Have you ever tried the classic Koss Porta Pro headphones? Now they are even better for being wireless.

I have enjoyed owning a set of Porta Pros a few times over the years. It is still outstanding that these lightweight, comfortable ear-pleasers still rank so highly even though they remain unchanged since they first hit the shelves 34 years ago.

Well, that’s all set to change as Koss have cut the chord.

Koss Porta Pro wireless

The lasting popularity of the Porta Pro is testament to their quality. However, a change has finally been forced upon Koss with the shift away from headphone jacks on smartphones.

Koss Porta Pro limited edition

So, in order to enable more people to enjoy them, we welcome the Porta Pro Wireless which has been released today.

Everything about their design above the wire is identical to the classic headset. You get the same soft foam pads, same collapsible design with extensible metal headband, and the same blue highlights. I should imagine, the same degree of lasting comfort.

In addition, you now get Bluetooth 4.1 (with AptX) connectivity, a remote control with microphone, and 12-hour battery integrated into the cable.

Price and availability

The new wireless Porta Pro are available direct from Koss for $79.99.

The post Koss Porta Pro classics cut chord appeared first on GadgetyNews.

It seems that the lurgy is doing the rounds at Tech Addicts. With various members retiring to their sickbeds it’s down to Gareth and I to fill the space.

That’s not to say we just talked nonsense for an hour. In between our usual jibba-jabber we covered the latest news surrounding wearables, some review items and this week’s bargains.

In today’s show

News

Smartwatch fever. Android wear 2.0 incoming, Huawei Watch 2, Gear S3 classic LTE, LG Watch Sport and LG Watch Style, HTC smartwatch

Lenovo Yoga Book … with Android

Reviews

• Micro Scooters Emicro One electric scooter
• Elipson Alpha Bluetooth record player
• Q Acoustics Q3 soundbar – if that’s still too big, here’s an alternative tiny soundbar with a tiny woofer
• Creative Outlier Sports Bluetooth Headphones Unboxing – https://gadgetynews.com/koss-porta-pro-limited-editions/ These are the new limited edition Porta Pros. Just in case you were interested
• Lenovo P2

Bargain Basement

• Blackberry Passport £196.49
• AUKEY Power Bank 20000mAh

£6 off code: HEACW7HM    Final Price: £13.99

• AUKEY Car Charger 4.8A / 24W Dual USB Adapter

£3 off code: GW9DDLTL      Final Price: £2.99

• AUKEY Quick Charge 3.0 USB Wall Charger

£3 off code: OCFQZGDW     Final Price: £4.99

Get involved

• Main Show URL: www.techaddicts.uk
• Join the Discussion: https://goo.gl/spaces/6FF6jraF9KHiPUyA6
• Email: contact@techaddicts.uk
  Twitter: @garethmyles ; @gavinfabiani  ; @GadgetyNewsCom ; @JayGarrett ; @swanny ; @girlsngadgets ; @wildlime
• Web: http://gavinsgadgets.com ; http://GadgetyNews.com ; http://swanny.me/
• Google Plus: +garethmyles ; +gavinfabiani-laymond   ; +JayGarrett

Other ways to listen

• RSS Link: http://mobiletechaddicts.libsyn.com/rss
• Direct Download.
• iTunes
• Stitcher
• Tunein

The post Tech Addicts UK Podcast #19 – Wear 2, scooters and runners appeared first on GadgetyNews.

I have had a couple sets of the Koss Porta Pro. These headphones have reached iconic status in many circles. Now they are available in two limited edition colour-ways.

My Porta Pros have always been the Blue/Silver version. These on-ear headphones are virtually identical to their 1984 ancestors.

They are lightweight, incredibly comfortable and sound great.

It was the AKG K450 that broke my cycle of replacing Koss with Koss.

Koss Porta Pro special colours

If you don’t want to look like an 80s time traveler though, the good news is that Koss has released two limited edition colours to bring the Porta Pros up-to-date. Kinda.

Those colours are Rhythm Beige and Black Gold.

Rhythm Beige replaces the black plastic components with new, retro beige ones.

Black Gold has taken all the metallic parts and sprayed them in gold.

