amazon Microsoft Surface Headphones reviews
Microsoft has never developed a pair of headphones ever, until they embarked on the design of the Wireless Headphones pair 3 years ago. The launch of this product on October 2 last marked the diversification of the Surface product line, so far when it includes all the products of computers and tablets. After using this product for a few weeks, I came to the conclusion that Microsoft was successful, creating a very good quality finish, with no bad sound!
The headset design team Surface Headphones has received support from the Xbox and Skype teams, which have sound-related products, especially conversations. Microsoft has revealed to me that this pair of headphones is designed to target customers who work long hours on a computer, with tasks like typing text, editing photos and videos on Surface computers. Therefore, the headphones have high comfort, good active sound insulation and excellent hands-free conversation quality.
In this article, I will check out the good points of the new pair of headphones coming from Microsoft, as well as compare with a product of the same range which is very famous as Bose QuietComfort 35 II. Both headsets are aimed at conversation, active noise protection and are priced at $ 350.
Active noise resistance
The QuietComfort 35 II Surface Headphones and Bose both have a cushion that covers the ear of the listener, so the quality of passive sound is also very good. If the outer space is too noisy, the user can switch to active noise suppression, the headset will use the microphone to analyze the external sound, helping the loudspeaker to create reverse waves to eliminate them.
The earphones from Bose have only two options for turning off and turning on the noise, and the Surface Headphones has 13 different noise levels, of which the smallest not only does not sound noise, but also increases the volume of external sounds to people. Listen to the people around you without having to remove the ear, and level 13 is the highest noise level. Both are quite effective against noise, but on practical use I can still hear some small noises in a noisy café.
Both when turning on active noise resistance will also affect the sound quality, cutting a bit of brightness in the high-mid range. However, I still appreciate this feature on Microsoft products, because at noise level 13 external sounds are effectively blocked. It is also possible that the Surface Headphones attach more closely to the listener’s ear, so they are more passive, not due to active noise resistance!
Sound quality is good, but not outstanding
For some reason, the product from Bose has a higher volume than the Surface Headphones, but both are audible enough so this is not an advantage or a disadvantage in any outside. But when it comes to sound quality alone, the Bose QC35 II is still better than the Surface Headphones, for a cleaner and wider sound quality.
The advantages of the Bose QC35 II are more obvious when compared to the A – B format with the Surface Headphones, as this product allows users to immerse themselves in music space because there is a ‘Slim’ sound for users instead of being ‘bounced’ from a distant space. The QC35 II also has a clearer vocalist, along with a more powerful and high-pitched bass.
I also realized that the QC35 II’s diaphragm is tilted to bring the sound to the listener’s ear in a straight line, and the Surface Headphones pair doesn’t have that feature.
Hands-free conversation
The Bose QC35 II and the Surface Headphones have a microphone for users to talk to Skype and receive calls from smartphones. But the conversation quality of the Surface Headphones seems better than the product from Bose. During the time I used the QC35 II pair, I received a few phone calls and the other party complained to me that they heard my voice notes very late, or suddenly interrupted.
This phenomenon does not seem to happen during my use of Surface Headphones. But of course I have to say that call quality is also determined by many factors such as Bluetooth connectivity from the ear to the smartphone, the call quality of the network and the surrounding noise.
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Super minimalist design
I am not really a fan of the ‘industrial’ design that Microsoft has ever applied to all Surface computer products. But this design has a homogeneous minimalism, and will certainly please many people because it is not too colorful. So is the Surface Headphones pair, the whole headset is made very simple, no buttons, no textures, with color schemes are just shades of gray.
Bose QuietComfort has a different design, with an elliptical-shaped earpiece, which I think feels more comfortable and beautiful. I don’t really hate it, but I don’t like the design of the Surface Headphones, but perhaps that’s the goal of Microsoft: creating products so simple that people focus on performance, on use and not mind about the outside form.
Small or great features
The best ‘things of the Surface Headphones are small things that we have to use for a long time to see, including
– The cover is 2 large touch surfaces, we can use them to play / stop music when pressed once, double-click to switch to the next track, and hold to call the virtual assistant Cortana. I think this touch surface is much more convenient than the physical buttons on Bose QC35 II.
– Surface Headphones has the ability to identify whether the user is wearing the ear or not, otherwise the music will be disconnected to conserve battery power.
– Users can charge for 5 minutes to listen to music for 1 hour, or fully charge for 2 hours to get 20 hours of music. When it starts, a sweet female voice will inform the user of the remaining usage time of the ear, more useful than rereading the battery ‘percentage’.
– The pair of Surface Headphones has a more balanced design than the Bose QC35 II, but also has more clamping force on the listener’s head. In general, both are very comfortable to wear, but if worn for a long time, the ears from Bose are still softer.
Overall, I am very pleased with the experience that the Headphones provides, especially with the effectiveness of active noise technology. In 2 pairs of headphones, I will still choose the Bose QC35 II pair because of the sound quality, and its design also suits me better. But if you’re a pro-noise fan, need a pair of headphones that can create the quietest space to work and you use Cortana, the Surface Headphones is a great choice, worth a try and worth buying.