BlitzWolf BW-FYE7 True Wireless Earbuds review

REVIEW – It’s not a state secret that I’ve reviewed quite a few Bluetooth earbuds over the past few years and although some have worked better for me than others, I am always on the hunt for the next pair that might more closely suit my needs.  The BlitzWolf BW-FYE7 True Wireless Earbuds caught my attention because of their ergonomically-angled ear tips, small size, and full-featured charging case.  But how did they work out for me?  Let’s find out.  Gadget on!

What is it?

The BlitzWolf BW-FYE7 True Wireless Earbuds are a pair of cord-free wireless earbuds that include their own charging/storage case.

What’s in the box?

  • BW-FYE7 earbuds
  • Small, Medium, and Large silicone ear tip pairs
  • Charging/storage case
  • Micro USB charging cable
  • Instruction manual

Hardware specs

  • Weight:
    • Single Earbud: 5g
    • Charging Case: 55g
    • Total Weight: 65g
  • Bluetooth:
    • Version:V5.0
    • Chip:AIROHA1526P
    • Supported Profiles:HSP/HFP/A2DP/AVRCP
    • Transmission Distance:33 feet (10m)
    • Frequency:2.402GHz-2.480GHz, Class 2
  • Charging
    • Current:500MA-1A
    • Charging Time:
      • Time in Charging the Earbuds——2H
      • Time in Charging the Battery Case——2H
  • Input Voltage:DC5.0V
  • Battery Capacity:
    • Earbud: 50mAh Polymer battery
    • Charging Box: 500 mAh Polymer battery
  • Battery Time:
    • Monaural Earbud with Full Electricity——3-4H
    • Consuming All the Electricity of the Charging Box——Up to 16H
    • Standby Time:120h
    • Call Time:3h
  • Materials:Polycarbonate + ABS
  • Dimensions:
    • Earbud: 26*13*30mm
    • Charging Box: 70*33*35.5mm
  • Water Resistance: IPX4
  • Operating Temperature:0℃ ~45℃

Design and features

My initial impressions of the BW-FYE7 True Wireless Earbuds were twofold: the earbuds themselves were quite small, and the charging/storage case was solid, and both looked and felt very high quality.

Features and size

Another aspect of the BW-FYE7’s design that piqued my initial interest was that the earbud “posts” were oriented at an angle to the main body of the earbuds.  My suspicion was that this was a feature to help situate the earbuds in the user’s ear in a more anatomic position.

Above and below are some photos of the earbuds themselves from various angles.  Another thing I noticed about these earbuds was that they just looked very high-tech and high quality, with the brass/gold colored posts and charging contact points, transparent components, and so on all combining to give a very expensive look and feel for a very affordable ~$40.

The BW-FYE7 included three pairs of soft silicone ear tip sizes.  Each had a core of hard plastic that helped keep them attached to the earbud posts.  Because of my larger than average ear canals, I immediately selected the largest-sized ear tips.

The ear tips were easy to install; I simply gave them a little twist as I pressed them down onto the earbud posts and did a visual check to confirm that they were fully seated.

The BW-FYE7’s main body had an oblong, essentially oval shape.  At first, it seemed to be a strange design choice—-many other true wireless earbuds are not shaped like this.  However, their shape did turn out to be significant; more on this later.

The photos above and below give a sense of the size of the BW-FYE7 earbuds.  I found them to be quite small and lightweight, which I like.

Setup

The outside of each of the earbuds had a single button and a tiny LED.  The button on each earbud is used to perform various functions.  For starters, a 3-second long press on the buttons will turn the earbuds on, while a 4-second long press will turn them off.  Three short presses will get Siri’s attention for voice commands.  When a call is incoming, a short press will answer it, a long press will reject it, and another short press will end an answered call.  A short press of either the right or left button when listening to music or podcasts will pause, a second short press will resume.  The only audio control that I found to be a bit challenging to learn was going to the next song, which required a 1.5-second longish press on the right earbud (I kept either pausing the music or shutting the earbud off altogether until I got the hang of it).  Similarly, going to the previous song required a 1.5-second longish press on the left earbud.  Overall, however, the BW-FYE7’s controls were more straightforward, intuitive, and reliable than just about any other Bluetooth earbuds I’ve tried.

