By David Ponce

There really isn’t much to say about this product other than there’s now some color on them. They’re the same over-ear Studio Beats that have been on the market for some time now, only more colored and in limited edition.

Like you see on the picture.

Maybe Monster wanted to cash in on Colorware’s business?

We wouldn’t post about this usually, but yours truly owns a pair and wishes he’d had that option way back then. For what it’s worth and in this author’s opinion, the audio line of earphones and headphones is the only Monster product that doesn’t suck.

[ Product Page ] VIA [ Chip Chick ]

The downside is that you’ll be walking around with something that’s clearly Ecko branded, but the company’s new Zip earbuds feature a design that could outweigh that. In the past we’ve brought you concept headphone designs that feature a ‘zip-up’ cord so they don’t get hopelessly tangled when not in use. However, because they were just a concept, you could never actually own a pair.

But Ecko’s new ‘Zip’ earbuds not only feature a zipper cord design, complete with rows of teeth and a zipper pull, but you’ll actually be able to buy them in the near future for just $29.99 in a small sampling of colors. I’m going to assume the low, low price speaks for the quality of the sound you’ll get out of them. But maybe for some of you the convenience of not having to play the Christmas lights game with your headphones when you want to listen to music is a far higher priority.

[ Engadget - Ecko Zip earbuds pump tunes through a functioning zipper, let you drop your fly in public ]

By David Ponce

We’ve talked about Razer a bunch of times over the years. They make gaming accessories that are generally well received. Now they’re coming out with an alleged “world’s first” 10-driver circumaural 7.1 gaming headset (5 drivers per ear). They’re not going the usual route of virtual surround but rather true surround with precise control over each audio channel. There’s a separate controller through which you can customize levels to your liking and a precise, unidirectional noise-cancelling microphone.

Of course when it comes to audio equipment the proof is in the pudding and the Tiamat won’t hit shelves until Q4 of this year for $180. At that price, it better be some really good pudding.

[ Razer's Tiamat ] VIA [ Techcrunch Gadgets ]

I find the stuff being sold on Etsy to be pretty hit and miss. But the few times I come across a ‘hit’ it makes me wish I spent more time perusing what was available for sale there. These beautiful custom birch plywood headphones, created by Nico Monterosso, not only manage to make plywood look sexy, but they also make my black plastic over-the-ear cans look downright cheap.

They’re custom made so you actually have your choice of fabric finish on the outside of the earcups, and since they’re not adjustable you can even specify your head size if the standard 45cm from ear lobe to ear lobe measurement won’t accommodate you. Unfortunately there’s no pricing info since they appear to already be sold, which makes me kick myself again for not paying closer attention to Etsy in the past. But given they’re custom made and all, maybe not knowing the price is a good thing.

[ Etsy - Custom Birch Plywood Headphones ] VIA [ Fancy ]

Walk into the booth at pretty much any recording studio on the planet and you’ll find a pair of AKG over-the-ear headphones sitting on the script stand. While not the most expensive headphones you can buy, they’re extremely well respected in the music industry, and the company has now decided that they want a piece of the consumer market as well. Except that they’re maybe not going about it the right way.

While you can find more high-end and expensive earbuds from the likes of Monster for ~$200, the AKG K3003′s will set you back close to $1,200. (€1000) In their defense I have no doubts the earbuds sound great, and from what I can tell they use a triple driver system to provide a frequency range of 10Hz to 30kHz. They also feature a brushed stainless steel housing for added durability, a matching inline remote and microphone and a reinforced steel ‘Y’ connector where the cable splits apart for each ear. But I suspect they’ll be attracting the deep-pocketed audiophile market before the general consumer, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

[ AKG K3003 ] VIA [ Headphiles ]

The last time we checked in with HoodieBuddie they were staying true to their name with a line of hoodies that featured headphones built into the drawstrings. It certainly helped deal with the often annoying headphone cable that’s become the bane of a lot of our existences, except when the temperatures outside get too warm to wear a hoodie. For those times the company now sells a line of t-shirts featuring a pair of earbuds sticking out of the collar.

