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Plantronics Voyager 855 Bluetooth headset

Manufacturer: Plantronics, Inc. Part number: VOYAGER855

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$31.49 - $92.79 at 12 online stores

CNET Editor rating:
4.0 stars Excellent
Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 60 reviews

More product information:: Editors' review; User reviews; Specifications; Manufacturer info

Bottom Line:: If you want a quality Bluetooth headset that can be either mono or stereo, then the Plantronics Voyager 855 is an excellent choice.
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CNET editors' review

Plantronics Voyager 855 Bluetooth headset

price range: $31.49 - $92.79

Reviewed by: Nicole Lee
Reviewed on: 09/12/2007

The good: The Plantronics Voyager 855 is a sleek and sexy Bluetooth headset that can be converted from mono to stereo via an earbud cable. It has a sliding boom mic, a comfortable fit, plus excellent performance. It is also very lightweight.

The bad: The Plantronics Voyager 855 has tiny controls on the side, and the act of sliding the boom mic up and down resulted in a slightly insecure fit. It's also a little on the expensive side.

The bottom line: If you want a quality Bluetooth headset that can be either mono or stereo, then the Plantronics Voyager 855 is an excellent choice.

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When the Jabra BT8010 arrived early this year at CES, we declared it one of the more innovative products we've seen thanks to its dual function as both a mono and a stereo Bluetooth headset--just add a secondary earpiece to convert from mono to stereo. While we loved the idea, we were rather disappointed with how big and heavy the earpieces were. Fast-forward several months later, and Plantronics has hopped on to a similar idea with a much improved design. Dubbed the Voyager 855, it also consists of a headset with a detachable stereo cable, but it's significantly more lightweight, more comfortable, and has better sound quality. Not only that, but it also has a sliding boom mic for better audio clarity. For those who want a stereo Bluetooth headset that can be used as a simple mono one as well, the Voyager 855 fits the bill and more. It will cost you though--the Voyager 855 is currently retailing for $149.95, but you can shop around for a better deal.

The Plantronics Voyager 855 consists of two pieces: the mono headset unit, which houses all the controls, and the detachable earpiece cable, which converts the 855 into a stereo headset. On its own, the mono headset unit looks like a regular Bluetooth headset. It looks very sleek and stylish, and we liked its black coat with silver trimming color scheme. Weighing in at a very lightweight 0.53 ounce, Plantronics claims that it is the smallest and lightest stereo Bluetooth headset to-date. Measuring 2.25 inches by 0.5 inch by 0.6 inch, the Voyager 855 is also on the slim side, though the length does increase to about 3 inches when the boom mic is slid out. The boom mic is actually the bottom three-quarters of the headset's front face, which can be slid down via two tiny plastic grips on the sides of the boom, or by simply pushing it downwards. The sliding mechanism is very smooth, though we felt that the act of sliding the boom down has the danger of dislodging the headset from the ear. Sliding the boom mic out provides better audio clarity (as it places the mic closer to the mouth), and you can also slide it out to answer calls. Sliding it back in will end the call.

Above the sliding boom is the multifunction button, while the right spine is home to the mute and volume keys. When in stereo mode, the mute key doubles as play/pause, while the volume keys doubles as track forward/back. We found these side keys to be extremely small, requiring us to use our fingernails to press them properly. Behind the headset is the earpiece, plus a slot for an optional ear loop for additional stability. The slot is also used to attach the stereo cable to the secondary earpiece. Both earpieces have silicone form-fitting earbud covers, and Plantronics had the foresight to include a variety of earbud cover sizes to accommodate different size ears. We found the fit to be extremely comfortable and snug and wore it for hours without noticeable discomfort. However, as we mentioned, the act of sliding the boom mic down sometimes resulted in the earpiece feeling a bit loose.

The secondary earpiece looks just like a regular earbud attached to an ear loop via an 18-inch cable. The ear loop is then attached to the headset unit via the aforementioned slot. It can be configured to be placed in either the left or right ear. The entire stereo setup is worn with the cable draped behind the neck.

Features of the Voyager 855 are pretty basic. There's the typical answering, ending, and rejecting calls, as well as call mute, voice-dial support, and last-number redial. Because the Voyager 855 supports the AVRCP profile, you can also control your music via the headset's controls. Other features include a battery-life indicator and the ability to transfer calls from headset to the phone and vice versa.

We tested the Voyager 855 with the LG Trax. Pairing went very smoothly without any hiccups. Audio quality was simply stunning, thanks to Plantronics' Audio IQ technology. Callers could hear us without any problem and vice versa. However, there was still some amount of static and background noise in crowded situations, but that's nothing to worry about. What we also liked was that the headset alerted us to incoming calls during music playback, and we could switch out to the conversation and switch back to right where the music left off.

