Category: #Reviews

Tech Review – Edifier W820NB wireless headphones with ANC

Over the last few weeks we have been testing some headphones at all price points which is great for the consumer and the latest from Edifier which come in under the 100 euro mark have been on my ears for two weeks now and it is time to talk about them and if they are worth your money and with Edifier we never expect a poor performance and indeed that is the case here again with their latest cans..

These are plain and to the point built mostly of plastic light and comfortable and comfort here is great even for long periods of use and as with all my headphones they get tested for hours as it suits me here in the house to try out everything they have to offer be it for work or leisure.

The controls on the headphones are all one one side here too which make it simple for the user with raised buttons, now they do look cheap but are easy to use blindly and tactile and do a great job every time you press them and this is something people prefer this over swiping or touch based headphones so overall you cant really complain.

Both side have the old ratchet arm extensions which solid and will not move once on your head, also there was no clamping feeling noted here during my time with them, this is something that can happen even with more expensive headphones but not the case here at all. The cups are soft and plush as is the headband so overall a really comfortable pair of headphones. Battery life is also decent enough here at this pricepoint and again this will differ between people and how they use them with volume levels and ANC etc, you can toggle between ANC modes and also a gaming mode in the app.

When it comes to sound these do a great job, to make it to the point they are decently loud, deliver on highs lows and mids with a nice bit of bass thrown in and for music movies and more anyone will be pleased with the listening experience that is not a real audiophile, coming from someone who has tested most of the companies products for the price they sound good is my point and you also get access to their Edifier Connect app which enhances the experience even more even though there could be more options in the app. Check the video review for more on the headphones and the app.

Edifier W820NB and Edifier Connect app

Main Features:

  • Hi-Res Audio standard for a rich listening experience
  • Active noise cancellation technology isolates unwanted noise
  • Ambient sound mode allows you to hear environmental sounds such as traffic or flight announcements
  • Built-in microphone with DNN (deep neural network) noise cancellation for clear phone calls
  • Large driver with titanium diaphragm delivers crystal-clear sound
  • Low latency for game mode gives players an immersive gaming experience
  • Up to 49 hours continuous playback
  • Lightweight headset assures comfortable fit

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Video Link

 

 

Tech Review – Garmin Drivesmart 76 Sat Nav.

Not so long ago we reviewed one of the other Garmin sat nav greats which was the Campervan where we showed you how the device works with a live drive of the unit and we also went through the features and we do the same here as stock image reviews with maps of another country on it just doesn’t cut it and is just lazy. From our feedback our viewers like to see a hands on experience as it gives them better context and this is what we do here.

The Drivesmart 76 is another slab one could say and comes in several variants the 66,76 and 86 which means 6 ,7 and 8 inch in size basically.These versatile sat-navs can guide the way for family weekend adventures thanks to detailed maps of Europe, while making the weekday commute a breeze with noteworthy features like environmental zone routing, hands-free calling, and built-in Garmin voice assist to ask the device for directions. You also have Alexa integration too which is fun and gives you on the fly information on the go which is excellent.

If you are a Garmin fan and own an older model you will be familiar with the UI which is simple to navigate and use, we of course go through this in our video review below as we did on the Campervan model and it is simple overall and a nice UI and not that difficult at all to set up.

Once set up you can input the data that you wish to have pop up on screen and like the campervan model you also have the speed zones warnings which is really handy and this will keep your driving in check too. You can connect this to your smartphone via the Garmin drive app and also allow social notifications come through on the screen not only this you can set this up in a way you can play via your car’s stereo system which is really cool.

