If you take client calls alone, a headset is usually the better choice. It keeps the microphone near your mouth and lets you hear the client without playing their voice into the room. A speakerphone becomes useful when a colleague joins you at the same desk and both of you need to speak and listen.
A room microphone is designed to hear people around a table; a headset is designed to follow one person. Once you know which arrangement you need, the choices about cables, comfort and controls become much easier.
Why a headset works better for one person
During a call, you look at the screen, glance down at notes and turn towards a second monitor. A boom microphone moves with you, so the distance between your mouth and the microphone changes less than it would with a microphone sitting on the desk. That helps keep your voice consistent as you work.
It also gives the microphone a better chance of picking up speech above keyboard and room noise. The headphones serve a separate purpose: they stop the client’s voice coming out of a loudspeaker beside the microphone.
For a fixed desk, the Logitech H390 USB-A headset offers a simple way to make that change. It has a boom microphone and controls for volume and mute on the cable. Plugging it in avoids the charging and pairing routine of a wireless device. Logitech lists a 1.9-metre cable, which is useful to know if your computer sits under the desk rather than beside the keyboard.
The linked model uses USB-A. There is also a USB-C version in Logitech’s range, so a computer with only USB-C ports does not necessarily need an adapter. Choose the connection when ordering rather than discovering the difference at the start of an appointment.
Comfort and movement can change the headset choice
A basic wired headset is easiest to recommend for someone who stays at the desk. It is less convenient if you often stand up to retrieve a sample, move to a whiteboard or continue talking while walking around the office. In those circumstances, a wireless headset may be worth the extra charging routine.
For long stretches of calls, pay attention to how the headset rests on your ears. Small on-ear cushions, larger over-ear cups and in-ear designs feel quite different. Glasses can make pressure from earcups more noticeable. Fit cannot be settled by a photograph or the word “comfortable” in a product description, so the ability to try and return the headset is useful when buying for daily use.
You may already own suitable wired earphones or Bluetooth earbuds. Try them on the work computer before replacing them. Select their microphone as well as their audio output in the meeting app; otherwise you can end up listening through the earbuds while the laptop still captures your voice from across the desk.
If the existing setup sounds clear and stays comfortable, keep it. A dedicated headset is most useful when it fixes a specific annoyance: a microphone that rubs against clothing, a battery that does not last through the working day, or a call that keeps switching between devices.
When a speakerphone is worth having
Two people sharing a desk need to hear the same conversation. A speakerphone gives them a central place to speak towards and lets the remote client address either person without anyone passing over a headset. This is useful for a joint project discussion, a handover or an appointment where one person explains the work and another answers technical questions.
The Jabra Speak2 55 Teams-certified speakerphone is a suitable example for this arrangement. Jabra specifies four microphones and full-duplex audio. Full duplex means sound can travel in both directions at once, so a brief question or acknowledgement need not silence the other speaker. The unit also combines USB-C and USB-A connections on its cable.
Put it between the participants, with a clear space around it. If it sits beside one person’s keyboard at the far end of the table, the quieter person may still sound distant. Jabra quotes a microphone range of up to 2.3 metres; sitting within that distance is a starting point, while the amount of echo and background noise still depends on the room.
A speakerphone is consequently a better purchase for a quiet office than a busy shared workspace. It lets everyone nearby hear the client, and it must pick up speech from farther away than a boom microphone. If two colleagues work in a noisy room, joining individually with headsets from suitable separate spaces may work better than trying to turn the room into a meeting area.
Understand Bluetooth and Teams labels before ordering
“Wireless speakerphone” can suggest that every connection is wireless. For Speak2 55, Jabra documents the computer connection through USB and Bluetooth for a smartphone or tablet. Buy it on that basis if the main job is calling from a laptop. Its phone connection is useful for mobile calls, but it is not the reason to select it for a cable-free computer setup.
The Teams-certified version also has a specific purpose. It includes integration and controls for Microsoft Teams. Jabra recommends the standard UC version for people who do not use Teams as their calling application. Choose around the platform you actually use rather than treating the certification badge as a general sound-quality rating.
Once connected, select the speakerphone as both the microphone and speaker in the meeting application. Using its microphone with the laptop’s speakers creates a different audio arrangement from the one you bought it to provide.
What noise cancellation will—and will not—solve
There are two different problems hidden behind the phrase “noise cancellation”. Microphone noise reduction aims to reduce unwanted sound sent to the person on the other end. Noise cancellation in the earcups reduces some of the surrounding sound that you hear. A headset can offer one without the other.
For a client who struggles to hear you, microphone position and outgoing noise reduction are relevant. For you struggling to hear the client over nearby conversation, the listening side matters too. A louder speakerphone may make that second problem worse for everyone sharing the office.
Room echo is another issue. Hard, bare surfaces reflect speech back towards the microphone. Moving to a more softly furnished room or bringing the microphone closer can help more than turning up its sensitivity. In a sensitive discussion, choose a private space as well: headphones keep the client’s voice private, but people nearby can still hear yours.
A separate USB microphone is useful for a different kind of work
If you also record tutorials, voiceovers or lessons, a standalone microphone may earn its space on the desk. It gives you a microphone chosen for that recording task, and you can position it independently of the headphones.
For ordinary client calls, it adds equipment without removing the need to hear the other person. You still need a suitable listening arrangement, usually headphones, and somewhere to mount the microphone close enough to your voice. A large microphone placed at the back of the desk can pick up plenty of room sound despite looking more professional.
Choose it because recording is part of your work, or because you have a clear reason to separate the microphone and headphones. For conversation alone, a headset provides both in a compact setup.
Make a short call before using the new setup with a client
Ask a colleague to listen while you speak at your normal volume, type a few notes and turn towards the screens you use. For a speakerphone, have both people speak from their usual seats. Ask what becomes difficult to hear: quiet words, keyboard noise and a voice that fades when someone turns away point to different adjustments.
If they hear an echo, first check whether a second phone or laptop has joined the same meeting with its audio enabled. Then try headphones. An echo that disappears when loudspeaker playback stops is a reason to inspect the playback and microphone arrangement, rather than immediately replace the microphone. Google Meet’s device checks explain how to select and test each part before joining.
For a camera that is missing or a call that freezes, use the video-call troubleshooting guide. If you are choosing the rest of the desk equipment at the same time, the small-business video-call equipment guide brings the camera, lighting and audio choices together.
Product specifications checked on 12 October 2026 against Logitech’s H390 page and Jabra’s Speak2 55 information.
