Finally, the teaser's over. The latest delivery to Engadget's UK penthouse is the Jabra STONE Bluetooth headset due out in the US on 8th November, and we took no time to extract the pebble from the transparent cylinder. In front of us are the two parts of the STONE: an earpiece of a breakthrough form factor that instantly makes you pity its rivals, and behind it is the accompanying portable charging base which serves as an external battery. The latter is equipped with a micro-USB port and an LED indicator -- simply green or red -- to show whether there's enough battery juice for one full charge. It's a pretty neat idea as this is the only feasible way to fit eight hours of talk time (or twelve days of standby time) into such tiny package: two on the earpiece and an extra six from the surprisingly light battery base -- our scale reckons it is just under one ounce. We also dig the auto-off function when you dock the earpiece and vice versa. Docking and undocking are pretty straight forward too: just snap in for the former, and poke your thumb through the bottom hole of the base to push the earpiece out. The generic click button hidden under the Jabra badge is easy to access and responds well. Above that is the invisible vertical touch strip for volume control and similarly it responded nicely to our strokes. What's left on the earpiece are the two LED indicators on the underside for Bluetooth connectivity and battery. So far so good, but what really matters is the ear-on experience and the audio quality -- listen for yourself after the break.

Okay, so this thing is way more "traditional Bluetooth headset" than "a round object that looks nothing like a Bluetooth headset," but we'll give the marketing team credit -- STONE sure got us looking. Jabra's newest Bluetooth headset has just become official, bringing with it a behind-the-ear design, a wireless portable charger (which doubles as a carrying case) and Noise Blackout Extreme technology to keep things quiet when your yammering. There's also a "nearly invisible touch-controlled volume pad" on the outside of the headset, a battery good for 8 hours of talk time (or 12 days in standby), dual BT pairing support and A2DP compatibility. Unfortunately, you'll have to waltz into an AT&T retail store starting on November 8th to get one, and worse still, you'll walk out $129.99 poorer. But hey, you'll leave Stoned. (Sorry.)

C'mon, cut us some slack here. We're suckers for teasers, and our intuition says that you are too. Jabra, who has definitely done a thing or two for the Bluetooth headset realm, is apparently looking to reveal a "new shape" on October 20th, though it'll only be sold through AT&T (at least initially). Heck, there's even a countdown timer over on the outfit's teaser page for those who'd like to watch every second from now till then tick away, not to mention a brief video that tersely details the forthcoming excellence. So, got any bright ideas about what this thing could be? The second coming of the BT headset? Just another tchotchke?

[Via Electricpig]

By its very nature, stereo Bluetooth gear is never going to look quite as cool as its wired equivalent -- but if we look back on the early days, we're making progress. Jabra's new over-the-ear HALO should appeal to some with its relatively convenient folding design, and as an added bonus, it kinda looks like you're wearing a futuristic hair beret when you slip it on. How can you argue with that? Following an announcement earlier this year, the HALO's now available at Best Buy locations for $130 promising 8 hours of music playback, 13 days of standby, seamless transition between calls and tunes, and an innovative corded mode with a 3.5mm jack. It's tough to say whether you'll get odd stares wearing these day in and day out -- but if you're not willing to find out the answer to that the hard way, we certainly are. Selfless, we know.

Finding awesome stereo Bluetooth hardware is challenging. There are a few good reasons for that: one, you've got to somehow pack a battery inside the headset itself, two, you've got radio circuitry in there, and three, it's all got to last a bunch of hours between charges. We're not saying that Jabra's just-announced HALO is for everyone, but it's an awfully interesting product -- probably one of the best A2DP sets we've seen -- and unlike most on-ear sets, it folds small enough to carry with you pretty much everywhere you go. The jury's out on audio quality and fit until we get our hands on an actual review unit (they're showing some pretty loose pre-production prototypes at CTIA) but considering how the HALO looks and works, we're cautiously stoked that this is going to end up being one of the better multimedia accessories of the year.

Jabra's making the wireless music game just a little bit more interesting today with the announcement of its stereo Bluetooth HALO headphones, featuring six hours of playback time on a single charge, AVRCP support, Jabra's Noise Blackout circuitry for improved clarity when making calls, and micro-USB charging. Conveniently, the HALO folds for storage, which also toggles the set's power. Staying in the Bluetooth theme, the company is also showing off its SP200 speakerphone -- a great way to avoid the fuzz, we figure -- with 10 hours of talk time, 23 days of standby, and active noise reduction. The HALO hits in May for $129.99; the SP200, meanwhile, gets real in April for $59.99.

