Reviews

Logitech G930 Headset Review – Wireless Gaming Performance with Surround Sound

2013-10-09 by QTOOTH

The Logitech G930 Wireless Headset has become the “go to” headset for many gamers and frequent online chatters, and we understand why. Here’s a closer look at how it got to be that way.

Overall Physical Design

First, the headsets themselves are very comfortable to wear. Solid construction while staying lightweight, they feel built to last. Big, chunky, and with a simple plastic finish,we have to admit they are not one of the better looking headsets out there. But they are highly functional. Each feature is logically located and well-thought out. The headband that arches between the two ear cups is uniquely cushioned with memory foam that forms to the wearer’s head. This lends extra stability to how they mount and can be especially handy when the tunes are rockin’ or you are instinctively ducking when under heavy fire in your gamer’s world. The ear cups are well padded and should easily surround most players ears. Take it from someone who’s got some pretty big ears! These are a sealed back ear cups, which is great for isolating you from getting distracted by ambient sound in your immediate environment but may make the side of your head sweat a bit if you tend to run on the hot side.

What Makes this Wireless Headset Different

The Logitech G930 Wireless Headset has very good sound characteristics. This begins with the fact that Logitech has chosen to use a style of wireless signal that is similar in nature to WiFi. And just like some WiFi signals, it transmits on the 2.4GHz frequency spectrum. Why is this a good thing? Well, because many wireless headsets use Bluetooth wireless for their signal. Bluetooth is an excellent form of wireless that is perfect for voice and some other basic audio. Although it has been steadily improving in sound over the last few years, courtesy of companies like AdaptX, it still uses highly compressed audio data that limits the depth and detail of your audio. This will probably change over the next few years, but for now utilizing a wireless signal like the one that Logitech has for the G930 gives you full spectrum, uncompressed audio today. What good are the best speakers and microphones in a headset if the audio signal through which it is being delivered can’t take advantage of that quality? Logitech’s claims their proprietary wireless technology is up to 38% faster than Bluetooth. They hope that this means you won’t experience any delayed audio. Not sure if there really is that much of a difference in the end result, but if you rely on audio cues to give you an edge in video game perhaps that will mean one more check in your win column. The Logitech G930 can also automatically hop between frequencies to avoid other signals that might create interference and should keep the signal clear and strong. The claimed range of the wireless signal is 40 feet (12m) and we’ve found this to be pretty consistent. So kudos to Logitech for doing it right and choosing a great wireless protocol.

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The signal begins at the transmitter which takes the form of a simple, black USB device that will fit directly into any USB port. It will also plug in to the included hub-like charging base. This handy accessory comes with a long standard USB cable on one end and a micro USB cable on the other. In the middle of the charger is a USB port. Here you can plugin the transmitter and then use the micro USB cable to charge the headset. You can even use the charging base to power the headset and use it like a wired device when the battery gets low. Very flexible!

Controls

All of the controls are located on the left ear cup . This consists of three customizable buttons, a mute button for the microphone, a Dolby Digital switch and a power button. We should note we like having the controls here instead of inline on the cable or on a separate mixer. You will always know where they are and won’t find yourself scrambling to find the controls.

Microphone

The flip-down microphone is also located next to the controls, putting everything you need quick access to in one place. The microphone is of decent quality, providing clear communication. It has built-in noise cancelling so your listeners will only hear you, not whatever is going on in the room near you. The microphone auto-mutes when in the up position and un-mutes itself when in the down position, ready for use. There is a convenient red light on the microphone arm that turns on when it is muted. This gives you a visual cue as to whether or not you can be heard. So, light on? Talk smack! Light off? Be careful what you say!

