So, once in a while I get to sit down and do a review on a gadget – rather than taking an App for a spin, or checking out the industry news, it’s nice to play with something tactile. And when I do get my hands on my review gadget, I do like to spend time with a good one – which I think I’ve managed to get in this case!
The gadget in question is the Iqua Smart Badge Bluetooth Headset – which is a combined Badge holder, and Bluetooth headset in one (I guess you might have figured that out from the picture!). Now if you spend a lot of your working time in the corporate environment, you’ll know badges are very commonplace as a method of access control, and the staff in many organisations are required to display one at all time when on the premises – so the thought of combining badge-wearing with a Bluetooth headset is a good one – especially given that many companies offer a company phone to connect to.
So how does it do as a Bluetooth headset – well obviously, there is just the one earpiece, but to be honest, that works better for me – the earpiece is a good fit, and stows very neatly on magnetic retainer:
Pairing the headset is a breeze, and then operation is managed by a start/end call toggle button (in the pic above), and other ancillary buttons (see next pic below):
The call quality is good, and bizarrely the fact that the earpiece is hanging off a cord on the lanyard means that there is very little weight to it. The Iqua Smart Badge Bluetooth Headset has a good number of features:
- Bluetooth handsfree and corporate ID badge holder combined
- Accepts an ID card that measures up to 85mm by 55mm
- Easy to carry and use
- Stylish design to complement your professional look
- Talktime up to 40h!
- Standby time up to 600h
- Vibration to alert incoming calls silently during meetings
- 3-way conference call
- Support for VOIP calls
- Switch between phone and handsfree modes
- Bluetooth connection active, call status and low battery indicated by multi-colored LEDs
There’s a ton of kit in the box, including a mains charger, USB lead/charger, decent case, and obviously the instructions 🙂
The only possible downside I can think of is if your company pass doubles as a swipe card – in which case you might have to pop your card out of the holder, using the hinged door. But given the prevalence of contactless entry cards these days, I think it’s going to be less and less of an issue over time!
To be honest, there’s actually not too much more to say, because this is one of those ‘does what it says on the tin’ products – and does it very well. MobileFun is where you need to go to get your Iqua headset, for the very reasonable price of £14.95.
Summary: 4/5 (= very good!)
But … wait… do you want to get one of these cool gadgets for free? Course you do! Well, look out in the coming weeks for a competition featuring the Iqua headsets – don’t worry, we’ll let know when it’s coming!