Bluetooth Headphones That Work: S805

I purchased these headphones after several weeks of researching on the reliability of Bluetooth headphones.  Though I was not thoroughly convinced, the price of the S805 headphones, I felt, was worth shelling out for.  If they didn't work, then I would have only wasted $29, which is an acceptable loss in my opinion.

Honestly, I was quite surprised that these headphones actually worked at all with Windows (being that Windows is severely problematic).

When I received these headphones, the first thing I noticed was the quality.  These headphones look quite professional and sturdy.  Not cheap looking at all.  After charging them (about 3 hours), I decided to try and pair them with my Windows Mobile 6 phone (NOTE: If you intend to use these with your mobile phone, make sure that your phone support A2DP).  The process was a cinch and took less than 3 minutes.  I was able to pair the headphones and set them as a stereo headset and hands-free calling device.  Once I had the devices paired, I tested the headphones and came-up with the following results:

1. Controls on the headphones work with Windows Mobile Media Player.
2. If you choose to receive an incoming call, music will automatically pause during the call and resume once the call has been completed.
3. Range is decent up to 20 feet.  Beyond this, I received on and off loss of signal.
4. The sound is adequate enough for the purpose of listening to music but not meant for the avid audiophile.  In my opinion, the fact that you can listen to your music wirelessly without disconnect issues more than makes up for the sound quality.
5. No issues with clarity during phone calls.

Once I was satisfied that the S805s actually worked, I decided to put them to the ultimate test: Windows Vista.  I had no trouble pairing the S805s with my laptop running Windows Vista.  However, getting the headphones to actually work was another matter.  When trying to listen to streaming audio or through any media application, I received choppiness, delays and severe skipping - all at once! In fairness, I must point out that Windows Vista has a horrible Bluetooth stack that makes operability with Bluetooth devices, such as wireless headphones, quite an ordeal.  To be clear on this, I experienced the errors indicated above even after installing the latest Broadcom Bluetooth Stack.  Unfortunately, having the latest Bluetooth stack was not enough to fix the issue.  I also installed the BlueSoleil Bluetooth stack and received similar problems.  Originally, I had thought that this was an issue with my Bluetooth dongle.  Upon further research, I concluded that the problem was not the dongle but Windows Vista's poor Bluetooth stack support.  Sadly, Motorola does not provide any documentation whatsoever on their support page to resolve this issue.  If you are really desperate to have your S805 headphones work with Vista and posses the patience and technical expertise to resist throwing your computer out the window, there is a working fix that I was able to located at the following link:

http://www.djkaty.com/vista/bluetootha2dp

The solution is not overly-complicated.  It just takes a lot of patience.  Kudos must go to the author of the above blog for taking the time to share the information.  I know I would have never figured it out on my own.

Despite the issues I had with the S805 headphones on Vista, I would still recommend them.  What I would not recommend, however, is Windows Vista - on which Bluetooth is probably the least of your worries.

After my ordeal with Windows Vista, I was left skeptical about testing on XP and did not expect much.  And so, using the same Bluetooth dongle and the updated Broadcom Bluetooth stack, I set out on my mission with a high expectancy for failure.

To my surprise, on Windows XP, the S805s worked flawlessly.

In fact, they performed beyond my expectations.  One issue that I expected to run into was problematic syncing simultaneously with my Windows XP PC and my Windows Mobile 6 phone.  However, that did not happen.  As I am writing this review, I am listening to music on my Windows XP machine while able to get streaming audio from websites AND answer phone calls from my Windows Mobile 6 phone.  Awesomeness.

Aside from the occasional (but very minimal) skipping, these headphones work great!  As long as you don't intend to use them with Windows Vista, they are definitely worth the $29 and then some.

Hopefully, when Microsoft releases Windows 7, it will have a much better Bluetooth stack that will finally support A2DP like it's supposed to: By plugging it in and pairing it.  Nothing else.

In conclusion, the Motorola S805 Wireless Bluetooth headphones are one of the best and most useful gadgets I have ever purchased.  Considering that I only spent $29 for them, I would say this was an absolutely amazing deal.