Freedom!!!

I just recently acquired a new Logitech Freepulse Bluetooth Stereo Headset.

I’ve been a something of a headphone freak and have bought many headphones in search of that elusive “ultimate earphone gadget” to complement the audioplayers I have at my disposal, but thus far I’ve found that I always have to compromise something when it comes to my headphone gadgets. If it’s not sound quality, it’s comfort, or price, or any combination of the following.

Enter the Logitech Freepulse, which is touted as one of the best wireless solutions around, and I love having no wires. Wires are a hassle which contribute to problems of aesthetics, snagging, and logistic packing. It takes time to take a wired set out of its case, and rolling it up is a must if I am to store it without it looking like a complete mess. So I excitedly tore up the packaging for my new toy and with giddy anticipation fired up the pairing process and stuck it onto my iPod Touch, and one thought entered my mind:

“Are the testers for this product hearing impaired?!”

I mean these cans sound horrible! Does everyone actually think it sounds that good, or are they just blinded by the $100 price as opposed to the free stock iPod earbuds?

Seriously the stock iPod earbuds (the new ones that shipped with the Nano 2G, Touch, etc.) are way better in sound than the muddy, weak behemoth known as the Free Pulse. That it cost $100 more is irrelevant, it sounds horrible in comparison. It sounds a lot better than my old wireless bluetooth headset, the Omiz 5130 Wireless, but does not even compare to the stock iPod earbuds, which seem to get a lot of flak for some reason.

I have a bunch of earphones to compare to including a Sennheisser HD 212 Pro, Sennheisser MX550, Sennheisser PX100, iPod in-ears, stock Nano 2G and stock Touch earbuds, stock Walkman in-ears (for W880) and stock Sony (for K750), Shure e2C, Technics DJ1200 and I will tell you the stock iPod compares favorably to all my earbuds that aren’t full-sized cans. Not as good as the Walkman/Sony buds but it’s actually a lot better than the Sennheisser MX550s. The overrated Shure e2c for instance actually doesn’t sound much better and is a lot more uncomfortable to wear. The stock iPod earbuds definitely sound way better than the Free Pulse.

The Free Pulse has stronger bass response, but that’s about the only thing it has going for it. The treble isn’t even comparable. The iPod stock has a lot more clarity with the treble and recreates a better soundstage (with extra sounds like cymbals, triangles and acoustic guitar/ukelele/string riffs standing out more distinct opposed to the muddy mess that is the soudnstage of the Freepulse. The bass sound of the free pulse is stronger, but does not have much definition (even compared to the booming HD 212 Pro, which doesn’t come anywhere close to the other DJ cans, the Technics DJ1200). Further, the sound “hurts” the ears after about two songs, it isn’t a pleasant sound. This is further exacerbated by the fact that the Freepulse’s clamp design doesn’t bode well for big heads, meaning it hurts your ears and head by squeezing it. I found this could be remedied by wearing the Freepulse upside down (alleviating some of the stress on the ears — and it actually made the sound quality better for some reason).

Overall the sound quality is extremely disappointing, considering how every review I’ve read swears by the sound quality. See:

http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/reviews/entry/logitech-freepulse-wireless-headphones/
http://www.pocketnow.com/index.php?a=portal_detail&t=reviews&id=872
http://reviews.digitaltrends.com/review4332.html
http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/freepulse/3.htm

I cannot believe how much these reviewers love the sound of this headset, it’s just mindboggling.

In the end, preference for sound depends on the person. But there comes a point when the quality of a certain sound solution simply doesn’t wash compared to obviously higher quality ones. The Freepulse is the case of one of those headsets that is just obviously inferior to other higher quality ones like the HD212 Pro, the stock iPod earbuds, the Sennheisser PX100 and the Sennheisser MX550 — and all of these are less expensive (though understably so — they aren’t Bluetooth 2 EDR).

In the end I cannot justify or recommend the purchase of this headset based on soundquality. I would only recommend them to people who want to have a wireless headset to work with their iPods.

