You're walking down a busy street when your cell phone rings. Do you pick up and shout over the din while straining to listen to your caller, or do you miss the call? If you have a noise-canceling headset, you don't have to choose. It's designed to eliminate environmental noise so you can have a conversation at a normal voice level almost anywhere. The mouthpiece of the noise-canceling headset works by detecting only your voice vibrations, which the device picks up through your jaw bone.

woman wearing stylish noise-canceling headset.
Courtesy of Aliph
Smaller, stylish headsets can pick up your voice through the vibrations from your jaw.

­Noise-canceling headsets help out in many environments. You can use it in the office when you're trying to conduct a business call as your co-workers gab away near your desk. It's a discreet option when you're on a busy street and don't want to shout your credit-card number into your cell phone. Now that several states are requiring hands-free cell phones for drivers, headsets also provide a perfect alternative to breaking the law.

Before You Buy

Issues to consider before you purchase a noise-canceling headset:

  • Noise-canceling headsets are typically more expensive than traditional headsets.
  • The arm of the mouthpiece can be too short for a person with a large or long face.
  • Some users find the "plugged ear" sensation unnerving or at least uncomfortable [source: The Travel Insider].
  • The headset is yet another thing to charge (or forget to charge).
  • Some people think the headsets make them look silly.


But how does your phone know which voice to pick up? In this article, we'll look at how noise-canceling headsets work.