Another Amazing Selection From ANN's Top 10 Products/Programs Of 2008

Final Compilations by ANN Editor-In-Chief/Blame-Taker, Jim Campbell

When it comes to the people, planes and products of the aviation business, ANN firmly believes there is no such thing as an embarrassment of riches. 2008 saw a spate of new programs and 'gadgets' designed to separate a pilot from his flying dollar... fortunately, the vast majority of them are quite worthy of foregoing the occasional $500 hamburger or two

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In fact, for 2008 we really had to struggle with the list in order to pare it down to a manageable assembly and if we hadn't, we'd have easily had to increase the size of our annual 'Best Of' list to several dozen, or so, to accommodate them all.

From established products that continue to impress, to new and exciting developments across the range of general aviation... here, to our eyes, are some of  the VERY BEST from our list of the 10 most worthy 'gadgets' and programs of 2008.

Clarity Aloft 'Pro'

How Can Something This Light and Small, Work So Well???

Here and there, you may have read us extolling the virtues of a headset that was the target of our first-ever News-Spy Award program... the TSO'd Clarity Aloft headset by Aloft Technologies. This didn't happen by accident... we were so impressed by the diminutive dimensions and the outstanding performance that it seemed like a worthwhile award.

The newest TSO'd product by Aloft Technologies, the "Pro" version of the Clarity Aloft headset does what we thought wasn't going to be all that easy to do... improve on a great product. Redesigned and fully TSO approved, this headset combines the technical superiority of the original with even lighter materials (and how they do that without pumping it full of helium, we do not know... grin) and ergonomic design.

To get right to the point, folks, this thing weighs an ounce and a half... and nothing  that light (outside of a Florida-born mosquito) can possibly be all that uncomfortable. As a matter of fact, the thing we like best about these headsets is that once they're on, you really do forget they're there... which can make for an interesting departure if you don't think to remove them when exiting your aircraft. Grin.

The secret to the noise attenuation properties of the headset is their employment of  patented Comply Canal Tips, composed of soft viscoelastic foam, the same foam tips used in advanced hearing aids. More than simple earplugs, these foam tips provide full spectrum noise reduction: 35-45dB of attenuation. This advanced technology has been lab tested to prove that viscoelastic passive noise reduction (VPNR) is superior to active noise reduction (ANR), especially in the speech frequencies, precisely where clarity of sound and hearing protection is most needed for aviation communications.

The noise-canceling microphone used in the Clarity Aloft Headset is a high fidelity noise canceling Electret Condenser microphone with performance optimized for speech frequencies in extremely high noise environments. Stage performers and musicians use this same microphone because they must insist on the highest level of sound reproduction.

All in all, it's a light, useful, QUIET, comfortable, affordable and highly wearable headset... one of the best we've ever tried... and deserving of a REPEAT selection as one of our Products Of The Year.

FMI: www.clarityaloft.com