Speaking of working iPods, I don’t recommend this set to anyone not sporting an iPod or a Bluetooth-enabled device. The physical design was meant to match with iPods, with the included bases which are designed for specific iPods. There are bases for the Mini, the 4G iPod, 5G iPod, Zune and the Nano 1G but none for the newer models.

I own a Nano 2G and a Touch 16GB, and fortunately I found that the Nano 1G base works perfectly with these two models. The other bases might work with other gadgets you have but it’s a matter of luck if it works well. I also have an old Creative Muvo which works does not fit the Nano 1G base, unfortunately, and it’s a pain to change bases so I didn’t really get to test the other bases on it. You’ll have to hope one of the bases fits your device if you don’t have an iPod or Zune. Going without a base looks unsightly as the headphone jack is raised a bit, leaving a big space that looks plain bad — not to mention unstable.

Alternatively, if you have a bluetooth-enabled device that supports the Wireless Headset profile (like a newer model PocketPC or phone) you can pair the Freepulse headset directly by holding down the pairing button until it flashes red/blue, the passcode is 0000. This works well and provides better audio quality than going through the 3.5mm dongle, but will drain your device’s battery faster. I was able to pair mine with my O2 Atom Exec without any problems and the sound quality was better than passing it through the dongle.

It also bears mentioning that for those who plan to use the headset with a gaming device like the PSP, DS, or even your PC or PS3/Xbox 360, Bluetooth technology is not perfect yet and does not deliver the sound instantaneously — there is a slight delay in the transmission. This is not noticeable in most games but for a game where rhythm and timing are important like Patapon, Elite Beat Agents and Guitar Hero, that slight millisecond delay will throw your game off and make the game unplayable. Be warned.

When all is said and done, is this the headset for you? Well if you really hate cables and must have a wireless solution, and can test the fit of the headset or just believe in your luck that it’ll fit your head properly, AND do not mind so-so sound quality, then these are the earphones for you. They are relatively inexpensive at about $100US — I bought my first Omiz pair for around $150 — and have okay, but not great, sound quality. At least you won’t wretch at the poor sound like I did with my original Omiz 5130. But if you fancy yourself an audiophile, or close to being one, the sound quality will almost certainly disappoint — if you have a Nano 2G or newer iPod you will probably compare it to the stock earbuds and the result is not pretty.

All in all I do not recommend it to anyone except those who really must be without cables. You can find far better sounding (and looking) cans, albeit wired. While the Freepulse does offer you freedom from wires, it constrains you (and your head for that matter) in many other ways, so the trade-off does not seem worth it.

Babying your iPod

I just got an iPod Touch 16GB and it’s my 3rd iPod. I don’t baby it. But that mostly has to do with me getting it second hand: with a few scratches on the back. Since it already has scratches, I don’t feel the need to baby it. I purposefully got a 2nd hand Touch so that I would a.) get some value price savings, and b.) not have to baby it. How can you enjoy a gadget if you keep having to baby it? Some people can but I’m a little rugged, so I like to be able to hang it out with the gadgets.

Problem is I’m also a bit obsessive compulsive. So if I have something in mint condition, I hate getting it into not-so-mint condition. So I solve my problem by getting a 2nd hand gadget, and save a few bucks in the process.

I got a pouch for it (really smooth) but that is my only concession to babying it. The back of the Touch is destined for scratches, that metallic finish is just such a scratch magnet. I had a 5G Video before and even though I bought an iSkin for it, it still ended up with scratches on the back regardless of the Skin. I realized it was a lost cause. So why save myself the headache just buy a Touch with scratches already.

