Review: UrbanEars – the Ear Bud with a Twist

Rick Levine — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 07:58:38 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

UrbanEars – the name is as unique as the look, with surprisingly good performance. UrbanEars ‘Medis’ is the name of a line of earbuds from Sweden that are completely different from any other earphone I have ever listened through. Don’t let the UrbanEars Medis ‘toys r us’ look, shape and color throw you off. These UrbanEars are not only well constructed, they actually produce exceptionally good quality audio reproduction – spacious, natural and distortion free. Once you get the hang of how to position the UrbanEars Medis onto each ear, the listening pleasure begins.

Your first look at the Medis by Urban Ears will be a bit of a double take. Unlike conventional style earbuds, these Urban Ears don’t fit into the ear canal surface like the usual Apple ear buds or deep into the ear canal like the ‘in ear’ style earbuds which make your ears all sweaty inside. As a set of ear buds, the Urban Ears Medis have a unique shape and style that is at first quite puzzling. It’s all worth a bit of initial fiddling and concentration. The Urban Ears Medis kind of gently twist into the natural shape of the outer most part of the ear just over the ear canal and ultimately the ‘speaker’ portion (the driver) of the Urban Ear Medis is actually suspended above the surface of the ear canal.

Upon plugging a pair of Urban Ears Medis to my iPod, I was immediately impressed with what I heard. So much so that I wanted to start ‘A / B’ ing the sound quality and physical fit of the UrbanEars Medis with several other earbuds I had on hand from other manufacturers in a variety of price ranges. These Urban Ears Medis came in first place for me in every comparison for general listening.

The Urban Ears product catalogue describes it this way:

‘Medis (UrbanEars model name) is an unprecedented experience in ergonomics and functionality. The patented EarClick solution secures the earpiece on two separate points rather than one, relieving pressure to a nearly non-existent level while keeping it firmly in place. Additionally, the Medis rests a small distance from the ear canal and therefore doesn’t affect your balance. Naturally the Medis features a dynamic sound and the sleek and minimal design that is synonymous with Urbanears.’

The description above can only really be appreciated once you have actually tried a pair of Urban Ears yourself. The sound quality has a marvellous spacious natural audio characteristic and in my opinion is superior, largely a due to the manner is which the speaker portion (drivers) of the UrbanEar Medis is suspended in the tiny space above the ear canal and not jammed into the ear canal like most other conventional earbud designs.

The UrbanEars Medis are surprisingly comfortable to wear, letting your ear ‘breath’ by allowing air to circulate between the driver and the surface of your ear. The hi-quality design and attention to detail is evident from the braided fabric cord down to the soft supple ‘silicone like’ housing which encases the hand made drivers. Urban Ears Medis ship with a variety of changeable inserts to ensure a comfortable fit for ears of all sizes as well as a couple of adapter cables. And of course, the Urban Ears are iPhone compatible as they have an excellent built in microphone and remote for mobile phone convenience.

‘A Better Mouse Trap’

In my opinion, the design of the UrbanEars Medis is revolutionary in the world of ear buds for fit as well as for audio quality. As it says on the box, ‘Function quality and acoustic performance together with a unique design.’

Had I not tried the Urban Ears personally, I would never have been able to appreciate the crisp natural sound quality and comfortable design of these exceptional headphones.

‘Not simply some gimmicky fashion statement’

Don’t take my word for it, find out for yourself and try a pair of these UrbanEars Medis. My apologies if this is sounding cliché but the truth is, after using these Urban Ears, all other conventional earbuds are only second best for general listening of music and voice reproduction. Naturally, because they are so unique, a pair of UrbanEars Medis are a great gift for the music lover in your life who has everything…

(Yes this product gets a 5 star rating)

Key Features:

Ear click construction for ultimate comfort

Interchangeable pads in a variety of sizes

Hand made drivers

Fabric Cord

Microphone and remote compatible with most cell phones

One year premium replacement warranty

A variety of attractive colours to choose from

Approximately $50.00 retail

http://www.urbanears.com/

Review: Flamingo Sport EarClick2 Earphones

andPOP Staff — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 19:32:50 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

The Flamingo Sport EarClick2 earphones boast an impressive list of features on the product’s packaging. Promising a ‘truly comfortable hi-fidelity experience’, the EarClick2 includes numerous features not usually found in ear bud earphones. They include six ‘ear-click’ ear pads, which fit into the ear buds of the headphones with the goal of providing users with a more comfortable, personalized fit. The headphones are supposed to be designed so air can easily flow in and out of your ears, and are made to stay securely in your ears during exercise, running, and so on. The EarClick2 also claims to allow users to hear ambient sound to provide them with ‘the security of situational awareness at all times’, according to the package. The EarClick2 is also supposed to provide users with very high-quality sound and listening experience, through its acoustic design for superior treble and bass.

I put these headphones to the test on a one-hour GO Train (a part of Toronto-area public transit system) ride from Union Station to Oshawa. For me, the most impressive aspect of this product was the overall sound quality – which was excellent. The EarClick 2 is basically like having two miniatures, high-quality speakers in your ears. With the EarClick2, I was able to hear details in songs that I had never heard before.

I have always found it very disorienting wearing headphones because I like to be able to hear what’s going on around me. While wearing the EarClick2, I was able to hear more than just my music, which did make me feel safer and much more aware of my surroundings than I usually am when listening to my iPod. This feature of the EarClick2 also comes in handy when traveling on transit, because you can hear the announcements of the upcoming stops. That being said, I wished the EarClick2 did block out ambient sound as soon as a massive group of loud pre-teens sat behind me in the GO Train. The headphones are probably not a good choice for people who are looking to block out the world while listening to music, or for those wanting to eliminate background noise from their listening experience.

They claims to be the most comfortable earphones you will ever wear, but I believe this is where the product falls short. The ‘ear-click’ ear pads come in a variety of sizes for every ear shape, but I didn’t really feel too much difference between them. The ear-click pads were extremely hard to change, and it took a lot more force to remove them than the ‘gentle’ pulling the instructions indicate. I had the headphones in my ears for about an hour, and although my ears didn’t hurt as much as they usually do when wearing regular earphones, I was still itching to take them off when I arrived at my destination.

Overall, I would highly recommend the EarClick2 for anyone who is looking for high-quality earphones in a non-bulky, ear bud design. The earphones don’t quite live up to their promise of superior comfort, but they do provide users with an excellent sound. If you don’t want to hear anything but your music when using your MP3 player, forget the EarCick2. You are better off in investing in larger, ear-covering studio headphones.

andPOP » ear buds

Review: UrbanEars – the Ear Bud with a Twist

Review: Flamingo Sport EarClick2 Earphones