Jabra SP500

For use in an office, the SP500 can be placed on a desk, much like a speakerphone. For car use, there are two mounting options - a suction cup for the windscreen, or a clip for the visor.

The SP500 isn't the most appealing piece of hardware. First off, it's quite large and a protruding boom mic doesn't help. This limits the portability of the unit, as you won't be able to carry it around with you comfortably. Secondly, it lacks the usual slick design of other Jabra products.

In terms of operations, it possesses exactly the same functions as a Bluetooth headset. The SP500 supports voice dialing, last number redial, muting calls, swapping calls and rejecting calls.

As with most Bluetooth devices, there is one main Call button which performs most of the functions of the SP500, such as answering, ending or rejecting calls. A volume dial and mute button are one side, while the pairing button and power input are on the top.

Interestingly, the SP500 uses two inbuilt rechargeable batteries. This allows it to have 20 hours of battery life and usefully, it can be charged from a wall socket or in your car. The device can also be used while it's being charged, meaning Jabra has really put some thought into ensuring you can get the most out of the unit.

The microphone doesn't pick up sound from more than a few metres away which limits its use as a speakerphone. Not only does it look odd, but it doesn't function well either, and if you had plans of using the SP500 as a speakerphone, you had to turn it so the mic is facing you if you want to speak. Not particularly practical.