Philips SHB9100
Price: $130
Ratings: 4/5
Web: www.usa.philips.com
Philips’s SHB9100 Bluetooth stereo headset
offers some compelling features. First, although it’s a lightweight, on-ear
headset, the earpads are large enough to cover most ears. These comfortable,
soft cushions also offer good passive noise isolation; during a recent plane
trip, I found the noise isolation sufficient while I watched a movie on my
iPad.
The
design improves fit, and while the earpad material can make your ears warm,
it’s easy to forget the earpads’ presence
A second cushion behind each main one
allows the earpads to pivot slightly for the particular angles of your ears and
head. The design improves fit, and while the earpad material can make your ears
warm, it’s easy to forget the earpads’ presence. The grip is fairly tight, but
you won’t want to wear the SHB9100 while running.
Once you’ve “broken in” the SHB9100 with a
few hours of listening, the audio quality is quite good. While the bass
performance isn’t anywhere near that of the good set of wired, full-size
headphones, I didn’t feel that I was missing much (compare to my expectations
for portable headphones). Audio is clear and balanced, with good midrange and
treble, plus very good stereo imaging. The highest frequencies can be a bit
fuzzy, but most music I tested the SHB9100 with didn’t exhibit this issue.
The SHB9100 runs on a battery that you
recharge with a USB-to-Mini-USB cable (included). Philips claims that the
battery should last for 9 hours of use. Using the SHB9100 for about 2 hours a
day, I got through several days without the battery waning. The SHB9100 also
comes with a standard headphone cable, which you can use if the batteries run
out – a nice touch.
The
SHB9100 runs on a battery that you recharge with a USB-to-Mini-USB cable
(included).
My only complaint is that the audio quality
on phone calls was disappointing. I could hear callers just fine, but they had
trouble hearing me, even when I help my hand up in an attempt to channel my
voice toward the microphone in the right earpiece.
Getting both comfort and good sound isn’t
easy with Bluetooth headphones, but Philips’s SHB9100 offers a nice balance
between the two.
BodyMedia Fit Core
Price: $120
Ratings:
2.5/5
Web: www.bodymedia.com
The
Fit Core fitness tracker is a lightweight band that fits neatly around your
upper arm
The Fit Core fitness tracker is a
lightweight band that fits neatly around your upper arm. Its biggest strength
is its ability to accurately track calories burned: Thanks to its sensors, it
tracks not just your activity but also your body’s reaction. It also monitors
steps taken and sleep duration.
Unfortunately, it has some major drawbacks.
Because the Core does not display any information itself, you need to pay $7 a
month to subscribe to the BodyMedia Fit Activity Tracker service. (When you buy
the Core, you get three months of Activity Tracker for free.) You can opt to
buy a $69 display, which syncs with the Core and gives you a quick view of your
progress, but you’ll still need to pay for Activity Tracker if you want to see
overall charts and trends.
The
Fit Core fitness tracker is a lightweight band that fits neatly around your
upper arm
Activity Tracker and the Core also work
with BodyMedia Fit mobile app. But since the Core lacks built-in Bluetooth, the
app lets you see your daily numbers only after you have synced your mobile
device with the server by plugging it into your computer via Micro-USB – which
defeats the purpose of having a mobile app.
If you’re watching your weight, the Core is
an accurate calorie monitor. But the Activity Tracker subscription adds to the
price and without it, the device is basically useless.
