Plantronics EncorePro Wins iF Product Design Award 2009

Contact Center Headset Design Emphasizes Form and Function

Santa Cruz, Calif. –Plantronics, Inc. (NYSE: PLT) today announced that the Plantronics EncorePro™ headset won the prestigious international Forum (iF) product design award 2009.

iF jury members judged nearly 3,000 products from more than 1,000 contestants in 39 different countries to select the winners for 2009. Products were evaluated based on criteria including innovativeness, functionality, design quality, material, ergonomics and environmental compatibility. Plantronics Industrial Design developed EncorePro, a corded headset for contact center professionals, and also designed the Plantronics Discovery® 640 Bluetooth® headset that won an iF Design Award in 2006.

“Recognition of the EncorePro for an iF Design Award confirms the importance of designing both consumer and enterprise products with the user in mind,” said Darrin Caddes, vice president of Corporate Design at Plantronics. “I applaud the EncorePro design team, lead by Soohyun Ham, for truly understanding how contact center professionals use our products. They were able to design a headset that harmoniously combines superior audio performance with great comfort and style.”

Bringing Style to the Contact Center

The Plantronics EncorePro, announced in October 2008, incorporates form and function, resulting in a lightweight headset that is beautiful and practical. An informal Plantronics survey of agents who trialed the EncorePro headset revealed that 60% thought the fit and comfort was improved, 65% felt the transmit sound was better and more than 70% believed the EncorePro is more stylish than their existing headsets.

The headset is built with premium nylon composite and incorporates finishes and accents that are purely aesthetic, which is not typical for contact center products. The leatherette cushion and metal accent of the earpiece are reminiscent of a high fidelity speaker and connote the headset’s sound quality. The shape and metal accents on the unique swiveling extendable microphone are designed to make the microphone look like a smaller version of a traditional broadcast microphone. A satin finish and metal accents are used throughout to incorporate the designers’ vision of a high-end European design.

About the iF Design Awards
Since the introduction of the iF product design award in 1953, iF design awards have developed into prestigious trademarks for outstanding achievements in the field of design. Enterprises and design studios use the award to make their customers and additional target groups aware of the potentially decisive difference in product and service quality expressed by this distinction.