Like with the HoodieBuddie, the HBTees include a handy pocket, on the side this time, where you can connect and stash your MP3 player. And the shirts are just as machine washable as the company’s hoodies, headphones included. You’ll just need to hang dry them since the extremely hot temperatures of a dryer will presumably melt those electronicy bits. And at $20 a pop, available in 8 different styles and colors, they’re not terribly expensive either.

[ HoodieBuddie T-Shirts ] VIA [ Cool Material ]

If you’re looking to upgrade the less than amazing white earbuds that came with your iPhone or iPod with something that costs in the neighborhood of 10X the price of your device, a Japanese company called Final Audio Design will happily take your money. In exchange for ~$2,700 (on the high end) you’ll have your pick of one of the four different earbud types in their Piano Forte X-VII series. Besides a massive 16mm driver which is going to produce an impressive amount of sound, the Piano Forte earbuds are actually made from milled metals, designed to mimic the performance and sound of a horn shaped loudspeaker.

You have your choice of copper with gold or ion plating (the X-G & X-CC models) stainless steel with a polished finish (the IX) or brass with gold plating (the VIII) with each producing slightly different sound characteristics based on your personal acoustical tastes. While I’m not sure how comfortable it would be to stick metal buds in my ears on a cold Winter’s day, according to the Final Audio Design website it’s a better alternative to soft silicon pads which can “introduce tiny vibrations that distort sound.” I have no doubt these earbuds sound great, but I’m finding it hard to believe they could ever sound amazing enough to justify their asking price.

[ Piano Forte X-VII Series Headphones ] VIA [ Fancy ]

Designed by Japanese studio nendo, Elecom’s new upcoming line of Otokurage earbuds were apparently inspired by the translucent, blobby appearance of jellyfish. In fact, Otokurage is a combination of the words ‘oto’ which means sound, and ‘kurage’ which, not surprisingly, means jellyfish. The silicon ear caps, which are available in a variety of colors, were enlarged to completely envelope the earbuds, so that all you see is the headphone cord sticking out. And to further the image of a jellyfish lazily floating through the water, the Otokurage earbuds are packaged in miniature plastic water bottles, sans the water. Available by the end of this month, presumably only in Japan though.

[ Elecom Otokurage Earbuds ] VIA [ designboom ]

Disney, start your marketing machines! I know they probably sound like crap, and the original movie really didn’t warrant a sequel, but damned if this isn’t a cleverly adorable design for a pair of earbuds. Shaped like a tiny version of Cars 2′s Lightning McQueen, the retracting front wheels are the actual earbuds while a gas pump headphone jack extends from its rear. As clever movie tie-in products go I have to give credit where credit is due, though like I said, with a price tag of just $11.99 you can probably expect the awesomeness to stop at its cute design.

[ Lightning McQueen Retractable Earbuds ] VIA [ 7Gadgets ]

I like the idea of a wireless pair of headphones and finally being able to cut that cord that seems to have a knack for getting tangled in subway turnstiles. But while there are certainly plenty of wireless options already on the market, I’m particularly picky when it comes to the type of headphones and earbuds I use. So for me, the next best thing is a wireless adapter that lets me just plug in my own pair. And thankfully with the flood of multimedia-capable and Bluetooth-equipped smartphones on the market, these have become far more prevalent as of late. I recently had the opportunity to take Sony’s MW600 Hi-Fi Wireless Headset for a spin, and you can find my full review of it after the jump.

The big concern most people have with wireless headphones, including myself, is the extra bulk and weight that’s added by the inclusion of Bluetooth hardware and rechargeable batteries. Things keep improving year after year, but it’s still going to be a while before we see wireless earbuds that are indistinguishable from their tethered brethren. So for the time being I think an external adapter like this one from Sony is a fair compromise.

But that’s not to say I think the MW600 is too big or bulky. It’s remarkably light given it’s packing a rechargeable battery, and I think if it were made any smaller it would cramp the button and display layout, making it difficult to use. Though you can’t see it in the above shot, the display uses a simple white text on black scheme motif which provides a good level of contrast and readability, though admittedly that reflective silver coating does make it a bit difficult to see in bright sunlight.

Of course the biggest advantage to using an external wireless adapter like this is that you can use your own headphones, since it’s got a standard 3.5mm jack on the side. It also allows you to switch it up between earbuds and over-the-ear cans for when you’re out and about listening to music, or crashed on the couch watching TV/playing video games at home. And since most people will probably be using the MW600 with a smartphone, it’s also got a talk button and a built-in mic for making or receiving calls and activating voice commands.

