[amitoj]

Hi

There have been a few occasions when i had felt the need for wireless headphones quite badly. One, whenever i work out in the gym in the society. I dont think everyone there would take kindly to me playing Eminem or Slipknot on the gym's stereo. And since the gym is surrounded by buildings, the FM reception is also poor. Besides, most FM stations play more ads than songs. And seldom they are fit for working out.
Second, whenever i wax the car. I refrain from playing songs on my car's system because a) it may drain out the battery and b) again, the neighbours may not appreciate the songs fully.

I checked out at the local Staples and Croma stores to see how far wireless technology has progressed when it comes to music and all they had were some bulky headphones, that surely would fall off with a slight nod of the head. Forget working out while wearing them.

So, on my recent trip to US, i had some time in Heathrow and i saw something from Motorola called SD10. Wireless earphones!! Since i have this notion that everything in UK and Europe is expensive, i decided to pursue this item when i reach US.

So, my first day in US and i walk into the nearest BestBuy store, searching for this Motorola set. It was selling for 90USD. Next to this, was this big golden box, offering bluetooth headphones for 100USD. I had never heard of this company called Jaybird, but the packing looked very attractive.

Did some research there at BestBuy itself, thanks to free internet browsing on their display tablets It was a Toshiba tablet i think. Not as smooth as iPad. Someone else was hogging the display iPad.

I could get Motorola set for as cheap as 65USD if i ordered from the net. But no such luck with Jaybird. Then i checked out a few reviews. There were so many negative reviews for Motorola (most common being that they shorted easily from sweat) that i understood why these were available at a discount. Jaybird on the other hand gives lifetime warranty against sweat! Its true that i wont be able to use that warranty sitting here in India but it gave me an indication about the confidence the company has in its product. Besides, there were very few negative reviews about Jaybird and most of the people swore by it. Also, they are the "Official Training Headphone Partner of USA Triathlon" Hmmm. Interesting.

Also noticed that the Motorola set has a hard plastic band connecting the two pieces whereas Jaybird has them connected by a wire. I felt a wire would be better when, for example, doing bench presses.

Decided not to take a risk with 65USD and went for the 100USD Jaybird's JF3 Freedom headphones.

Now, in the box, you will find:
1. A pair of headphones, with mic.


2. 3 sets of ear tips.


3. 3 sets of ear cushions

These ear cushions are supposed to be used as shown below, and i must say they do the job quite well

Source: bogadget.com

4. A pair of clip-ons for tucking behind the ear, for extra protection.


5. A premium case for storing the headphones


6. Two stickers, just like Apple.


7. Instructions Manual: Ummm i have already misplaced it, so I cannot post its picture. But even the instruction manual was quite unique and stylish.

So, items 2,3 and 4 above can be used to customise the headphones as per your ears, so that they dont fall out. The ear cushions are what set this apart from the rest i think.

1. The Fit: As mentioned above, these come with 3 sets of ear tips and ear cushions. Still, it may take a little getting used to, but the headphones won't fall out of your ears. I have never used in-ear phones, so my adjustment period was a total of 6 hours of usage. But since the earphones are of standard size, if you already have a pair of buds that fit you well, you can transfer them onto these ones as well. There is a video of Jaybird's founder putting these on and violently shaking his head, to show that the headphones do stick. Check out link at the bottom.

2. The Sound: I am told that as far as bluetooth headphones go, the sound is pretty decent. As per the company, they have kept the sub-bass up, the mids and treble low. This is supposed to keep the listening fatigue low, even if you crank up the volume.

Source: mobilitysite.com

I personally felt the bass was a bit low, but its surprising how sound quality varies with a little adjustment to the fit of the earphones. I still keep the EQ setting on my iphone on Bass Booster when using these earphones.

3. The Look: They may look a bit geeky though IMO but i wont choose form over function.

4. The buttons on the right earpiece can be used to control volume as well as to skip tracks, which is quite a handy feature. You dont need to run to your music device if you dont like the song its playing!

5. Other uses: Since it works over bluetooth, you can use it to answer calls on your phone. Or reject them if you like. I have not had a chance to use the phone features, so i cannot comment much on that.

6. As per booklet, charging the headphones for one hour gives you listening time of about 6 hours.

Conclusion: The sound quality of the headphones will not make you go "WOW", but it will not make you go "Ewwww" either, considering that its over bluetooth. The purpose of these headphones for me was to be able to listen to my choice of music when i workout, without getting tangled up in wires. And on that front, i give it full marks.

References:
1.

Review of JayBird JF3 Freedom Bluetooth Headphones - YouTube

2. Bluetooth Headphones : Bluetooth Stereo Headphones : Bluetooth Stereo Headset Headphones : iPhone Bluetooth Headphones : iPod Bluetooth Headphones : Jaybirdgear.com

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Gadgets section. Thanks for sharing!

[Selective]

Amitoj,

Did you get a chance to use the headset to make calls? How is the call quality and noise cancellation? I am looking for a stereo bluetooth headset for my iphone. Right now I have wired headset (MEE), but recently the MIC is not functioning properly and the noise cancellation is almost zero, so very inconvinient!

[amitoj]

Originally Posted by Selective

Amitoj,

Did you get a chance to use the headset to make calls? How is the call quality and noise cancellation? I am looking for a stereo bluetooth headset for my iphone. Right now I have wired headset (MEE), but recently the MIC is not functioning properly and the noise cancellation is almost zero, so very inconvinient!

Hey Selective.

Sorry about the late reply.

The call quality from the headset is quite ok. I have not used it to make/receive calls much but only once i got an echo when talking. This happens with my gps too when i use it to take calls.

Hope that was not too late or too little to be helpful!

Cheers.
Amitoj

[kaushik_s]

Amitoj, that's a nice little review.
About the Bass reproduction, have you tried with different earbuds (as I can see sony hybrid kind of earplugs on your photos)? If the seal is not proper for in-ear phones then the bass normally lacks a lot. So you might give a try with different sized ear-tips. I found the foam tips to work best as far as sealing goes. You can get Comply tips now in India too I think.

[amitoj]

Originally Posted by kaushik_s

Amitoj, that's a nice little review.
About the Bass reproduction, have you tried with different earbuds (as I can see sony hybrid kind of earplugs on your photos)? If the seal is not proper for in-ear phones then the bass normally lacks a lot. So you might give a try with different sized ear-tips. I found the foam tips to work best as far as sealing goes. You can get Comply tips now in India too I think.

Thanks Kaushik.

Yes, now that i have had some more time to use them, i found that the mid-size variant of earbuds suit me best. And that takes care of the low bass too. It also eliminates a lot of outside noise as well.

However, also with usage, couple of things that have happened and i dont like are:
1. The logo on the earphones is almost gone.
2. The cap for the charger socket has become a little loose.

But apart from that, no complaints at all. Still performing well.

Cheers
Amitoj