Sound

The Logitech G930 Wireless Headset does a great job at recreating the full spectrum of audio. Although not reference quality like you’d find in a recording studio they had crisp, well-defined treble response, smooth mids and a well rounded, full bass sound. Sure, the bass could’ve been tighter and punchier, but in this price range AND being wireless we thought they performed well. They can get very loud without breaking up at all. Although note to users!! You may want to go easy on setting the EQ controls. Some people have complained of some distortion in the audio at higher volumes. In our experience over boosting the EQ was the cause. Use the EQ to sculpt the sound, not boost the volume, and you should be fine. As for the Dolby 7.1 surround sound circuitry, we found it to be quite convincing. It can certainly help you locate opponents and other elements more quickly in a gaming situation.

Conclusion

Make no mistake, although most users will be buying these for gaming, they also make a great choice for internet chats, phone calls, and watching movies and television. It’s also great that Logitech has made all of the included accessories easily replaceable through retailers. It’s always a pain in the butt when we accidentally break an accessory to one of our devices and then have to beg the manufacturer to “allow” us to buy it separately. Versatile, easy to use, good performance and well supported are the reasons why the Logitech G930 has become one of the most popular choices in a full-size wireless headset.

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Samsung Galaxy Gear – The Evolution of the Smartwatch

2013-09-04 by QTOOTH

Amid great fanfare, Samsung introduced their Galaxy Gear. The occasion for the introduction was the IFA 2013 Consumer Electronics Show, the largest of its kind in the world. It is even bigger than the CES trade show that is held every year in Las Vegas. There are so many exciting things coming out of this year’s event that it may take a while for us here at QTOOTH to even cover it all. For Samsung, this is their first foray into the brave new world of smartwatches. Let’s take a look at some of the exciting things that it represents, where they got it right and where they might want to improve the product.

First, let’s talk about the fact that smartwatches will not be for everyone. The wearing of watches is at an all time low no matter how smart they are. People are quite comfortable with getting thew time and just about every other type of data from the smartphones, or their computers, cars, tablets, radios, etc… So even despite this limited market, it is interesting to see so many manufacturers getting on the bandwagon i the rush to provide some form of smartwatch. There are already ones on the market from major players like Casio, Nike and Sony, and the leading edge of this mania came from the small upstarts like the Pebble, Agent, and others. It is also a very strong rumor that Apple will be introducing their own smartwatch within the next few weeks.

Of course the reason we here at QTOOTH have our reservations when it comes to any form of smartwatch is the fact that they are not hands free. For us the reason to go wireless is so that we can “un-tether” ourselves from our technology. Just by the very nature of a wrist mounted device means that it will take not just one hand to operate but two! One to wear the device and the other to operate whatever interface is included. Plus, the watch is located near your hand which is often located in a position that makes it difficult to see, or to hear. Of course some things on a watch can be voice-controlled, but so far we haven’t seen a lot of functionality that can be accessed by voice alone on these first smartwatches.

That said, the Galaxy Gear is one of the best options in a smartwatch that we have seen so far. Seeing that all of the might of a behemoth like Samsung is behind the project, including all of their available technologies, this shouldn’t come as a surprise. Starting with its screen, the Galaxy Gear has a 320 x 320-pixel, 1.63″ diagonal AMOLED touchscreen. The brain of this smartwatch is provided by an 800 MHz processor powered by a 315mAh battery. For audio, it has a speaker and a pair of mics for recording and playing back video content. This also allows for communicating with phone calls using the built-in dialer that works with whatever Galaxy device to which it is paired. Mounted into the wrist strap itself is a BSI (back-illuminated sensor, or back-sided illumination) sensor with an autofocus lens so that the wearer can capture 1.9-megapixel still images or 10-second videos at 720p, 640 or VGA quality resolution with sound. We have yet to get clarification as to whether the sound is captured in stereo via the two onboard mics or whether those mics are only paired for noise cancellation purposes when in use for making phone calls. Samsung states that the camera is designed more for convenience than it is for image quality. The camera also comes with a pre-installed app called Memographer for media management.