Falling somewhere before the BT8010 and BT8040, the BT3030 most definitely takes the crown for clever design. Jabra's latest Bluetooth headset, as you can glean from the image above, was crafted to mimic the traditional dog tag, and specifications wise, you'll find Bluetooth 2.0+EDR, HSP, HFP, A2DP and AVRCP support. Additionally, you'll find six buttons useful for sending / ending calls and controlling music playback, and yes, it will lower the volume when detecting an incoming call from your livid mother-in-law. Ditch that ear critter and pick up something slightly less appalling late next month in Japan (or right now in the US) for ¥8,980 ($90). Check out the gallery over on Engadget Classic.

Hot on the heels of BlueAnt's Z9 comes a new one from Jabra, and while this Bluetooth earpiece doesn't strike us as revolutionary in the design department, it does add a bit of flexibility not often found on similar alternatives. Beyond the obligatory voice dialing, handsfree profile support, A2DP compatibility, USB connectivity, DSP noise reduction, and automatic volume adjustment, the BT8040 sports Multi-point technology that enables it to sync to two devices simultaneously. Yes, this does mean that you can pretend to be listening to your kvetching sibling whilst actually taking in your favorite jam from your BT-enabled audio source. No word just yet on price nor availability, but we can imagine multitaskers everywhere lining up for this one.

The gilded touch hasn't evaded the mobile realm entirely, but it has been a tick since we've seen anything (well, anything worthwhile) come through that was Midas-approved. Bucking that trend is none other than Jabra, who is apparently readying a Cara Gold JX10 headset designed by Jacob Jensen. Reportedly, the device will be limited in production, will weigh less than ten grams, and will tout DSP technology to reduce background noise whilst chatting. Additionally, it should last through about six hours of talking before needing a recharge, and while we aren't much on wearing a BT earpiece around in public anyway, we'd be extra cautious with a $300 iteration. Check out a closeup after the jump.

[Via Slashphone]

Just as Klipsch is no stranger to the world of musical docking stations, Jabra tends to enjoy slapping its name onto anything it can. Unsurprisingly, the two lovebirds have met in harmony to offer up the S5010 cellphone boombox, which sports an edgy, stylish design, weighs in at a very portable 3.7-pounds, and should handle just about any handset, DAP, or external music source you desire to pair up with it. The system touts a "universal" connectivity panel that consists of 2.5- and 3.5-millimeter inputs as well as a mini-USB connector, 30-watts of power split between the stereo drivers, a Class D amplifier, and "subtle" LED indicators littering the case. Curiously, you won't find any Bluetooth love on this one, which certainly stands out given Jabra's long-standing relationship with the short-range wireless protocol, but if you still find yourself lusting over the fairly average S5010, you can snap it up real soon for $149.

[Via ShinyShiny]

Jabra's got another Bluetooth headset which you don't have to be insane to wear. The BT8010 functions as a lightweight, single-unit mono earpiece with up to 10 hours of talk or 300 hours of standby. Or connect the tethered stereo unit for full A2DP and AVRCP control of your music for up to 6 hours of stereo audio playback off a like-spec'd device. It also packs an OLED scrollable display to help browse and control your music. Although, how much help can a display be on the side of your head be? No pricing or availability announced.

Read (PDF link)

What do you get when the manufacturer of world's most expensive line of cellphones decides to create an accompanying Bluetooth headset? You wouldn't think the answer would be a 1yr+ old Jabra JX10 rebadge, but there it is. Guess the headset being designed by Jacob Jensen (say: Yakub Yensin) meant it was good enough to slap their label on (and bend the ear hook around a bit). We don't know how much more they think they can get away with charging for this thing, but that so sexy V seems to lure 'em in (oh, and apparently you get a nice leather pouch to go with it, too).

"I've got a feeling, so appealing! Cellular, modular, interactive-odular, ding-dong ding-dong ding -- BANANA PHONE!" Forgive us, it's not often that we get to quote Raffi songs around here, okay? Good, so Raffi fans, gather 'round, because this is one hack you won't want to miss. A clever fellow by the name of Larry Pesce took one Bluetooth Jabra BT110 headset, disassembled it in true geek fashion, and glued it inside a fake banana purchased from a craft store. And from the photos, it looks like it can be opened again to replace the existing AA battery. Here's a fun weekend prank: replace your household fruitbowl with fake fruit, each with its own unique electronic function inside, and send us photos of the reactions of your housemates/family. Or not; but dude, bananaphone!

[Via MAKE]