My 2nd iPod was a 2G Black Nano. Now this one I am still babying in a fashion. There are some scratches on the top and bottom plastic but the aluminum body is still flawless. But I bought this one to be rugged; I drag it around when jogging and everything. It’s my primary MP3 player (the Touch is more like a PDA for me than an MP3 player) my only concession to it was to get a silicon case so that I could throw it around without worries. The aluminum is still perfect thanks to this. But I don’t really baby it. I have to take it out of the silicon anyway when I put it into the MM50 speakers or into my jogging armband. I love the 2G Nano, it’s so rugged, the body is fantastic that it won’t scratch even if I don’t baby it.

I give all my iPods names, though. My Video was called Chuck. I sold him to a friend though because I was disappointed with iPods at this time. Video playback was meh, it was expensive for what it did (just a simple MP3 player with a lot of limitations).

My 2nd iPod, the Nano, is called Andes. He reminds me of the mint-flavored Andes milk chocolate (the one that is dark in the middle, sandwiched by two layers of mint) because I got a green-colored silicon case. Not selling this baby, I love him. I bought him a bunch of accessories — 2 speakers and an FM transmitter for my car.

Now I have my Touch, I named him Sushi — well actually I didn’t. The original owner named him Sushi, I didn’t want to change his name, wouldn’t you not like it if someone changed your name? I haven’t gotten him any toys yet other than his pouch but I really gave him serious surgery, now he performs like a champ with all the apps I want on him. I botched up on the 2nd surgery attempt though and killed him, so I had to revivify him now he’s a Zombie Pod, but he has enhanced powers and can do things even mighty Palm Androids and Dopod Aliens would be envious of.

Wow I guess I really did a bad job of babying my iPod. How many of you turn your babies into super soldier zombies?

iPhone vs. WiMo6

In the last 3 months, I turned from lukewarm bordering on Apple hate to a complete Apple Tool after buying a 2G Nano and an iPod Touch within like 3 months of each other. I know I’ve been critical of Apple in the past but mostly it was due to value for the money, or lack thereof. Well I do have some niggles about their user interface and hardware quality as well but they do manage to pack a good experience in some parts of the equation.

So I’ve been living on a WiMo PocketPC for the past 5 years. Nokia? Ericsson? Blah. I’ve been swearing by the HTC brand for years. So when the iPhone was announced some time back I wasn’t exactly excited. The stuff Steve Jobs talked about in his keynotes where pretty cool but the overall impression was that WiMo is just the better phone platform. WiMo has its detractors and they all say it’s unstable, wasteful, blah blah and while it is true that battery life on WiMo Handhelds is never the best, Nokia Symbian phones have been sluggish and hanging for a while now as well. WiMo also has many features that simply cannot be matched by any other celphone on the market. The iPhone was low on the tech specs but high on the cool factor, but it also missed a lot of key features I was used to with WiMo like voice command and the stylus, and a hard QWERTY keyboard. It wasn’t particularly compact either, like the iPod Nano 2G which I just adore (I love small gadgets with big oomph).

So why did I buy myself an iPod Touch? Well whilst the iPhone was useless to me as a phone, its other features were pretty impressive. The dual-touch touchscreen and accelerometers made for some interesting mechanics. But the Touch was just a big MP3 player with small memory compared to other iPods or Zens or even Zunes. What’s the point? Well it can do a lot of things that the old iPod Classic can’t: take notes, control the calendar and of course wifi surfing! With some hacking you can add real to-do lists, ebook readers and other traditional PDA features. Basically, it’s coming close to being a real PDA!

I have an old iPaq, my first PDA phone, that I retired a long time ago and just use for surfing on the net at home. It was great but even the best browser on WiMo has severe difficulties browing with its small screen. The iPhone and the Touch used the Safari browser to great effect, letting you display full pages with the screen resizing! It seemed like a great gadget to replace my iPaq as a surfing device.

