17 Dec Gear Review: Aftershockz Trekz Titanium (Video)
The Transaction
I enjoy a few tunes here and there, so when I saw the Aftershockz Trekz Titanium at this year’s Interbike, I couldn’t help myself but check them out. They allowed us to try them on at their booth and my buddy, Justino from Velosafety.net, asked if he could get a pair to review.
As it turned out, Justino needed to travel, so he surrendered the headphones to me in exchange for a review. I was glad to accept his proposal.
First Impressions
- My reaction to putting them on for the first time in the video was strange. With nothing obstructing my ear hole, I was able to listen to my music. Aftershockz calls this bone conduction technology where it uses the vibration to send the sound into the ear’s canal.
- It didn’t feel natural that I could listen to my music and still hear what was occurring around me. That took a little bit getting used to.
- The buttons and controls were fairly easy to learn after you paired the headphones with your Bluetooth-enabled smart phone. For more advanced instructions like skipping tracks or checking battery status, I needed the product manual.
- It was really comfortable to wear, even during sweaty conditions as designed. The fact that it uses a micro-USB interface to recharge was very convenient as I was able to reuse my own existing cables without opening theirs.
What I Didn’t Like
It came short was in several areas.
- The first major downfall was the sound quality. It was just too “tiny.” Nobody or bass to the sound it produced. I found myself needing to raise the volume to really get into the songs. This completely defeats the whole purpose of having a personal headphone as you are pretty much blasting it to the whole world to listen.
- Then, there’s the added bulge when you’re wearing this thing with your sunglasses and helmet. Whichever way I wore these 3 things items, it was uncomfortable.
- One other issue I had been when I was riding my bike at faster speeds or taking a really fast descent, the wind noise pretty much drowned out any music. I suppose there’s no way to getting around it when your ear is unobstructed.
My Final Verdict
- Execution: 4 / 5 – They did a great job in executing on making a product that was lightweight, comfortable, and somewhat water-resistant.
- Innovation: 5 / 5 – The concept of the bone conduction technology is something I’ve never seen before. Very good solution for the times I want to listen to my music and still be able to hear my surrounding environment.
- Ergonomics: 3 / 5 – Unfortunately, this just didn’t fit into my bike touring lifestyle. Too much of the bulge made it uncomfortable to wear. The wind noise and weak sound required the raising of volume, which did not bode well for those around me. The fact that it uses micro-USB is very convenient to travel with, but that is as far as it goes in terms of ergonomics.
To buy your own, you can order it through the Aftershockz site for about $130. Also, watch my unboxing video if you want to check out what comes in the box.
Thanks again for reading and watching! Stay tuned for more videos.
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