A few weeks ago while I was researching the annual holiday gift guide for my travel column in Entrepreneur magazine, a Plantronics representative called me to pitch her company’s latest product.
The CHS 142N Hands-Free Headset, she assured me, made the perfect Christmas present. Might well be, I answered, but doesn’t the CHS142N work with a cellular phone? Uh huh, she said. Just one problem, I replied: I don’t have a cellular phone.
The public relations manager, bless her heart, promptly put together a care package with the CHS 142N and a DuoSet Headset for a regular phone, plus an adapter. And, she added, “if you ever get a cell phone, don’t forget to try the CHS 142N.” I would, I promised. But in the meantime, I found myself the reluctant owner of a headset I couldn’t use and one I that didn’t particularly want to use.
One quiet afternoon, however, curiosity got the better of me and I plugged in the headset. After a little adjustment, the device fit snugly around one ear. The sound quality on my end was surprisingly good. Through the foam headpiece, I heard more of the bass qualities than from a conventional headset.
Still, whenever I used the contraption, I would begin the phone conversation with, “I’m sorry about the headset …”
“What headset?” the caller would say.
After about the fifth such conversation, I concluded these weren’t the same gadgets that I had used when I was an intern at the Los Angeles Times a decade ago — the Plantronics headsets have the latest and greatest in noise-cancellation features, they’re light, unobtrusive and – as an added bonus – they’re fun. The CHS 142N will set you back $59.99, while the headset I used, the DuoSet Headset, is priced at $159. Both can be ordered through the Plantronics site or through a reseller such as BellSouth, which will let you pay for the headset on your phone bill.
Another unexpected result of the holiday story was the Eclipse Computer Light that landed in my mailbox only a few days after the shipment of headsets. If you’re like me, you spend long hours in front of a computer screen — and the screen glares back at you. This $49.95 gadget sits on top of the terminal and reflects a light into your work area through a pivotable mirror on top of the unit, preventing some of the glare. The National Institute of Occupational Health and Safety estimates that 66 million people work at PCs more than two hours per day. Of those, a whopping 91 percent suffer from eyestrain, the symptoms of which can include dull headaches, blurred vision or dry eyes. I am definitely one of those people.
What I liked about the Eclipse is that it’s completely portable. If you’re setting up shop at a satellite office for a couple of weeks, you can easily take it with you. The downside: if you choose to not use the sticky adhesive at the bottom of the lamp, the Eclipse becomes a challenge to balance and may fall on your head.
Both the DuoSet Headset and the Eclipse Computer Light deserve their own column because they’re so effective at eliminating the headaches that afflict travelers. Although I can’t recommend the Eclipse for a portable computer, the unit itself can be transported from one work area to another. As for the headset, I used to suffer from what’s known as “editor’s neck” – a constant pain in my neck and back from trying to type and cradle the phone at the same time – until I dared to connect the headset. Now, I’m going to have a hard time unplugging it.
With so much technology out there competing for our time, attention and money, it’s refreshing to see two products that actually try to lessen some of the pain that electronics visits on us. I feel bad that I couldn’t include either of these devices in my holiday gift guide because they’re truly useful, inexpensive solutions to problems that most of us suffer from.
Christopher Elliott is the author of Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals. Critics have called it “eye-opening” and “inspiring” — it’ll “grab your attention and won’t let go.” Order your copy now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or iTunes.
Elliott is consumer advocate 
I'm on Facebook: Please "like" 
WHAT'S YOUR PROBLEM? If you're having trouble with a travel business - any business - and you've reached a dead end, maybe I can help. Send me an