On the opposite side to where you plug your headphones in you’ll find a microUSB port for charging and the power switch which is a simple hold to power on/hold to power off affair. Obviously I would have preferred a miniUSB port here since I’m swimming in mini to standard USB cables at this point, but I can understand the microUSB choice to help keep the MW600 on the smaller side.

On a 2 to 2.5 hour charge the MW600 is able to stream your tunes for about 8.5 hours under optimal conditions, but as usual that depends on how loud you have it set and the type of music you’re listening to. Talk time is rated a bit more at 11 hours, and it includes something Sony refers to as an ‘FM radio’ (presumably some kind of ancient legacy technology) which is also rated at 11 hours of use. You’ll also want to keep in mind that listening to your music over a Bluetooth A2DP connection will be an added drain on battery life if you’re using it with a smartphone.

Now I’m the type who’s constantly skipping tracks and adjusting the volume when listening to music, so I tend to carry the MW600 in hand when I’m out using it, but on the back there’s a simple spring-loaded clip for tethering it to a jacket or bag strap. Along the bottom edge of the MW600 you’ll find a simple set of playback buttons including play/pause, forward and reverse which are used for controlling your music. The play/pause button can also be held down for switching between the Bluetooth sync modes and that aforementioned ‘FM radio’.

Everything on the MW600 is laid out and functions exactly how you’d expect it to, except for the volume controls. They’re located on the top side of the adapter, and what might look like a standard + and – rocker switch is actually a touch sensitive strip you slide your finger across. It certainly works, and you can either adjust the volume by sliding your finger over the strip again and again, or by sliding it and then holding your finger in place which keeps the adjustment going.

But to be perfectly honest the touch sensitive strip unfortunately comes across as more of a gimmick than a useful feature. Like I mentioned before I tend to hold the MW600 in my hand when listening to music and I’ve found that the volume gets accidentally adjusted more often than not when I absentmindedly touch the strip. I wouldn’t necessarily call it a deal breaker though, since it does make adjusting the volume with one hand a lot easier, particularly if the adapter is clipped to something, but I can’t say I’m its biggest fan.

My beef with the volume slider aside, I know that the MW600 technically doesn’t let you cut the cord altogether since you still have to use a wired pair of headphones with it. But it does work great if you’re using a smartphone as an audio source and would prefer to keep it stashed away in your pocket or in a bag. For that purpose it just simply works as you’d expect it to. It’s got the bare minimum of functionality that such a device would need which I think is a good thing because it helps keep the battery life maxed out as much as possible.

Sound quality is of course the same as you’d get with any audio device relying on an A2DP Bluetooth connection, which for the most part is as good as a direct headphone connection I’ve found. While I’m sure someone out there would find something to nitpick about when it came to sound quality, I think even the above-average consumer probably won’t be able to discern any difference. Or at the least they’d be willing to accept a bit of compromise in the sound quality department when you factor in the added convenience of a mostly wireless connection to their Bluetooth devices.

Pros:
+ A better alternative to a wireless set of Bluetooth headphones since it allows you to swap in different pairs as desired.
+ Decent battery life when listening to music (~8.5 hours) given its size.
+ Light and compact.
+ Easy to connect and pair to A2DP Bluetooth devices and supports connectivity to multiple devices at once.
+ Includes something called an ‘FM radio’.
+ Includes a built-in mic and talk button for taking and placing calls.

Cons:
- I’m not a huge fan of that touch-sensitive volume strip.
- Would have preferred a miniUSB charging port instead of microUSB.
- Reflective finish on the display makes it difficult to see outside in sunlight.
- Listening to music over an A2DP connection will diminish your smartphone’s battery life even further.
- Yet another device that has to be charged every couple of days with heavy use.

Links:
Sony Ericsson MW600 Hi-Fi Wireless Headset – $59.99

If you have any questions about the SE MW600 Wireless Headset you’d like answered, please feel free to leave them in the comments, and I’ll try to respond to them as best I can.

*Disclosure: This review unit has been provided by Sony Ericsson free of charge, but the opinions expressed in this review are my own.