Urbanista Seattle headphones review
Urbanista Seattle wireless headphones
£89
Pros
- Cool, minamilst design
- Tactile controls actually work
- Cabled connection as well as Bluetooth
- Comfortable
- Easy listening
Cons
- Possibly get detail from other similarly priced cans
Dave took the Urbanista Berlin for a spin and was, well, let’s say unconvinced. Is the Urbanista Seattle any better, or are these wireless headphones as grungy as the name implies?
Urbanista are looking to provide headphones and earphones that are well-designed whilst keeping them affordable. Naturally, you have to make savings somewhere. Dave discovered this with their Berlin earphones. I have been living with the Seattle on-ear headphones for a few weeks now.
Do you fancy finding out what I though about them?
Urbanista Seattle design
Let’s kick this thing off by saying that the Urbanista Seattle are a good looking pair of headphones.
Their minimalist, monochromatic style sends a message of understated elegance and class.
They fold for easy storage in a bag or pocket and the sliding adjustment is taught and sure.
The Seattle’s ear-cups are well cushioned and have a firm clamp whilst remaining comfortable.
The memory foam padding keeps your ears snug and comfortable, while also helping to prevent background sound leakage to a surprising degree.
There is an on/off slider on the right can, just above the charging port. There is also the mic hole below the USB port.
What about other controls? Well, you get track forward and reverse, and volume up and down by swiping the right earpiece.
On the left earpiece there is a 3.5mm jack for the bundled braided cable to plug in to your audio source should the headphones run out of charge.
Urbanista Seattle performance
The Seattle do feel well made and sturdy.
The memory phone earcups are nice and comfortable. The pleather coating might get a bit sweaty in the height of summer but, again, is comfortable for the couple of hours commute.
You get 40mm drivers in either side with a 20-20.000Hz frequency range. Bluetooth 4.0 hooks them up to your smart device.
Battery life
The battery life as stated is around 12 hours. This seems about right throughout testing. This equated to around 4 days of commuting and lunchtime listening.
The fact that I could go wired should the battery run flat away from a power point is always a bonus. You could share what you’re listening to with a friend too using the cable but keeping Bluetooth connected for yourself.
Sound quality
These are not the most exciting cans in the world. You certainly could not accuse these of bringing any extreme dynamics to the party.
There is a decent amount of detail and the Seattle do not appear to give too much emphasis on any particular frequency range. I really approve of this.
The treble never feels harsh and the bass has just enough power to enliven the low end. I do like that there is no boomy, overdriven bass, nor no hissy and harsh high-end. Although, there are occasions where, rather than being even-handed, the Seattles feel flat.
The mid-range is clearly defined, with vocals being presented nice and centrally.
I think what is letting these down for me is that they just come across as being too relaxed.
There doesn’t seem to be any urgency in their timing or tautness.
I guess this makes them ideal for the commute, just not critical listening.
Urbanista Seattle review conclusion
The Seattle headphones look good and feel well made.
The hinges that allow them to fold away for easy packing are sturdy. I found the memory foam-packed earcups nice and comfortable and could easily wear the headphones for a few hours.
The matte black (or Dark Clown as those crazy Swedes call it) finish of the review sample was also cool. The overall design had that effortless, understated urban aesthetic.
The sound quality is decent, without being challenging. If you need some headphones to block out the world whilst listening to your favourite playlist, the Seattle will do that – with no strings cables attached.
Bass hunters and critical listeners may need something more detailed, but for the majority of you commuting workers, the Seattle may be right up your Space Needle.
Urbanista Seattle price and availability
You can buy the Urbanista Seattle wireless headphones now.
They cost £89 direct from the Urbanista UK website or Amazon.
You have a choice of Fluffy Cloud (white), Dark Clown (black), Blue Petroleum (green), or Rose Gold.
