CES 2008: Etymotic Research etyBLU Bluetooth headset

Yet again, last night at Showstoppers, the Ety people had one more new product that I am equally interested in. It's a new Bluetooth headset that has the same noise blocking technology as their headphones, but in a Bluetooth one-ear design.

It's designed to be use without an ear loop and it works fine without it as long as you properly insert the earpiece when you use it. The really nice thing is that it has a detachable boom mic that makes your voice all that much clearer when you are using the headset, and it makes it easier for the people on the other end to hear you in noisy environments.

I asked the guy why they thought one mic was sufficient when most Bluetooth headsets have two, and he explained that with the boom mic you'll get better call quality than just about all of the other dual mic setups out there because roughly each thumb length away from your mouth a microphone is, you lose 5 decibels of sound, so the boom mic being right next to your mouth works better. This headset applies the same technology in the hf2's but in only one ear. It does however come with an ear loop if you need that kind of safety net, which you might with a $129 Bluetooth headset, sure it's not cheap, but if its anything like the hf2's its worth it.