Master Dilettante

Did I write too soon? To my list of Jawbone drawbacks, add questionable durability and unresponsive customer support.

Having had difficulties with the fit of the Jawbone, I foolishly dispensed with the ear loop; the Jawbone remained attached to my ear only through the snugness of the ear bud in my ear canal. Alas, while juggling five bottles of wine on the way to the checkout counter at Beverages & More, I felt the Jawbone wriggling its way out of my ear. Despite a feeble attempt to set down the bottles and rescue my three-day-old, $120 headset, it plummeted to the ground from a height of about four feet. I promptly picked it up, re-inserted it in my ear, made a call and was relieved to hear a voice on the other end. But, once I started speaking, I heard, “Hello? Hello? Hello? I can’t hear you, dude.” Click. Day three and my Jawbone got broke.

I attempted to use it three other times, to the frustration of a friend and my brother, and then I re-charged it overnight. To my chagrin, spontaneous healing, apparently, is not one of the Jawbone’s features.

Fortunately, because I had purchased two additional Jawbones for my friend in London, I co-opted one of these and plan to exchange the defective unit for a new one next week. Shhh, please don’t tell Cingular. (If you do, the recovering lawyer in me will argue that a fall from four feet constitutes normal usage, and the unit should be designed to withstand such duress).

As for customer support, I contacted Jawbone via the email support form on the Web site, to ask both about the durability of the headset and about how to improve the fit for my ear. It’s been 24 hours, and I haven’t heard from anyone.

Does any of this change my overall assessment of the Jawbone? Sadly, it does not. The transmitting sound quality is still so vastly superior to other headsets and this consideration is so important to me, that I’m going to stick with this device – at least until it breaks again. In fact, when I exchange the defective unit, I’ll pick up any additional units for my friend in Europe.

Addendum, 28 March 2007: Over a week later, a Jawbone representative replied by email with this response:

Dear Joon-Soo,

Unfortunately, the long loop that was provided is the longest loop we currently offer. Have you tried using other buds? This may help keep the jawbone in place. I do not recommend not using a loop - while the jawbone can withstand a fall, not using a loop will not give you the proper fit required for the white sensor to rest on your cheek. This contact is what allows the jawbone to sense the vibrations in your jawbone, thereby canceling out the background noise.

If the other ear buds do not work, you can return your headset at the place of purchase within the 30 days allotted. We will be offering different sized loops and buds in the coming months. If you’d like to be put on a list, please let us know.

I hope this helps!

The Support Team

Apparently, I am on a geek gadget spending spree. Enter Research in Motion’s Blackberry 8100c Pearl. The Pearl has been reviewed by others ad nauseam, so I will provide only brief (for me) impressions here.

• The size and form factor finally bring a Blackberry device on par with other mobile phones. The marketing collateral refers to the Pearl as the “Smallest, Smartest, Most Stylish Blackberry Ever,” and I have to agree. Specifically, its dimensions are 4.0″ x 2.0″ x 0.6″. Yummy. I am determined to carry only one handheld communications device, and the Pearl makes this easier than ever.
• The Pearl uses the SureType word recognition feature employed by other Blackberry candy-bar-shaped devices, so if you hated SureType on those, you’ll hate it on the Pearl, too. I’ve become adept at it and more than willingly to trade off small size over a full keyboard.
• Yes, it takes time to get accustomed to using the trackball. As with any mouse or trackball or other pointing device, precision usage is difficult. I’m now used to it. The one permanent drawback: With the trackwheel on the 7100c or the 7130g, I could select text or multiple emails with one hand (by depressing the <alt> key and then turning the trackwheel); with the trackball, I now need to use two.
• The camera is of mediocre quality. The primary deficiency I find is that it takes effort to stabilize the camera for a non-blurry image. Also, on the few occasions I don’t lock the phone, I’ve taken pictures inadvertently due to the placement of the camera button on the side. I have some great shots of the inside of my pocket. Despite these drawbacks, I’m just happy it has a working camera.
• Last, I love that I can now assign pictures and ringtones to each of my family members and friends. My friends thought this was ridiculous to want at first but now are titillated when their songs play when they call.

Overall, despite any drawbacks, I love the Pearl and hope you don’t get one, so I’ll feel that more special.

I am a “snooty pen guy,” which means I irrationally experience joy in owning, using and being seen with fancy pens. I won’t try to explain this, because “irrational” necessarily means without reason.