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So far there are a few dozen apps that will be available for the Galaxy Gear upon launch. This may be what sets this watch apart from the others. If Samsung can get a large amount of truly useful apps available quickly it will give it a real edge over the other entrants into this field. Like most of the other smartwatches, Gear can only display one app at a time due to its limited screen size and resolution. Each app is displayed as what’s known as a “card”, which is basically a slightly over-sized icon. To navigate your way around from one app to the next all you need to do is swipe the touchscreen with your finger. The other means of navigating your way through the watch’s offerings is to use the single button that is located on the right side of the body. A single press of this button will bring you to the home screen. Double pressing the button launches Samsung’s S Voice for voice controlling options and as triple press activates the “safety assistance” feature which will send your location info and a message to a saved contact in the event of an emergency.

As much as it seems like the Galaxy Gear should exhibit some real power, it seems a bit slow when executing some pretty basic functions, like launching an app. This is surprising considering that its processor is faster than what many of us had in our main computers just a few years ago. Part of the reason for this may be because it is communicating and synching with the wirelessly attached device. This might be something that will improve as updates become available, even with its current hardware configuration. Some of the apps that did perform very well though were the watch faces, of which optional ones can be uploaded from the Gear’s Android companion app, as well as the Music app which is basically a remote control for any native or 3rd party app currently active on the connected device.

There are some odd limitations that come with what we are sure is the first generation of this device. Only 10 3rd party apps can be uploaded at a time. The interface could use a little bit of refining for a smoother experience. But one of the most interesting things is the fact that the S Voice feature can only be accessed by tapping the side button twice. That might be hard to do if your hands are otherwise occupied and misses the point of being hands-free. It would be nice if they included a specific voice command that would activate the voice control functions. That can be done as shown by Google Glass’ “Ok, Glass” to activate its voice command. As much as we’ve slagged on their device, that is one of the things that Google definitely got right.

We have a mixed review as far as the look of the device is concerned. Leaked reports had the Galaxy Gear looking pretty hefty but the one on display today was much more svelte. However, it is still pretty big and considering the color options that they have so far. Two of the colors are Rose Gold and Mocha Gray which are definitely aimed at a more feminine fashion sense. The size of this device look plenty awkward in our opinion when worn on even slightly petite wrists. For men it seems to be just about right in size and proportion. Men may prefer the JET Black or Oatmeal color, but for the sporty or flashy of any persuasion they may opt for the Wild Orange or Lime Green. Speaking of which, because of the utilitarian/industrial funkiness of the design this may not be what many people would want to wear on more formal occasions, but we suppose that is a subjective call.

Battery life on this device is pretty much limited to a single day of “regular” use. We are not sure what that means exactly yet, but that certainly puts it in a different class of fashion accessory than the average watch which can be worn for months at a time, or longer, depending on a person’s needs. That means that the Samsung Galaxy Gear will need to spend a fair amount of time on its included micro-USB-equipped plastic charging dock. The dock connects through five metal pins, or leads, located on the rear of the watch.

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Another limitation, and perhaps its most significant, is that it is only compatible so far with the Galaxy Note 3 and the new Note 10.1. It is most likely to work with the Galaxy S4 phone when it gets the Android 4.3 update. What’s really unfortunate though is the fact that it will most likely never work with any non-Samsung smartphone or tablet.

So, to be honest, the future has arrived and the Dick Tracy watch is now a reality. In fact, it’s better and more powerful than anything he could’ve imagined. And yet will people want it? We’d love to get your feedback in the comments below or contact us directly.

The Samsung Galaxy Gear Smartwatch will cost $299 when it starts shipping on September 25th to the world, except to the US and Japan who will have to wait until October. Strange release dates. Perhaps they just want to tease the two biggest markets for a bit? Or perhaps they’re afraid that they’ll sell out immediately once the US and Japan csan get them directly. We’ll see!

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Logitech UE Boombox Review: The Bluetooth Wireless Speaker by Which Others are Judged?

