Plant This in Your Ear: Plantronics Discovery 610

After my disastrous experience with the Jabra BT2040, I swore off Bluetooth devices. I went back to the old tried and true corded earpiece. It didn’t take long before the limitations of being corded started to outweigh my antipathy towards Bluetooth. That and my employer’s insistence I be connected to my company cell phone 24/7!

One of my biggest complaints on the Jabra was how uncomfortable it was. After reading a few reviews and listening to a friend, I decided to give Plantronics a try.


At .9 grams, the Plantronics Discovery 610 is one of the lightest around. It’s small and sleek, measuring only 2.25”x.5”x.5”. It comes with a removable ear loop and 3 interchangeable gel-type rubber ear buds. The ears buds are sized small, medium and large. I started with the medium size and found it to be quite comfortable. It fits snugly and stays in place with or without the ear loop.  I prefer to use the loop just in case it should get dislodged and fall off. The ear loop itself is flexible and doesn’t irritate like the hard plastic of the Jabra. I’m able to wear it with eyeglasses and ear jewelry.


The device is operated by a large button on the upper tip.  Simply hold the button to turn the unit on or off. A blue light will flash when the unit is turning on and a red light will flash when turning off. When using for the first time, hold the button down and it will flash blue and red alternately to indicate pairing mode. The red light will also flash when the battery is getting low.

Volume is controlled by a narrow bar on the front. I have no trouble hearing any caller. The microphone is very sensitive and picks up background noise. When in the car, I have to turn the radio down or off when using. In a noisy room, your listener would have a hard time hearing you speak, but you still hear them fine. Unlike the Jabra, there is no feedback or humming noise.

Pairing could not have been easier. Using the cell phone find a device feature, I was able to pair this with both my then personal phone (Nokia 2266i) and my business cell (Motorola E815) without even viewing the instruction sheet. Note although the device can be paired with more than one phone, it can only be used with one at a time. I have since upgraded my personal phone to a new Motorola VU204. The Plantronics Discovery 610 and the Motorola VU204 is a match made in heaven. With one touch on the device, I can activate my phones voice recognition feature for a true hands-free experience. The Nokia phone had this feature, but it never worked right.

The range of the 610 is approximately 30 feet. The unit will beep once to let you know you are going out of range. If you do not return to range within 30 seconds, you will hear a second beep and the connection will be lost. When I’m paired with the VU204 phone, I only have to press the control button on the device once to be reconnected. With the older E815, I have to reconnect thru the phone itself. The 610 rarely disconnects on its own.
Considering I use my earpiece for 10+ hours each day, battery life is more than acceptable. I fully charge the unit once per week. When battery is low, the unit flashes red and beeps every 10 seconds. I have both an ac charger and car charger. Using the ac charger takes overnight for a full charge, the car charger about 2-3 hours. However, using the Bluetooth does drain the cell phone battery more rapidly. I find myself having to charge the phones every other day vs. once a week. This is a minor inconvenience.

As with most electronic devices, the price has come down considerably since first introduced.  The Plantronics website lists this for $89.95 but I was able to find it at cellphoneshop.net for $24.99. Cellphoneshop.net is currently out of stock, but amazon.com still has this available new for $39.69 or refurbished at $27.39.

Overall, I have found the Plantronics Discovery 610 to be far superior to the Jabra BT2040 I used previously. I no longer have a constant hum or beep in my ear. The device stays connected and has superior sound quality. My only complaint is the sensitivity of the microphone re background noise and that is easily rectified.  Most important for me, is the comfort. For not much more than I paid for the Jabra, I have a dependable device I can wear for hours on end.