Help your customers understand why workplace noise affects productivity and profitability. And how they can fix it.

Today, work happens everywhere — in busy open-plan offices and contact centers, at home, even coffee shops. This flexibility is great for business and people, but with it comes a new challenge: noise. Distraction caused by noise reduces productivity and well-being and, in contact centers, detracts from a positive customer experience.

Studies show that it takes 23 minutes to recover from distraction, and over 58% of employees are distracted multiple times each day. That represents a significant impact on your customers’ businesses you can easily help avert through proven noise reduction strategies and products.

Plantronics engineers solutions that help people manage the noise around them so they can be more effective — no matter where they work. Together, we can help your customers reduce distractions caused by noise so their businesses can thrive.

Plantronics in South Africa offers several solutions for managing noise. This week we focus on the Voyager 6200 UC, a Bluetooth® neckband headset with earbuds that offers professional-grade audio and versatility. 

On any given day, you might need to collaborate with colleagues remotely, field calls from customers or listen to music to help you focus on your latest project. Now there’s a headset that’s flexible enough to meet the demands of your role inside the office and out. Voyager 6200 UC offers everything you’d expect from Plantronics — active-noise canceling, clear voice transmission and premium audio — in a versatile Bluetooth® neckband headset with earbuds. Intuitive controls make it easy to use, and the neckband vibrates to signal an incoming call. Voyager 6200 UC is so comfortable and low-profile that you can use it all day long, in the office and on the go. 

IT Managers

The professionals in your organization have different roles, responsibilities and work styles, so why offer them all the same headset? Now you don’t have to. New from Plantronics, Voyager 6200 UC is the first Bluetooth® neckband headset with earbuds built to enterprise standards. With its premium audio and versatility, users will want to wear it — and stay connected — everywhere they go.

Flexible Workers

With premium features and professional-grade audio, Voyager 6200 UC is a Bluetooth® neckband headset with earbuds that has the versatility to go beyond the office. Transitioning to your next conversation is easy: Connect with colleagues working remotely, listen to music to focus distraction-free or drop an earbud to tune in to the conversation around you. You can count on Voyager 6200 UC for outstanding audio every time, everywhere.

Hear and be heard clearly with these features:

• On-demand active- and passive-noise canceling let you focus on your call or work.
• Four omnidirectional microphones with enhanced digital signal processing (DSP) deliver superior background noise canceling.
• Premium hi-fi stereo lets you immerse yourself in your favorite music.
• Wide band audio provides high-quality PC telephony.

About Plantronics

Plantronics is an audio pioneer and a global leader in the communications industry. We create intelligent and adaptive solutions that support our customers’ most important needs: experiencing and facilitating simple and clear communications while enjoying distraction-free environments. Our solutions are used worldwide by consumers and businesses alike and are an optimal choice for open office environments. From unified communications and customer service ecosystems, to data analytics and Bluetooth® headsets, Plantronics delivers high-quality communications solutions that our customers count on today, while relentlessly innovating on behalf of their future. For more information visit www.plantronics.com/za 

©2018 Plantronics, Inc. Plantronics, SoundGuard, aptX and Voyager are trademarks of Plantronics, Inc. registered in the US and other countries, and Plantronics Hub is a trademark of Plantronics, Inc. The Bluetooth trademark is owned by Bluetooth SIG, Inc. and any use of the mark by Plantronics, Inc. is under license. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. 01.18

1 Oxford Economics, “When the walls come down – the evolution of the workplace.”
2 Plantronics Noise in the Workplace Global Study, 2017.
3 The Cost of Interrupted Work: More Speed and Stress Study from the Department of Informatics, University of California, Irvine, 2008.