2013-08-23 by QTOOTH

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The Logitech UE Boombox

Straight up, no-frills. It just works. There’s a reason why this Bluetooth wireless speaker is often used as the reference point by which other products on the market are judged.

So just what does the “UE” in the name Logitech UE Boombox mean? Logitech purchased the company Ultimate Ears (UE) a while back and it is through this collaboration that they were able to start turning out some great audio products.

The $250 Logitech UE Boombox has been designed from the ground up to support four internal drivers and four custom tuned passive drivers. Apparently its appearance was inspired by the legendary designer Dieter Rams from Braun and by Jonathan Ive of Apple fame. Who knew? It definitely exhibits a certain elegance, a logical layout to the controls, and simplicity of use.

Construction

Constructed of brushed aluminum and featuring a sculpted handle, the Logitech UE Boombox is definitely made to be ready-to-go. The stainless steel grill and the rubber feet should help make this portable speaker fairly ding resistant, but in general you might be better served to put it in a backpack, bag, or some type of carrying case. Some competitors supply their wireless speakers with some type of protection. It would’ve been nice if Logitech did too. Or at least made one available.

Hooking It Up

The Logitech UE Boombox is made to play music by connecting to a music source such as a phone, mp3 player, or similar device. It does this ether wirelessly through a Bluetooth connection or wired directly using a 3.5mm cable. Pairing a Bluetooth-enabled device is pretty straight forward and similar to most wireless speakers on the market. First, make sure your other device, be it a phone, computer, mp3 player, etc…, is in its discovery mode, then press the large Bluetooth connect at the top of the side control panel. They should find each other pretty easily.

Setting the Controls

The controls are very easy to navigate and most people may never need to read the instructions to get what they need out of this device. The control buttons are arranged vertically on the side panels at each end of the boombox. On the left side panel and starting from the top is the Bluetooth Pairing button, then the power switch, then 3.5mm auxiliary input jack to connect external devices, and at the bottom is the power port. The specifications for the rechargeable battery claim a 6-hour lifespan and we found that to be the case. On the right side panel, there are two large volume buttons with clearly marked positive and negative symbols to indicate which one does what function.

A really great feature of this wireless boombox is the fact that it can pair with up to three devices at a time. This means you could connect it to your phone, tablet and computer at the same time and easily switch between each one. Logitech suggests using this feature with friends so that each of you can take turns playing disk jockey from their own device. Hey, why not?

So, How Does the Logitech UE Boombox Sound?

Since Logitech and Ultimate Ears worked together to sculpt the sound of the Boombox the results are far louder than might be imagined for its size. It achieves this by both active speakers and specially tuned porting. The Logitech UE Boombox has a pair of half-inch tweeters that produce a very smooth, detailed treble response. Two 3-inch woofers deliver a tight, full-throated mid range. These feed four, custom-tuned 2.75-inch passive radiators coupled with the rubber casing surrounding them to deliver deeply resonant yet defined bass. It easily competes with Bluetooth speakers like the Bose SoundLink 2 and the Jawbone BigJambox.

Even though the audio is compressed due to the nature of the Bluetooth wireless specification, and this is true for all Bluetooth wireless speakers, the Logitech UE Boombox did a great job in all of the tests we put it through, jamming with everything from hip hop, classical, rock and more. The sound was clear, even when pushing the upper limits of its volume capabilities. And that’s saying a lot, cause this baby gets LOUD.

Conclusion

So, does it do as well as the Bose SoundLink 2, the reigning top of the heap for this type of device? Not quite, bit since the Bose is pretty much $299 no matter who you buy it from, and the $249 Logitech can often be found for $199, for something that is 2/3rds the price the Logitech UE Boombox comes incredibly close. And that is why the Logitech UE Boombox gets used as the reference point by which to compare the competition. The value versus quality make it undeniable.

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Jawbone ERA – Is It Really The Best? – Review

2013-08-13 by QTOOTH

We’re very hard on Bluetooth headsets here at QTOOTH and the Jawbone ERA is no exception. Here’s our take on one of the most universally praised headsets on the market.

