Jawbone Bluetooth headset: Assassinating noise

"What's that? There's someone in the office fixing the air conditioning with a hammer and I can't hear a word you're saying."

Although we aren't subjected to such incessant banging every day -- we don't work on a building site, after all -- it can be tricky to use a mobile phone in a loud environment, depending on how good the ear speaker is. Thankfully, Bluetooth headsets can ease your ear-strain pain.

You could opt for a standard Bluetooth headset, but if you need extra audio clarity -- say, if you do work on a building site -- then you might want to invest in a headset with built-in noise-cancelling technology. One such headset is the new Jawbone, boasting its NoiseAssassin 'noise eliminating' technology and a better, more portable experience than its predecessor.

The new Jawbone is smaller than the original Jawbone, which means that you don't have to wear the ear loop if you don't want to. We liked this because it meant we only needed one hand to put it on our ear. It also substitues a rugged look for one with more class.

Audio quality is good but as with its predecessor, don't expect miracles. It does help you to hear someone speaking in a noisy environment, but it doesn't cut out noise entirely. Due to the smaller design, battery life has dropped to around 4 hours talk time and 8 days on standby -- that said, the battery charges up completely in only an hour.

You'll be able to buy it soon from Carphone Warehouse for £80. While that sounds steep to us, it could mean the difference between hearing your friend or hearing a hammer. -Andrew Lim

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