When Poly announced the Poly Sync family of remote conferencing devices in late 2020, it brought with it a new innovation in microphone technology - one that can track a speaker as they move around the room, but not the environmental or background noise going on in the room itself.
The Poly Sync family includes the Poly Sync 20, Poly Sync 40, and the Poly Sync 60 speakerphones. These are suited to office and remote working environments, offer a range of connectivity options - including to voice assistants such as Siri and Google Assistant.
The Poly Sync 20 is one product that received Zoom's Personal USB Speakerphone certification, and is also compatible with other conferencing platforms like Microsoft Teams and Skype. Currently, the Poly Sync 20 supports Plantronics Hub desktop and mobile versions, as well as the Plantronics Manager Pro suites (asset management and adoption).
But in a crowded market, what separates Poly Sync 20 from the rest? For starters, the Poly Sync 20 wins on battery life by up to five hours and has more microphones.
Let's compare the specs for the Poly Sync 20 and one of its competitors, the Jabra Speak 510.
Audio
Poly has invested significantly more effort into engineering steerable sound through three microphones compared to Jabra's single omnidirectional microphone. With Poly's steerable audio, there will be less background noise and echoes leaking into calls. With Poly Sync 20, you can stand up to two metres away from the device and still be heard. Jabra has not stated how close (or far away) you can be from the speaker in order to be heard.
Poly's full duplex audio means that everyone is heard - no awkward cut-offs if someone speaks over another person.
What's more, the Poly Sync 20's 40mm high-performance loudspeaker is not only designed for call audio, it has also been optimised for music playback too. Poly calls it a ‘music-lover's delight'!
Poly Sync 20 audio specs at a glance
- Features three microphones in a steerable array
- One 40mm high-performance loudspeaker
- Microphones can pick up voices from two metres away
- Ideal for 4m x 4m room sizes
- Full duplex audio
- Inbuilt noise and echo reduction
- Microphone frequency response: 100 Hz to 6.7 kHz
- Loudspeaker frequency response: 80 Hz to 20 kHz
- Bass reflex with dual passive radiators
The Jabra Speak 510 is a Bluetooth-capable speaker with an omnidirectional microphone that can process HD audio, - but it is not as packed with features with only one microphone, and no duplex audio.
Design
The aesthetics of the Poly Sync 20 are designed for portability, with a carry case included in the pack. The device measures a compact 34mm x 95mm x 182mm and weighs 360g (you also get a 715mm cable for wired connectivity).
The Poly Sync 20 user interface includes touch-sensitive user controls for the following features: Calls (answer and end), mute, volume, and a programmable function. Some models include a dedicated touch button for Microsoft Teams. There are also push button controls for power, and Bluetooth pairing.
On the Jabra Speak 510, the device is less eye-catching - there are touch controls for all functions, but no physical buttons. It is smaller (120mm x 30mm), but that is not necessarily an upside - in many cases, a smaller footprint can indicate compromises on microphone and speaker quality.
Battery life, connectivity, and other specs
The Poly Sync 20 and Jabra Speak 510 are reasonably similar when it comes to connectivity support, but there is one major area where the Poly device wins: battery life.
The Poly Sync 20 has a 3200maH battery that supports up to 20 hours talk time, and it takes just four hours to charge. The Jabra Speak 510 has a less impressive battery life with just 15 hours of talk time.
The Poly Sync 20 also connects to PC via a USB-A or USB-C cable and is compatible with Windows or macOS. It supplies Bluetooth connectivity support for profiles including A2DP, AVRCP, HFP, HSP, and BLE.
The Jabra Speak 510 connects to PC via USB and supports Bluetooth A2DP for streaming. Its battery only lasts 15 hours depending on phones and networks. Its charge time is two hours.
Poly Sync 20 features a long, bright light bar that indicates its status, and it's IP64 dust- and water-resistant, while the Jabra Speak 510 has a small battery level indicator.
Verdict
Both devices are compatible with UC systems and VoIP clients but if you're looking for something with a clearer design profile, more tailored audio options and better battery life, the Poly Sync 20 could be the better choice for your office, home office, and home environment.
Find out more about the Poly Sync 20 here.
Hear the difference for yourself in the Poly Sync 20 vs Jabra Speak 510 - Competitive Study below.