Review on Sennheiser SDW 5016 (507016) Single-Sided Wireless DECT Headset - Enhanced Connectivity for Desk Phone, Softphone/PC, and Mobile - Dual Microphone Technology with Ultra Noise-Canceling - Sleek Black Design - Compact Size (3 inches) by Katherine Martin

I've been using it for over 6 years a Plantronics Savi headset, which can be used with my cell phone, desk phone and computer for Zoom/Skype/Teams/Webex meetings. I worked in an office and started working from home about 5 years ago. Over the last few years I've spent a lot of time on the phone and in web meetings, so I've used Plantronics extensively. The only reason I bought this Sennheiser device is that the battery in Plantronics didn't hold a charge well and I couldn't get more than an hour or two of talk time. I say all this to say that I have certain expectations for the headset. This Sennheiser device sounds good and even looks relatively good. BUT, it has disadvantages. They are in no particular order: 1. Bluetooth does not turn off when the headset is in the charger. I pulled up to my garage several times and parked, and even before I got out of the car, my phone connected to Sennheiser via Bluetooth. Of course, if the headset itself is in the charging cradle, I don't want the call to switch to it. Plantronics solved this problem many years ago with a firmware update that disables Bluetooth on the base while the headset is charging.2. Mute button / volume rocker. To mute, press a small button, but not up or down. It's a terrible, cumbersome, and error-prone design. Who designed this!?3. Mute notifications. When you mute or unmute, a woman will say "mute” or "mute” in a very pleasant voice. But she speaks very slowly. So slowly that if you're talking to a fast speaker, you might miss something the other person is saying. It can be changed to beeps, but even beeps are slow and intrusive. To maintain meeting etiquette, I occasionally turn the sound off and on frequently, and between the awkward button and those nasty notifications, it can get annoying. So I'm sending it back and buying another Plantronics.4. physical design. The base station and the headset look quite attractive. But if you ever need a Bluetooth button to force Bluetooth pairing - say, if you turn off Bluetooth on your phone to call back the headset hijacked you while you're still in the garage - then you'll need to find it and press the small button on the SIDE of the device at the end of the protruding Bluetooth dongle. Bluetooth seems to have been an afterthought on this device. The key looks completely out of place and is difficult to operate. Seriously, who came up with this!?5. LED indicators. There are four indicators that show the battery level. Careful. But much more important indicators to see at a glance - showing what source you're connected to (computer, Bluetooth, or desk phone) - are thin little bars located on the flat, shiny part of the base next to the fold, and if there is any light in your room at all, they will most likely be difficult, if not impossible, to see. The red arrow in my picture points to a light that is on, but you can't see it. This is another reason I am returning it.6. Powered by USB. I connected the base to USB first before plugging in the wall wart and my computer found it. Careful! No need for a wall wart. But then I plugged in the USB stick and it didn't work. After a lot of fiddling and googling, I finally figured out that you can't use a bluetooth dongle if the base is only USB powered. On earth, who came up with that!?!?!?! If I paid $100 for this headset, I would be forgiven for all these oddities, inconveniences, and design flaws. But at nearly $300, they certainly aren't. He comes back.