Iqua BHS-702 (white)

Iqua is a Finnish Bluetooth headset manufacturer that's making a name for itself in the United States with innovative headsets such as the Iqua Sun, the world's first solar-powered Bluetooth headset. The company also makes several stereo Bluetooth headsets, but they're not as well-known. The Iqua BHS-702 is one such headset. It is in the style of a pendant similar to the Kyocera Wireless Bluetooth Headset with Pendant Controller, with a pair of earbuds attached. For a wireless headset, it can sometimes be a tangle of wires to use, and we would've liked some dedicated music player controls. However, the sound quality was great, and the controls are easy to use. It's also quite affordable, about $65 each.

The Iqua BHS-702 headset consists of the aforementioned pendant control as the main unit, which is then attached to a pair of wired earbuds via an adjustable lanyard. You wear it like a necklace, and pull the earbuds to your ears, which adjusts the length of the lanyard at the same time. The full length of wire from the pendant to the earbud is about 24 inches, which can get tangled up. However, since the length is adjustable, it doesn't feel too cumbersome when worn.

The BHS-702's pendant or main unit has a boring and clinical design. In fact, it looks more like an emergency call button than a Bluetooth controller. Measuring 2.36 inches long by 1.1 inches wide by 0.43 inch deep, the BHS-702's pendant controller is wide, thin, and flat, and won't weigh you down. Our only complaint with it is that it might flop around if you're running vigorously, so the BHS-702 might not be good for the gym.

On the front of the pendant controller is the multifunction button. Underneath the cut-out of the button is a yellow indicator light that flashes when the BHS-702 is on. The button has a slight indent to make it easier to press. The volume buttons are on the left spine, and they are raised above the surface for more texture, which make them easy to press, as well. The charger jack is on the right, and a small microphone sits atop the multifunction button.

The multifunction and volume buttons on the BHS-702 are used for handling a majority of the call features, as well as the music player controls. We would've preferred some dedicated music player buttons, so as not to confuse the music player controls with the phone controls. As it is, these three buttons often have two or three different functions depending on how long you hold them down.

The BHS-702's in-ear earpieces sit comfortably in the ear. The earbud covers are made from a soft, rubbery material. Thankfully, Iqua has included smaller and larger covers for different size ears.

Features of the BHS-702 headset include answering, ending, and rejecting a call, last number redial, voice dialing, call waiting, call transfer to a handset and vice versa, and call mute.

We tested the Iqua BHS-702 with the RIM BlackBerry Pearl as well as the Helio Mysto. The pairing process went very smoothly with both devices. Call quality was great. We heard our callers loud and clear and, since we could raise the microphone to our mouths, they heard us just fine, as well. The same goes for music quality. We only tested that with the Helio Mysto since the Pearl doesn't have stereo Bluetooth. The melody was decent, and it almost felt like we were listening to an MP3 player instead of a stereo headset.

The Iqua BHS-702 has rated talk time of 9 hours and a rated music listening time of 7 hours. The standby time is rated as 6.25 days.

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