 Finally, wireless street styles |
| Review Date: October 22, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Maki, Minneapolis |
The only headphones I've ever trusted are Sony classic Street Style - they're comfortable, affordable, and have great sound quality. When I realized Sony had released this wireless pair, I was all over them.
I had previously tried the Motorola HT820 Bluetooth headphones because I've long been interested in wireless audio, so most of my comparison will be to those.
Design
The Street Style form of these headphones is excellent - I prefer this style compared to over-the-head headphones, and I have a terrible time with earbuds.
The neck band is almost exactly the same as a pair of wired Street Style headphones, with a little less bulk and no rubber "ear rests" that would sit on top of your ear. The band doesn't seem to grip your ears as well as a pair of wired Street Styles, but they are nearly as comfortable.
The "foldable" design is something I could do without. I wouldn't care whether or not they folded, but the stock photo does not show how they redesigned the neck band to accommodate the fold. Instead of being a perfect curve, the neck band comes to a subtle pointed shape where it folds. Less attractive, but it makes no difference while you're wearing them.
Performance
These headphones offer excellent sound quality, but only expect to get this when using the A2DP (advanced audio) Bluetooth profile (this goes for any Bluetooth headphones). This is only available on certain cell phones, with an adapter, or with special software on a computer. In my situation, I set these up with my MacBook Pro's built-in Bluetooth, but I have to use a software workaround to broadcast A2DP in Mac OS Tiger (a Google search will help you find that).
The sound is surprisingly rich and satisfying. I don't think of myself as an audiophile, but if the sound is bad, I can't get into the music - and with these I've had very little trouble focusing on my music.
In order to get a good balance of music and vocals, I did have to adjust the equalization in iTunes (unlike wired headphones, which I normally just plug in and go). With too much low frequency sound (bass) I did find that some music had an occasional popping noise - lowering those levels eliminated that issue and the phones still produce a good amount of bass. The effective frequency range on these is limited but I'm not sure if this is a result of the wireless technology or the speakers. I can't imagine Sony would use lousy speakers in something with an MSRP ten times the amount of a fine pair of their wired headphones.
These headphones hold a very steady connection, within range. The Motos often cut out during simple movements like bending over to pick something up. I can safely exercise and move about a room without these dropping the connection.
The battery life is more than acceptable for my use. I've used them for about 2 hours a day for the past 3 days and haven't had to do a second charge yet.
Bluetooth/Wireless Faults
There are a few issues which I blame on the Bluetooth/wireless technology, as it's just not perfect yet.
There is a very subtle amount of static that can be heard when no music is playing, and sometimes in songs with less background music. This may also vary based on the device you're connecting to. I have tried eliminating interference and the static seems constant. It usually fades into the music while listening.
If you're connected to a stationary object like a computer, don't expect to leave the room with these on. Bluetooth has a very limited range. If you use them with a cell phone or just in a single room, you'll be fine.
I can't use my wireless Mighty Mouse while I'm listening to these. Both operating on Bluetooth, the mouse causes the audio to cut out every few seconds. Not sure about other Bluetooth devices, but expect interference. Wireless router doesn't seem to cause disconnection though.
Summary
My expectations of wireless headphones is very low. These are definitely a step in the right direction though. While the Motorola HT820 may have decent sound quality with A2DP (not tested), the Sony DRBT21G triumphs in comfort due to it's lighter and less bulky design.
If you are able to connect to a device with A2DP and don't mind the caveats of wireless technology, I would recommend these as the best I have found so far. I bought these for about $95 but they're worth the $129.99 retail price. The freedom is worth it! |
Great for every situation.
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| Review Date: September 4, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Kevin Boonsiri, |
These headphones have performed great everywhere I've used them. They sound great both indoors and outdoors (while running) and I have yet to have a single problem with the BlueTooth reception. Sometimes I'll put my phone in a thick leather case and then put it in my pocket and still the BlueTooth reception is unaffected.
The fit is good as well. They are lightweight and comfortable, while still covering the ears completely to provide the best sound. The controls are easy to use and intuitive. You don't really save that much space when you fold these up, but it's still nice to have that option.
They also work well as a headset. I was very surprised at how well the microphone picked up my voice considering where its located. Also the incoming call is routed to both ears, something other stereo headphones won't do.
The battery life and charge times are about what the manual states, 3 hours to charge a completely dead battery and around 11 hours of usage.
Overall I highly recommend these headphones. I use them with a Samsung Blackjack. |
superb bluetooth headphones/headset!
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| Review Date: September 21, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Anchit Panchal, Chicago, IL USA |
I know of all the horror stories about bluetooth headsets/headphones. too much static/hiss, frequent connection drops, short-lasting battery, just stopped working randomly, etc. although i had absolutely no issue with them at all, i was really getting sick of my wired $15 behind-the-neck sony headphones, because of backpack issues and having the wire just flail around even if i get rid of the slack.
after years of watching bluetooth headsets come into the market, i finally waited for sony to bring out some behind-the-neck style ones. unfortunately, there were hardly ANY reviews on this particular model. none of my friends knew they existed, and the reviews online were mixed/sporadic (cnet), and hardly useful to be honest. i wanted to see how good (or bad) they were for myself...and thank god, they are great.
pros:
-it pairs with my macbook pro perfectly. i have a late 2008 15" macbook pro, and it paired wonderfully without any hitches. it detected the headphones right away and set it up for headphone mode (used for listening obviously) and headset mode (as a microphone). unfortunately, there isnt any way to use them at the same time though, so you're stuck with using the headphones to listen and the built-in mic on the mbp to speak, or vice versa. ive paired them successfully in 10.5.7/10.5.8, and 10.6.0/10.6.1. in snow leopard, it also gives you the option to use it in mono mode or stereo mode, but im sure most people will use it in stereo mode. :)
-it pairs with my iphone perfectly. i have an iphone 3GS and it detected the headphones right away. the best part is that the iphone DOES use them at the same time! you can be listening to whatever you have on your iphone (ipod, live streaming from an app, etc), and if a call comes in, the headphones will make a noise indicating that you have a call. also, if you own a 3GS and have updated to 3.1, you can press the button on the right earpiece and it will go to voice control! now that is pretty handy!
