832K people died from Wuhan virus since November, 2019. A lot has been changed since then, including the way we work.
Origin
Due to the pandemic, measures are taken to stop, or at least to contain the spread of the virus. The best prevention is to reduce the movement of people and as a result, companies are either advised or demanded to close the office. Staff would be working from home to continue operation possible.
The essential part in work is communication
My work is essentially just about communication, thinking on what to converse and communicating it over. So it doesn't matter (much) from where I work as all I need are computer and internet access.
Conversing clearly need a quiet location, as well as a decent microphone. I start off with the Logitech Zone Wireless Plus but it doesn't work as good as I desired and I am in the market looking for alternative.
To be fair, the Zone Wireless Plus itself is not bad at all just that it doesn't work very well in my home setup, details can refer to the separate review. My perfect headset should be,
- Offers a stable and reliable connection
- Lightweight
- Decent audio playback quality
- Excellent microphone
Quite a standard requirement but the culprit is my Surface Pro X. Bluetooth connection is flaky and it doesn't comes with audio jack. USB-C headset would be perfect as I don't want to fiddle with adapter or dongle. Bonus is, it should work with my Pixel4 phone.
Came across some nice review on the Sennheiser headset and models with USB-C connection means I have a few to pick. The next consideration is one sided ear cup or both which I prefer having on both side as it helps me to concentrate. I could either pick the cheaper 165 or the luxurious 665 which I decided to go for the more expensive one with a better finishing and a nicer ear cup.
After all it's the sounds that matters
I ordered mine from the distributor in Hong Kong but soon received a call from them saying that they have no stock and ask if I would consider another model. Given I can still live with what I have and I decided to wait which turns out to be 6 weeks.
I can use it either in the traditional way through the mic jack, or as a USB-C device which I originally desired. This is achieved through a connector which serve as both the DAC, as well as the audio controller. It works as it should with my Surface Pro X as well as the Pixel 4.
Mic is on the left hand side which I am not used to but indeed, it doesn't matter if you wear your headset the other way round. It only matters when you are listening to music since this will flip the left and right channel.
The microphone has some flex which you can bend it to the angle that works. You can flip this up when it is not in use but unlike the Zone it will not mute automatically.
The headset is light with adjustment for head in different sizes, it fits nicely even on my 8 years old boy. The ear cup is comfortable to wear on, even for long hours, as ears would not get warm. The tightness is "just right", won't fall off and not giving you a clamp on the head either.
Afterall, I am happy with the purchase and it helps me with all the calls in this work-from-home period.