Well over a year ago, I lost the Montblanc Meisterstück rollerball (black enamel with platinum accents) pen I’d had for years. I vaguely recall that it cost around $135 to $165 when I first acquired it, and the price now has climbed to over $250 – too much even for me for a self-indulgent expense.

My fondness for Montblanc started with a Meisterstück fountain pen my father gave me (well, I took it from him) in high school, continued with a Meisterstück ballpoint pen I lost and then ended most recently with the rollerball. I love the sleek designs, the luxury image and the fluidity with which they write.

Resigned to using the assortment of Pilot Razor Points and Bic round sticks my office provides and the odd pens I pick up from hotel rooms, I’d successfully suppressed my desire for fine writing instruments. That is, until I saw a colleague using an intriguing implement in a meeting the other day.

What on Earth was it? It was polished, shiny black, possibly lacquered, with silver-colored accents. It had an oddly-shaped point – was that a nib? – jutting out from it. And he clicked on one end to extend and retract the point. Watching him write, I saw the lovely amounts of ink left behind on the paper as the pen traced letters. A few questions from me later, I had a description and a name for this new object of desire: The Pilot Namiki Vanishing Point, also known as the Pilot Namiki Capless.

Namiki is a high-end sub-brand of writing instruments from Pilot, the very same Japanese company that mass manufactures the Pilot Razor Point and a myriad of other pens and pencils. The Namiki product line features pens and pencils constructed from premium materials (gold, silver, rhodium, lacquer, celluloid, etc.), with elegant designs and precision quality for the writing components. At the most expensive end of the cost spectrum for Namiki collections is the Emperor Collection, with the “Carp on Waterfall” and “Rabbit in Moonlight” fountain pens selling at retail for $8500. These practically art pieces are hand painted in gold, lacquer and color pigments and feature 18 karat gold nibs accented with rhodium.

The Vanishing Point fountain pen collection is more modest in price, at ~$140 at retail. It’s named “Vanishing Point” or “Capless” for the retractable fountain nib. Desire grew within me, and I had to have one. I found several on eBay, and, a successful auction – I paid less than $100 – and a week later, my Vanishing Point arrived in my greedy little hands.

Included in the functional, Pilot-branded black box were the pen casing, including the ink cartridge-holding component in it, and one cartridge of ink. The pen also is available with a twist converter used with an ink bottle. Reminiscent of my Montbanc pens, I’d chosen basic black with rhodium accents.

At first, I was displeased with the light, watery color of the ink. I quickly grew used to the color, which dried darker, however, and also discovered that while I did not love Pilot’s Namiki blue ink, the blue/black and black were more pleasing to my eye. Moreover, a host of additional inks are available and can be used with the twist converter should one have the time to experiment; I don’t know whether other cartridges can be used with the pen.

Other than that first impression of the ink, I love the pen and now use it exclusively. The body is thicker and heavier than the Meisterstück rollerball or ballpoint pens but thinner than the Meisterstück Le Grand line. I enjoy the bulk and heft. The nib writes smoothly. The retraction mechanism is cleverly designed and operates well.

The one evident drawback is that the placement of the pen clip at the nib end is awkward when writing. Those with experience with calligraphy know that the edge of the nib typically crosses the horizontal line of writing at approximately a 45 degree angle. The pen clip forces some writers to hold the pen at a steeper angle, and this requires some adjustment in grip. I speculate that the clip is at this end so that if the pen is clipped into a shirt pocket, the ink runs from the nib into the reservoir instead of vice versa. Without a cap, perhaps this is a failsafe against leaking, although I imagine the design should be such that leakage is all but eliminated.

As with all fountain pens, the nib is subject to damage. A colleague was examining the pen, and, before I had a chance to react and to my horror, ground the nib with force into a pad of paper, slightly separating the two leaves of the nib and thereby damaging them. The result was that too much ink was coming out of the nib while I wrote. Fortunately, remedies for this sort of behavior exist. I will never allow someone to use the pen again, however, without instructing them to write very lightly. I, myself, have been writing more lightly than usual with it and believe my penmanship is improving. Perhaps I will in my voluminous amounts of spare time, I will continue to work on my handwriting: http://paperpenalia.com/handwriting.html.

I suppose we shall see how long obsession with this particular toy continues. Ironically, as one friend noted, virtually everything we write on paper in this day and age, we throw away. Accordingly, I use my Vanishing Point to write to-do lists and other notes that I eventually discard. The experience is fleeting, but enjoyable during the moment.

Headset nirvana. The best, period. It’s pricey, but you get what you pay for. Go out and buy it today.

