was easy to snag the boom on something and knock it out of adjustment. On this one, the headband protects the boom from accidental snags, but it does take getting use to when you want to move it up or down. The mount itself is also well designed with an easy to move notched hinge to move it up and down. If not for this new mount/hinge design, moving the boom would be a lot more cumbersome.The Parrott button is a new feature for me. Out of the box, it's set up for voice commands. These include checking the battery, pairing/connecting, redial, and call back. If you download the Blue Parrot app, you can also set it up for things like walkie talkie mode, speed dial, open an app, and access a second paired device. Voice commands also work independent of the Parrot button, letting you answer or ignore incoming calls without touching a button or your phone. You can also connect it to a computer with the USB port to update the firmware.As a total package, this headset is mostly a hit with only a few, but very annoying, misses. When people first see it, it looks almost like something you'd wear working the drive-through at McDonald's. Yes, this isn't going to be the most elegant Bluetooth headset out there. It's big, it's bad, and designed for function over form. These headsets are for people that only want the best call quality, to which the B450-XT excels at. The problem with comfort while wearing glasses is the only persistent issue, and the max volume beep can be worked around. If you think those are deal breakers, then I would still suggest looking at other Blue Parrot headsets. They all have unbeatable call quality, but other models may have a more comfortable design for your tastes.I recently lost some hearing. I need a headset to clearly hear my cellphone. I tried other earphones that fit in the ear or use an ear loop. Those didn't work out. They wouldn't fit right. Or, they wouldn't sound good. Even worse, it would fall out or off my ear and I would lose it.I've owned a pair of Blue Parrot headphones, before, about 20 years ago. They came with Dragon dictation software. Blue Parrot made high-quality products then. And, they still do, today.This headset slips over the head. It comes with a leather ear muff already on and has a foam muff as a spare. The boom mic is adjustable. Just pair the headset to your cellphone, or other bluetooth device, and it works. I also paired this set to an Amazon Fire tablet and an Acer Chromebook. You can pair it to up to 8 different devices with 2 active at a time. For example, pair it to your cellphone and your tablet. If a call comes in on your cellphone, you can still take the call on your headset.The audio quality is the best I've ever heard from a wireless headset. Nice and clear. The large sound drivers, compared to the small ones that fit inside the ear, probably have much to do with the improved sound. It does have DSP noise cancelling, which works rather well. In the past, I've found that mics with DSP noise cancelling would sound "digital". This one has no digital artifacts, at all! It actually sounds very natural. People on the other end tell me I sound very clear.Battery life is pretty good. I listen to the audio from streaming videos or online television, for a few hours, every day. A voice prompt will tell you if the battery is running low. Charge it overnight and you'll have no problem the next day. Some Android devices will tell you the percentage of battery life remaining. For most people, battery life should not be an issue. The battery is not user-replaceable, however.The buttons are nice and big. So, you can easily find them while you are driving. There are buttons for volume up and down, a multi-function button that powers it on and off and sets it into pairing mode. There is also a Parrot button that you can program to do other things. By default, it's set to mute your mic.I downloaded the software for Windows. It lets you update the firmware and set various options. There was no firmware update for my unit. I did not install the Android app.Although this headset is marketed to truck drivers, it can be used by anyone that needs to wear a headset for long periods of time. I can see office workers or call center workers using this. A stereo unit would be great. However, one ear needs to be open to hear the road while driving.Build quality seems pretty good. I believe this headset should last a few years. The company sells parts, like wind screens for the microphone and spare ear muffs. I called the company before I purchased. The rep was very knowledgeable and answered all my questions.I only have 2 gripes about this headset:1. The wireless range isn't as good as other sets I've used in the past. It's not a deal-breaker. But, if you leave your cellphone on the table while you pour yourself a cup of coffee in the kitchen, the sound might drop out until you return.2. The price. I understand quality costs more. Luckily, Amazon sells this headset for less than MSRP.I highly recommend.装着した際のフィット感から始まって、片耳用で左右どちら側にも付けられる、こういう細かい心遣いが堪らない。またマイクのノズルの可動域が広いのもとてもいい。運動機能が少々低下していて、キーボードでは作業が進まないため、パソコン操作は、windowsのシステム内にある音声認識装置とマウスを併用。ヘッドセットの使用歴は20年以上、幾つ使い潰したことか。昔は音声認識「ソフト」だったので、今よりも操作性が良かったような気がします。時にはマウスポインターも移動させ、メールのほかSNSや殆どの文章作成から年賀状作りまで、ヘッドセットで音声装置を使って指示出す、皆さんが思っている以上に自由自在。でもその半面不安定な所もあり、そんな時能力のあるヘッドセットがどんなに頼りになることか。トレーニング用の文書を一度読んだだけで、マイクを通した指示がスムーズ。それに「無線」がこんなに楽なんて思いもしなくて。最近玩具でbluetoothとの接続がうまく行かずげっそりしたばかりで、難なく繋がってくれる機器は本当に助かります。余談ですが、パソコン起動時に音声装置が同時に上がるように設定してあるのですが、有線のヘッドセットは、結局手動で装置を上げるのに対して、このヘッドセットはパソコンより先にスイッチON、それからパソコンを起動させると、9割強の確率で音声認識装置を立ち上げてくれています。相性がいいみたいで助かります。パソコン上での活躍に加え、スマホも手作業が面倒なので、このヘッドホンにぜひ助けてもらおうと思っています。* この文章もBlueParrott B350-XT ブラックワイヤレス ヘッドセットで作成。文章作成にかかった時間は、考えながらの作文と修正作業を含めて、15分位です。片耳のみにかけるタイプのヘッドセットなので、両耳がふさがれて外の音が聞き取りにくいということがないのがよいです。Bluetooth対応なので煩わしいケーブル接続もありません。また、スカイプでの通話はもちろん、音声認識ソフトで文章を入力するときもきちんと音を拾ってくれて、スムースに入力作業をすることができます。ノイズキャンセル機能つきのヘッドセットはこういうところが便利ですね。BT接続のワイヤレスヘッドセットです。ヘッドフォン部分が小さいタイプなので長時間つけても痛くないです。それでもノイズも少なくマイクもよく伝わります。軽いので長時間つける場合によいです
