Originally Posted by
liwhitehat
Try the Plantronics 5200. The earpiece rests on the ear canal, not in it, so there's little reduction of ambient noise. If the caller is on your contact list, the name will be announced, as well as the option to accept or reject the call by saying "answer" or "ignore," all without touching either the headset or phone. It is by far the best noise cancelling headset I've ever used.
Sound is sound isn't it? Airpods don't really block anything.. If I put a pair in my ears with nothing playing, I can perfectly hear anyone around me talking. OTOH, I can turn up some floorstanding speakers which aren't in my ear canal, and the noise makes it difficult to carry on or hear a conversation.
I do rely on being able to hear, especially in pacelining, and knowing if there's a car coming up on a tight roadway, and it's my turn to pull of the front and to the left in order to drop back. ymmv