So a few months after my previous wireless earbud showdown, I came across the Bragi Headphone and just had to try it out. At $150, it was significantly cheaper than the previous three that I had tested. Unfortunately, you do get what you pay for in this case.
Physically they're not bad looking. Somewhat egg-shaped and a bit larger than the Skybuds and Amps Air but not as bulky looking as the Jabra. Smooth glossy black plastic all around except for the outward facing control face which is rubberized. The controls consist of three nubs on the right bud only which pretty much gave me all the controls I could ask for. It matches the Jabra in what functionality you could control (play/next/previous tracks + volume + Audio Transparency) but does it all on one earbud only. I had no issues controlling any of the features through the 3 nubs which was surprising, but nice. The Audio Transparency feature also seemed to work well, pretty much like the Jabra's HearThrough.
Unfortunately, sound quality for music playback was, like the Jabra, simply not there. With the stock medium size silicone FitTip, there was simply not enough tip available to get a good seal with my ears. So bass was simply non-existent. And for some reason, it only comes with small and medium sized FitTips. Fortunately, it also comes with one pair of foam Comply tips which for me at least, made a WORLD of difference. Finally, bass. But still, not enough to impress. Overall sound quality was just bland. So if you really need to use these for music, definitely go with the foam tips.
Another disappointment was with the carrying case that it comes with. With the three previous sets I had reviewed, all the carrying cases doubled as batteries. So when you were not using the earbuds, you could just pop them in their case and they would be charged up. I guess because this Bragi is relatively low cost, they didn't bother sticking a battery into the carrying case. In order to charge the earbuds while they're in the case, you need to plug in the USB cable. Kinda lame. But you do get a lanyard with the Bragi case in case you're the forgetful type and want to hang it around your neck.
So anyway, another earbud tried and tested and unfortunately still not up to snuff for me. Even more disappointing because I really wanted to like it. I think they did a good job cramming in all the controls that I could want into a relatively easy to use interface. It's just too bad that the sound quality was such a letdown. So still awaiting the Air to hopefully save the day. I also placed a pre-order for the Jack so we'll see how that goes with my existing wired earbuds.
