Intcrown S520 Mini Noise Cancelling Sports Bluetooth Headphones

Screen Shot 2015-04-09 at 4.30.49 PMI’ve been using stereo Bluetooth headsets for listening to the music in the gym ever since the first such device came out and the mp3 players started including Bluetooth as an option. In my opinion there is absolutely no other way to unobtrusively listen to the music while you exercise. However, all the headsets that I’ve used so far have one major problem: they all fail due to the moisture within a very short period of time. So far I have not had any such problems with these Intcrown S520 headphones, but only time will tell if they manage to be an exception to the rule.

The headphones were easily paired with my iPhone 6 plus. They were instantly recognized by my iPhone and stayed connected throughout use. They were easily reconnected, something that I don’t take for granted with most Bluetooth devices. I’ve used them for a few weeks and so far they seem to be working fine.

The sound quality of these headphones is one of their main attractions. First of all, no wireless headphones of this size will ever be able to deliver the deep, clear sound that you expect from some of the higher end headphones, but these headphones sound richer and more vibrant than almost all the headphones I’ve tried before. They were on par or better than the Motorola S line of Bluetooth sports headphones, and miles better than the Jabra headphones.

These headphones seem to feature active digital signal processing (DSP) noise canceling technology. These are the first sports headphones with such technology that I have used. I did notice an improvement over the “passive” noise cancelling headphones that I have used, but nothing earth shattering. They are certainly far below the similar active effects that I have experienced with the larger over-the-ear headphones that I had used. Nonetheless, I was pretty happy with the degree of noise cancelation. The headphones are pretty good at minimizing the outside sound while in use, and even to some extent when they are turned off. Several times I was in a situation where someone tried to talk to me while I was wearing them, and I had to take them off in order to hear what the person had to say.

These headphones are probably one of the most reductionist ones that I’ve seen. They are just made out of two oversized earbuds and a connecting cord between them. This, IMHO, is the ideal form factor for the sports headphones. The earbuds are pretty large and stay firmly in my ears even during the moderately fast runs. The extra sports ear cushions make the fit very snug. The connecting cord loops around the ears, which gives the headphones extra stability. I’ve used them while running for several weeks and they stay firmly in the position. They score high on both the form factor and the comfort level.

I have not used these headphones much for phone calls. In general I fund Bluetooth headsets to be quite inadequate for voice phone calling. The mic on these headphones also seemed below average, but then again, I was not going to use them for telephony anyways, so this aspect of the headphones neither bolsters nor diminishes a case for them.

The battery life for these headphones is pretty decent. I have been able to go through a whole week’s worth of moderately long (up to an hour) gym routines, and the headphones managed to retain enough juice for the most part. I usually charge such headphones overnight, so I am not sure how long does it take for them to get fully charged.

I will be monitoring these headphones for the foreseeable future. If they manage to survive a year of use in the gym, and their battery power does not significantly diminish over that period of time, then they might be some of the best overall sports Bluetooth headphones that I have come across.

**** Product provided free for review purposes. ****

 

Bojan Tunguz

Bojan Tunguz was born in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which he and his family fled during the civil war for the neighboring Croatia. Over the past two decades he has studied, lived and worked in the United States. He is a theoretical physicist with degrees from Stanford and University of Illinois. Tunguz has taught physics at several prominent liberal arts colleges and has been writing about physics, science and technology for more than a decade. He also has a wide spectrum of interests, and reads and writes about current events, society, culture, religion and politics. Over the years he has reviewed many of the books that he has read, and posted his reviews on various online outlets. In 2011 he had become a top 10 reviewer on Amazon.com, where he continues to be very active. Aside from reading and writing, Tunguz enjoys traveling, digital photography, hiking, and fitness. He resides with his wife in Indiana. You can follow my review updates on the following pages as well: Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/tunguzreview Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/tunguzreviews Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/104312842297641697463/posts

Visit Website

One Comment

  1. Ali Ashtari July 1, 2015 Reply

    Hei Bojan.
    How are the Intcrown S520 holding up?
    Do they still work properly?

     

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*