Targus Wireless Bluetooth Stereo Headset Review: A Comprehensive Solution to Talking and Listening at Work

Targus Wireless Bluetooth Stereo Headset Review

Working from home, sitting on video conferencing calls all day, and taking calls while walking down a neighborhood street. Some people did those things occasionally pre-COVID, now everybody does them all the time and they need gear to support a wide variety of use cases. Earbuds work, and they’re convenient, but even with noise canceling, they can be a small buffer against a loud world.

Targus knows that sometimes people need a headset made for work, and that’s what they designed in the Targus Wireless Bluetooth Stereo Headset. Sometimes you just need a little bit more than an earbud.

What we like

Targus delivers a comfortable, on-ear design aimed at all-day activity in the $89.99 Targus Wireless Bluetooth Stereo Headset. A comfortable band cushion and software ear pads keeps the slightly over than one-third of a pound headset feeling slight on the head.

Unlike earbuds that often require reference to a manual to figure out which taps and holds do what, the Targus Wireless Bluetooth Stereo Headset labels all of its buttons and keeps controls simple with taps on the right for calls and left for the control of playback features. A spin of the left ear cup bezel controls volume.

For those who want better, more reliable sound than can be delivered over the compressed Bluetooth® 5.0 connection, the Targus headset also offers a wired connection.

The Targus Bluetooth Stereo Headset includes noise canceling technology, but unlike many headsets that offer noise canceling, it doesn’t offer any control of ambient sound or turning off the features. It’s just there, in the ear and on the microphone.

For clearer sound and ease of muting, the Targus Wireless Bluetooth Stereo Headset includes a removable boom microphone with a mute button. The AEH104 version only supports a boom on the right side. The seemingly new AEH104TT version appears to support the boom on either side of the headset. Regardless of model, remove the boom, and an internal microphone still picks up the wearer’s voice. 

And as all modern accessories should, the Targus Wireless Bluetooth Stereo Headset charges its 410 mAh lithium polymer battery via USB-C. The result is 16 or more hours depending on features and volume.

The Targus Wireless Bluetooth Stereo Headset works with Windows®, macOS®, iOS®, iPadOS®, and Android™.

As with most Targus accessories, this headset comes with a 2-year warranty.

What could be improved

When I first installed the boom microphone, I went to flip it up parallel to the headband, out of my way. It met immediate resistance. I would like the boom mike to flip up all the way. Sure, I can remove it, but I don’t want to.

My other feedback sounds nit-picky—I would like to see the power button decal next to the “on” position rather than above the switch, because the switch does dual duty to setup Bluetooth pairing. 

Some transparency on the noise cancelation features, plus some control of these features, would also be appreciated.

As a reviewer, I often find the abundance of almost the same devices from Targus confusing. While the TT-version of this headset claims the dual inputs on the headset for the microphone boom, the images on the product page don’t show that feature, but the YouTube product video demonstrates it. 

I’m not sure if the non-TT version is older and they didn’t update the product page images, or…I don’t have an ‘or’. All I know is my headset only supports the boom on the right and other than that, it seems to share its other features with the TT-version of the headset.

Targus also needs to step it up on its environmental investments. The large, two-sided blister pack does not include any recycle labels, which means it, like the retail hanger, end up in landfill rather that at least the hope of recycling. Ideally, the company should adopt an all paper, minimized packaging design.

Targus Wireless Bluetooth Stereo Headset: The Bottom Line

Targus’s Wireless Bluetooth Stereo Headset is a great work accessory. Its combination of wired and wireless technology, integrated noise suppression, removable boom microphone and comfortable design make it competitive against the onslaught of return-to-work headsets.

The Targus brand and its reputation for support and quality will also differentiate this headset from the pack. There are better headsets from companies that specialize in audio like Jabra or Poly for hundreds of dollars more, but for moderate use cases where living in the headset is not the goal, the Targus Wireless Bluetooth Stereo Headset will perform well, keeping sound clean and clear for all that talking at screens big and small.

Targus provided the Targus Wireless Bluetooth Stereo Headset for review. Images courtesy of Targus.

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