The mobile workforce is growing at a rapid rate, and its workers need technology that enable them to be more efficient at collaborating and communicating. Gavin Sear, Manager Global Product Marketing at Plantronics talks about the new Calisto 7200 in his recent blog:

"Today I have the pleasure of letting you all know that Plantronics has added to the Calisto family of speakerphones by introducing Calisto 7200 to the market. This new, sleek and compact speakerphone is designed specifically for small “huddle rooms” for up to six people, to provide a meeting experience beyond compare. With the addition of Calisto 7200, our partners can now offer their customers a complete selection of audio collaboration devices: headsets, personal and small group speakerphones.

We created this product in a collaboration that began last year with Polycom, a leader in the conferencing space, as we share a mutual goal of providing users with superior user experiences. There’s no doubt the need for small conference rooms is growing quickly. A Nemertes 2018 study found 67 percent of IT leaders are evaluating now, or planning this year or next year, to invest in meeting rooms. Even in today’s open-office environments, the need for smaller conference and collaboration rooms is increasing.

Calisto 7200 offers a professional audio experience on both ends of the call, powered by Polycom. Four highly-directional microphones pick up speech from every corner of the meeting room, with a great reduction of the “cave effect” of room reverberance. In addition, Calisto 7200 comes with wide band support for natural-sounding meetings with a small group of people. Noise cancelling technology filters out undesirable background noises like keyboard typing and paper shuffling when nobody in the room is actively speaking.

One of the best things about this speakerphone is that it can help increase adoption of unified communications (UC) systems. Because it’s so easy to use, with intuitive, plug-and-play connectivity for both PCs and mobile phones, it’s just flat-out simple to connect with UC applications. An additional side benefit is that businesses placing these in their huddle rooms don’t need to worry about post-installation availability. Calisto 7200 comes with a combined USB audio and security cable. However, without the locking cable, the device is portable, so you can take it on the road with you if you wish. To top it all off, there is software support for asset management via our Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) offering, Plantronics Manager Pro. With the subscription of Plantronics Manager Pro, IT can track these (and other) Plantronics audio and mobile devices to control inventory, update firmware, pre-configure and lock device settings remotely to ensure consistent audio across all devices.

Calisto 7200 connects easily via a USB cable, or you can connect wirelessly via Bluetooth. It has touch-sensitive controls to make it easy to manage calls and the Bluetooth memory can be cleared of previously paired devices which is essential for a shared audio device. And it’s affordable enough to install in all of your huddle rooms, small conference rooms and collaboration zones."

Designed for exceptional conferencing performance in a small group conference room, watch this page https://www.plantronics.com/za/en for more information about future availability in South Africa or speak to one of our local South African distributors.

Read the blog here

Plantronics is an audio pioneer and a global leader in the communications industry. We create intelligent and adaptive solutions that support our customers’ most important needs: experiencing and facilitating simple and clear communications while enjoying distraction-free environments. Our solutions are used worldwide by consumers and businesses alike, and are an optimal choice for open office environments. From Unified Communications and customer service ecosystems, to data analytics and Bluetooth headsets, Plantronics delivers high-quality communications solutions that our customers count on today, while relentlessly innovating on behalf of their future. For more information visit www.plantronics.com/za 

Plantronics is a trademark of Plantronics, Inc. registered in the U.S. and other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Music lovers will enjoy dual EQ modes, exceptional comfort and hands-free convenience.

Johannesburg, South Africa – 1 May 2018 – Plantronics (NYSE: PLT), an audio pioneer and communications technology leader, recently announced its Plantronics BackBeat GO 600 Series: wireless, over-the-ear immersive headphones featuring unique capabilities for people who put music first, at an economical price point.

To ensure music lovers can create the listening experience they prefer, BackBeat GO 600 comes equipped with dual equalization (EQ) modes, to allow the listener to easily alternate between ‘Bass Boost’ and ‘Balanced’ EQ. Balanced EQ mode is Plantronics’ signature sound, which is tuned to be the most accurate possible representation of the source audio across all genres of music. Listeners can move between modes with a single push of a button – a feature not typically found on headphones in this price range. BackBeat GO 600 is slim and lightweight with an over-ear design and soft memory foam ear cushions that provide the ideal balance of comfort and isolation resulting in deep, rich sound with minimal distraction.