Pairing the BW-FYE7  earbuds for the first time was quite straightforward.  I simply pulled each of them from their charging case and they turned themselves on automatically.  By the time I had situated them in my ears, a voice prompt was already pleasantly informing me, “Pairing mode activated.”  I went into the Bluetooth settings on my iPhone XR, ensured it was “discoverable” and quickly both BW-FYE7 R and BW-FYE7 L popped into the list.  I selected each of them and both connected to my iPhone XR and the pleasant voice informed me thusly.  I should mention here that in the vast majority of situations, the earbuds automatically re-connected themselves to my iPhone XR whenever I removed them from the charging case.  However, on a few occasions, such as if I removed them from the case and my iPhone XR was not within range, I did have to manually re-pair them with my iPhone XR, but the manual stereo re-pairing process was quite easy as well: simply hold down the multi-function buttons for 3 seconds to enter pairing mode (the tiny LEDs turn blue as seen above) and they reconnected to my iPhone XR on their own, without me even having to select them from the Bluetooth devices list again.  I’ve never tried a pair of Bluetooth headphones that stayed connected so well and were so easy to re-connect if needed.

Charging Case

As mentioned at the outset of this review, my initial impression of the BW-FYE7 True Wireless Earbuds’ charging/storage case was that it was solid and both looked and felt very high quality.

The oval-shaped BW-FYE7 earbuds each fit perfectly into oval-shaped slots in their charging case.  Also, they magnetically attached to the case, which helped not only secure them into the case but also helped properly orient them into their respective slots every single time—they just snapped right into position.  When the BW-FYE7 earbuds were placed in the charging case, the tiny LEDs on each of them illuminated red to indicate that they were being charged via the battery in the case.   I used the BW-FYE7 earbuds during multiple workout sessions lasting anywhere from 45 minutes to just shy of 2 hours, and as long as I kept placing them back in the storage case afterward, I never fully drained them.  However, I did experiment a bit to see how long it would take to drain them completely and it took just shy of 3 hours.  From fully drained, the earbuds took about 1.5 to 2 hours to fully charge.

The lid of the charging case was nearly opaque but was also sufficiently transparent that you could see the LEDs through the lid enabling you to determine if the BW-FYE7 earbuds were still charging.  I found this to be a handy feature indeed.

The rear of the charging case had two notable features.  The first was a small, oval-shaped button (more on this button below).  The other was the micro-USB port for the charging cable.

The charging case itself had four tiny LEDs on its front.  When connected to a computer or outlet via the micro-USB port on the rear, these LEDs blinked to indicate the level of charge that has been obtained.  Once disconnected from power, these LEDs were not normally illuminated, but pressing the small, oval-shaped button the back of the charging case (see above) illuminated the LEDs on the front briefly to indicate the charge level of the case’s battery.  I found this to be another very handy feature.  The charging case took about 1.5 to 2 hours to fully charge.

The charging case was a nice size, but my only critique of it was that it was a bit of an awkward shape—it didn’t feel very comfortable when slid into a pants pocket.  If it had been a little more rounded and contoured, it would have been better.  Still, I did like its styling, how solid it felt, and that it was loaded with useful features.

Fit

I’ve reviewed quite a few Bluetooth earbuds, both wired and wireless, and the BW-FYE7 earbuds did fit into my ears in a bit of a unique way.  They were fairly low profile and didn’t protrude much from my ears, and the combination of their angled posts plus their oblong, somewhat “hook” shape seemed to help keep them in my years better than any earbuds I’ve tried yet, either wired or wireless.

When placed in the ear with the angled posts oriented straight down the ear canal, their oblong shape sort of “rested” in the little notch toward the bottom of my ear, as seen in the image above.  This seemed to really help capture them and keep them in place, even when I was exercising.  The only time they even started to come loose was when I became excessively sweaty during some very intense workouts.  In fact, even when I wore them in the rain, they stayed put, and they also continued to function without issue through both sweating and rain, which demonstrated that their water-resistance was not exaggerated.

