Iqua Smart Badge Bluetooth Headset Review

 

Hello, Hello! Been a long time since i showed my face over here, besides the occasional interesting press release, but I’m back with a few reviews coming up for you. One of the cool things about being a full-time products reviewer is that you get all kinds of interesting and unique  things for review, and I think what I have today counts, most certainly, as a unique product.

Up on the old review block today I’ve got the Iqua Smart Badge Bluetooth Headset, odd name right? Well it’s an odd product, but not in a bad way, it’s actually rather neat! It’s a bluetooth headset, but it’s also an identification badge in one, I know it sounds like a strange combination but bear with me here, it’s actually rather ingenious if you think about it. I know for a lot of people this product might seem useless, but for those out there that have to use an id badge this is a great little product if you think about it. Most of us have bluetooth headsets, and some of us carry an ID badge, well that’s just two things we need to remember to take with us and possibly forget somewhere or even lose, but here you’ve got it incorporated into one easy to use product.

Read on to learn more, I’ve got a bunch of pictures, it comes with some nice accessories as well…

Before we get into the actual review here’s the info from the site:

Iqua Smart Badge Bluetooth Headset

This fantastic ID holder and Bluetooth headset in one, not only offers dual functionality but an outstanding 40 hours talk time and 600 hours standby time.  Its discreet design, sleek finish, outstanding performance and ease of use makes it a must have!

The Iqua Smart Badge combines identification card holder and wireless call management in one compact and stylish device. Nowadays most employees wear an ID card at work and carry a mobile phone. And they use a wireless headset or handsfree when they need to move around and do things while talking on a phone. With the Iqua Smart Badge you can do all this using a single device.

Forget about charging for weeks – the Smart Badge gives you up to 40 hours of talk time. It is your ultimate mobile accessory for VOIP calls. You can use it as a wireless speaker and microphone for your computer and apply it to VOIP internet calls or online messengers such as MSN Messenger, NetMeeting and Skype.

The BHS-608 has a vibration alert and a possibility for 3-way conference calls, and it supports redialing of the last number called and the answering or rejecting of incoming calls. With up to 40 hours talk time, long calls are no problem for the Smart Badge. And you don’t need to charge it too often, because the standby time is 600 hours.

Key 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

Specifications:
* Size: 100mm x 70mm x 12.5mm
* Weight: 45g (main body)
* Talk Time: Up to 40 hours
* Standby Time: Up to 600 hours
* Charging Time: Within 5 hours
* Supported Bluetooth Profiles: Handsfree 1.0 and Headset 1.1
* Bluetooth Compliance: Bluetooth 1.2 specification
* Paired Devices: Up to 8, one at a time
* Battery: Lithium-polymer rechargeable battery
* Operating Temperature: -15ºC up to +55ºC
* Operating Range: Up to 10 meters

On to the review!

The Iqua Smart Badge Bluetooth Headset actually comes in a rather large box for just having a headset in it, but there more in there as you’ll soon find out.

Opening the box we’re greeted with the badge itself nestled in a little holder part of the box, under that we find all the rest of the accessories. A very large user manual (lots of languages included), a very nice carrying case, USB charging cable, AC Adapter, clear badge cover laminate and a spring loaded clip for the lanyard. You’ll notice in the picture the AC adapter I got is for Europe, so that won’t work here in the states, but luckily you can charge the badge via the USB cable, so it’s not a big deal there really.

Here’s the badge itself as it might look with a picture of ‘Jane badge’ in it, no I wasn’t putting my picture in it…

 

You’ll notice in-line is where you’ll find the earpiece, the earpiece actually attaches to the lanyard via a magnet, underneath it you’ll find the microphone and the answer/end call button. The earpiece is a bit large, and it would be nice if it came with foam as well to make it a bit softer, but

The picture of Jane Badge is more than that though, it’s actually a quick start guide really.

 

The badge part is a basic really, just a clip on frame that you put the ID behind.

The lanyard come out eh top of the badge, on each side of that you’ll find buttons for power/connection and volume and an LED that lets you know the status.

 

On the bottom is where you’ll find the charging port:

and the back is rather plain:

 

Here’s a couple pictures of the LED on, never realized it was so hard to take a picture of a flashing light… I think I took 30 pictures to get these two.. Blue is obviously bluetooth and green is on, pairing.

 

So, to test this out I called our illustrious leader Doug on the phone and bothered him, he told me I sounded excellent, perfectly clear, and I can say he sounded pretty good himself…. seriously though, the call quality is very good and the earpiece can reach a nice loud volume if need be, probably one of the loudest BT headsets I’ve ever used.

I paired it with my AT&T Tilt with no problems at all, it worked the first time and each time after with no problems.

Battery life seems very good as well, in the time I’ve had it for review, about two weeks, I know I didn’t talk for 40 hours, but I haven’t charged it since the very first time. The standby time is listed as 600 hours, which is about 25 days… sorry I needed to get the review done and couldn’t wait that long to test out that one, but seeing how the battery life is now, I can say it should come very close to that. I can see it getting the rated battery life easily. Even half of that would be awesome I think…

 

You can also use the Iqua Smart Badge Bluetooth Headset with your computer for Voip etc if you’ve got bluetooth on it, so that’s a nice plus, but then again most any BT Headset can be used that way also.

 

Overall the Iqua Smart Badge Bluetooth Headset is a very unique and rather cool little product, while it might not be for everyone I can see it being very useful for someone who has to have an ID badge with them at all times.

The qualities of it are something that I would like to see in a regular BT headset, the extra long talk and standby time are very nice, I hate having to charge mine every few days, with this one it will be weeks before you need to charge it.

 

 

Pros:

+Lightweight

+Easy to use

+Long range

+Long battery life

+Excellent sound on both ends of call

+Includes carrying case

+Dual powered

 

Cons:

-Not for everyone obviously

-The badge frame seems a bit flimsy

I would like to thank MobileFun for providing the Iqua Smart Badge for Review and for their support of Mobility Digest.