“Our core expertise in headphones, wireless and premium experiences make Plantronics uniquely qualified to give music lovers the best possible immersive stereo experience at an affordable price point,” said Greg Miller, director of portfolio business management, Personal Solutions, Plantronics. “Plantronics’ baseline standard in all of our products is to provide superior audio, consistent with that found in our premium products.” 

Additional BackBeat GO 600 Series features and benefits include:

• A rechargeable battery that delivers up to 18 hours of wireless listening time on a single charge.
• Remaining connected at up to 33 ft/10 m from Bluetooth® compatible smartphones and tablets.
• Ear cups that fold flat for easy storage and transport; ensuring comfort when worn around the neck.
• A carrying pouch, a USB cable for charging and an audio cable for direct connection for listening to music anytime, even if the battery is dead.
• Dedicated on-ear controls that make pause/play, skipping tracks, adjusting volume and taking calls easy.
• A wide band-enabled microphone that ensures voice clarity; answers calls or accesses Siri, Google Now, and Cortana hands-free via voice command. 

Pricing and Availability:

The BackBeat GO 600 Series will be available in South Africa soon through local distributors and partners. To find out more visit www.plantronics.com/za 

About Plantronics

Plantronics is an audio pioneer and a global leader in the communications industry. We create intelligent and adaptive solutions that support our customers’ most important needs: experiencing and facilitating simple and clear communications while enjoying distraction-free environments. Our solutions are used worldwide by consumers and businesses alike and are an optimal choice for open office environments. From Unified Communications and customer service ecosystems, to data analytics and Bluetooth headsets, Plantronics delivers high-quality communications solutions that our customers count on today, while relentlessly innovating on behalf of their future. For more information visit www.plantronics.com.za  

Plantronics and BackBeat are trademarks or registered trademarks of Plantronics, Inc. Plantronics, Inc. registered in the US and other countries. The Bluetooth trademark is owned by Bluetooth SIG, Inc. and any use of the mark by Plantronics, Inc. is under license. Siri is a trademark of Apple Inc. registered in the US and other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

In the era of communication and collaboration, noise reaches everywhere, including your bottom line.

In today’s open offices, noise is the biggest distraction to getting work done. Modern work spaces promote collaboration but in increasingly crowded spaces, the sounds created by hard surfaces and fewer walls can make it hard to focus. Plantronics brings immersive headsets along with an intelligent multisensory experience that uses natural sounds and complementary visuals to dynamically adapt to distracting speech and ever-changing noise to keep an office in tune.

Hero Solutions: Voyager 6200 UC, Voyager Focus UC, Blackwire 5200, Savi 700 

For on-the-go workers, which we’re seeing more and more of, even in South Africa, noise in mobile environments makes it difficult for them, and their teammates back in the office, to hear, be heard and connect to what matters most. For this type of work style, Plantronics has solutions that easily connect to multiple devices and cancel out noise on both sides of the conversation.

Hero Solutions: Voyager 8200 UC, Voyager 5200 UC, Voyager 6200 UC  

In contact centers, noise is a huge problem. With so many conversations happening at once, focus can sometimes falter, employee comfort can drop, and the security of sensitive customer information could potentially be compromised. Plantronics has purpose-built headsets designed for the Contact Center, but with hundreds – even thousands of headsets to manage, dealing with individual needs can be labor-intensive. Through SaaS, Plantronics delivers insights, simplifies headset adoption and lets IT respond to needs without interruption to the CX, all from one place.

Hero Solutions: Encore Pro 500/700, Manager Pro

Wherever work happens, noise stands in the way. With Plantronics’ portfolio of collaboration solutions it doesn’t have to. For more information or sales questions, contact one of our authorized local South African distributors which are listed on www.plantronics.com/za

Plantronics is an audio pioneer and a global leader in the communications industry. We create intelligent and adaptive solutions that support our customers’ most important needs: experiencing and facilitating simple and clear communications while enjoying distraction-free environments. Our solutions are used worldwide by consumers and businesses alike, and are an optimal choice for open office environments. From Unified Communications and customer service ecosystems, to data analytics and Bluetooth headsets, Plantronics delivers high-quality communications solutions that our customers count on today, while relentlessly innovating on behalf of their future. For more information visit www.plantronics.com/za

©2018 Plantronics, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. 