Audio Performance

Last, but certainly not least—how did they sound?  (They *are* audio devices, after all!)  I will preface my answer to this by first stating once again that I have reviewed many different Bluetooth earbuds, and to be honest, the audio quality of most of them was acceptable—not bad by any means, but just not great.  However, I was very pleasantly surprised by the BW-FYE7 earbuds, whose sound quality was actually noticeably good to my ears.  The highs were crisp and the lows were deep, even for a very small pair of Bluetooth earbuds.  I attributed this to both their dual 6mm dynamic drivers and their solid fit in my ear canals—while their silicone ear tips did not appear to be anything unique, the combination of their anatomically-oriented posts and the way their shape  “locked” into position in my ears helped really cut down on ambient noise, allowing me to hear more of whatever I may have had pumping through their tiny speakers.

What I like

  • Sound quality is excellent
  • Earbuds are small and lightweight AND they stayed in my ears during all but the most strenuous (and sweaty) exercising
  • Charging case is well-built, solid, and has several useful features
  • Good battery life for both the earbuds and charging case
  • Generally stayed pair to my iPhone and were easy to re-connect if necessary
  • Audio controls were intuitive and worked consistently

What I’d change

  • Charging case could be a bit more rounded and contoured to feel more comfortable when in a pants pocket

Final thoughts

If you’ve read the above, by now you probably have a good idea that I was quite impressed with the BlitzWolf BW-FYE7 True Wireless Earbuds.  They really hit all of my requirements and included some features that I hadn’t expected or that worked even better than I did expect.  For a very affordable ~$40, the BlitzWolf BW-FYE7 True Wireless Earbuds are worth a serious look if you are in the market for a set of Bluetooth true wireless earbuds.

Price: $39.99
Where to buy: Amazon (use code RJ7NAGP9 at checkout to save 25% – code expires 8/31/19)
Source: The sample of this product was provided by BlitzWolf.

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BlitzWolf BW-FYE7 True Wireless Earbuds review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on August 27, 2019 at 9:00 am.

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Optoma NuForce BE Free6 truly wireless Bluetooth earbuds review

REVIEW – Today I take a look at the NuForce BE Free6 truly wireless Bluetooth earbuds from Optoma.

What is it?

The NuForce BE Free6 is a pair of tiny, Bluetooth wireless earbuds and charging case.

What’s in the box?

  • Left and Right earbuds
  • Charging case
  • USB–C Charging cable, about 12-inch length
  • Instruction manual

Hardware specs:

  • Battery Life: Up to 6 hours on a single charge; up to 24 hours with charging case
  • Bluetooth Profile: Version 5.0, HSP V1.2, HFP V1.7, A2DP V1.3, AVRCP V1.6, SBC, AAC
  • Codecs: SBC, AAC
  • Audio Drivers: Dynamic, 5.6mm, Graphene diaphragm
  • Frequency Response: 20 Hz-20 kHz
  • Impedance: 16 Ohms
  • Microphone Sensitivity: -38 dB +/- 3 dB
  • Earphone Sensitivity: 95dB ± 3dB at 1KHz
  • Range: Up to 33ft (10m)
  • Weight: Earphones 0.44oz, Charging case 2oz

Design and features:

The headphones arrive well protected in an attractive white box.

The oval case has a slightly grainy feel which aids in keeping a good grip.

The left and right earbuds are small!

The case is about 3 X 1-1/2 inches and smooth with no protrusions. I found them easy to carry in my pocket.

The lid opens smoothly and is held closed using a small magnet.

The earbuds are securely held in place using magnets. No amount of shaking I could muster could dislodge the earbuds from their nests.

The case is equipped with a USB-C power connection. It took about an hour to fully charge straight from the box.

Setup:

Pairing is as easy as holding the button on the right headphone for a few seconds, then selecting “BE Free6 R.” To use both headphones independently, the left earbud needs to be paired as well and appears as “BE Free6 L.” The earbuds automatically connect after pairing with a pleasant female British voice. If the left headphone is connected, then the right is connected, both need to be placed into the case and removed again to pair in stereo mode.