The Plantronics Voyager 855 has a rated talk time of 7 hours, a listening time of up to 6, and a rated standby time of 6.7 days.

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User reviews

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Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 60 reviews
My rating: 0 stars

Showing opinion 1 to 10 out of 60

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9 stars

A Must buy, better than the Jawbone & Plantronics 665

by Genjinaro on November 23, 2007

Pros: Great call quality, small, easy to use, Stereo Bluetooth, in-ear earbud fit (sound isolation).

Cons: Sound is abit soft for music, Lacks bass, no AAA pen charger, pricey.

Summary: I have a habit of only buying high-end bluetooth headsets to assure I get the best quality and I must rate them in this order.

1. 855
2. Jawbone
3.

...

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Summary: I have a habit of only buying high-end bluetooth headsets to assure I get the best quality and I must rate them in this order.

1. 855
2. Jawbone
3. 665

I find the Jawbone nice but too large & hard to fit & the 665 isn't loud enough, range sucks & is easily defeated by the wind on both ends of the call & had bugs with the LED but its saving grace was its use in quiet environments & the AAA charger.

The 855 on the other-hand, aside from lacking the AAA pen charger, addresses many of the gripes I mentioned above in a sleek package.

The in-ear earbud style of this headset helps you hear the caller even better & it is louder than the 665 so if you were thinking of upgrading, do so. It would be worth the premium.

Jawbone users can upgrade too if they find that the Jawbone is too awkward to fit, a bit on the large side & you want AD2P, this is for you as well.

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13 out of 13 users found this user opinion helpful.
7 stars

A surprise for you if you expect true mono sound

by Kayo Ong on January 28, 2008

Pros: Nice unit, light weight, comfortable

Cons: Not true mono

Summary: Be warned that this unit is not true mono when the cable is detached. It becomes only the right channel of the two stereo signal. So if you are expecting ...

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Summary: Be warned that this unit is not true mono when the cable is detached. It becomes only the right channel of the two stereo signal. So if you are expecting the the stereo signals to merge as mono, it is not going to happen.... It is frustrating to hear half of the stereo.... Plantronics should indicate that it is not full true mono on their website and their advertisements. If I would have known this issue, I would have not purchased it.... Other then that, the unit is good.
Updated
Not a true mono signal when the opposite ear piece is removed which is supplying the left channel .. All you get is a right channel signal when you are using the main unit. I also get only about 5 hours of continuous usage when playing mp3s. All in all it is a good working unit.

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8 out of 8 users found this user opinion helpful.
5 stars

Practically Incompatible With HTC Cingular AT&T 8525 & WMPlayer

by sarafrans on November 22, 2007

Pros: Physical form, works w/ music

Cons: Doesn't Always Work, Needs reconnect

Summary: It doesn't stay in my ear well even with dif size ear peices, it goes into ear canal at an off angle so it cant get a good seal ...

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Summary: It doesn't stay in my ear well even with dif size ear peices, it goes into ear canal at an off angle so it cant get a good seal and the ear pcie material doesn't stick to your ear good enough either. I constantly have to push it into my canal even when I have the ear loop on. It has the small less than 1cm round earbud style that you can push deep into your ear.
Buttons are good and don't hinder usage, when extend mic you have to hold peice as you do it so it doesn't dis-lodge.
Wish it came with the pen-like holster as the 665a did.
I have the HTC Cingular AT&T 8525 phone. I have to go into settings daily to get it to work even though my bluetooth is always on. When using WMediaPlayer, it will work, but when I press Power button on my phone to shut off the screen, it pauses the music, that might be a WMPlyr issue.
Afer I get off a call it will usually start the music again, but sometimes (also perhaps if I press too many buttons) the music will play as if its a CD skipping and I have to press stop, wait 10 sec, and play again to get it to play smooth.
The wire that connects the second ear bud is covered with fabric or something so it doesn't really stick to long hair. Second ear bud stays in ok since it doesn't have the wieght of the device on it.
You can listen to music without having the second ear peice connected.
I say its incompatible with my 8525 phone. It should just stay connected all the time, even after charging, but it doesn't. Its the most portable bluetooth with music, but I am returning it to best buy where I bought it for 129 because it just does not work smoothly.

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8 out of 9 users found this user opinion helpful.
6 stars

voice quality is not as good as 665

by elgnoh on February 17, 2008

Pros: stero bluetooth

Cons: voice quality is not good.