Features

  • Access to real-time traffic, photoLive traffic cameras, weather and fuel prices when the sat-nav is paired with a driver’s compatible smartphone using the Garmin Drive app
  • Alexa Built-in3 enables asking for music, listening to audiobooks, hearing the latest news and more (on Alexa-version only, available in English and German languages)
  • Built-in Wi-FiÒ allows for easy map and software updates without the need for a computer
  • A USB-C vehicle power cable equipped with two USB ports (on Alexa versions only) to charge the compatible Garmin sat-nav and a second device

You can now buy the Drivesmart 76 from most leading retailers in Ireland and further afield

Video Link

 

Tech Review – Urbanista Los Angeles solar powered headphones

I love my earbuds and headphones and have a big collection and love to try things new and over the years we have seen new things come along and give more value to the customer, for example ANC and Hearthrough are two such technologies that have now become a staple feature and this have even creeped down to earbuds under the hundred euro mark whereas these where features you would pay much more for when they became a thing..

But what about solar powered headphones then you might ask and what is the benefit here over just plugging them in with a cable Thing is I have used these since launch and not ONCE have I had to use a cable to charge and this is just fantastic in my eyes and one less cable and socket to be worried about.

What is Powerfoyle

The patented Powerfoyle material harvests all forms of light, indoor and outdoor. It is commercially available used in the world’s first self-charging headphones, Urbanista Los Angeles and also the first self-powered bicycle helmet, POC Omne Eternal. So this basically means you can charge your headphones when you have light inside or outside as you will see demonstrated in the video below or you can see a snippet HERE from my headphones, this is really cool and I hope to see this implemented more in tech in the coming years.

 

 

Charging

Since I have got these headphones I have not had to charge my headphones once because of two things mainly then what happens naturally.. Seen HERE is my headphones on my bedside locker and then I have my window up top during the day and I work from my office table placed right beside my window which means the headphones are constantly getting a charged.

Urbanista now have an app

Finally Urbanista now have an app however it falls short on features which is a let down for me however I will let them off this time and hopefully they improve this over time and this for me will enhance the user experience and give them more qudos in the headphone space their products do sound great in general out of the box but having a better EQ experience would enhance the game altogether. The app is visually pleasing but that is as far as it goes and a start, so guys come on give us some more…

Build and fit

The Los Angeles take much of their design from the Miami only this time round the headphones have solar powered built in on top of the headband you can see both pairs side by side in the unboxing video. I felt these where a little tight to begin with however no seem fine and are a comfortable pair of cans to enjoy using for many hours.

Controls

Controls are clean and simple the main controls for me are small for my huge hands but I got use to them over time, all features are present for controls and we go through all this in the video review below everything is kept simple here and the fact I have big fingers should no affect most people who decide to buy these on my status overall they offer a clean experience with an easy tap to control your headphones.

Urbanista Los Angeles techbuzzireland

Battery

Not much to say here being frank, you are basically limitless on this which is just great

Sound

Pretty much the same as the Miami no complaints here and again the ANC works really well indoors and outdoors and from my usual test run they passed with flying colours, they do have some bass thrown in there too and for all my giving out about the app the listening experience is great to be fair they are loud, punchy and no distortion on max volume and no lag latency noted over testing for 3 weeks you will not be dissapointed.

Conclusion

If you liked the Miami you will like these but the thing is about upgrading from those to these, same design and similar audio experince but I have to say yes they are worth the upgrade with not having to charge them or worry about charging them at all and this not being biased it is embracing in the latest technology but Urbanista for me over the years I have been testing have always been a solid product and this puts them afront adopting new technologies and lets see who follows behind them, as of yet nobody has in the headphone space.

Urbanista Los Angeles Key Features

  • Virtually infinite playtime
  • Always charging when exposed to light, both outdoors and indoors
  • 80 hours of battery reserve
  • Hybrid active noise cancelling
  • Ambient sound mode
  • On-ear detection
  • USB type-C charging
  • Bluetooth 5.0
  • Siri and Google Assistant
  • Compatible with iOS, Android and Windows
  • Urbanista Mobile App Compatible
  • Available in Midnight Black (Black) and Sand Gold (Gold) 

BUY

Video Link

 

 

Tech Review – DIESEL true wireless earbuds.

