The Jawbone JAMBOX is an incredible piece of engineering. It fits in your hand and has a wonderful rubber exterior that makes you feel confident that it can stand up to the rigors of life and come out unscathed. It’s sound quality is stunning and very reminiscent of the BOSE Wave sound system. The base is deep and full. If you place your hand on the surface that the JAMBOX is sitting on, you can feel the base. Mid and high tones are crisp and clear. Jawbone were very smart to keep the very loud 85 dB within a reasonable range to avoid distortion. This is one of the most exciting products we have reviewed this year. Audiophiles everywhere playing music on mobile phones and Bluetooth capable MP3 players +can enjoy phenomenal sound quality on the road without wires.

For many, when you think of bluetooth headsets, Jawbone quickly comes to mind.  They’ve been leading the industry for years, and are on the cutting edge when it comes to packing new tech into a tiny little package that you carry around in your ear.  They were kind enough to send us one of their newer devices, the Jawbone ERA, so we took it for a spin.  You can see what we thought, below.

Hardware

For a long time, I’ve been looking for a new bluetooth headset. And, I

haven’t been able to part with my Motorola HT820′s. I love the HT820′s

comfort and range but they aren’t your everyday walk-and-talk headset.

Hardware

This super sleek, clean headset is probably the most simple device I’ve ever

used. There’s only one button. After having used it for a while now, I do

wish they would’ve included a volume rockers. However, I’m not sure how that

Laptop trackpads, pointer sticks, whatever you want to call them you have no choice but to use them as they are built into you stock laptop.   This is where Swiftpoint comes to free you to be more productive for hours and hours more. It’s a uniquely shaped mouse that has the grip and feel of a very expensive pen.  It’s ergonomic design and strategically placed rubber surfaces offer the perfectly natural grip and feel that you wish all companies would take in consideration before launching new products.  The  Swiftpoint mouse takes the place of your existing laptop touchpad and with the included sticker mat with magnetic centering pad, you can actually use this mouse on the go (in a train, car, bus, plane, etc.)  This is more than the latest fad or cutting edge technology.  Swiftpoint identified a need and have decisively filled that need with a wonderful solution.  I won’t be using the trackpad of any laptop in the foreseeable future.  The usb connector acts as a charging dock and keeps your mouse where you need it, attached to your laptop.

Need a Bluetooth headset that stands out head and shoulders above the pack?  Blueant have a serious contender that is worth every penny.

Pros: True multipoint (connect with 2 phones at the same time and answer whichever one rings), enhanced voice command list including commands to hear stock quotes, movie times, directions, weather forecasts, sports results, news and traffic updates., Audio streaming was great as well as the noise reduction in windy areas.

Cons: the grill covering the exterior of the headset looks fantastic with hundreds of tiny holes, the negative side is that lint and dust particles stick to it.  The holes are smaller than a tooth pick and I found that a strip of tape worked great at removing dirt and debris.

Looxcie is always on, continuously videoing – there’s no record button. When you experience something you want to share, just click the Instant Clip button to save a clip of the last thirty seconds.

Looxcie is more than a wearable camcorder – it’s a complete Bluetooth headset with digital signal processing and more.

Looxcie allows you to to email short clips  within a minute. Filming, viewing, editing a clip, and sharing are a breeze.  I don’t know about you, but I want one of these.  I’ve got some seriously funny friends that at any moment can do something so random and funny that I’m always wishing I had an always on video camera.  We make big brother and survivor look incredibly tame.  What would you record and share?

Pros: Lightweight, Comfort, Sleek design, Sound Quality

Cons: Button size

Price Range:  Mid – High ($79.99)

To kick things off, way to go Jabra with the cool packaging of the Extreme!  It reminded me of Aliph’s Jawbone packaging, in that it was displayed in the clear thick plastic, positioned as if it were on a bluetooth throne.  Would clever marketing tactics such as this prompt me to buy in a retail store? They sure would!  Let’s hope retailers refrain from doing any repackaging.

With more states adopting mobile phone and texting laws for drivers, and with our incessant need to multitask and get things done quickly, Bluetooth headsets continue to gain in popularity.  The trouble is finding a high performance, high quality headset that will fit your specific needs.

Pros: Small and very compact, good sound quality, lightweight, comfortable in ear or over ear fit, very easy to use, quick charge and good battery life, easy to locate volume controls

Cons: Inconsistent performance from MotoSpeak app on Android phone, occasional distortion when using earpiece to control volume

Price range: $66 – $99 online