Warm-sounding wireless
headphones that can be tricky to control
Sick of wires getting in
your way while you listen to music? Try a pair of Bluetooth headphones, such as
the iMage Beatz From Accuratus.
Pleasingly, the Beatz
generally sidestep the usual down sides of wireless models. For one thing,
they’re pretty affordable — not a budget pair by any means, but well within
reach For the average buyer. Whereas only one of the models in our wireless
headphones group test last issue came in under $120.
The sound quality on
Bluetooth headphones, too, can sometimes suffer a little — interference can
creep into the signal. But other than a very slight lack of clarity (they’re
prone to the merest hint of fuzziness), we really rated these headphones’ audio
output. They’re warm, rich and adept at handling moderate amounts of bass.
High volumes can push them
into the realms of minor distortion, however, and may introduce sound leakage
into the equation. These are not designed for sound isolation.
Physically the Beatz are
great, with a clean, smart look and a comfortable but secure fit on the head.
You can adjust their size by extending the arms, and they fold up for
portability.
The only really serious
issue we had was with the built-in touch controls. There’s a large central
button that allows you to answer and end incoming calls, which worked fine, but
this is surrounded by four controls for volume up and down, Past- Forward and
rewind, and these did not. For one thing it’s hard to locate them blind — all
you have to help you is the moulded icons on each control, and as soon as your
finger hits one it activates. And they can be frustratingly unresponsive.
A qualified, but highly
satisfied, recommendation. The Accuratus iMage Beatz aren’t cheap, of course,
but as wireless over-ears go they’re not ruinously expensive either; and the
sound quality and corn Fort factors are strong. We’d just recommend that you
control your songs using the iPhone itself, rather than the awkward built-in
controls. David Price
The skinny
Likes: Good sound
quality; comfortable t; smart looks
Dislikes: On-headphone
controls difficult to use— particularly rewind
Rating 4 stars
