Plantronics/Poly CS510 Wireless Headset

Plantronics/Poly CS510 Wireless Headset

The Plantronics/Poly CS510 is a headset designed to only work with your office phone handset. Furthermore, it only comes with the one wearing style (over the head) unlike some other models which offer both. That said the CS510 is an excellent over the head headset model. The CS510 will work with any brand of office phone you may have because of the unique way all wireless headsets connect.

If you’re looking to answer calls away from your desk you'll need a HL10 handset lifter or an Electronic Hook Switch depending on the phone you have (call our staff for assistance). This device fits on your telephone base and lifts the hand piece up or down when you push a button on your headset, letting you answer and hang up on calls from anywhere in the office. A handset lifter for this headset is available separately, or as a great value pack.

So let’s start by reviewing…..

The Good

The Plantronics/Poly CS510 is probably the most functional of the 500 series.It offers the longest talk time, the most durable build design and it’s extremely comfortable. If you’re looking for an over the ear - not over the head wearing style - then go for the CS530.

The sound quality in all the new CS500 series headsets is excellent and incorporates their Enhanced Digital Signal Processing (DSP) technology which is said to deliver more natural voice sounds. We don’t dispute it but we think you’d have to be in a lab or have canine hearing to pick the difference. They have also cleverly incorporated a new Voice-dedicated DECT™ technology which means that it eliminates interference from wireless networks you may have in the office. As more office devices start to become wireless this may become a very important issue.The Plantronics/Poly CS510 also offers users noise cancelling. This eliminates much of the background noise in a regular office and really is a must. Like our very popular Sennheiser Pro 1, Pro 2 and DW office, you can also now conference in other headset users (up to 3). This is a brilliant feature in call centres and where a manager may need to get on the line.

Plantronics/Poly has also given the CS510 an intelligent adaptive power system that increases or reduces power consumption, based on your distance from the base station. This extends battery life and gives you up to 9+ hours talk time so it won’t run out of power on the job!

The Plantronics/Poly CS 510 wireless headset also features Sound Guard technology. This protects phone users from loud, potentially harmful noises. This is where ‘acoustic shocks’ are transmitted down phone lines as a result of dangerous customers yelling, blowing whistles, electricity spikes, weather conditions, transmission faults and the like. Without this feature you could potentially suffer from temporary/permanent hearing loss. Plantronics/Poly SoundGuard means you’ll be protected whenever you are using your 510 headset.

The Not-So-Good

The main downfall of all office-only wireless headsets like the Plantronics/Poly CS510 (and basically anything under $300) is that they don’t work with your computer as well. The future of headsets is moving towards voice and computer convergence. This simply means that more people will start to use their headsets for softphone IP applications, VoIP (like Skype) and voice recognition software like Dragon Speak 11 and MacSpeech. Products like the CS510 are designed to be one trick ponies.

The Verdict

For office only phone applications the Plantronics/Poly CS510 is a genuinely good headset. It’s smart, durable and comfortable with great battery life.

Other Headsets You Should Consider Before Buying

You must look at the Sennheiser D10. It's their offering in the more budget range and absolutely worth the very little extra for the additional features, particularly if you're on the phone alot. It also comes with 2 wearing styles in the box .

If you’re looking at office only then it really depends on what wearing style you’re looking for. Use the filter in the left to check out the different styles. Some offer both but it is important to note that a headset designed for one purpose will always be better than a headset that does two things. The best quality phone only wireless headset is the DW Pro 1 Phone, which is without doubt the superior choice. If budget is your primary concern, then the Jabra Pro 920represents outstanding value for an over the head style headset.

Many people are buying multi-use headsets to keep their options open. If convergence is in your future it's a good idea to pay a little more to cover your bases now rather than having to replace your headset down the track. For just a little more you can look at products like the Jabra Pro 9450 and the truly awesome Sennheiser DW Pro 1 If you’re looking for mobile phone connectivity as well as office and computer then this is also offered by the Plantronics/Poly Savi W700 series (710, W720, Savi W730-M W740) and the sexy Jabra Pro 9470.