Compact, sleek, elegant; just a few words describing the Joby Zivio, a Bluetooth headset that sports a nifty new design feature. Though the market may seem saturated with choices, Joby hopes to gain an advantage by introducing the first headset with a telescopic microphone, allowing the wearer to precisely place where they want their voice to be picked up. The idea here is to reduce the background noise that accompanies traditional headsets by placing the pick-ip right next ot the source (sounds simple enough). The design itself is quite slim, with the microphone placed on the tip of a collapsible boom. Built into the Zivio is an auto-adjusting system that accounts for microphone gain as the boom is extended or retracted, ensuring that once you have the right position, you also have the right settings.
In terms of the receiving end, the Zivio comes with sets of interchangeable earpieces and soft gel caps that are mounted onto a ball-and-socket joint, offering a diversity of positions to suit your individual needs. Matching the excellent functionality, the Zivio also has great visual appeal; with its compact, slender design and array of colour options, it becomes more of an accessory, than merely a headset.
Here are specs on the Joby Zivio:
Bluetooth Version: 2.0 + EDR with Hands-free profile 1.5
Talk/Standby Time: 10 hours/12.5 days (300 hours)
Charges: via USB connection
Weight: 13 grams
Length (mic retracted): 53.5 mm
Length (mic extended): 137 mm
Width: 15 mm
Depth (thickness w/o earpiece): 7.2 mm
Range (btw. phone & headset): 10m (33 feet)
Bluetooth Chip: CSR BlueCore 4
Now if we could only do something about those lamp posts. Ah, here it is!
Images courtesy of www.joby.com