When it comes to technology gadgets, I’m highly susceptible to the power of suggestion. Having heard about the Jawbone on and off for the past year and then recently hearing a friend rave about his, I finally picked one up from Cingular yesterday.

I’ve struggled for years (yes, struggled, for years) to find the perfect mobile phone headset. This one, I could hear but others couldn’t hear me and vice versa. That one’s sound quality seemed to degrade over time. This one was flimsy and broke easily. Another wouldn’t nest in my ear canal snugly.

My evaluative criteria are: (1) sound quality, both receiving and transmitting, (2) comfort/fit/usability and (3) durability. Among the half dozen or more headsets I’ve tried over the past few years are the Shure QuietSpot, various Jabra models, a Maxell, a Motorola Bluetooth model, Blackberry’s OEM ear bud and other mobile phone OEM ear buds. All have been inadequate for one reason or another. At long last, with the Jawbone, I’m closer to headset nirvana than ever.

Why is it awesome?

Quite simply, the sending and receiving sound quality is outstanding, better than anything else I’ve used. The Jawbone Web site has a video and several audio demonstrations of the difference between transmissions without the “Noise Shield” and transmissions with it. The difference is marked. I’ve called four friends so far; all four agree that I sound clearer and the background noise is lower using the Jawbone than any other headset I’ve used, in their recollection. In particular, the Jawbone appears so far to be effective in minimizing road noise. I experimented with using the Jawbone in my car with the windows down, and listeners could hear just a modicum of road noise in the background and regardless could hear my voice clearly. As for me, I’m happy with the clarity and quality of the sound I’m hearing.

As for other considerations, it took just a minute to “pair” it with my Blackberry Pearl (8100) using Bluetooth. The usability of the Jawbone — the acts of wearing it and using it — takes a small amount of experience but is perfectly acceptable. With regard to durability, only time will tell.

How does the technology work?

The User’s Guide explains that the noise reduction comes from “sensors, software, and ergonomic features.” “Directional” microphone sensors detect voice activity; my understanding is that the sensors collect sound/vibration. Algorithm-based software processes all of the signals into the microphone to remove background noise from the outgoing speech signal. The sensors and software also collect and adjust the volume and frequency content of incoming speech to “maximize intelligibility in any noisy environment.”

Other details & specifications

According to the User’s Guide:

• Talk time: 6 hours
• Standby time: 120 hours
• Range: <33 feet (10 meters)
• Compatibility: Bluetooth 1.1 or 1.2

Are there any drawbacks?

Yes, of course:

• Listeners tell me my voice sounds a bit “tinny.” I think this is a consequence of the digital processing, and I’m okay with the sacrifice given the tremendously good sound clarity.
• The price: ~U.S. $120 retail.
• The fit may not be universal. The package includes four around-the-ear loops (standard & long, left & right) and five ear buds. For me, for all of the ear loops, the distance between the loop and the ear bud is too small. The effect is that if I use the ear loop, it pulls the ear bud out of my ear canal so that it rests just outside of and partly behind it. I’ve dispensed with the ear loop and found one of the buds that will allow me to simply insert the device in my ear. I’ll see over time whether it will stay put without the ear loop.
• Putting the headset on is not easy at first. My friend taught me how to slide the bottom of the ear loop around the top of my ear flap. It works but takes some practice.
• It’s not particularly easy to switch back between the headset and the handset. I find this a common problem among all wireless headsets.

On balance, the sound fidelity is so good it dwarfs any negatives.

Where can you get it?

No sales channels are 100% reliable at the moment.

• eBay: Shamelessly, I’d recommend eBay. I just searched on eBay and saw over 70 listings for Jawbones.
• Jawbone Web site: Indicates Aliph’s (the manufacturer’s) direct sales channel inventory is sold out.
• Cingular: I heard that Cingular is marketing the product but that Aliph’s production is lagging a bit, so Cingular stores sell out within a day of stocking them. You can call different stores to ask when shipments are arriving and ask for units to be placed on hold for you once they arrive.

I knew nothing about the Jawbone’s relative scarcity when I walked into a random Cingular store yesterday and asked for two Jawbones. They were surprised I “knew” the store had them in stock, because they had been sold out for weeks and a new shipment had arrived just that afternoon! Lucky me. I bought two, one for me and one for a friend. A new shipment arrived today, so I’m picking up two more for friends in London who don’t otherwise have access.Jawbone is the product of Aliph, a San Francisco-based company. As a Bay Area resident, I like supporting the local economy, too. Check out http://www.jawbone.com/