Summary: I used and lost 2 plantronics 665 on the plane.
The sound quality of this 855 is not as good as 665, sounded like low quality phone line.
Everyone else

...

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Summary: I used and lost 2 plantronics 665 on the plane.
The sound quality of this 855 is not as good as 665, sounded like low quality phone line.
Everyone else seems to be pleased with the quality, maybe I got a defective one.

855 is heavier than 665, I never had to use ear loop with 665. Ear loop is a must for 855.

855 got superb battery life compare to 655. After 2 days of nominal use and standby, battery check still shows 3 red flashes.
It seems like Plantronics must have packed a heavy duty battery in 855. No wounder it's heavier.

As for stereo sound quality, it's no Shure e4g for sure, but you get what you paid for, and for god sake there is no wire attached ^.^

I'll go get a replacement and see if the voice quality is really that bad.
My past experience with Plantronics' Warranty program is 2 thumbs & 2 big toe up. They will ship you a brand new piece, then ask you to send the defective one back.

Hope this review helps.

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5 out of 5 users found this user opinion helpful.
8 stars

Very Very Good

by sample3 on January 2, 2008

Pros: Works seamlessly with the Jabra A120s and Motorola W385

Cons: Slightly insecure fit on mic side

Summary: I just purchased one of these several weeks ago and I absolutely love it. It works seamlessly with the Jabra A120s music adapter, my Lenovo Thinkpad T61, and my Motorola ...

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Summary: I just purchased one of these several weeks ago and I absolutely love it. It works seamlessly with the Jabra A120s music adapter, my Lenovo Thinkpad T61, and my Motorola W385. The sound quality is on par with my Etymotic Research ER-6i's and even with the controls being fairly small, they are quite usable. My only quibble about it is that after wearing them for a while, the fit on the primary earpiece side loosens its fit and allows background noise to come in. With the price earlier today being much lower at Newegg (I paid $127 at Best Buy For Business several weeks ago) I would heartily suggest them to anyone shopping for a Bluetooth music setup.

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4 out of 4 users found this user opinion helpful.
10 stars

Best bluetooth headset yet

by patksr on November 11, 2007

Pros: Good sound, fat bass, secure fit, excellent stereo

Cons: None found yet

Summary: I have used Motorola, Jabra, and Plantronics headsets. This one does the best job of all. They make sure that it will fit in, and over, your ear with a ...

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Summary: I have used Motorola, Jabra, and Plantronics headsets. This one does the best job of all. They make sure that it will fit in, and over, your ear with a variety of gel sizes and two different sized over the ear loops. I had no problem getting the feel of the controls, and it worked perfectly with my Env and Samsung i730 phones. The stereo music sounds very good, I use Shure E4C's with my iPod, and the Plantronics 855 still sounds good. Definitely a product that does everything it claims.

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4 out of 4 users found this user opinion helpful.
9 stars

Excellent Excellent Excellent

by McGadget on January 11, 2008

Pros: Great quality design and performance

Cons: Can make your ear sore

Summary: I've held out forever for the perfect bluetooth headset and it paid off.
This thing is almost perfect.
But be aware... since it's angled in the ear.. getting

...

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Summary: I've held out forever for the perfect bluetooth headset and it paid off.
This thing is almost perfect.
But be aware... since it's angled in the ear.. getting it as deep in there as you can will cause ear soreness.
Pairs perfectly with my Sprint Hogul PPC for music and calls, and new Macbook running Vista for music.
You do have to push the large connect button to re-establish your connection with a phone, but this is by design.
That whole deal about it being unstable with the boom extended... I don't see how its possible. This things fits perfect.
It has 5 different size ear ends.
Forget the whiners and just get one.
Sorry for any typos.

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3 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.
7 stars

Pretty Good, But Not Quite As Good As I Had Hoped For

by eleuthra on December 21, 2007

Pros: Super fast and easy pairing, very comfortable, decent sound quality

Cons: Small controls, volume doesn't get loud enough, sound quality is only decent - not great

Summary: I work in the wireless industry and have been a die-hard fan of the Plantronics Voyager 510. I've sold a lot of Bluetooth Headsets and I think the 510, ...

