The U.S. Department of Transportation has banned bus and truck drivers from texting or using handheld cell phones while driving. The prohibition applies to drivers of interstate buses and trucks with a gross vehicle weight of more than 10,000 pounds, and if caught the driver could be slapped with a more than $2,700 fine for texting and driving.
The National Safety Council estimated texting and driving causes at least 1.6 million crashes each year. To text message, you typically need to look down at your screen and this causes you to not pay attention to your driving or surroundings. Research by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration shows that a driver who sends and receives a text message will take their eyes off the road for an average of 4.6 seconds out of every 6 seconds. At 55 miles per hour, this means that the driver is traveling the length of a football field, including the end zones, without looking at the road, according to the FMCSA.
With new legislation focusing on texting or handheld cell phones usage while driving, everyone seems to be looking for a hands-free option. Not every hands-free device works well in the noisy environment of a truck because a standard microphone picks up background noise and makes it difficult for listeners to hear the conversation.
The MIRREX® Bluetooth® headset is designed specifically to work in windy and noisy environments, making it the perfect choice for truck drivers. The noise-canceling microphone is located right next to your mouth, so very little background noise is picked up. The comfortable, cushioned earpiece makes it easy for you to hear as well, and the adjustable headband can be worn for hours without fatigue.
The headset is rechargeable and offers up to 14 hours of talk time and 20 days of standby time per charge. The kit includes two chargers, a 12-volt vehicle charger and a 110-volt home charger. Pairing the headset to a Bluetooth cell phone is simple and they can be up to 33 feet apart, so the cell phone can be tucked away in the truck sleeper if necessary.
Three buttons on the side of the headset offer fingertip control of volume and all calling features. The boom microphone can be adjusted to work with both right-handed and left-handed users. Nothing else is quite as easy and works quite as well in a truck as this new MIRREX headset (GMX101066). Be sure to stop by your preferred Kenworth dealer today and test one for yourself.
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