I have the earbuds with the mic/switch on the cord that came bundled with my recently acquired iPhone 3G. (This is my very first cellphone BTW.)

I'm looking to improve on the sound quality of the microphone and possibly gain a better fit on my ears. The stock earbuds fall out easily. I have a Plantronix headset that works well for my landline phone so I am used to the bulk and the boom mike.

At this time I'm looking for a wired solution -- not Bluetooth. I don't want to worry about recharging the Bluetooth or replacing its batteries. In my applications I will usually have easy access to AC charging of the iPhone itself so a wired headset is the way I want to go. I expect to get better quality sound that way too.

Is my only option to purchase a generic cellphone headset and get an adapter like this one?

I had kind of expected that the PC gaming/telephony headsets would be an option, but they appear to have separate stereo and mic connectors instead of the integrated connector.

The one you linked won't work because it is to split the headphone only--not the mic also.

You need an adapter jack that has 4 sections--they are R L audio Ground and Mic

Here are some that will work
[store.apple.com]

This will work---but nit the solution you wanted
[www.macmall.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/16/2008 06:33PM by Ken Sp..

Quote
Ken Sp.
The one you linked won't work because it is to split the headphone only--not the mic also.

Ah. Good catch. I was doing some fast Googling and thought I found a simple 2.5mm to 3.5mm adapter with all the wiring the same.

I am looking for something like this in stereo instead of mono and for 3.5mm jack instead of 2.5mm is unavailable.

Quote
Ken Sp.
Here are some that will work
[store.apple.com]

They all look like nice solutions for folks that like ear buds, an inline mic (not a boom mic), or Bluetooth.

Thank you for helping me search.

I think I may have found a solution. I'm not totally positive it will work, but here it goes.

Combine this adapter to convert the 3.5mm stereo of the iPhone to 2.5mm stereo
[www.amazon.com]

Then plug in a commonplace 2.5mm mono + mic headset such as this one.
[www.amazon.com]

I expect that the stereo plug will simply go to mono and the mic will be passed through as intended.
I won't have an inline switch like the stock iPhone earbuds do, but I can deal with that if the tradeoff is better mic quality in noisy environments (e.g. my old automobile).

In case anybody is curious, the iPhone uses the same 3.5mm stereo+mic plug as the Samsung Instinct, Blackberry Pearl 8120/8130, Curve 8300/8310/8320/8330, and BlackBerry Bold.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/17/2008 10:28AM by TheTominator.

Nice find--let us know how it works

The solution of the 3.5 to 2.5 mm adapter plus the cheap 2.5mm mono + mic headset works very well with the iPhone 3G. And it was very economical.

It is a more bulky solution than many people like, but I don't mind the bulk if it makes the best hands-free sound quality for both me and the person I am talking to along with being very comfortable to wear for an hour or more on a long conversation.

I bought these exact parts; the Panasonic headset suggested here (it's only a 3-ring male jack btw) and the 4-ring 2.5 to 3.5 adapter. Neither works with my 3G...and I tried 2 different SAMSUNG in-ear sets with the adapter and neither of them worked. With the PANASONIC headset, the earphone portion works fine but the mic does not. Now I get to box-up/return all of this stuff to AMAZON. Fun times.