For the past few years a little USB speakerphone has been a constant fixture on my desk. This fact was initially driven by my UK-based coworkers who have a habit of using Skype. Most of the Skype traffic was simply IM, but once in a while it would escalate to a voice call. In those cases I needed a suitable audio device, but it wasn’t routine enough to merit keeping a headset immediately available.
Over time I started to see increasing value in using other soft phones as well. At first it was for the convenience of being able to effectively turn any PC I happened to be working on into a phone. The scope of this sometimes goes beyond telephony. For example, I’ve used a USB audio device to record screencast training movies. Since server class motherboards often don’t have built-in audio interfaces, using a USB attached device makes it possible to record the narrative of the training on the host system along with the screencast.
As I found that soft phones were becoming increasingly useful, I eventually put a small USB speakerphone into my traveling kit. When earlier this year Counterpath released a version of Eyebeam supporting G.722 based wideband audio it further entrenched my use of soft phones, both with headsets and USB speakerphones as appropriate.
Like most things VoIP, over time I’ve used a number of these devices. I thought that there could be some value is sharing my notes on the various models that I’ve tried.
Start: ClearOne Chat 50
ClearOne Chat 50
Thus far I think the Chat 50 is pretty good. When paired with a wideband capable soft phone it’s been more than satisfactory. I’ve used it with Skype and Eyebeam v1.5 on G.722 encoded calls. In fact, I’m also using it for listening to podcasts and find it more that satisfactory in that role.
One of the nice things about good USB speakerphones is that they provide a button to mute the microphone. The Chat 50 has just such a button. This one feature makes it a great deal easier for me to use a soft phone. It saves me having to fish around on the desktop to get to the soft phone GUI every time I need to toggle the mic mute state. Anyone who spends considerable time on conference calls should be self-muting as a matter of good conference etiquette. The Chat 50 also provides physical buttons for volume up/down.
The device connects to the PC with a standard USB cable, which is provided. The connection at the device is a micro USB style. The Chat 50 is 3.75″ x 4.0″ x 1.0″ and weighs only a few ounces. It’s small enough to slip into my bag, but not as the kind of thing that I’d carry around all the time. It is small enough to sit unobtrusively on my desk, directly under my LCD monitor, taking up essentially no space.
There is also a 3.5mm stereo jack providing an analog audio interface. When used with a 3.5mm-to-3.5mm audio cable the Chat 50 can be a speaker for your MP3 player. Alternatively, with a 2.5mm-to-3.5mm adapter cable you can use it as a high-quality speakerphone for your cell phone.
The Chat 50 can be found at various online retailers for around $120. Recently VoIP Users Conference sponsor e4 Strategies has been clearing out a number of them for the outstanding price of $85.
Next: the MVox MV-100
Mvox MV-100
A few years ago I was working at a small trade show and found that I needed some last minute supplies necessitating a trip to the local Radio Shack. When I got there I found that they were giving away little MVOX MV-100 USB speakerphones. These little devices had a list price of $39.95, but at the time Radio Shack was clearing them out, selling them for $5 each, or giving them away with the purchase of some batteries. I bought one on the spot.
With dimensions of only 3.75” x 2” x 0.75” and weighing just one ounce, the MV-100 is really small. It has a micro USB connector for connection to the host computer. A suitable USB cable is provided with the device.
On the pickup side, the MV-100 has a small microphone array mounted in the end of the device. The curvature in the end of the device accentuates the directional properties of the microphone pickup pattern.
The speaker in the device is also small, which limits the overall performance of the speakerphone. It’s fine for personal use in a quiet office or hotel room, but cannot manage enough volume to be useful in a larger room or compete with a noisy environment.
The device also features a 2.5mm headset jack, effectively turning it into a cheap analog-to-digital converter. You can plug a cell phone type headset into the side of the thing for those times when more privacy may be required. Depending up the sensitivity of the headset earpiece you may find that the MV-100 doesn’t provide quite enough volume into the headset. While this can be inconvenient bear in mind that the unit powered from the USB bus, so there’s not much current available to drive the amplifier circuitry. YMMV, as every headset is going to present a different sort of load to the amplifier.
