Headset's sleek design doesn't compromise comfort

By Nicole Lee

(CNET) -- Though Samsung has been churning out affordable headsets lately, most of them have pretty run-of-the-mill features and so-so performance levels.

The WEP 700, however, promises to be one of the few with actual noise and echo cancellation abilities as well as automatic volume control.

It also has a sleek design that doesn't compromise on comfort and ease of use. The WEP 700 is not too expensive at only $89.99 retail.

The Samsung WEP 700 measures 1.81 inches long by 0.74 inch wide by 0.42 inch deep, which makes it a little bigger than most Samsung headsets, but not by much. The WEP 700 is smooth all around, with both the left and right sides tapering toward the mic to form a soft curve.

The square multifunction button sits right smack dab on the front, while the volume keys sit on the left and right side. Though we found the multifunction button easy enough to press, we thought the two volume buttons to be a bit too tiny for our liking. Underneath the multifunction button is a small LED indicator light.

Flip the headset around and you'll find an earpiece with a rubberized ring cover, so that the earpiece fits just against the ear canal. There's also an optional ear hook for additional stability. The ear hook is flexible enough to be worn on either ear, and it's thin enough to accommodate eyeglasses.

We found the overall fit to be very comfortable, and we like that the earpiece doesn't protrude too deeply in the ear. However, we would've liked to have seen different-size earpiece covers for better fit customization.

Features of the WEP700 are fairly basic; you get the typical answering, rejecting, and ending a call, last-number redial, voice command support, call mute, putting a call on hold, and transferring a call from the headset to the phone and vice versa.

We paired the WEP700 with the RIM BlackBerry Pearl successfully. By far, this has the best sound quality of all the other Samsung headsets.

The WEP700 features two internal microphones that are built to reduce background noise, adjust volume automatically, and cancel out echoes. We have to admit that it works as described. Callers could hear us just fine whether we were in a car, a crowded restaurant, or a quiet office.

However, we did get some heavy static sounds occasionally, and it doesn't completely block out strong winds. Also, we would've liked to have an option to turn off automatic volume control, just to save on battery life.

The WEP700 has a rated talk time of 6 hours and a rated standby time of 8.3 days.