DIESEL are a brand well known for clothes and fashion they also have really cool watches and now some of those are smart, and this is a new direction for them to take in the TWS market and the thing is people have been asking me is that is this just another bandwagon job into the saturated earbuds market and how good are they.. In short they are a great which I am pleased to report for their first shot.

The case alone grabs peoples attention no matter where I had them with me out and about and that is a good start, people thought it was some kind of skincare product until I opened the case and there is a pair of earbuds, the reaction was quite good and everyone shown was impressed but then the next question was do they sound as good as they look? in short the answer is yes they are great which I was hoping being a well know brand they are actually very good..

Design and looks

They are your typical stem design which some might not allure to anymore, they stand out too which for me is fine we are all to custom to seeing airpods in peoples ears and for me their days are numbered you do not need to spend that kind of money on a brand that is not handing up the goods like others, OK you do not get all the same features here but I will delve into that later, these stand out and make a statement and are comfortable to wear too..

DIESEL earbuds in red techbuzzireland

Controls

Controls are simple here and both sides do the work, we go through this in our video review although it is on the side of the box what you have to do, it is a simple affair here and there is access to your voice assistant which I did not find on the manual. The concave design of the earbuds make it simple to change tracks and so on and this is one thing I like, unlike others it is not a flat surface to tap or press.

Sound

These sound great putting is short, there is no app and so no EQ however I found there loud and punchy with nice bass highs lows and mids are fine and doing my ususal test loop they performed really well and for not having app access for EQ and so on they really did not need it in my opinion, they have done a solid job here I have to say.

Battery life is fine and on par with their claims at mid level volumes, on higher volumes like I tend to use you can expect an hour or less off the slated time.

Conclusion

These are great and I was hoping they would be, the looks make a statement and to have the sound to match makes them a win for the company and the consumer who need to wake up to the sheeps call an Airpods, I have said it for some time now and will keep saying it, the cost to performance ratio has come down on phones, there is no need to spend over a grand on a smartphone and the same applies to earbuds now..

Buy at  diesel.com, Amazon, and recognised fashion, telecom and electronics retailers.

Video link 

Tech Review – Twelve South StayGo mini USB-C Hub

USB hubs are a plenty today and a welcome addition as ports become less on many computers today and this has been the case for some years in fact but depending on the brand this differs and over the years we have tested out many USB hubs, with USB-C mostly a standard now it is time to up your game with the latest accessories and Twelve South are no stranger to help out here.

This hub is well designed and well built and this is even down to the cable you get with it that allows you to hide cables behind your laptop or whatever you might be using, this is also compatible with the latest iPads too and home PCs which does not leave it restrained to ONE brand or product as some tend to do.

When it comes to hubs there is not much to say except they offer more convenience and also not forgetting portability, this hub sports a headphone jack USB A and USB-C port plus a HDMI port which is just the right amount most folk would need and also ideal to have in your travel bag..  What is important about such hubs is keeping everything neat and tidy and offering some more depending on the gadgets you have or the extras you need. You could also add a keyboard here too which is handy for iPad users. You can also use power banks and more and this also has USB-C passthrough power.

StayGo from Twelve South techbuzzireland

Twelve South also have a bigger option which is the Original StayGo and this is a must for those with a heavy workload and multiple gadgets to connect..

Features

  • USB-C hub connects peripherals to your iPad or MacBook
  • Four ports: USB-A, HDMI, headphone/audio out and USB-C power
  • Pass-through power to charge or power accessories 
  • Connects directly to iPad or below with the included cable

See the video below for more.

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Video Link

 

Tech Review – Tapo Smart Wi-Fi Light Bulb Multicolor L530B

Smartbulbs are around pretty much years now at this stage with all kinds of everything on offer and the Tapo range is no stranger to this market the Tapo L530B is what we had in for review and it is an ideal piece of tech to change the mood in any room in the house, now it is just a bulb that changes color some might say but there is more smarts to it than you think it is not expensive and also has voice commands built in like Alexa and Hey Google, I am not one to speak to my tech at home that often to be honest but it is there and I know many who do.

