Guide to the Bluetooth Headphones – Things You Should Know?

Today, we will be reading about the Bluetooth headphones. Through this guide, you will understand how to choose the best Bluetooth headphones for yourself. But first what is Bluetooth?

It is a technology that works by using radio waves instead of wires or cables. You can use that to connect with the device that you want to listen to. It could be your smartphone, tablet, laptop or PC.

Each Bluetooth headphone comes infused with Active Noise Cancelling (ANC), an amazing sound technology, and great battery life. There is also a microphone & Bluetooth, and they have a compact and sturdy design.

You can now listen or speak to anybody using the headphones without having to plug it in to the device. This is a wireless device that gives you the main benefit of flexibility. You have immense freedom because of the lack of wires or cables.

What are Bluetooth headphones?

Bluetooth headphones come without a cable. You can make use of Bluetooth technology to connect wirelessly to your device. The headphones receive the digital audio wirelessly through the Bluetooth protocol when you pair them with the Bluetooth-enabled digital audio devices.

The Bluetooth headphones are almost similar to that of the wired headphones. However, the method in which they get & receive the audio signals are completely different. It is done through their drivers or transducers.

The idea of the headphone is to act like the transducer. The transducer converts electrical energy (audio signals) into sound waves. Transducers convert audio into the sound signals, therefore, are the important components of any headphone.

The wireless headphones work when an analog audio signal comes through the drivers. It then causes a proportional movement in the diaphragm. The movement of the diaphragm moves the air to produce audio signals that mimic the shape of the AC voltage of the audio signal.

It is required no matter the kind of driver than your headphones come with. You can find that the dynamic type if the commonly used in the market. One of the best examples of that is the Sony WH-1000XM4, which is a wireless headphone.

Why are they called Bluetooth headphones?

You would be surprised to know that the term Bluetooth was conceived many centuries ago. According to history, the name Bluetooth was found in King Harald “Bluetooth” Gormsson. Kign Harald was popular for uniting Denmark and Norway in 958.

That is right. The shape of the blue brand is a mix of the Roman alphabet representing “H” and “B”. They are the initials for Harald Bluetooth. It is an image that is made of two runes that have been blended.

This radio technology was designed and released onto the market in 1989. It was done by Nils Rydbeck, CTO at Ericsson Mobile in Lund, Sweden. They wanted to design headphones that work without the use of wires and cables.

What is the benefit of having it?

The wireless headphones provide you with a host of benefits. You can now make use of your headphones to listen to your favorite music, you can speak with your loved ones, and do a barrage of other things as well.

The freedom of using wireless headphones is imaginary. There is no question of wires annoying you, and no need to even take your device with you everywhere at home or office. No more accidents when moving your head around quickly because you have no wires on it.

The audio performance and connection stability are much better. Though the wired headphones provide you with a stable audio quality, wireless can provide a good sound performance. This is provided you use a top-end wireless headphone.

Most of the units make use of the Bluetooth 5.0 firmware that can support every Bluetooth codec. You can also connect by wire for a good audio quality. You can now pair the headphones to the device that you want with the help of the Bluetooth 5.0.

The headphones are pretty stable and offer you with a decent audio quality. When you are not satisfied with the ordinary Bluetooth that is meted out to you, then you can use high-quality Bluetooth codecs.

Then we have the battery life. Now, this can be a debatable topic. Though the battery life reduces each time, you use a Bluetooth headphone, it may not be the same with all models. For example, when you make use of a top-end model from Apple or Sony, then they can last a good 6-8 years without hassle.

Some of the units come with a battery time of 20 or more hours. Isn’t that amazing? Then you have to place them for charging. This gives you the freedom to use them where you want to. It could be the gym, office, travel, and so on.

Next, you may find that a good pair of Bluetooth headphones can serve as anything you want. They come with no limits. Now, you can move around freely, it can last for 20 hours or more, and you do use it for listening to music or watching movies.

Besides, you can also use them with the wired option, when the battery working life starts reducing. When you want to use a higher quality audio, plug your regular headphones and you are good to go.

The above are some reasons for you to give Bluetooth headphones a shot. You can surely find a model that can meet your requirements, to see how great they work. You do not have to discard your existing wired headphones because you can use it too.

Who should buy them?

Anybody can use the Bluetooth headphones. You can use it when you are somebody who requires a model to communicate with your customers, clients, and team members. Since they are Bluetooth, you can wear them and speak to anybody you want to, on the go.

You could be a musician who wants to listen to the music with a good amount of clarity. This is when you may opt for choosing a wireless model. You can listen to each and every tune clearly, without fault.

You can be a professional gamer or user, looking for a decent pair of headphones. Of course, these models do not come cheap. There are many models that are priced less than $200, but you can make use of $400, if you can.

That is because they provide you with an eloquent audio quality. As a professional gamer, you do not have any degree of latency. These delays can cause you to lose the game or the race that you are playing.

