Phone-Accessories Reviews

I just purchased this case to house my StarTac phone, and it is exactly what I was looking for. I specifically wanted neoprene for its protective qualities, and this case is of the proper thickness (a couple millimeters) to be protective without adding too much bulk. This pouch is well designed, allowing the antenna to protrude and permitting the blinking signal light to be visible when the cover is closed. The pouch can be easily attached to and removed from a provided belt clip, adding versatility. The cover features a velcro closure, which allows for quick removal of the phone for use. I looked at other neoprene cases, including some which you install over the phone (and therefore keep on the phone as you use it). If you're looking for a nice pouch-type case, however, this is a good bet (and a good buy).

This phone is great. I am able to drive with complete ease and not have to worry about my phone. The ear bud took a bit to get use to but now it is good. I recomend it for anyone who is on the phone while driving alot.

The first set of these headphones i got from amazon did not work, but i sent them back and the replacement was here in no time. The headphones have very good sound for this particular style. And the on cord volume control is very handy. The cord is very long and because it attaches to only one side of the headphones it does not get caught up easily which is great for using them with a computer. The think i like most though, is that the headphones are very comfortable. They are very light and do not get in the way of my glasses.
They also reduce noise but do not cut you off from the rest of the world - important in many office settings. Finally even if i have them up quite loud my officemates still cannot hear them.

All in all a really nice set of headphones

The handheld microphone is a good buy - The clarity is amazing and output sound quality is amazing. The cord is long enough for you to move around. Extremely suitable for Karaoke purposes.

What sold me on these heaphones was the bargain price, the Sony brand name, and the neodymium magnets. I was not disapointed. Sure, there are alot better looking and better sounding headphones, but for the price, these are amazing!! The bass is great, the rest is only okay. But now most people care only about base anyways so for most people, the sound will be great. I also noticed that at higher volumes, these headphones are prone to slight distortion at higher volume levels, but you shouldn't be listening to them that loud anyways. If your looking for cheap, portable headphones, look nowhere else. You can't go wrong with the Sony's at this price. P.S. The earphones actually swivel to fit your ears better.

Ok, I'm not an audiophile. I'm not a headphone expert. I'm just someone who really likes to listen to music while working out, and these do a really good job. They're lightweight, produce a clean sound, and don't fall off my head. The ear buds sometimes come out of my ears, but not too much.

I just got them three days back and I have to admit I like these a lot. First, from a design perspective they are just COOL. When all the other noise cancelling headphones (at least the good ones) are big and bulky, this one is easy to handle and use (behind the neck design) and it folds away for storage. The sound quality is good but cannot be compared to my Sennheiser HD-500 headphones. The noise cancelling function needs a AAA battery and does a good job (not exceptional). I tried them while mowing my lawn outside and they worked pretty damn good. All-in-all I am gonna be using these all the time when I am not at home since they are not as bulky to carry around as my Sennheisers. Recommended.

This set of headphones certainly isn't the greatest in the world. Its main flaws include a short cord and relatively flimsy design. Its design features a neckband and basic foam-padded circular speakers (2.5" diameter). Some people may like that setup, others may not.

The long and short of it is that these headphones work. Their sound quality is decent; I have no complaints on those grounds. And the current price can't be beat.

If you're not looking for anything special, this set of headphones is a bargain that shouldn't be passed by.

This is the non-USB (that is to say, analog) version of the Telex M-560. Like its USB sibling, it cancels background noise and offers the convenience of a headphone-free existence. Still, for voice recognition applications, it may be slightly inferior to the M-560, in that the virtue of the USB design is that it doesn't pick up any undesirable noise off the sound card.

Where the M-60 may be preferable to some users, however, is if you already have a high-end sound card installed in your machine, and you plan on doing a lot of voice recording. Top-of-the-line sound cards offer many recording options that wouldn't be available with a USB microphone that bypassed the card. To be sure, you could probably emulate these features in some other way with a USB recording, but if you've already made the investment in a high quality sound card, it may make greater sense to get this version of the microphone.

Likewise, this is your version-of-choice if you're running a version of Windows earlier than Windows 98. They view their USB model as a "non legacy" device, and so aren't going to try to support it with early versions of Windows. It's a logical stance, given the power-hungry nature of voice recognition software, so if you're looking primarily for a voice-recording microphone and don't want to switch to a later version of Windows, this is your gig.

I'll keep this concise and pertinent...

GOOD
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1. Very good sound (esp. for the price), just make sure you are not using any bass expansion/extension equalization. Even with old Sinatra (as in Frank, "ol' blue eyes"), using my TDK Mojo's bass expansion sometimes causes distortion, simply because The Plug has exceptional low frequency response. Rap obviously causes a lot of distortion w/ extra bass emphasis; I wonder if this is the 'muddiness' about which some have complained. Flat equalization (at least for bass) is a requirement for these headphones.
2. Excellent isolation and efficiency due to the foam sealing design. Just don't blow your eardrum turning the music up too loud, nor get run over by a bus 'cuz you can't hear it comin'!
3. Excellent overall sound quality; no tinny sound other reviewers have mentioned, unless The Plug is inserted incorrectly (ie - off-axis, or not "aimed" correctly).

BAD
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1. True, the black foamy material does not stay compressed very long, so you have to 'roll' it in your fingers then immediately put it in your ear. I'd say I have average ears and have no problem using these, but I could see that those with small ears may have problems fitting these properly; problem solved by retrofitting a standard foam-type earplug (as others have mentioned). Whether you would or should do this is another question. The packaging does include a few different styles of foam inserts to try; angled, straight, etc.
2. The first pair of these I bought had uneven bass; the left earplug's bass was a lower sound pressure than the right; treble was fine. I verified this with both ears and then with a function generator. I exchanged them and the subsequent pair is perfectly balanced.
3. If The Plug is not inserted straight (not 'aimed' into your ear canal) the sound will lose its midrange (the 'tinny' thing some have mentioned). This would depends a lot on how your ears are 'designed.' I personally don't have an issue with this.