As to audio quality, well that’s just not the devices strong suit. It’s extremely convenient, but the sound quality is definitely not spectacular. In fact, dialed into the ZipDX wideband demo (sip:wbdemo@conf.zipdx.com) using Eyebeam v1.5 I can barely tell the difference when toggling between the 4 KHz and 8 KHz sample audio streams.
Despite its limited performance the MV-100 is a handy little gadget. In many cases it’s just good enough, and certainly a good value for the price I paid. My wife kept one on her desk until very recently. She admired the way it could sit under her monitor taking up essentially no desk space.
Myself, I question whether the MV-100 was ever worth the $39.95 MSRP. I would likely pay $20 for it, which is typical of the asking price I find on E-bay. Of course, for $5 it was a bargain that I could not pass up.
It’s unclear to me whether these are still available. However, I do see them listed on Amazon.com.
Next: Phoenix Audio Duet
Phoenix Audio Duet PCS
While it’s portable, and USB powered, it’s also built very well. It just doesn’t feel light or plasticky. The perforated grill covering the speaker is metal and the trandsucers are good quality. However, it’s not the sort of gadget that I’d want to routinely carry in my laptop bag. At 3.75″ x 1.25″ x 4.5″ and weighing over 8 ounces it’s just a little too large and too heavy to be a constant travelling companion.
The three buttons on the top of the device are for mic mute and volume up/down. There’s also a headset jack allowing the use of the device with an analog headset for the occasional, more private call.
From an acoustic performance point of view it’s very good. At the point when I owned one my only wideband capable soft phone was Skype. As I recall it sounded very good indeed. I expect that it would be easily be up to handling G.722 based wideband telephony. The published specifications certainly support that possibility.
In fact, the Duet made such a good impression that I eventually gave it to my boss. At the time my boss was based in the UK and used Skype to stay in touch with US staff. The Duet was intended to improve out overall experience by making it easier to understand each other. As I recall he used it for a while, but eventually settled on a good headset as being his personal preference.
The Duet PCS speakerphone is still available, in fact Phoenix Audio has expanded their product range considerably to include larger board room conference devices. A quick search of Amazon reveals the Duet selling for $121. That puts it at the upper end of all the USB speakerphones that I’ve tried, but it was a really high-quality device.
Next: Polycom C100S Communicator
Polycom C100/C100S Communicator
The C100S model is intended for use with Skype but there is also a C100 model that’s not specifically tailored to the Skype client. With the S model the device has buttons that integrate with the functions of the Skype soft phone.
The physical design of the C100S is well adapted to life of the road warrior. The C100S is extremely rugged. A built-in stand folds out from the chassis revealing a hub around which the USB lead wraps neatly for storage. The result is that the wire stores completely away in a protected space when not in use.
The USB lead is permanently attached, and not especially long. This makes the device better suited to portable use with a laptop than fixed installation near a dekstop PC. Of course, a USB extension would easily overcome the short cord if it’s a problem.
Over a period of a couple of years I used the C100S with Skype, X-Lite and Eyebeam soft phones. Sharing some of the same Acoustic Clarity technology as larger Polycom devices the C100S works almost as well as the speakerphone built into my more costly desk phone. In fact, when used with a G.722 capable soft phone the C100S does a reasonable job of conveying wideband audio.
The buttons on the C100S support the common functions that users often miss when making the transition from a traditional phone to a soft phone. The round button in the center is the mic mute function. The two buttons above and below are for volume up/down. The two remaining buttons take hide/show the soft phone client and vary hook-state.
A standard mini headphone jack is found on the side of the device. This allows the use of the device as a USB audio interface when the privacy of a headset is more appropriate than a speakerphone.
The C100S was the one USB speakerphone device that I have used the most, both while travelling and at my desk. While not inexpensive, it’s a first rate device with the build quality and performance that you’d expect from Polycom. I’d still have the C100S on my desk today, but I decided to give it to my parents when they recently started using Skype.
Note: Since this overview was originally post I have also reviewed the Yamaha PSG-01s.