Performance:

The headphones fit snugly in each ear, with the bulk of the earbuds facing upward. I use the term “bulk” loosely as these are really tiny and quite comfortable and fit completely in the area surrounding the car canal. The rubbery tips fit into the ear canal and, if fitted properly, do an excellent job sealing the wearer from outside sounds.

I made a call to my mom and she told me fidelity on her end was excellent, among the best of any headset on which I’ve used her as a guinea-pig. I consider that a pretty big compliment!

Over the course of the next week, I used the Be Free6 earbuds to watch movies, make calls and listen to lots and lot and lots of music, from bluegrass to Beethoven, Rap to religious, and I can say these are among the best-sounding wireless headphones I have used to date. Treble is snappy without being overtly sharp and the bass is booming, luscious and rich without being muddy, distorted, or over-modulating. The specs indicate 20-20,000 Hz as the frequency response and I believe it! I listened to many old favorites with new ears, hearing both sparking and ear-vibrating tones that would be lost on inferior playback equipment. Great job, Optoma!

The only issue I encountered was the buttons. Each earbud has a large button on its outward face. Removing the earbuds from the charging case and inserting them into each ear almost always resulted in pressing the button and stopping playback, advancing a track, disconnecting a call or even entering pairing mode if the button is held too long.  Once they are in place, this is not an issue, unless your intention is to sleep or have your head against something as you listen.

What I like:

  • Excellent audio
  • Reasonably priced
  • Comfortable
  • Good battery life

What I would change:

  • The button is easy to accidentally operate, particularly when inserting the earbuds.

Final thoughts:

With lovely, lovely audio, good battery life, and comfortable fit Optoma’s NuForce BE Free6 earbuds are an excellent all-around choice in the flood of headphone competing for your ear-holes.

Price: $99.00
Where to buy: Amazon
Source: The sample of this product was provided by Optoma.

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Optoma NuForce BE Free6 truly wireless Bluetooth earbuds review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on August 21, 2019 at 9:00 am.

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REECHO EchoWeek Wireless Earbuds review

CROWDFUNDED REVIEW – Today, we’re taking a hard look at the REECHO EchoWeek to find out if these truly wireless stereo earbuds are an instant classic or a cautionary tale of crowd-funding gone awry.

What is it?

REECHO’s EchoWeek TWS earbuds are yet another entry into the crowded wireless earphone market. They are currently in prototype stage and have only in the past month or so sent out their first batch of product to their Indiegogo backers. I received a sample product with that first shipment, and I really hope I didn’t jump someone’s place in line who paid real money for a pair.

Behold, another tiny Truly Wireless earbud.

What’s in the box?

  • earbuds and case
  • 3 different earbud tips and sports wingtips
  • micro-USB cable
  • manual and quick guide
It does come with an array of eartip and wing sizes.

Hardware specs

  • Unique rounded balanced armature
  • True-wireless stereo earbuds
  • 3 sizes of wingtips & 3 sizes of eartips
  • IPX6 sweat resistance
  • Bluetooth 5.0 wireless connection
  • Up to 48 hours with use of charging case (750mAh case capacity, 50mAh earbud capacity)
  • Easy access to voice control smart assistants

Design and features

The EchoWeek earbuds have a nice look to them. Made from smooth, black matte plastic, they have sleek, sporty feel and are very lightweight. I was pleased that the largest of the earbud tips fit well in my notoriously difficult ears, fully sealing my ear canals.

Fits the big ear holes.

The case is … fine. It’s colored metal, with chamfered silver edges, and you can tell that they were simply trying to match the color of the plastic cases pictured in their Indiegogo campaign page. Looking at what they were promising versus what they delivered, it’s clear that they either ran out of time or the glossy plastic of the 3D prototype just couldn’t be achieved.

Ooh that sharp metal edge.

They don’t even match the box they were shipped in. It must have been a really late decision in the manufacturing process.

The earbuds were supposed to match the color of the case, but instead, all of the shipped products were black, which garnered a lot of complaints from their project backers. I would have preferred a straight silver case instead of this color, but I’m assuming they still had to try to match the seven colors they were offering in the campaign.

What they were promising vs. what they delivered. Yes, really. Big oof.

I wonder if REECHO called it the EchoWeek because there were 7 colors, one for each day of the week. Indeed, the top-tier perk ($399) was for a 7-pack. Just a random thought.