The Jawbone ERA Bluetooth Headset, manufactured by the Aliph company who are also the makers of the Jawbone Up, was introduced as an update from their popular and successful Jawbone Icon. It was meant to have superior audio and to improve on the fit and comfort of its predecessor. Unfortunately in our opinion it didn’t quite do either. Please keep in mind that we have owned several of both models and have used them extensively. It is from this experience that we are drawing our opinions.

First up is the audio quality. The audio fidelity on this might be just fine… except that it is not nearly loud enough. This lack of volume is true for either the user or for the person on the other end of the call. The ERA uses what is known as “adaptive volume” control. That means that the audio level should automatically increase or decrease depending on the volume level of the wearer’s environment. We’re fine with that if the it actually did a good job of matching, or competing with, the surrounding noise. We found that it is lacking in this department. It would be great if there was some way to manually set a base volume level from which the adaptive circuitry could then make its adjustments. Instead the user is stuck with whatever volume the circuit decides it should be. It just didn’t do its job to our satisfaction. We much prefer the quick and easier manual controls that were on the Jawbone Icon.

Second, the positioning of the Voice Activity Sensor is far more finicky than the Jawbone Icon. The Voice Activity Sensor, or VAS (see diagram below), rests on your cheek and turns on the microphones by detecting when you are speaking by the vibrations that are conducted through your jawbone (hence the name).

We’ve found that even small variations on where the VAS is placed means the difference between a normal sounding voice when we speak versus the ERA switching to its conduction mode which essentially makes us sound like a robot. The conduction mode means that the normal microphones are shut off and all audio is picked up only through the vibrations of the voice that are transmitted through the body. FYI: Conduction is the same technology being used for both transmitting and receiving audio with the Google Glass project. It is another of Google’s many feature missteps with Glass’ introduction. Bone conduction just can’t replace normal hearing fidelity experienced by the human ear. However it must be said that bone conduction technology is an absolute miracle when it comes to hearing aids and helping those with hearing loss. Once again, the Voice Activity Sensor feature was far more forgiving and workable in the Jawbone Icon.

Third, we must take issue with Jawbone advertising these as having HD (high definition) audio. HD audio means something very specific and these headsets do not met the criteria. The Jawbone ERA uses the A2DP audio protocol for Bluetooth which is limited to 320 kbit/s for mono and 512 kbit/s for stereo. This means that it is impossible for these headsets to transfer audio information at the rate required to deliver HD audio which is specified as 1,411.2 kbit/s (CD quality) or up to 6.144 Mbit/s (Dolby Digital Plus) or even 18 Mbit/ s. True, there are some “lossless” formats that can be in the 400 – 1,411 kbit/s like FLAC but they are not standards accepted by the industry as being HD. Now that said, 320 kbit/s isn’t bad. In fact, that’s considered to be on the high end for the MP3 format. You know, the quality at which iTunes and similar services decide they can charge you about a dollar extra per track? So, yes, it is good quality audio for the format but to call it HD is very misleading.

And finally, the last thing we want bring up is how they came so close to turning the world of Bluetooth headsets on its ear, so to speak, by the inclusion of motion sensors. Right now they are using this circuitry for a “shake to pair” and “tap-to-answer” functions. Although we find these features fun, they are a bit gimmicky. It would’ve been so cool if it could be used for controlling a cursor, for instance, or for controlling any other type of device by motions of the head. This could also be incredibly enabling for those with motor issues, think quadriplegics or amputees for example. Jawbone says they have plans in the works for a pedometer that utilizes this circuitry and for releasing the API so that other people can develop apps for it, but it’s been close to two years or so and still no word. Maybe they were too busy developing and re-developing their UP Fitness Band. It uses similar electronics and had flaws upon its initial entry into the market. This just seems like a missed opportunity when it comes to the Jawbone ERA.

