Cardo Scala 500 Bluetooth headset review - excellent headset.
Charging from new took about 2.5 hours, far less than the 5 hours the manual stated.
Pairing for both the M2000 and the C500 was quick and problem free, though the M2000 had the typical bluetooth memory error fixed by soft reset (anyone got a fix here).
The headset is very light - weighing approx half an ounce, it is just a little less in length than the Moto HS850 with the boom extended.
Build quality is reasonable.
M2000 TEST.
Range is very good on the headset, working up to 20 feet away with minimal interference in the headset (slight crackle at 20 feet), within normal range <6 feet the sound quality was clear and interference free.
Incoming phone calls were signalled by the headset within a second or two, a touch of the activation button on the side of the headset and the call was answered, a touch again and the call terminated. Holding the button down for 3 seconds triggered a redial of the last number.
With both on standby, (PPC on suspend), incoming calls woke the headset within a second or so. Touching the side button on the headset woke the PPC out of suspend, a real plus in my estimation, since I use MS Voice Command.
Still no resolution on bluetooth working with VC, VC voice was not transferred to the headset, but when the phone call was activated, I could hear the dialling loud and clear. This is not a problem for me, as I'll be using the headset in the car and the PPC sits in a cradle within easy reach.
Outside on the noisy streets of Manhattan, the sound quality was excellent with no complaints from the other party about street noise or sound.
The unit comes with a neck lanyard with a little clip, and a belt clip, I preferred the former, and just tucked the headset into my pocket, the cord making it easy to remember where I put the thing.
For a test I left them paired for a couple of hours without using, then dialled my cell number, one touch of the side button woke the headset, so the connection is very robust.
The only downside I have with the headset is the three way rocker type volume/hold/mute control, it's a bit clunky, but other than that it's excellent value.
Prior to this I had tested a Moto HS850 and to be quite frank couldn't see the value in paying twice as much, pairing was more problematic, and rousing the headset from standby was much slower than the scala 500.
C500 TEST
Pairing was fast, the phone recognizing the headset in a second. Like the M2000 the quality of sound was excellent, though the range was less, (about 10-12 feet). This was more than compensated for by the voice tag recognition, about on par, if not better than the wired headset.
Wake time was almost immediate.
I can recommend this headset without reservation, it is excellent value for money, what made it more so was the free car charger, since I spend a lot of time travelling and would have had to spend another $20 buying a charger for the Moto, the overall cost was less than a third of the HS850 with charger.
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