The Best Aliph Jawbone Bluetooth Headsets For iPhone

Rather than luxuries some accessories are necessities. Headsets are among the first options a user has when it comes to iPhone accessories. A good bluetooth headset is the first accessory that you should consider if you already has an iPhone.

The headphones that comes with Apple's iPhone aren't bad. But you need a set of buds with a microphone if you want to effortlessly answer phone calls. Better than that, you can get a wireless headset for your iPhone.

Although Apple offers its own Bluetooth headset, in the market there are some with better benefits.

If you want to answer phone calls while driving, listening to music or doing some other stuff on your iPhone, then you should think about getting one of the best iPhone bluetooth headsets.

Due to there are many companies that manufacture Bluetooth headsets, you have a wide range of brands to choose from.

One of the leaders in the Bluetooth headsets market is Aliph.

Aliph (a company founded by Alexander Asseily and Hosain Rahman) is the developer of the Jawbone Bluetooth headset which revolutionized the wireless industry with its noise elimination technology.

Jawbone uses a technology (NoiseAssassin) that processes incoming and outgoing audio to reduce background noise in military environments.

Aliph developed this adaptive signal processing for DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency).

In 2007, the headset was awarded an International CES Innovations Design and Engineering Award.

Aliph makes a big deal about their noise reduction technology.

The noise reduction feature was originally called "Noise Shield" but is now called "NoiseAssassin".

Jawbone's Bluetooth headset is the best in noise cancellation.

The noise reduction on the signal you are sending is nothing short of phenomenal.

Even in really difficult situations not other headset comes close to the sound quality that Jawbone can deliver.

The major problem with the Jawbone is its fit. Fit is crucial to proper operation. The challenge is to get the earbud far enough into the ear that the Voice Activity Sensor (VAS) is aligned properly.

The VAS detect when the person is talking and capture the frequencies of the speech. The Voice Activity Sensor must contact the cheek in order for noise suppression to work properly. If it does not touch, the people you are talking to will hear echo. If you have beard, definitively it is not for you.

Conventional "Noise Cancellation" headsets do not have the VAS and can only estimate when speech is occurring.

With the included earbuds and earloops, the headset don't stay where it is supposed to.

Some people have had good results using earbuds of other brands (Aliph does not sell any sizes other than the S, M & L in the box), like the Plantronics 925 Eartips (S, M or L) or the Jabra MiniGel.

Aliph introduced te noise reduction technology with its first model (the Jawbone I) in 2007. To maintain its technological leadership, the company introduces its new model, the Jawbone II in 2008.

Aliph expanded its line with the introduction of new models, the Jawbone Prime in 2009, and the Jawbone Icon in 2010, and recently the Jawbone Era in 2011.

The Jawbone II is 50% smaller than the original Jawbone. This bluetooth headset enhances the original Jawbone's capability to suppress background noise.

One of my major complaints was the original Jawbone didn't perform as well as other headsets in reducing wind noise. The Jawbone II claims to have solved this problem.

Both Jawbone I and II headset has two buttons that are operated by touching the outside shield. If you are a previous Jawbone user it takes some getting used to on how it works since it now works a bit differently.

In the Jawbone I, you just press the primary button to access voice dialing. In the Jawbone II, you have to press the NoiseAssassin button and hold it down for two seconds.

Aliph has launched an improved Jawbone II model, the Prime.

The new model is small, comfortable, attractive and does a very good job of canceling noise in windy areas.

The Jawbone II and the Prime are pretty much identical, however the latter is also available in green, purple, red, and yellow in addition to the original black.

The Jawbone Icon comes in a variety of jewellike designs and it comes with several ear-fit options.

The new version of NoiseAssassin is more deadly and the voice quality is better than previous generations.

The Icon is the first Bluetooth headset with apps.

The latest addition to the Aliph Jawbone series is the Jawbone Era.

The Jawbone Era maintains all the capabilities of its predecessor, and adds performance improvements and ease of operation.

The Jawbone Era is the most advanced Aliph headset yet.

There are different clips and ear pieces that come with the headset, but the earloop is not good. It's difficult to put it on, and it breaks easily.

Jawbone doesn't allow you to buy just the replacement part, you have to buy their full 4-pack, which has 2 different sizes for each ear.

Very good battery life. Propriety USB charger and also a plug for an outlet so you can charge it without your computer.

The Jawbone II is a follow-on product to the original Jawbone, but by no means is better than its predecessor. This sleeker and lighter version is only that.

Accepting, initiating or refusing a call is far from easy to control due to the invisible non-tactile switches, so when you press on it to seat it in your ear properly, it turns off or on.

Ear loops are not flexible to fit perfectly around the ear hence it keep loosening and eventually falling off, they are made of plastic and break easily.

All the good features of the original remain: The reception is great and the noise cancellation excellent.

Finally Aliph listened the users. Most of the issues and complaints to the Jawbone II have been addressed in the Prime.

The fit to the ear canal has been improved and no ear hook is required. The ear hook can be added and it is still comfortable.

The new earpiece tip tilts the headset a bit more toward the cheek to help improve performance.

The Prime's biggest drawback is the short battery life. It has a special charger that only works with it.

An invisible button cycles through five volume levels.

On the body a larger button turns the device on/off or triggers voice dialing.

The new and smaller design of the Icon, looks ultra modern and comes in six very different outfits. Each cover design has a name since they look very different from each other.

You can wear the Jawbone Icon with or without the ear hook. The headset slides into the ear instead of being compressed into the ear.

Comes with rubber tips in different sizes for wearing without a hook and four sized tips for wearing with a small but flexible ear hook that fits either ear.

The headset has a power on/off button on the back, has a talk button on top and it’s long and easy to find even with the headset on the ear.

As the Prime, the biggest drawback of the Icon is the short battery life.

The model of this year has an unique and attractive design with amazing audio quality and high-end features.

Some of the updated features include caller ID by name, a built-in accelerometer, and HD-quality audio.

Does not have a dedicated volume control, it has an automatic volume adjustment.

Anyway, if you want to adjust the volume, you will either have to rely on the iPhone's own volume control or by cycling the volume level up and down (press and hold the talk button when it is in use).

The inclusion of the accelerometer in the design, allows to implement the "Magical Motion Controls".

You can shake the Jawbone Era to put it into pairing mode or tap to answer phone calls. As new motion applications are developed, it will continue to gain functionality.

The Era comes with eight different earpiece fit options, but the way it fits the ear is not as easy and comfortable as in previous models.

1- Turn on Bluetooth in your iPhone

From the iPhone Home Screen go to Settings-General-Bluetooth

2- Put the headset into 'Pairing Mode'

The first time the headset is turned on it automatically going into pairing mode or hold down the hidden talk and Noise Assassin buttons for 2 seconds. The indicator light flashes between red and white.

3- Pairing

Highlight on the iPhone screen the headset detected and enter PIN code 0000, hit Connect.