Setup and Functionality

Pairing is, as usual, pretty straightforward. I’ve heard that these TWS earbuds are sort of hit and miss when it comes to Bluetooth setup, since they’re technically two separate devices that work together as one, but I’ve never run into any issues.

Once you’re paired up, it’s a simple matter of opening the case and removing the earbuds from their chargers to connect to your device. You can use one or both earbuds, which is nice for when you want to keep an ear free for traffic or talking to others.

One thing that I’m a bit torn on is the button function. Look at this button guide.

It’s comprehensive as to what you can do with the buttons, but difficult to remember what hitting the right button 2 times or the left button one time will do. Plus, the buttons are a bit tough to press, so completing a triple-click is quite difficult. Compare that to a programmable double-tap on Apple’s AirPods, and, well, even if that’s not a fair comparison, I guess I just like things simple.

Just look at this “easy setup guide.” Come on.

Sound

The sound drivers, which Reecho is dubbing their “balanced armature drivers (BADs?),” are claimed to have superior sound isolation, require less power, and are very small and lightweight. And given the apparent uniqueness of this driver, REECHO can tout on their IndieGoGo page that the EchoWeeks are the “smallest rounded BA TWS Earbuds,” because everything has to the be the first and/or only thing of its kind on crowdfunding sites.

Good fit. Decent sound. Now if you could pick them up for $29? Pretty easy recommendation.

Overall, they sound pretty good! Especially if these earbuds would only set you back a mere $29. They sound a little flat, overall, like the highs are a bit muted. I can’t say if the

Connection

As with some past TWS earbuds that I’ve come across, the connection seems rather spotty. Reecho claims 10m “straight line connection distance,” but it seems even putting my phone in my pocket is enough to interrupt the audio at times. Placing my hands over my ears is also enough to cause music to fuzz out to silence.

You’re certainly not going to be full on swimming with these things on, despite REECHO’s promotional videos might show. I mean, seriously?

I can’t even get a wall to work between these earbuds and my iPhone, and this dude is full on Michael Phelps-ing around the pool. I’m not buying it.

Battery Life

Unsurprisingly, the battery life on these earbuds didn’t quite match their advertised 6 hours. I got about 3.5 hours of constant music out of them before they died. I imagine you would get 7 charges out of the case, though, mathematically speaking, bringing that total listening time to over 24 hours. That’s not too bad, it’s in keeping with most other TWS earbuds of this size.

What I like

  • They do sound pretty great for the apparent price
  • Build quality is good, too

What I’d change

  • Buttons are a bit hard to press
  • Weak connection, sound drops out
  • Simplify the button controls

Final thoughts

If the time spent with the EchoWeek’s taught me anything, it would be to approach crowdfunded products with a side of caution, because this is a very real outcome.

From an objective standpoint, these earbuds sound great for $29. If REECHO somehow launched their product on a mass scale at this price, they’d be a clear favorite. Even with the weak connectivity issues. But as to whether or not you’ll actually be able to get your hands on a pair … let’s just say I wouldn’t hold my breath.

I tried to get in touch with a representative from the company and didn’t hear back from them. Reading the comments on the Indiegogo page, there are a lot of others who unfortunately had the same issue.

Price: Lowest backing “secret” price was $29, but no word on what the final retail product cost will be or if they’ll go into full production.
Where to buy: This product is, as of the time of writing, unavailable for purchase. You can find their closed Indiegogo page here. And if you want a bit of schadenfreude for their backers, read through the comments section.
Source: The sample of this product was provided by REECHO.

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REECHO EchoWeek Wireless Earbuds review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on August 10, 2019 at 10:10 am.

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Cambridge Audio Melomania 1 true wireless in-ear monitors review

REVIEW – There are two things to consider when looking at the new Cambridge Audio Melomania 1 true wireless in-ear monitors. The first is that everyone who makes wireless earbuds is gunning for Apple by trying to come up with the next  “AirPod killer.” The other, less obvious thing is calling these wireless earbuds “monitors” because it means something. It’s not a word I would throw around lightly. To my ears, monitors denote something better than your average speaker. They are more accurate, which often makes them less ear friendly—I’ll explain later in this review. 