The Bulb of course has an app which lets you control the bulb from anywhere, change the colour, turn it on and off and more, you can set up smart actions if you like such as schedules , if your away and a timer you can set the bulb to sunrise and sunset too if you wish which is pretty cool and some more..

With all this home tech and IoT it makes us lazy one might argue today but this is a nice extra to have in your home in any room in the house to change to mood of the boring standard lights many of us have and it is not complicated either to get on board with such tech,check out the video below and see how it works and decide for yourself.

Features

  • Multicolor – Easily design scenarios for your daily routine or activities by customizing brightness, light temperature, and colors–with 16,000,000 hues to choose from.
  • 60-watt equivalent – LED bulb produces up to 806 lumens white brightness and has a dimming range from 1% to 100%.
  • Preset for Convenience – Found your favorite lighting for watching movies? Save it as a setting you can simply select for future movie nights.
  • Schedule & Timer – Create schedules and count plans to turn on/off with the brightness/color you set.
  • Sunrise and Sunset Modes – Automatically activate your light according to your time zone.
  • No Hub Required – Connect the L530B light to your home wifi, then you are all set.
  • Voice Control – Manage the lights with your voice commands as Tapo works with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.
  • Remote Control – Take your phone out for the pocket and open the Tapo app to control your light remotely.
  • Away Mode – Automatically simulate someone being at home to frighten away, unwanted visitors.
  • Restore Last Light State – the bulb automatically returns to its previous power-off state.

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VIdeo Link

 

Tech Review – GlobalLink Multipurpose solar charged lamp

Now that the dark evenings are in this could be one solution and the right piece of tech to carry with you as you can charge by day and party by night and not only that you can charge your phone or tablet on the go, this lamp by GlobalLink has many other tricks up its shirt too with three different light modes on the exterior torch and when it opens up it has an accordian style lamp ( 360 degree light) which also has three light modes both are standard light brighter and flashing which can be useful. You also get a strap which is heavy duty and can be used for whatever purpose you may find use for and it is ideal for those who go camping.

Night time sample of the GlobalLink multipurpose lamp techbuzzireland

 

This can also be used at home in the house or at a festival and charges by mains or solar which is great, there is an 800 mAh battery inside which is not the biggest in the world but the portability factor here is great as it folds down into a pocket size tub if you will and it also has a hook up top and the solar panels are underneath, the torch is on the opposite end and all in all makes a handy little gadget to have in your kit for going camping, to the beach and more. There is a carabiner and Survival Bracelet with Whistle Included – A whistle is for signal delivery, survival bracelets are prepared for any emergency, stretchy material makes it fit for small and large wrists. It is also handy to wear it on and off.

GET A DISCOUNT USING THE CODE – AGUQMOFW

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Tech Review – SHURE Aonic 40 wireless headphones

The Shure Aonic 40 are one of their latest new headphones to hit the market and the first pair of cans in 2022 and I have been testing these bad boys out and have been impressed with my findings, Shure who is a well know brand and deliver on Audio experience have a nice pair of headphones here and I think anyone who tries these out will be impressed. You can check out the full unboxing HERE

Comfort

Comfort is excellent here even over long periods of use which I tend to do with my headphones be it at home or out on a walk, the latter I tend not to do much but do so to test them out, no sweating head clamping or fatigue was noted even over 4 hour sessions and for some gaming and this is good to see, though the environment and temperature might differ for others.

Controls

Laid out simple, the keys might be a but small for those with bigger hands like me for example but got the muscle memory going rather quickly as I went straight in with these for a few days alongside my other review products, the keys work well and function as they are meant to and placed on the right side where you can control volume tracks and more there is a pairing key on the left side, the power key is multifunctional and you can get your battery status here and clear paired device list, I tested these on an iPhone 13 pro and Google Pixel 6 and all worked perfectly fine.

