PX210BT Headphones
COMPANY: Sennheiser
Price: $147 on Amazon
http://www.sennheiserusa.com
The Sennheiser PX210BT earphones are a comfortable against-the-ear headset designed to be used wirelessly with any newer Bluetooth compatible device. They also come with a USB cable that can be plugged into an external power source or computer output so that when the built- in rechargeable battery is low or exhausted you can still listen to music as you would with any other set of wired earphones. If you’re going to use them with an iPhone, keep in mind they do not come with a microphone.
I’ve tried many different earphones but none that were Bluetooth enabled. I’ve been told that on some Bluetooth headphones the sound quality can be weak or inconsistent, but this is decidedly not the case with the PX210BT headphones. The sound is clear, distortion-free, and lifelike. The Sennheisers have a wonderful mid and upper range and are free of the thundering bass that makes you feel like you’re trapped in the percussion section of a 110-piece orchestra. Which is not to say that the bass is anemic. It is not. It is simply well-balanced, which makes the listening experience infinitely more satisfying.
I compared them with an older set of Sony against-the-ear earphones that I’ve had for many years and the difference was striking. The Sonys had a deeper bass that bled through every other tone, creating an indiscriminate muffling effect. The sound on the Sonys was so muffled by the bass boost I felt like I was listening under a pillow. Switching to the Sennheisers, by contrast, was like listening to a finely tuned piano that produced music that was crisp and precise.
The headband and earcups on the PX210BT headphones are nicely cushioned and comfortable enough to be worn for extended periods of time without wearing you out. Controls on the right earcup allow you to increase or decease the volume whether you’re using them wirelessly or connected to the computer, but only in Bluetooth do you have the added functionality of being able to change tracks.
There are several positive features about these earphones. The setup was simple. I went to System Preferences, clicked on the Bluetooth icon and OS X quickly discovered the Sennheisers and paired with them. After that, any time I wanted to use the phones wirelessly I just powered them on by pressing the middle of the right earcup. A message would appear on my iMac’s screen asking if I wanted to use the Sennheiser headphones. Click on yes and off you go.
In order for this to work as effortlessly as I’ve described, the included lithium battery must be fully charged. The battery will last for up to 10 hours, so to be really useful I found it best to plug mine into a USB port and let it recharge whenever it’s not in use. A full recharge takes three hours.
This is the first set of Bluetooth earphones I’ve tried, and I was surprised at how much I enjoyed being free of any wires. The wireless range of 30 feet isn’t exactly enormous, but it’s decent enough if you’re just using them in your office or a short distance from your home computer.
I found them particularly convenient when playing my midi-controller. Usually I would plug my earphones into my monitor speakers and spare my wife the pain of listening to me practicing piano, but it was always a little distracting having the earphone wire dangling nearby. The Bluetooth earphones eliminated that annoyance, but keep in mind that for this to work the battery in the earphones must be fully charged. If you start playing on your keyboard and the music sounds dizzy, the reason is a weak battery. Recharge the battery and before you know it you’ll be sounding like Keith Jarrett again.
The PX210BT headphones are lightweight and collapsible. They fold into a small pouch and can easily be be used when traveling. A nice inclusion is four different AC wall plug adapters, for international usage and travel charging.
MyMac Review Rating: 8 out of 10
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