T3 India

Wearables

Review: Fastrack Reflex Tunes F02 Headphones

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Price: ₹7,995

This around-the-ear headphone isolates noise with tight-fitting earmuffs and provides ANC as an add-on

Fastrack had its beginnings as Titan’s urban youth brand, initially establishing itself in watches and sunglasses. Since then, the brand has expanded into various other accessory segments. Reflex Tunes wireless audio devices include TWS earbuds, neckbands, and over-the-head headphones. The F02 is an over-the-head, around-the-ear headphone that offers an affordable solution to high-quality audio.

The Reflex Tunes F02 retails at a price that is within the reach of most people looking at an over-the-head headphone, and at this price, it is feature-packed, offering Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) and quick pairing. The device has a typical design, that looks uninspiring, yet provides a comfortable fit with large and well-cushioned earmuffs that efficiently cuts off most of the background noise even without ANC. The adjustable headband also offers soft and thick cushioning. The plastic used in the band and ear cups does not provide much confidence and appears flimsy. Hence, we would advise you to be cautious while bending it. However, we can vouch for its longevity in normal use. The headphones have a foldable design. The ear cups flex a little, helping you fix it properly over the ears. The device is IPX4 certified and hence splashproof. At 260 g, the F02 is quite lightweight. The headphones are available in black and grey colours.

The F02 has all the controls and ports on the right side including a multifunction button for power, pairing, play/pause, and call answer/hang up, a volume up/next track button, a volume down/previous track button, an ANC button, status LEDs for power/pairing and ANC, USB Type-C charging port and a 3.5mm AUX jack. To use the device in wired mode, you only need to plug in the AUX jack irrespective of whether the headphones are powered on or not. Similarly, ANC works even in offline mode. Just flip the ANC switch and it gets active, cutting off most background noise even when the audio signals are off. The Reflex Tunes F02 uses five microphones for audio pickup and ANC. The device houses a 580 mAh battery, and Fastrack claims up to 15 hours of battery life with ANC and up to 20 hours without it. Though our music listening was erratic on this device, thanks to the number of headphones and speakers on review, our estimate was close to what is claimed. The battery takes three hours to fully charge.

The Fastrack Reflex Tunes F02 uses a 40 mm driver that reproduces audio with good separation. Though the bass is enhanced, the headphone offers competent treble also, unlike the bass-boost devices flooding the market. The mid frequencies are a bit suppressed, and vocals felt somewhat less refined to our liking. However, considering that this is not a premium device at the top end of the market, Fastrack has done a great job with these headphones. ANC is not overwhelming, and you might not feel much difference when you are listening to music because it cuts off only the most disturbing noise such as the hum of air conditioners and ceiling fans. That being said, these are the only disturbances you feel after the tight-fitting earmuffs cut off most outside noises. Call quality was excellent, both in listening and being listened to. The headphone supports voice assistants including Google Assistant and Siri.

★★★★

WE’RE IMPRESSED Value for money, Comfortable fit, Excellent passive noise isolation

WE’D IMPROVE Build quality

THE LAST WORD The Fastrack Reflex Tunes F02 offers excellent value for money with balanced output, active and passive noise cancellation, and superior call quality in a low-to-mid priced headphone. We would certainly recommend the F02 to anyone looking for affordable over-the-head headphones with ANC.

Personal Audio: Sony Witnesses Surge in Demand

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Sony has been at the forefront of personal audio space and the Covid-induced lockdown has certainly pushed this segment forward in over a year. T3 caught up with Gyanendra Singh, Head of Audio Business, Sony India, on the sidelines of World Music Day.

The extended lockdown has largely confined everyone to their homes. Apart from OTT platforms and gaming, music is something that keeps people engaged and helps maintain their sanity. What are the major trends experienced by Sony’s audio division during this lockdown period?

During this lockdown as well, we are witnessing a surge in both Personal Audio products like earphones and headphones and the home entertainment products like the Soundbars. We are experiencing that consumers are moving towards products with features that are helpful for their work from home, learn from home activities and products that enhance their consumption of entertainment at home. The demand upsurge is like what we experienced during the last year unlock.

Could you elaborate on some of the products that drove the maximum business during this time? What are the buying trends that emerged during this lockdown phase?

While there continues to be an overall good traction for both personal audio and home entertainment products, for personal audio products, in terms of form factor, the truly wireless segment and the headphones with Active Noise Cancellation are showing very strong demand. We continue to have very good traction for our flagship 1000X series in headphones and truly wireless earbuds form factor, followed by affordable Bluetooth headphones WI-C200, WI-XB400 & WH-CH510. On the home entertainment front, the consumer is displaying the desire to upgrade his home audio-video environment. Consequently, there is demand for soundbars to enjoy cinematic audio experience at home for flagship products with Dolby Atmos like HT-Z9F and HT-G700, followed by affordable range models like HT-RT3 and HT-RT40.

With service centres and other points of service shut, how did you manage to connect with customers?

