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Overview
The ETY•COM is a wired headset, which
feels kind of outdated when seeing all the
wireless Bluetooth headsets on the market. I tested a couple
Bluetooth headsets before, including very small ones, but none
of them is as small as this headset. It is basically just piece of
wire with a tiny microphone on one end and a knob on the other end
to place one of the bundled ear tips. I tested in-the-ear type
headsets before including the Sony
MDR-EX71SL. So I know that those type of ear buds need a bit to
get used to. The benefits though are undisputable. The background
noise is just considerably reduced.
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The ETY•COM comes bundled with a
small bag, 4 ear tips, one foam ear tip, a replacement filter,
a filter replacement tool, wire organizer and a adapter for my
Sony Ericsson T630 mobile phone. |
It is no different with the ETY•COM. The
only difference is that it is only on one ear. The other ear is
still exposed to the background noise. Again something to get used
to.
The insertion of the ear tip needs a bit of training. The handbook
explains to pull with one hand the ear outward and upward and than
place the ear tip in the ear channel. Etymotic Research also
recommends to moisten the ear tip for best results. Reading this
just brought back images from the classic sci-fi movie
eXistenZ, I watched the other day. There is one scene where
Jennifer Jason Leigh is moisten the bio-port on Jude Law's back -
ugh. This movie is anyway pretty sick with the embryonic game
consoles, but it is a classic. Anyway I could not get myself to
moisten my ear tip. It works without that as well. After some
testing I settled on the 2-flange large ear tip.
I tested the headset with my Sony
Ericsson T630. Etymotic Research sent me the fitting little adapter
that is placed on the bottom of the phone. I called a friend who
hates when I do not speak up. As I said above I like to speak with a
soft voice. He was pleased though. The directional microphone works
very decent, even when not in the total perfect position. The sound
quality is excellent. I had some white noise in the background, but
that could also come from the phone service. The sound is just very
comfortable to listen too. This could be because the headset uses a
Etymotic earphone design for accurate music reproduction. It also is
supposed to smooth the peaks in the frequency response.
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The Etycom headset next to the
Sony Ericsson T630. |
Conclusion
The ETY•COM
is straight forward headset that benefits greatly from the decades
of in-the-ear headset experience of Etymotic Research. If you can
deal with the wire the ETY•COM is a great choice even for the
professional road warrior who lives and works on busy airports.
More technical details on the ETY•COM
product page.
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The Etycom headset in my ear. |
How to Buy
The Etymotic Research ETY•COM ER22 sells
for $69 on their
site.
Compare prices on other stores.
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