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Summary: I work in the wireless industry and have been a die-hard fan of the Plantronics Voyager 510. I've sold a lot of Bluetooth Headsets and I think the 510, for the money, is one of the best all-around values on the market. Now that I am using a phone that supports stereo bluetooth and plays music, I wanted to upgrade. I tried the Motorola Rokr S9 - that was a piece of junk. So when I heard that Plantronics was coming out with a small, "in-the-ear" stereo bluetooth headset, I was psyched. Pairing was super fast and easy - I didn't even have to put the headset into pairing mode. The headset is light and very comfortable, though some of the controls are small and hard to operate without taking the device out of your ear. I'm a little disappointed in the overall sound quality. It's clear enough - but has a tinny quality to it that the 510 did not have. The extendable boom mic is a little flimsy, but still a nice touch. I think my biggest complaint is that, when I listen to music, I'm not able to achieve a volume level that I want. Maybe I'm one of those, "turn the knob up to 11" kind of people, but when I use the plug-in stereo headset that came with my Razr2 - the volume is great. Also - when one song ends and the next one begins, the headset beeps, cutting off the beginning of the song. Not a big deal, but I don't understand why it does that. So, all-in-all, the Plantronics Voyager 855 Stereo Bluetooth Headset is good and a good value, but not quite as good as I had hoped for.

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3 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.
3 stars

Poor Audio Quality

by 86944t on October 31, 2007

Pros: Bluetooth Stereo.... integrated phone and MP3 controls

Cons: Very tinny sound

Summary: I returned this unit today after one week. I read two mediocre mag reviews, but was influenced to purchase by the one cNET review. I bought because I thought it ...

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Summary: I returned this unit today after one week. I read two mediocre mag reviews, but was influenced to purchase by the one cNET review. I bought because I thought it would have high quality audio for my stereo phone MP3. The telephone audio quality makes yourself and the people you talk with sound very tinny. So what if its stereo, if it makes the MP3 player sound very bad. If you are going to buy this unit, make sure you check the return policy first. I paid $130 for this and the audio quality is much worse than my $30 Southwing.

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5 out of 8 users found this user opinion helpful.
9 stars

The Best AD2P or Plain Bluetooth Headset

by Att2dtail on October 10, 2007

Pros: Light, Loud, Good in noisy enviroment and works well with music and calls

Cons: Must not mind in ear canal headsets

Summary: I have all of the top headsets you can think of. I have a grave yard of headsets that either I out grew with technology or I was too lazy ...

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Summary: I have all of the top headsets you can think of. I have a grave yard of headsets that either I out grew with technology or I was too lazy to return. I am presently sending back the Blueant Z9 (Horrible) and yes I upgraded the software to 3.1 . I broke my Jawbone by exercising with it on. Either way, none of these headsets also support AD2P. I went to Best Buy and couldn't believe they had this headset in stock. I have to say that I was not confident that I would like this headset. My favorite headset was the Voyager 510 so I decided to give it a shot. Works perfectly with my Treo 700WX. Music and calls are loud and can be heard in noisy enviroments. The IQ noise reduction works well but nothing compared to the Jawbone. With the Jawbone, the noise has to be constant for it to work. With this headset, your voice is so crisp and clear that the person can hear you even in noisy enviroments. The IQ just lowers the background noise, it doesn't eliminate it. Overall great product.

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3 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.

Showing opinion 1 to 10 out of 60

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Specifications

Manufacturer: Plantronics, Inc.
Part number: VOYAGER855
Description: Tune out the world, tune in full-spectrum stereo music and conveniently switch to calls on your music-enabled phone. Innovative stereo ear buds seal out noise and seal in sound, while AudioIQ two-way noise reduction technology digitally enhances sound quality on both sides of the call. Convenient one-touch buttons let you control calls and music from the headset. On the train, on the road, on the move - the Plantronics Voyager 855 convertible headset delivers outstanding audio performance for calls and music.

General
Product Type Headset - Bluetooth 2.0 EDR
Weight 0.5 oz
Recommended Use Cellular phone
Compatible Mobile Devices LG, Motorola, Nokia, Samsung, Sony Ericsson
Additional Features QuickPair, Volume control, Answer/end button, Play/pause button, Track select buttons
Headphones
Headphones Type Headphones - Binaural
Headphones Form Factor Convertible
Headphones Technology Dynamic
Connectivity Technology Wireless - Bluetooth 2.0 EDR
Bluetooth Profiles Headset Profile (HSP), Hands Free Profile (HFP), Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP), Audio/Video Remote Control Profile (AVRCP)
Sound Output Mode Stereo
Headphones Ear Pads Included
In-Cord Volume Control Included
Microphone
Type Built-in - Boom
Microphone Operation Mode Mono

Wireless Link
Transmission Range 33 ft
Miscellaneous
Cables Included 1 x Detachable stereo cable
Included Accessories Earloop, Ear-buds
Power
Power Device Power adapter - External
Battery Headset battery - Rechargeable - Lithium polymer
Run Time (Up To) 7 hour(s)
Standby Time 160 hour(s)

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