Cambridge Audio is a British company that makes some great audio gear at all price levels. The Melomania 1 fits perfectly within the mid-range price of wireless earbuds—between Apple’s overpriced (but excellent) AirPods and those cheap knock-offs flooding the market.

What is it?

The Melomania 1 true wireless in-ear monitors are just that: truly wireless. This simply means no wires. It also simply means that they are easy to lose. The Melomania 1 earbuds use Bluetooth 5.0 with Qualcomm aptX for improved audio quality. They magnetically snap into a charging case with a magnetic lid closure. Two colors are offered: Black and stone—what we Yanks call off-white or eggshell. 

Specs

  • Bluetooth 5.0
  • Dual-core 32-bit processor
  • aptX, AAC, SBC codecs
  • 5.8mm graphene-enhanced diaphragm driver
  • 20Hz – 20kHz frequency response
  • 9 Hours battery life (each earbud)
  • 36 Hours battery life (includes case with 4 additional earbud charges)
  • 90 min. charging time
  • Microphone with Noise Cancellation
  • Siri (iOS) / Google Assistant (Android) voice assistance
  • IPX5 water resistance
  • Weight: 16 oz (each earbud); 1.3 oz (case)
  • Color: Matte black; matte stone

In the box

  • Earbuds 
  • Silicone tips: Small, medium, large
  • Memory foam tips: medium
  • Charging case
  • Micro-USB charging cable (12 in.)
  • User manual
  • Fitting instructions
  • Stickers

Design and features

The Melomania 1 true wireless in-ear monitors are one of the best looking earbuds around. Their elegantly simple use of plastic with aluminum accented bands coupled with some sophisticated interior electronics results is an earbud that ranks with the best available, especially when it comes to audio quality—with one important caveat. More on that later. 

The Melomania 1 earbuds use what is called graphene speaker diaphragms. Graphene is lightweight and strong, plus it recovers from sound vibrations quicker. This means that the earbuds sound more responsive and lively—less sluggish or muddy.

Pairing the Melomania 1 earbuds is easy. My iPhone recognized the buds immediately. The Bluetooth settings list the left and right earbuds separately. All you have to do is pair either one and both will pair—except when it doesn’t. A few times, one earbud would pair and the other wouldn’t. The only way I could fix this issue, was to remove the earbuds and re-insert them in my ear. I don’t know why they aren’t listed as one pair in Bluetooth settings. They can be paired to 7 separate devices, so if you move from a smartphone to a tablet to a laptop, the earbuds will remember and reconnect to that device.

There is a major weakness regarding phone calls. When talking with someone, I can hear them fine, but to them, I sound like I’m in a tunnel or far away. I don’t understand how Apple is so good at this, yet most other wireless earbuds—Melomania 1 included—don’t handle phone calls as well. 

The charging case is as well designed as Apple’s AirPod case. That’s more rare than it should be. The earbuds magnetically snap into place. They will not fall out yet can be easily removed for use—a nice touch. I’m disappointed that the case relies on older micro-USB for charging instead of the newer and faster USB-C. It’s time to retire micro-USB. LED lights on the front of the case indicate its (incredibly long) battery life. A silicone case cover with an attached carabiner is offered as an option. It’s quite inexpensive which makes me wonder if it should have been included in the box. The silicone cover is offered in six color choices.

When the earbuds are in the case and charging, there is a lighted ring around the each earbud that tells you how they’re charging. A pulsing white light means charging; no light means fully charged. Blue and white flashing lights mean Bluetooth discovery and rapid blue flashing means that the earbuds need to be reset. It’s all quite futuristic and cool looking.

The Melomania 1 earbuds are equipped with active noise canceling (ANC) that is always on. Cambridge Audio has tempered their ANC in a way that doesn’t totally isolate you from your surroundings, making it safer to use the earbuds on a busy street while reducing distracting noises. It’s not the isolating kind of ANC that can mask airplane engine noise.

