For a long time, I’ve resisted what I call the cyborg look – those cell phone headsets that hook onto your ear and allow you to wander around conducting mobile phone conversations without having to hold onto the phone.

They look just… ah… weird, know what I mean?

You come up on someone in public, at an airport or at the mall or on the street and there they are gibbering away like one of those homeless people talking to their imaginary friends.

Or attached to their ear is some gizmo that makes them look like they’re part robot, blinking a blue light.

But slowly, over the past year or so, I’m finding hands-free headsets more and more a part of my daily routine. It started as I was at work, in the office. I could slip on a headset and interview people while multitasking, opening mail, working with my hands or typing on a computer without having to cock my head against a shoulder to hold the phone to my ear.

But then it branched out to the car. There’s something to be said for having both hands on the wheel.

And lately, for a couple hours a day, I’ve worn one pretty much everywhere I go.

The best technology for wireless is Bluetooth. But it can be costly, with some models over $100. With Bluetooth headsets, you wander up to 30-feet from the phone.

I’ve tried several models from Motorola, Cardo, and Jabra and – while impressed by their ultra light weight – had issues with comfort and volume. I need a lot of volume and these units just didn’t deliver. Ruined hearing is what I get from all that iPod listening, I guess.

The Bluetooth headset that fits me the best is one of the more affordable ones: The Tekkeon EZ Talker Mini. You can find it listed online from $57.99 to $69.95.

It is super small, as you can tell from its model name. But it is so lightweight that I have worn it all day and forgotten it’s there.
It provides up to five hours of talk time and 120 hours of standby use between charges. And it delivers enough volume to keep me from having to go “say what?” again and again.

My biggest gripe with this unit is the teeny volume control buttons on the headset. They’re awkward to adjust. Instead of using them, I use the volume control on the phone itself. That way I don’t have to touch the headset. Which is a good thing because they are so small I’d spend the whole conversation trying to find them.

There are a couple of drawbacks with Bluetooth headsets, though, no matter the make or model.

Many are prone to interference problems in crowded spots where others may also be talking via Bluetooth nearby. At the Tampa Airport a couple of weeks ago, someone walking by me chatting on his Bluetooth headset caused me to lose my connection.
So it’s not a major frustration, just something you should be aware of.

What is, in my estimation, the single most inconvenient thing about Bluetooth is that you need to charge them every day or so, just like your phone. And if you travel, that’s yet another charger you have to carry and find an outlet for in your hotel room.