For our anniversary last week, Luann and I decided to go out and each get a set of nice bluetooth stereo headsets for our phones. We each had different uses in mind. She wanted some light-weight behind the ears/neck that would be good for exercising. I wanted a nice set that would give excellent sound quality for music / sitting in a cube type setting. After some searching, we both found what we were looking for.
After a short honeymoon with my new headphones, i started to notice a glitch. The sound would occasionally cut out briefly. It was intermittent and sometimes just happened once, sometimes repeatedly. I couldn’t figure it out. Did i get a buggy headset? Was my phone not compatible? I’d done my research. These were highly recommended headphones and my phone supported all the right bluetooth specs.
I wasn’t about to give up so easily though. I loved these things, when they worked. So last Friday (the same day as the coke incident), i had them on and was just cleaning the kitchen (again, refer to the coke incident) when i noticed the occasional cut-out. But it only happened when i was facing a certain way. I didn’t even have my phone in my pocket or anything. It was sitting on a counter a few feet away from me. Well within the bluetooth range.
Suddenly it hit me! My bluetooth headphones didn’t like the fact that i was left-handed. I kid you not! No, seriously. Stop laughing. It’s absolutely true, and i’ll tell you why. Whenever my phone was on my right, it worked flawlessly. Whenever my phone was on my left they would occasionally cut-out. Why? Simple. The headphones receiver is on the right. Yep. A simple obstruction like my head or my body or occasionally even my hands/arms would be enough to block the signal for just a second.
This isn’t a big deal for voice when you’re on the phone, but if you’re listening to music at high bitrates, the little pops and cutouts are really annoying.
Solution: Put my phone in my RIGHT pocket rather than my left pocket. Also, keep it on the right side of my desk at work instead of the left.