There are buttons on each Melomania 1 earbud. Pressing the outside of the earbuds while inserted in the ear requires a bit of a learning curve, but can become easier with daily use. A 2-second press adjusts volume up or down, a single press followed by two presses, brings up either Siri or Google Assistant. A single press pauses music (or answers an incoming phone call) and a double press either advances or repeats a track. Like I said—a learning curve.

The Melomania 1 earbuds weigh practically nothing. They never feel like they’re going to fall out because of the lack of weight. They’re bullet-shaped—narrow at one end and wider at the other. This shape works for many people, but not as well for me. Maybe I have unusual ears, but the earbuds feel too small on the ear tip end and too wide on the outside part. I’m constantly fidgeting with them to get a proper fit. Others may have better luck.

I blame most of the fit issues on the ear tips. Cambridge Audio needs to provide a greater selection of sizes. Even the large-sized silicone ear tips do not provide a proper seal in my ear. This means that bass lacks the power it should have. No seal equals no bass—it’s that simple. Also, the anemic foam tips don’t have enough expansion to fill my ear canal. The sound tube that the tips fit around is wide, which limits which after-market tips you can use. Since I review many earphones and earbuds, I scrounged around for extra ear tips until I finally found some tips from another earphone. They sorta fit when attached but will not fit into the charging case (no surprise). 

However, the sound improved dramatically! Now that I could hear what I had been missing with the Melomania 1 ear tips, it became clear why they are called monitors. It’s all about the accuracy, folks. Whether I’m listening to 80s music with its exaggerated synth bass lines or 60s classic rock with its recessed bass, the Melomania 1 earbuds make it all sound good. Once there’s a proper seal, bass is more pronounced, but not in a distracting way. Cambridge Audio has done a good job of balancing the high, middle and bass frequencies across all genres of music. On a song such as Anna Calvi’s “Joan of Arc”, you can hear individual strings being stroked and plucked. This would explain why Cambridge Audio chose graphene for the speaker material.

Do the Melomania 1 earbuds sound as good as a pair of wired headphones? Of course not. But they do sound better than most wireless earbuds I’ve come across—some costing much more. They also sound much better than the AirPods. They’re just not as convenient as AirPods when inserting and removing countless times during a busy day. That always seems to be the big trade-off: Sound vs. convenience.

What I like

  • Excellent battery life
  • Audio quality is among the best among wireless earbuds
  • Excellent build quality
  • Easy to pair and use
  • Case is as well designed as Apple’s
  • Optional silicone case cover
  • Reasonably priced

What I’d change

  • Bullet-shape doesn’t fit that well in my ear
  • Supplied ear tips don’t seal enough to get decent bass
  • Not great phone call quality

Final Thoughts

The Melomania 1 true wireless in-ear monitors are the first wireless earphones Cambridge Audio has made. It’s amazing how well they did on this first try. The audio quality is among the best among wireless earphones and the build quality is as good as it gets. If the fit and call quality issues can be worked out, these earbuds should be at or near the top of any list.

Price: $129.95 US
Where to buy: Amazon
Source: The sample for this product was provided by Cambridge Audio.

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Cambridge Audio Melomania 1 true wireless in-ear monitors review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 28, 2019 at 10:30 am.

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RHA’s TrueConnect true wireless earphones now come in true color

NEWS – Scottish brand RHA (Reid Heath Acoustics) has been making terrific earphones for a while now. They are always coming out with new products as well as updating existing ones—such as offering wireless versions of previous earphones. Recently, they came out with their first truly wireless earphone, the RHA TrueConnect true wireless in-ear headphone. I like them a lot as I noted in my review here.

And as Henry Ford once famously said, “You can have them in any color you like, as long as it’s black.”

No more. RHA has just released the TrueConnect earphone in Cloud White and Navy Blue as well as the original Carbon Black. A color matching charging case and USB-C charging are included. Nothing else has changed: They have 25-hour battery life with an IPX5 rating for working out or getting caught in the rain.

Now your wireless earphones can be a bit more stylish while still keeping RHA’s terrific audio quality. It’s like having your cake and … oh, you know what I mean.

The RHA TrueConnect true wireless in-ear headphones are available now and sell for $169.95 US. Visit RHA for more information.

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RHA’s TrueConnect true wireless earphones now come in true color originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 24, 2019 at 10:00 am.

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