Since the beginning of lockdown, Sony has been actively supporting consumers via e-mails and live chat to ensure uninterrupted entertainment. 24×7 assistance is being offered to customers through AI-assisted Chat Bot. Our Call Center (1800 103 7799) was operational and our customer service executives were available for resolving customer queries by offering Remote assistance through DIY videos and video calls. We also offered special Warranty extension for customers whose product warranty lapsed during the lockdown period.

What were the major learnings from the extended lockdown period for Sony in the audio space? How has it changed the way you did business? How do you look forward to the post-Covid and post-lockdown scenario?

There are multiple factors that have evolved due to this extended lockdown phenomenon. Firstly, the usage of audio products has increased whether it is for work from home (WFH), learn from home (LFH) or home entertainment. It has given consumer a greater opportunity to experience the product and enjoy its features. Secondly, for many consumers this has led to a situation of higher disposable income and hence consumer spending on premium audio products has increased and we expect this to continue in the post-lockdown scenario as well. Lastly, it has increased the use of online as a medium of communication for both our consumers and for us as well. Consumer traffic has significantly increased to Sony India’s website and to our products on other e-commerce portals. Consequently, our modes of reaching out to the consumer has also seen a greater shift towards the online medium and we expect this to continue.

Ambrane Launches TWS Earbuds; More Audio Products on Anvil

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Ambrane, one of the leading mobile accessories brands, announced the launch of Dots 38 and NeoBuds 33 TWS earbuds.

The Dots 38 TWS comes with a long playback time of up to 16 hours with a fully charged case. The TWS comes with an in-built mic that gives you crystal clear audio on the go. Available in white, the Dots 38 sports a stylish yet minimal design, which further provides you with portability and a secure fit.

Neobuds 33 is an extension to the very successful Neobuds TWS series. The buds feature a deep bass as well as 10 mm drivers delivering a dynamic audio experience. The bass is punchy with a rich mid-section and treble enriching the music experience of the audiophiles. The Neobuds 33 are Available in Black, white, and Indigo Blue, with a compact charging case. These buds offer a long playback time of 15 hours with the charging case.

Both Dots 28 and Neobuds 33 feature Bluetooth V5.0 with a wireless range of 10 m, enabling a quick and reliable wireless connection, as well as an easy touch operation allowing you to activate the voice assistant and manage your calls through the touch sensors. Both the devices feature IPX4 ingress protection rating, offering sweat and splash resistant features with 365 days warranty. The Dots 28 and Neobuds 33 are priced at Rs.2,499 and Rs.1,799 respectively and are available on Amazon and Flipkart.

In the next three months, Ambrane aims to launch more products in the Audio range including Headphones, Neckbands and True wireless.

STYX India Launches Neo SmartWatch

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STYX India, one of the latest entrants in the Indian consumer electronics industry, has unveiled the STYX Neo smartwatch with health monitoring. Backed by the latest technologies, the newly launched wearable boasts extended battery life, health monitoring features and available at a highly affordable price point.

Commenting on the launch, Sandeep Sharma CEO of STYX India said, “We are living in an uncertain time and the need for fitness is growing drastically. Wearable devices have become extremely useful for tracking health and fitness. While people download fitness tracking apps on their smartphones but they are not as accurate as they should be. With the launch of STYX Neo smartwatch, we are delighted to come up with a feature-packed wearable watch that offers great benefits to the consumer.”

With the rise of lifestyle disease, people have become health conscious and started incorporating fitness activities into their daily schedule and need constant health monitoring. STYX India’s flagship offering – Neo SmartWatch tracks the health of the consumers with extreme accuracy including body temperature, heart rate, and blood pressure.

STYX’s Neo Watch features 15 days battery life, body temperature monitor, blood pressure monitor, continuous heart rate monitor, IP68 water resistance, female health tracking, 11 sports modes, sleep monitor and quick release strap.

STYX Neo smartwatch is available in four sophisticated colours — Mystic Rose, Frost Silver, Electric Blue, and Carbon Black and can be purchased from the brand website, Amazon, Flipkart and dealer stores across India. It is originally priced at Rs. 4,999 with a 30% discount on the launch, making it available in the market at Rs. 3,499.

The ultra-lightweight and comfortable eyewear for daily life: Steppers STS-30050

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Steppers have outdone themselves to come up with a remarkable ultra-lightweight design for their new range of eyewear: the STS-30050. With an innovative plastic body, these frames are designed for the everyday life, keeping in mind not only the comfort but also wearers with sensitive skin.

Impressively, the STS-30050 frames weigh just 6.6g (yes, 6.6!). Made with the TX5 plastic which is lighter than the traditionally used acetate, these frames also come with an integral nose bridge which is designed by the German master optician – Hans Stepper – for the best possible fit.

Apart from the lightweight and comfortable design, the STS-30050 frames are also available with bold colours, thus suiting the need of those wanting to hold on to their persona and stylish look. The front of the frames is ‘moulded in a single process so the anatomical curve is set and will not change over time’.

People with sensitive skin have been taken into account while designing these frames as well. The TX5 plastic used, is hypoallergenic, which means that the wearers won’t have to deal with skin reactions based on the longevity of use.

For more information on how you could get your hands on Stepper’s STS-30050 frames, please visit this page.