So I went out and got one. Now that I’ve had it, I have to say, I’m impressed in some ways, but disappointed in others. The Safari Browser is excellent for surfing and is probably the best handheld internet surfing option to date. The screen resolution isn’t as big as the HTC Universal’s or the upcoming Sony XPeria or even the Nokia N800, but the Safari browser and the multitouch screen more than make up for it by displaying pages in great detail even on small screens. The closest thing to it is Opera Mini but that option isn’t quite as slick as iPhone/Touch’s application. However, the Touch/iPhone gets docked for the limited input entry. The softkeyboard works better than the WiMo equivalent stock keyboard, but pales in comparison to the handwriting recognition options and hard QWERTY keyboards of WiMo and similar devices. In addition, the inability to do basic functions like highlighting a portion of text to copy and paste is unbelievably primitive to my WiMo sensibilities.

The Touch is great for surfing casually where you just go around the web reading stuff, but if you actually want to do something substantive, like blogging or posting on a messageboard, it is far inferior to a WiMo device especially something like the HTC Universal, which is arguably the best handheld for this purpose to date.

Navigating around the device is also a chore. The device truly wasn’t meant to be a PDA, but an MP3 player with add-ons. You would have to go through hardcore hacking to get any real semblance of file management on the device. I’ve handled all sorts of handhelds and between the Palm OS, WiMo and this mini-OSX I have to say OSX is the absolute worst. The limitations are laughably primitive when it comes to productivity. It gets props though for style.

That said the Touch ends up not replacing the iPaq for a certain class of webbrowser. It’s great for looking but not for leaping (or writing, in this case). Its PDA functions are also dependent on 3rd party work and are not well-integrated, or nice to use for that matter.

However it really shines as an eBook/PDF reader and for casual surfing. This is more than you can say about WiMo, which doesn’t have any decent book readers (and I’ve tried them all). Palm is also good here but the Touch is clearly the best.

For mp3 playback you’d expect the iPod is the best but this isn’t exactly clearcut. iPods have always had issues with file management (due to the iTunes dependency and inability to hot transfer files to the device as a USB disk) and the playlist management is still not easy to do on the go. It’s better with the Touch but still not close to the media centers you get on WiMo and Palm. The hardware integration of the interface on the classic iPods was great but the touchscreen implementation on the Touch and iPhone is not as smooth and is only on par at best with what we have on WiMo and Palm touchscreens. Useless features like coverflow are just that — gimmick features that don’t really do anything for the playlist interface. Give me the ability to manage and edit playlists in a robust manner on the go! This was never feasilby on the old iPods but with the Touch it should have been a piece of cake.

When it comes down to it, the Touch gives you a taste of what the iPhone is, sans the calling and messaging features. And when I think about it, I was right not to be excited over the iPhone. It isn’t anywhere close to being a replacement for a real PDA Phone handheld like the HTC Touch, the Dopods and the O2s, and all the other great WiMo handhelds. They aren’t perfect either, and we could only wish for better battery life, but they are leaps and bounds better than Apples implementation. Apple’s system just feels like you’re in a cage with limited maneuverability options, or perhaps you’re at a full steak dinner with 9 sets of silverware in front of you, but your hands had been amputated that morning. So much you wish you could do, but can’t due to the closed limits of the OS.

That said, the Touch is a very nifty device. I bought a 16GB for about $100US, a real steal. Much like the 8GB Nano that I got at the time whcih was a great value, I can’t really fault the Touch for what it can do, at the price that I paid. It’s a great web surfing device, almost unparalleled but for the lack of a QWERTY keyboard and cut and paste, it’s a good MP3 player with great sound quality, battery life is decent if you’re not surfing the entire day. With 3rd party apps you can customize it to do a lot of useful things, like unit conversion, and let’s face it it just looks plain sexy. The iPhone was kind of fat but the Touch is so slim, it slips into a breast or pant pocket easily and doesn’t leave much of a footprint.

I realize I misleadingly put the iPhone up against the WiMo phones here when I actually have a Touch, but the Touch is pretty representative of what the iPhone can do sans the call and messaging options. Besides, the Touch vs. a PDA Phone just wouldn’t be a good comparison.

Overall I say, if you can get a good deal on the Touch, it’s a great gadget to get especially if you just need something like a PDA-lite.