Overall, I think these earbud headphones are excellent, especially for the price.

First, while I'm no audiophile and won't attempt to offer comments about the smooth, deep bass or crisp highs...your results may vary...I will say that I'm personally very pleased with the sound from these earbuds and find the isolation they offer is a real plus. In fact, that's partly why I bought them: Working sometimes in a very noisy environment that necessitates wearing hearing protectors, I thought it would be nice if I could turn them into headphones and at least enjoy some music while working. I've never cared for earbuds that rest in your outer ear, so prone to falling out. With the hearing protectors on over them, it was still rather easy to tug the earbug out of position. "The Plug" stays quite well put, thanks to the soft foam cushions. Away from work, the noise isolation of these stereophones continues to serve a great function, especially when travelling on airplanes or in any noisy environment.

It is the isolation offered by the ear cushions that surely attribute to their efficiency. Even low-powered headphone outputs on portable music players will likely still have all it needs to drive these plugs sufficiently for enjoyable listening. The drawback of the ear cushions is, as others have said, that they do mean you must be careful about how you position the plugs in your ears, as that will affect overall sound quality. The bass is excellent yet can become "boomy". That is why I say "your results may vary". But, for anyone willing to spend some time getting familiar with "The Plug", I think they will be happy with the sound potential provided.

Now...about the custom fit. Yes, they really do custom fit to your ear canal if you choose the appropriate size cushions from those included. However, again as mentioned, the provided cushions do not remain compressed very well while attempting to insert the plugs in your ears. Moreover, while the foam does seem to be the best I've experimented with in terms of comfort against the skin and general acoustic performance, it doesn't hold up very well over time. So, this led me to exploring for a substitute, and learning in the process what a difference in sound the type of foam makes.

As I write this, I'm wearing my plugs, modified by replacing the Koss foam cushions with some I made myself from Aearo E-A-R Classic foam ear plugs. The beauty of this approach is that as the ear plugs are designed for hearing protection, they do compress very well and hold their compressed shape longer, making it easier to insert the plugs into your ear canal, for a better and deeper fit. But, therein lies the rub...it is that more deep, secure fit that affect sound quality. My observation is that the impact is primarily upon the bass...making it even deeper and risking again a potential "boomy" quality. I'm pleased with the results I obtained from the Aearo ear plugs after trimming them down in diameter so there wasn't quite so much foam to "bulk up" in my ear. While the Aearo plugs work well and sound good, I've found an even more comfortable and better-sounding (I think) alternative in using Howard Leight Laser Lite foam ear plugs. The latter have a Noise Reduction Rating of 32 and are made of a softer, smoother-textured foam than the Aearos. I think the Aearos have a similar NRR, but they are not labeled with it.

Now, how do you go about making your own ear cushion? The approach I took was to compress one end of the foam ear plug down until it was basically flattened squarely against the other end on a flat surface. Then, holding the "pancaked" plug in place, I heated a large nail over a flame and then pierced the center of the ear plug with the tip of the nail, pushing it gently through the foam so as not to tear the foam. Rotating the nail tended to help. Once the hole was pierced through the foam to the other end, I lifted the foam off the surface and pushed the nail fully through, this also serving to tug the foam along enough that it helped it to stretch back out along the nail shaft. Once the nail cooled a bit, I slid the plug off the nail and had a rather cleanly pierced ear plug that I could then slip onto "The Plug". If the new ear cushion was too long or too thick to fit my ear well, I'd trim it down gradually with sharp scissors. In the end, I made up several pairs of cushions to interchange as I like. The Aearo plugs were rather easy to modify since the foam is stiffer and thus easier to pierce with the hot nail. But, with care, the Laser Lite plugs could also be pierced without tearing the foam and they are smaller in diameter such that I found no need to trim them, except in length. When the modified plugs are slipped over the sound delivery tube of "The Plug" earpieces, ensure the tube does not get crimped and extends fully through the cushion so as to deliver the best quality sound.

This may sound like a lot of work for such inexpensive headphones, but they are great-sounding headphones for a small price and can be customized to your own liking with a similar approach to what I describe.

When I'm not using "The Plug", I switch to my Koss KTXPRO1 Titanium headphones...another pair of excellent headphones that I don't think can be beat for the price. They too sound great and have very good efficiency, at about the same price as "The Plug". They are better-suited for an office environment where you need an open-air type earpiece to hear conversation through, rather than being isolated. The volume control on the cord is also a real convenience and is the only thing I find missing from "The Plug".

For the price, these earbuds are great. My ears are big enough that I could usually get the buds to fit okay with the included foam pads. Having said that, as several reviewers have mentioned, it can still be a pain to get them to feel like they fit perfectly. If you're willing to do a little modification work (I know, extra work is a pain), they can be great. If not, I would guess the $40 sony's would be a nice choice, though I've not tried them personally. I'm a broke student, and the price was the major attractant for me. I did a google search for "koss plug mod", and checked out the "headwize" link (I have no idea who the guy is, I have no vested interest in his site, he just has good photos). I used cheap foam earplugs for it ($3 or so at your local drugstore), and they work great. They block out the noise (I can't hear a thing going on around me with my music on) and the sound is quite good. Plus, I can keep my volume a good bit lower, thereby saving my ears somewhat.