Plantronics CS540 Wireless Headset

The CS540 is a wireless headset for an office desk phone. It comes with a base that plugs into your phone, and the headset talks to that base, so you can get up and walk around mid-call without losing the person on the other end. It weighs 21 grams and sits on one ear, so you hear the room with the other. Poly's model code for it, C054, is printed on the base.

It's a good fit if you spend a lot of the day on a desk phone and want to be able to stand, stretch or walk to a colleague's desk while you talk. If you need one headset for a desk phone, a computer and a cell phone at once, this isn't it.

Standard or Cisco IP Phone Compatible

Both options are the same CS540 at the same price. Pick Cisco IP Phone Compatible if your desk phone is a Cisco IP phone, and Standard for most other corded desk phones, Avaya and Polycom included. If you aren't sure what your phone is, send us the model printed on it and we'll tell you which one to order.

How you answer calls

Out of the box, you answer at your desk: lift the handset off the cradle, then press the call button on the headset. Once you're on the call, you can walk away. If you want to answer and hang up while you're away from the desk, you'll need an HL10 handset lifter or an EHS cable for your phone, both sold separately.

Range, battery and fit

The CS540 is rated for up to 350 feet from the base and up to 7 hours of talk time on a charge. That 350 is measured with nothing in the way, so walls and floors will cut it down. The battery is user-replaceable, so a worn one is a battery swap rather than a new headset.

The box has both a headband and an ear loop, so you can wear it over the head or over the ear. Up to three more CS540 headsets can join a call on the same base, which is handy for training someone on live calls.

Is the CS540 Bluetooth?

No. The CS540 uses DECT: the headset talks only to its own base, and the base plugs into your desk phone. It won't pair with a cell phone or a laptop. To use it for computer calls, the base needs Poly's APU-76 USB adapter, sold separately.