-the controls on the right earpiece are nice too. in addition to the power button and the "voice control" button that i just explained above, there is a rocker thing that you push up to go to the next track and push below to go to the previous track. if you push the rocker/button thing itself, it will pause/play. there are also dedicated volume up/down buttons too. for my 3GS, these took over in terms of changing the volume, and it was nice considering i didnt have to pull out my iphone just to change the volume.
-the battery life is superb. ive gotten 10-15 hours on this thing nonstop.
-works in airplanes too (in case anyone was wondering). ive used it domestically and internationally without any problems! however, one time my iphone's audio was skipping/hissing loudly at one point, but a restart solved that and i never experienced that issue again.
cons:
-the left and right earpieces are heavy, so it makes the plastic feel a little cheap and a bit loose. maybe its because it is foldable, but mine was loose from the beginning since i opened it. for example, you can hold either the left or right earpiece and you can see how heavy it is, because the entire other half of the thing will sag down a little. its not a dealbreaker by any means, but know that its not going to be extremely rigid/durable and perfectly made if you are used to really nice headphones.
-while people can definitely hear you if you use it has a bluetooth headset on the phone, their volume through the headphones is a bit low for my expectations. i was hoping for it to be loud, but even at the max volume, its still a bit too low...and unfortunately, if you are at max volume, you will definitely hear the hiss along with your callers voice. you can still hear the caller clearly, but the hiss might drive some people crazy.
-as of 3.1, AVRCP still isnt supported in the iphone 3GS bluetooth profiles. so this means you cant change/scroll through the track on the headphones itself, but only do play/pause, increase/decrease volume (separate from the iphone as i explained earlier), and the voice control button. of course, your mileage may vary, depending on what device you use these headphones on.
-even though i am an audiophile, i knew that getting bluetooth headphones meant static and hiss. even though this set has noticeably less of it than any other bluetooth headsets/headphones ive used, its still present, especially when cranking up the volume to its max.
-it would have been nice to have sony make this charge from usb and not from their famous "yellow plug" ac adapter. i dont like carrying around an extra ac adapter just to charge and i would rather have a usb cable instead, but its just a minor quirk though.
-i got my set from amazon.com's 3rd party seller for $40. prices seem to have gone up since then unfortunately...probably because they are so good! :p
-is there really a need for such a huge package/box for these to come in? sony needs to get on the bandwagon with "frustration-free" packaging. probably only me of course...:)
-using A2DP probably will drain your mobile devices' battery really fast and heat it up quite a bit. my iphone 3GS lasts just a few hours with bluetooth on/streaming, but that is to be expected from a phone that already pushes the limits of energy conservation right? :)
overall, this was definitely worth the $40 i paid for. if you see it online for more than $50, i wouldn't personally get it because i think that is too much to pay for a product thats been out for a little more than 2 years. if you can get over the static/hiss at its max volume, then this pair is excellent. its has all of the features i wanted from a bluetooth device - A2DP, AVRCP (currently not supported by apple...yet, i hope), dedicated volume, track, play/pause, and voice control buttons, great battery life, behind-the neck style, foldable, and best of all, the iphone supports it almost exactly how i want it to. i just wish it would make everyones calls sound loud at the max volume, and be able to charge via usb. other than that, i highly recommend it.
reviewed on late 2007 15" macbook pro (2.2Ghz, 8600GT 128MB) and late 2008 15" macbook pro (2.53Ghz, 9600GT 512MB) running both leopard 10.5.7/10.5.8 and snow leopard 10.6.0/10.6.1, as well as the iphone 3GS 32GB and ipod touch 16GB 2nd/3rd generation. |
Perfect headset to listen to music from your PC
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| Review Date: April 9, 2008 |
| Reviewer: E. Laneville, Los Angeles, CA United States |
Installation is fairly straigthforward. Once your PC finds the Bluetooth device, it installs drivers automatically (Windows Vista) through Windows Update and will stream your PC Audio to these.
Battery life is decent, a full charge lasts about 8 hours I'd say, at medium volume. |
A very good headset to buy for the money!
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| Review Date: January 11, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Lou Mac, Stratford,Ct. |
| I teamed this headst with a Samsung YP-P2JCB/8GB mp3 player and they perform well. If you are in need of deep base sound then you need to look elesewhere. This headset fits me fine and the controls take a little getting use to but what piece of equipment doesn't? I wont be looking for any better quality sounding headsets because they will cost more! If you don't have to have Bose quality sound then these will work great for you. They switch to the next song back and forth.I also teamed the headset with Sony Ericson W300i, I havent received a call to see how they interact with the phone. Overall, I am very pleased with the sound quality they provide and the distance from the player is roughly 30' but don't operate in front of a microwave oven,they will cut out but that is to be expected. They won't dissapoint for the price. |
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