Living With Technology: Sennheiser DW Pro2

It’s been just over two years since the Sennheiser DW Pro 2 DECT headset arrived. It’s been a very reliable device, seeing almost daily use over that period. This past weekend I had to effect a small repair. The issue was very minor, but worth noting if you own a similar device.

The DW Pro2 headset returns to its desktop base for charging when not in use. Normally it connects to the base in a firm manner, the blue LED on the earpiece indicating a charging state.

I had noticed that a couple of times that it wasn’t quite so firm in how it was received by the desktop base. If I wasn’t careful the headset would appear to be on the base, but the blue LED would not light and it would not charge. The upshot being that the next day when I went to use the headset it would not be fully charged.

It turns out that this was caused by a problem with one of a pair of small magnets mounted in the part of the headset that connects to the base. These two magnets, near the charging connectors, ensure that the headset is held fast to the charging pins on the base. One of the magnets had become loose, and in fact fallen out of the headset.

Luckily, the top of my desk is protected by a black leather surface that is actually an upholstered metal plate. To my amazement the magnet was actually being retained by this metal plate, and not lost into the carpet.

A couple of drops of super-glue gel was all that was required to secure the magnet back into place on the headset. Now it once again returns to the base with a firm click, indicating that both magnets have taken hold.

It’s also worth mentioning that the two magnets are oriented such that their polarity are opposite. This design feature further ensures that the headset will be in the correct orientation when it meets the base for charging. It’s a carefully considered design. Very elegant.