The center button plays a part here too which is in between the volume up and down keys where you can skip and reverse tracks and restart tracks if you wish, you can control your calls here too and activate voice assistant if you desire..

Sound is great on these even without the app however when you use the app this changes there is several profiles on the app to switch between and here you can clearly hear a difference unlike other headphones out there between these and especially between the ANC and Environment modes and is quite remarkable, again unlike subtle changes you might often find but here there is a clear definition between all.

As for the audio experience it is also great and with the enhancement of the app as mentioned they are a joy to listen to for hours on end with no lag latency and just select the profile that suits you best sit back and take it in whatever you prefer to pick but do test them all and hear the difference and that is what these are all about. Bass is great and so is highs lows and mids and direction.

Battery life is also quite good however this differs per person and the settings applied as we all know but a 15 minute charge commands you another 5 hours of with quick charge and overall you can expect around 25 hours in total which will again differ, there is more out there that offer more but again they may not offer the quick charge feature.

Conclusion

These are excellent simple as that,check the video review for more below.

 

  • Portable Design: The foldable, rugged design and carrying case are ideal for compact storage and durable enough to withstand your next adventure.

  • Adjustable Noise Cancellation: Block out surrounding noise and immerse yourself in the AONIC 40 listening experience with three digital ANC settings crafted to deliver users the best noise cancellation, wherever travels lead.

  • Long-Lasting Comfort: Made with premium materials, including glass-filled nylon and aircraft-grade aluminum alloy, the AONIC 40 offers quality comfort and durability made to last.

  • Premium Call Quality: Dial-in to video conferencing or phone calls with exceptional audio, thanks to dual beamforming microphones. Dual USB audio mode enables two-way mic communication with the included USB-C cable or connect with Bluetooth® 5 wireless technology for enhanced stability and a range of up to 30 feet.

  • Accessible Controls: Answer calls, adjust volume, and control Active Noise Cancellation and Environment Mode levels with the push of a button.

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VIDEO LINK

Tech Review – Jabra Elite 4 Active

Jabra have recently released three pair of earbuds to the market and the Elite 4 Actic is the latest edition to hit the shelves and coming in under 140 euro you can see what they have done here, with sub 100 euro offerings and two more expensive pairs they have created a nice portfolio to suit everyone here which is a good thing as it does give us choice and features to pick from but how do these fair out against the rest of the line up and what else is out there.

The Elite 4 Active in my view are an excellent mid range pair or earbuds and also having the better sound tipping towards the 7 series models and for me this is a good thing, you may be down on some features but again there is now 4 pairs to pick from at all price points but the sound from these is super at the price, I am not comparing these to Apple products as I am sick and tired of everyone using them as a standard benchmark when they are not so Apple fans if you have a problem with that you know what to do, there is better earbuds out there that cost less and a long time ago for the price and Jabra like many others fall into this bracket.

Set up on these is simple again with a nice new pop up window showing on your phone this time around unless I have missed this in the past but nice to see, In the personalise your headset option you will see you can now personalise your ANC mode, the rest is as before minus the fitting set up. Again the app is great and giving you a better overall experience.

Once set up you are good to go and then sit back and enjoy the great audio experince you will get by the new Elite 4 Active, these have a great sound and even sound a bit deeper than their more expensive counterparts and in some instances even better, for me they had a wider range and deeper tones and gives the more expensive models a run for their money,highs lows and mids are fine and punchy and off course a nice level of bass present not forgetting you can of course use the Sound Plus app to enhance the listening experience even more,comfort is also fine here calls are excellent and both can be used individually which many folk like to have this as an option.. No lag latency was noted during my usual test loop..

Jabra Elite 4 Active
Pop up window
SoundPlus app

Overall there is not much more to say here being frank these are the ones to buy if you have the above needs and is on a budget as they com close to their top tier models when it comes to sound and that alone seals it for me not forgetting the benefits of the app too.

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VIDEO LINK