Johannesburg, South Africa – November 2017, Plantronics (NYSE: PLT), an audio pioneer and communications technology leader, recently announced the Blackwire 5200 Series and Blackwire 3200 Series. With sleek, updated designs, professional-grade audio, and a range of product choices at varying price points, the new Blackwire headsets connect to laptops, PCs and smartphones for seamless communication.

“The Blackwire family has consistently delivered for our customers and remains one of our top-selling product lines,” said Gavin Sear, Manager, Global Product Marketing at Plantronics. “The Blackwire 5200 Series and Blackwire 3200 Series step up the line’s adaptability for the next generation of in-office professionals by enabling them to easily connect to all their devices while enjoying all-day comfort and a high-quality audio experience.”

The Blackwire family of products are designed for people whose work demands that they are connected to their computer or smartphone with the flexibility to switch between devices without missing a beat. Research shows office-based workers are often distracted by ambient noise and interruptions, and they need communications solutions to help them focus.

When professionals select the forward-looking industrial design, premium materials, and lava-red accents used throughout the headset and cords of the Blackwire 5200 Series and Blackwire 3200 Series they get a high-performance headset that assures they can hear and be heard in every conversation along with a new design that conveys competence and confidence to handle even the most critical conversation. The Blackwire Series is designed to work with popular software applications such as Cisco Jabber, Microsoft Skype for Business, and Microsoft Teams across PCs, laptops and smartphones with a headphone jack.

Additional features and benefits of the next-generation Blackwire family include:

• Folding ear cushions and included carrying case for easy on-the-go storage
• Intuitive one-touch call answer/end, volume increase/decrease and mute controls
• Works across a range of devices supporting USB-A or USB-C and 3.5mm connections
• User-friendly audio prompts with language customization and inline indicator lights alert the user to incoming calls, mute and volume status
• Wideband audio with noise-canceling microphones for high-quality telephony audio
• Compatibility with Plantronics Manager Pro, an additional purchase, that enables IT teams to gain insight into every compatible Plantronics headset being used company-wide
• Dynamic EQ automatically adjusts audio settings between voice calls and music

Features exclusive to Blackwire 5200 Series include:

• Passive noise cancelling to mitigate nearby talking and other distracting noises for greater focus
• Dynamic mute alert, ensuring optimal productivity by sensing and alerting users via an in-ear whisper when they are trying to talk while muted
• SoundGuard Digital enabled by Plantronics Hub software provides additional advanced acoustic limiting protection preventing average daily noise exposure from exceeding 85dBA
• A redesigned headband that was influenced by the Voyager Focus design.

The Blackwire 5200 Series and the Blackwire 3200 Series will be available soon in South Africa through Plantronics authorized partners. More information about features offered within Blackwire 5200 Series and Blackwire 3200 Series are available at www.plantronics.com/africa

About Plantronics
Plantronics is an audio pioneer and a global leader in the communications industry. We create intelligent and adaptive solutions that support our customers’ most important needs: experiencing and facilitating simple and clear communications while enjoying distraction-free environments. Our solutions are used worldwide by consumers and businesses alike, and are an optimal choice for open office environments. From Unified Communications and customer service ecosystems, to data analytics and Bluetooth headsets, Plantronics delivers high-quality communications solutions that our customers count on today, while relentlessly innovating on behalf of their future. For more information visit www.plantronics.com/africa. 

