Technology
By Aidan Wilson
Not Wired For Sound Today while so many of us are at working from home right now, the chances are we are sharing the space either with other family members or as part of an apartment complex so blasting loud music out of speakers is probably a good way to annoy people. Headphones have gone wireless and noise-cancelling now, which means it’s never been easier to create our own little oasis of sound. With so many headphones to choose from here are the main features you might want to consider. To connect headphones to your phone or tablet they need to speak the same language. This language is Bluetooth. Bluetooth is designed to connect devices together over short ranges. There are two main versions of Bluetooth at the moment, version 4 and version 5. For music and audio both give full quality sound. Bluetooth 5 is the newer version with a larger range and better battery life. The range extension should let you walk a couple of rooms away from your player rather than just a few metres. It has a faster data rate and while that probably won’t make a lot of difference for music, if you have a choice go for Bluetooth 5. Bluetooth also means that you don’t have to worry about whether you’re using an Apple device, Android, or any other system. If your device can output sound using Bluetooth it will be able to connect to any Bluetooth headphones. Many headphones offer noise cancellation. Be careful as there is active and passive cancellation. Active noise cancellation uses a microphone to listen to the noise around you and then tries to cancel it out by playing sound waves into your headphones. This works extremely well but is more expensive. Passive
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noise cancellation simply involves your headphones blocking out the background noise. They will either cover over your ears or use a tightly fitting earpiece to block sound from getting into your ear canal. Passive cancellation tends to reduce background noise rather than getting rid of it. Headphones come in two styles. Traditional headphones have an over the head band that connects the two earpieces together and supports the device. Ear buds use two separate wireless speakers that push into your ear. They are usually held in place by the way they fit inside your ear canal, but some include clips that help them stay in place. Which style you choose is really down to personal preference. Headphones can be more comfortable for longer periods of time and being much bigger they usually have better quality speakers built into them. Ear buds are lighter and more unobtrusive and can be less cumbersome if you move around a lot. So which headphones should you go for? The choice really comes down to how you plan to use them. If you want to relax and listen to music with the best quality possible, traditional, over ear headphones will be your best choice. You’ll get the best sound production and the best noise cancellation, but your headphones will be bulkier. If you want music while you exercise either in the gym or out in the open, wireless earbuds will be your best choice. Your earbuds will stay in place while you move, they’ll handle sweat and rain, while still giving excellent sound reproduction. As with all things it comes down to personal choice and personal budget. So, bear all of these factors in mind and have fun shopping.
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