Since these are Bluetooth headphone models, you may not want to wear them for more than 60 minutes. That is because of the harmful effects of Bluetooth that can cause radiation in your body. Moreover, it helps in protecting your hearing ability.

What are the factors to consider before buying them?

Bluetooth and sound quality

The first thing that you would want to note in the Bluetooth headphones is the sound quality. Now, the sound quality depends on the audio codec that you are using.

The codec is a software that encodes the audio at one end and decodes it at the other. That means, your headphones and audio player need to be able to support these features. The early versions of Bluetooth compressed the audio immensely.

That produced a harsh, digital sound. They then began to work on improving the audio quality with the introduction of the advanced audio distribution profile (A2DP). It enabled streaming of high-quality stereo audio.

This was possible through the SBC codec. Then we have the aptX. After that came the aptX HD, which is a high-definition upgrade. There is a growing number of devices that can support aptX HD.

Now, Apple devices do not support aptX on the iPhone or iPad. They make use of the AAC, which is an enhanced version of the SBC. You may want to know that the efficiencies in the codec make it comparable to aptX.

Latency

This is a main issue with the models. The latency is the delay that happens between the audio and the signal that is being sent to you when you can hear it. This is not that obvious when you are listening to music but playing games.

So, if you play games too often, then you might want to keep an eye on it. The latency depends on the hardware and software setups present on your devices. Please do note that the aptX HD has a reduced latency compared to the older codecs.

Battery life

It goes without saying that the battery life of the Bluetooth headphones is the most important factor to notice. They get to work using the built-in rechargeable battery. While some models come with powerful batteries that can last more than 18 hours, some models come with a battery life of 6-8 hours.

Then you have to place them for charge. This can be annoying considering the fact that they are Bluetooth models. However, you can charge them through the USB cable. Like we said, some models like the JBL Everest can work for 25 hours non-stop on a single charge.

Pairing Bluetooth headphones

The connecting ability of the Bluetooth headphones also have to be verified. You would be delighted to know that the W1 chip of some of Apple’s headphones has come down to 3 seconds.

Some headphones use NFC to increase the speed. It is possible only in the wireless technology and nothing else. Headphones can be paired with the device by tapping them against it. You can pair them manually if you want.

Remote controls in the wireless headphones

The wired headphones come with a remote on the cable. That is not required in the Bluetooth headphone. They come with some basic controls that are infused in them.

It has a microphone, form of buttons or touch sensors. There can also be a button to activate voice controls. Bose and Sony produce Bluetooth headphones that can work similar to the Google Assistant.

Form factor and size

Now, the wireless headphones have three sizes. They include over-ear, on-ear, and in-ear. The first two function like the wired headphones. The third option, which is the in-ear, is quite different.

Several devices make use of the Bluetooth technology that can make your connections easier. They can connect and exchange data on short distances using radio transmissions. Besides, they also let you connect to multiple devices simultaneously.

However, they do emit low levels of nonionizing radiation. It is not harmful to humans, and according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), exposure to nonionizing radiation is perceived as harmless to humans.

Pros and cons

We have discussed some of the pros & cons below briefly.

PROS

• Wireless technology: The Bluetooth headphones make use of the wireless technology. Now, you can wear them wherever you want to without be having to worry about the wiring or cables.
• Affordable: Unlike what most of you think these models are affordable. You can get them for as low as $100. However, when you want better quality in the Bluetooth technology, then you may want to make use of a $200 headphone.
• Easy automation: These models come with easy automation. They allow you to connect to the other devices flawlessly. You do not have to connect the wires into one device, and then move on to another. You can connect easily.
• The wireless standard: A wireless standard is set once you have achieved your goal of using the wireless headphones. You would appreciate and like the wireless technology as it gives the freedom of doing several things.
• Minimal Interference: There is not much of an interference when you are making use of the wireless headphones. You can listen to the music and speak to others without having to worry about anything.
• Energy-efficient: The headphones are energy-efficient. They do not cause you to be plugged in the whole time. You can charge the headphones and then use them as long as you want to.
• Sharing of data and voice communications: You can now share the data and music communications effortlessly. This can happen between the devices that are present inside the Bluetooth range.

CONS

• Batteries are inconvenient and wasteful: The primary issue with the Bluetooth headphones is that the battery tends to get wasted after some time. Besides, when you make use of the model too much, then it can drain the battery.

Conclusion

We have ended our discussion on the Bluetooth headphones. We hope that you understood and learnt more about the unit. You can find some significant differences between the non-Bluetooth and Bluetooth models.

The Bluetooth headphones come with several advantages compared to the non-Bluetooth headphones. Their sound performance, and comfort are unparalleled. Besides, we also read about the factors to consider and the pros & cons.

This can help you choose the right model for yourself. The unit can offer a good seal around your ears, blocking the outside noise. A good headphone can be priced more than $100. You can choose a model that meets your needs.

When you have any doubts, then please feel free to write to us in the comments section below. We will do our best to get back to you to as quickly as possible.