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Plantronics, Inc. Blackwire, Plantronics, and SoundGuard are trademarks of Plantronics, Inc. registered in the US and other countries, and Plantronics Hub is a trademark of Plantronics, Inc. Microsoft, Windows, and Skype for Business are trademarks or registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the U.S. and other countries. Cisco is a registered trademark of Cisco Systems, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and certain other countries. The Bluetooth trademark is owned by Bluetooth SIG, Inc. and any use of the mark by Plantronics, Inc. is under license. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners

[1] Not all statements applicable to Blackwire 3210/3220

Homemation, the exclusive distributors of Denon, believe in their products because they can deliver total quality enjoyment.

What’s more, their constant quest to create the perfect entertainment components is key to their leading innovation, and anticipating consumer needs. Bringing purity of sound and joy to customers’ lives is what Denon is all about. For Denon: Passion, Artistry, and Technology are part of the quintessential philosophy behind everything they do. These three elements and decades of innovation and engineering excellence have shaped their entire culture. Every detail of a Denon product is crafted around these elements with a single goal in mind: to maximise the entertainment experience. Featured Products include the Denon HEOS BAR Soundbar and Denon HEOS Subwoofer in Black.

The HEOS Soundbar delivers exceptional performance to enhance the sound from your TV or Blu-ray player, while retaining the elegance of a slimline soundbar – and the ability to act as an audio streaming solution. Whether you place it on a sideboard or mount it on your wall, the HEOS Bar lets you experience thrilling HD home cinema and sensational music streaming. Break the sound barriers and get the room-filling sound your TV deserves.

The HEOS Bar delivers exceptional performance with state of the art signal processing, amplification and 9 high-performance drivers. It's a neat upgrade for even the largest screens. Four 4K-compatible HDMIs let you use the HEOS Bar even with multi-source AV set-ups, while HEOS integration allows you to enjoy all your music wirelessly. Setup and operation are a breeze. Just connect the HEOS Bar to your TV’s HDMI Audio Return Channel (ARC) input. Within minutes the soundbar is ready to perform. Control all your sound via the HEOS App, or command the HEOS Bar with the remote of your TV.

The HEOS Bar is absolutely future-proof with the latest HDMI standards. Four HDMI 2.0a/HDCP 2.2 inputs make sure that you can enjoy your movies in 4K Ultra HD. In case your TV has limited 4K switching capabilities, don't worry, just connect your 4K sources directly to the bar. For the best multi-channel sound, the HEOS Bar offers class-leading audio format support with Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio. The HEOS Bar will match your style, your room and above all your TV.

It is designed to improve the sound of the largest TV sets with 50 and more inches - and still look and sound nothing but sophisticated. Retail: R 18 990.00 The HEOS wireless subwoofer adds deep, powerful bass to any HEOS device with best-in-class sound quality. It suits any room and any setup. Shake your world with movies and music – wirelessly. The HEOS Subwoofer adds seismic bass to all your sound.

With its powerful amplification and optimised drivers, it works with the entire HEOS range. Setup and operation of the HEOS Subwoofer are a matter of minutes. Just connect it to your home network and any other HEOS device – and then shake your world with dramatic bass. Control all your sound via the app. It's really as simple as that. Being a HEOS, the HEOS Subwoofer definitely puts in an appearance with its unique design and stylish matt black finish.

You can place it anywhere in your room, thanks to its wireless connectivity – vertically or horizontally. However, if you don't want to show its good looks, just slip it under the sofa and enjoy its bounce. Two custom-made 5-1/4inch drive units in combination with sophisticated class D amplification deliver clean and clear, yet punchy bass.

The proprietary DSP algorithms provide optimised low frequency response across the entire dynamic range. Within the HEOS App, you find advanced settings for different configurations, like the dialog enhancer and the night mode, which are integrated in the HEOS Bar. If used together, HEOS Subwoofer adapts the settings. Retail: R 12 990.00 Homemation is the exclusive specialist South African suppliers of premium branded audiovisual and home theatre products. The brands in their stable offer some of the most advanced and sought-after AV and home automation technologies in the world.

Call Homemation on 011-781 8887 for your nearest stockist, or visit www.homemation.co.za ; Facebook ; Twitter and Instagram.