The Gadgets Page

I was pretty excited to finally get the Sennheiser Pc121 In-Ear Mono-Aural Headset in the mail last week. Personally I had been looking for a small footprint headset I could use for Skype conversations, and this looks like a winner.

The headset came in a retail package, which I can’t stand because you have to use a blow torch to open it, and I just want to get to the device. To my surprise, the packaging just opened right up, a big win in my view.

This PC 121 model only has audio plugs (one green and one pink), and fortunately my laptop had the correct receptors. The package didn’t include an adapter from audio connector to USB, however I have an adapter from a Plantronics headset, and it seemed to work just fine. I would suggest Sennheiser include this simple inexpensive adapter with the headset, because not all laptops have audio connectors, but almost all come with a USB adapter.

A couple of things really excited me about this headset. The first thing was the over the ear clip like a cell phone wireless headset. No bulky over the head brackets and big ear pieces. Next was the very long wiring. This allowed me to move around while talking.

The big test would be whether the headset was recognized by Skype. That seemed to work with no problem. I could hear really well, and talking with this headset was comfortable most of the time.

Figuring a good test would be using the headset for my podcast, The CouchCast, I plugged it in and recorded the show. Here is a link to the show. The podcast is recorded live, and usually over Skype. In the past I’ve used a Logitech headset, and a Sony headset. But both of these are large and not very mobile.

The unit is light, small, has inline volume and mute controls, and the ASUS EeePC seemed to recognize the device with no problems. The boom mic is movable up and down, allowing you to adjust for comfort and clarity.

I tested the headset in several scenarios, and on several machines with Linux, Windows and Mac operating systems. All of the tests worked well, and none of the machines had any problems recognizing the device.

The only issue I had using this device, was the ear piece staying in place, at least in my ear. I couldn’t get it to stay put, even with the foam cover. It seemed the piece that goes over the ear either kept moving and pulling the piece out, or it simply would not stay in my ear. I spent most of the time holding it so I could hear and talk. Your experience may differ, and again, it could just be my ear, but I have several other devices similar to this and I have no problems keeping it in place.

It’s a great headset, and I really like that it’s small, and easily fits in my computer bag, which is what I have been looking for. This product easily meets my needs. I would recommend the headset to anyone looking for a small, light, portable device, that is easy to use and works on most platforms.