So, now that we’ve taken Aliph to task for their Jawbone ERA, please know that we are still fans and think that their Jawbone Icon is still one of the very best on the market. There is strong competition from the likes of Plantronics, Jabra, Blue Ant, Motorola and Bose, but Jawbone’s got game. We just look forward to seeing where they might be able to take it next. And if you are going to buy, you might want to go for the Jawbone Icon.

For more details, check out the videos at the bottom of this post.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GPYwxvqW7s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUjKai_fccM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OpN22N3lIaQ

Mad Style and Sound with the Beats by Dr. Dre Pill Bluetooth Wireless Speaker

2013-08-10 by QTOOTH

What kid doesn’t like candy? For the kid in us all, Beats by Dr. Dre has brought us the Pill Bluetooth Wireless Speaker in an array of candy colors. Not only is it a powerful, compact speaker for listening to music but it also works as a speaker phone to make calls hands-free using any Bluetooth compatible phone. It is pretty impressive how much sound a lot of these type of devices get (take a look at the Jawbone Jambox, Cambridge SoundWorks Oontz, JBL Micro or Flip,etc…) considering how small they are. The Pill is truly wireless. Sound is provided by hooking up any Bluetooth compatible audio device, like a phone/mp3 player/tablet/laptop, and, because it runs on a rechargeable battery that can last up to 5-7 hours, it is cord-free. For some reason all of the manufacturers for these types of devices want to make them look HUGE. However, once you see them in person you realize just how small they are. The Pill is lightweight and can literally be tucked in a cargo pocket or a backpack. It even comes with carabiner clip on its carry case so you can attach it to your backpack. Here’s a decent representation of how big it really is (and this person’s hand is prety small):

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Even though there are a lot of similarities in this crowded field of competitor’s there are a few features that set it apart:

The Pill Bluetooth Wireless Speaker features NFC, otherwise known as Near Field Communication, which is a form of very low power wireless that allows you to simply tap your phone on the speaker and it have it automatically connect, or pair, via Bluetooth. Can’t get much easier than that. It does require an NFC capable phone, however. Most of the recent Android phones have it, unfortunately the iPhone doesn’t…yet. Rumor has it that the iPhone 5s or 6, or whatever it will ultimately be called, is supposed to have it. We here at QTOOTH sure hope so. We’ll see!

The Pass-through Audio feature means that the Pill has both in and out jacks. So even without an NFC/Bluetooth device you can still hook up your computer or other audio source with a cable. This also means that the audio out can make any audio system into a Bluetooth sound device. Leave it plugged in to your home stereo system and stream music from your phone, laptop or tablet. This is a massive plus when comparing the Pill to the competition.

The Pill can also act as a speaker phone capability and does it with an ease that is missing from other models. One button does it all when it comes to a call. If you are listening to music and a call comes in you the option to answer it with through the Pill. Tap the ‘b’ button on the front the answer. If another call comes in while you are still on the first call, tap and hold to ignore or tap quickly to switch to the new call. Switch back and forth between the calls with another button tap or hang up with a sustained press of the button. The calls quality was very clear without a lot of shouting or ambient noise.

And did we mention the riot of colors this comes in? The light pink one pictured above is a limited edition Nick Minaj version. All of the other colors for the Pill Bluetooth Wireless Speaker are pictured below.

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Black

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White

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DualShock 4 Wireless Controller Specs & Latest News

2013-08-08 by QTOOTH

Recently announced alongside the Sony’s latest game console incarnation, the PlayStation 4, was the DualShock 4 Wireless Controller. It is a major update to previous generations of Sony’s controllers. Sony has added a touchpad, 6-axis motion and position sensors, a built-in speaker and a 3-LED Light bar for additional immersive gameplay features all while maintaining the classic DualShock button layout and design.

Sony anticipates being able to ship the DualShock 4, the main PlayStation 4 console, and the other related accessories for the 2013 Holiday season. Order up!

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