Feature Comment

Cost

RecommendedUS retail $100

Street pricesdown as low as $65.


Ergonomics

Easy to puton and take off

Onlymoderatelyeasy to put on, and I found I was usually usingboth hands to do this, which is not practical ifyou're holding your phone with one hand andtrying to quickly put your headset on with theother hand.

It was, of course,easy to take off.

Easy to usethe control buttons

There arethree buttons on the unit. There are twosmall buttons for volume up and volume down, anda larger button opposite the earpiece.

The layout is such that it is easy to reach andpress these buttons.

Comfortableto wear

This is oneof the more comfortable units available, with nothingsticking uncomfortably in one's ear.

Can you usewith glasses

Yes.

Can use witheither ear

Yes. Aclever feature is the ability to swap thetwo volume buttons so that the top one is forvolume up and the bottom one for volume down, nomatter if the unit is in your left or right ear.

Securelymounted on ear

It seems tobe secure inasmuch as it doesn't fall off, butit can move around a bit and feels a bit floppy.

On the other hand, this loose fit also makes itunobtrusive and comfortable to wear.

How to carry

The goodnews - there is a loop on the unit to which youcan affix an around the neck lanyard.

The bad news - Motorola don't provide a lanyard;you have to go out and buy one extra. Here's an online store that sells them for about $2 each.

Compatible with Nectarretractable andnecklace style headset holders.

Weight

Reasonably light - 0.6oz


Ease of Use

Commandsintuitive and easy to remember

Muchsimpler commands than many other units. Most commands are initiated by a short press onthe one button, a few others by a long press (3seconds or longer).

Volumeadjustable

This isreasonably intuitive, with two dedicatedbuttons, one each for volume up and volume down.

How fastdoes it turn on

It takesabout five seconds to turn on and synch up witha phone.

Manual

Well writtenin perfect English, 30 pages in length. Also in other languages.

Support

Viawebsiteand (800) number (7 days/83 hrs a week).

Pairingpassword printed on device

No (it is0000 so in an emergency you have a good chanceof guessing what it is!)


Features

Battery life

Up to 8hours talk or 200 hours standby claimed. This is better than average battery life (as ofFeb 06).

Low batteryindicator/signal

The unitbeeps five times every 20 seconds to indicatethe battery is almost discharged.

Only the person wearing the headset hears thebeeping, not the person you're speaking to.

Battery type

Notdisclosed

Replaceablebattery?

No.

As with other headsets, the chances are by the time the battery has died,you'll probably have bought a new headset.

Batterycharging method/time

The unituses the same type of charger as do all V60-600series phones.

This is convenient - if you have an existingcharger for these types of phones, you can useit with the headset, too, and save yourself theneed to carry two chargers with you. Italso opens the door to other charging methodsyou might already have (see below).

Charging time is about 2 hours.

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Multi-voltage charger

Yes.

Chargerweight/size

2.4 oz.

A small sizecharger, with plug pins that fold into the'brick' to make it more compact for carrying.

Othercharging methods

You can usea Motorola car adapter, or one of ouremergency rechargers (with theextra Motorola V60/600 series adapter).

How manypairings can be stored

The unit canstore up to either seven or eight pairings(Motorola's website says seven, the manual sayseight).

Headset andhands-free profiles?

Bothprofiles are supported.

Audioprofile for computers

Apparentlynot.

Bluetoothcompatibility

Version 1.2

Power/range

Power classisn't specified, but it is claimed to have a 30'range, which would suggest a Class 3 typedevice.

Effectiverange

It receivessignals (from the person you are talking to) forup to one floor away before the static levelstarts to become objectionable. In ahorizontal distance, it goes close to 30', asclaimed.

Walls or other obstructions severely reduce itsrange.

This performance is as claimed and perfectly adequate for normalBluetooth type connections.

Warranty

There is nosign of a warranty policy anywhere but it isbelieved to be, from Motorola's website, amiserly 90 days.

Free return

Retailerpolicies will vary.

Noisecancelling/DSP

Motoroladon't claim any special noise cancelling or DSPcapabilities for the headset.

Here's a532kB .WAV file that allows you tohearthe difference between the HS850 and theRazr V3 phone handset in a noisy environment. The headset does surprisingly well and is nottangibly worse than the handset.

Soundquality

When talkingto other people, they said my voice sounded normaland very much the same on the headset as on thehandset.

The sound quality of the person at the other endof the call seemed fine in the headset.


Capabilities

Turning onand off

Turning onand off is brilliantly intuitive. Open theboom microphone and you turn the unit on. Close it and you turn the unit off. Assimple as that.

It takesabout five seconds from when you open the boomto when the headset is on, operational, andpaired to the phone.

Auto connect

Yes.

Voice tagsupport

Supported. Make a short press of the main command button,then say the name you've previouslyrecorded.

Last numberredial

Yes.

Make a long press on the main command button.

Transfercall to/from phone

To transfera call to the headset, simply turn the headseton.

If theheadset is already on, then a short press of thebutton on the headset, same as if you wereanswering a call, will transfer it.

Transferringa call from the headset back to the phone isdone by turning the headset off and thenaccepting the call back on the phone.

Thesefunctions are intuitive and reasonably simple.

Callwaiting/Three way calling

A long presson the button will place your first call on holdand answer the incoming second call.

Further longpresses swap between the two calls.

To joinboth callers to make a three way call, pressboth volume buttons simultaneously.

Call reject

A long pressof the button rejects a call.

Callanswer/end

Yes.

Generally you will have your headset off ratherthan on. So, to answer a call, simply turnit on.

If theunit is already on, a short press of the buttonwill answer an incoming call.

To end a call, a short press of the button isagain needed.

Mute

A long pressof the button puts the call on hold, sort of thesame as mute.


Subjective

Attractivedesign

I don't likeit as much as some of the other headsets, butthis is a personal quibble. It isinoffensive and not ugly.

Flashingindicators on standby

Yes,although this is really not needed, becausethere is a much more obvious visual indicator -if the boom is extended, you know the unit ison, and if it is folded shut, you know the unitis off.

Size

Average/normal.


Summary

This is a fully featuredunit at a good price that is easy to operate andhas a good battery life.

Using the Motorola HS850 Headset

The Motorola HS850 is theeasiest to use Bluetooth headset we've encountered so far. It works well, connects quickly to the phone it is partneredwith, and gives good quality audio in both directions.

Connecting with phones

Easy. Once you'vepaired the unit with a phone, any time you turn the unit on, itwill quickly look for and connect with your phone if the phone is alsoon and in range.

This is convenient andsimple.

Note : Although wetested the Motorola headset with a Motorola phone, it will workjust as well with almost any other Bluetooth enabled cellphone. There is nothing brand-specific or unique to the Motorolaheadset that would limit its ability to work with otherBluetooth enabled cellphones.

Motorola Hs850 Bluetooth Headset Pairing Instructions

Summary

The Motorola HS850 headsetis a good all rounder - while perhaps there's nothing outstandingabout it, there's little to dislike, either, and withstreet prices going down to about $65, it is fairly priced. Best ofall, it is easy and almost intuitive to use.

For the firsttime so far in our Bluetooth headset review series, we findourselves able to conclude the review with a single magic word : Recommended.

Motorola Hs850 Manual

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Motorola Hs850 Bluetooth Headset Manual

Originally published10 Feb 2006, last update26 Jun 2019

Motorola Hs850 Bluetooth Headset User Manual Instructions

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