Other than the new colour options, the limited edition Prota Pros also add an inline remote to the cable. This is usually only offered on the more expensive Porta Pro KTC model.

Otherwise they are the same as the originals, offering the same great sound and adjustable “ComfortZone” pressure levels for the ear pads that make the Porta Pros.

As of this week, Koss is selling both limited edition colours on Amazon, as well as the Koss website.

Koss Porta Pro special edition price and availability

The limited edition headphones can be yours in the US of A for $59.99 each.

As you may have already noticed, the price is in US dollars. I have reached out to Koss to find out if there are any plans for the UK to get these. I will let you know as soon as I hear something.

Would you want them if you could get them though?

The post Koss Porta Pro limited editions appeared first on GadgetyNews.

A decent pair of Bluetooth headphones is a must for London commuting. When I’ve attempted the morning scrum with wired cans I enevitably get caught up with someones backpack, rings, etc. Are the Arcade from KitSound decent though?

I know that I, of all people, should never judge a book by its cover but when these arrived at my desk I thought, well they don’t look what I’d call premium.

What was I expecting? You know how much these cost, right?

KitSound Arcade design

Some might say dated, some might even cruelly say plastic-y, but KitSound call it retro.

After using the KitSound Arcade headphones a while, I’d agree more with KitSound. Yes, they do look like something that should be connected to a Matsui or Aiwa tape deck but, having lived through that era, I kinda dig that about them.

Yes, the plastic is shiny but  so were the 80s! I loved the Koss Porta Pro headphones that I owned and I think that the Arcade has a similar vibe.

I’ve been sent the blue version. On the bottom of the left ear-piece you’ll find the mini USB charging port. Over on the other side is the control rocker switch and the audio in port should you want to plug the KitSound cans in to your computer or other device that isn’t equipped with Bluetooth – a very neat feature at this price point.

On this side also lives the on/off button which, I found much to a friend’s annoyance (sorry Sameer!) that this will also call the last number dialled if you don’t hold it down long enough with wanting to turn the headset off.

There’s a nice bit of padding under the headband and the earcups fold flat for packing away.

The Arcade headphones have a frequency response of 20Hz – 20kHz and a Bluetooth range of 10m.

Sound is squirted to your ears via their 40mm drivers.

KitSound Arcade use

I paired up the Arcades with my M7 without any issues. The first sound signifies that the headset is on and then, moments later, another beep announces that its paired with your Bluetooth source.

I wasn’t expecting much from the Arcade, especially at this price point, but when David Bowie’s ‘I Took a Trip on a Gemini Spaceship’ started playing it actually stopped me midstep.

Pushing the rocker forwards, selecting the next random track, squirted the chugging intro of ‘Their Law’ by The Prodigy. The bass was good and the mids and highs clearer than I would have ever given the KitSound headphones credit for.

It’s not all rosey mind. I have already mentioned my accidental calling of a friend repeatidly when meaning to power the Arcade down but, as the rocker performs volume as well as forward and reverse duties, you can find yourself track skipping instead of volume changing or vice-versa. Once you have gotten used to this, it becomes less of an issue, but it does cause mild frustration for the first week-or-so of ownership.

Should your battery run flat and you are not able to access a USB powersource then running the headphones via the bundled cable is a sure-fire winner.

That being said though, battery life has been fantastic and clocked in up to 8 hours of playtime between charges.

The headphones seem to be quite solidly built although I have managed to scuff the bottom of one of the blue parts already.

That aside, I do feel that the Arcade will last for quite sometime.

The headband does allow for adjustment but, and this could be just down to my head shape, I still find that the headphones seem to rest on, rather than hold on, to my head and ears. I much prefer the fit of my AKG K830BT cans but then, there’s a heck of a price difference between those and the Arcade.

KitSound Arcade conclusion and price

I have mentioned that the KitSound Arcade bluetooth headphones are keenly priced a few times during this review and they are. Extremely well priced.

£45? Nope. £35? Nah. £25? Surely not?

Well, if you go over to Amazon.co.uk you can grab yourself a set for £20.

That’s right – these Bluetooth headphones are a £20 bargain!

The sound is great. They are rocking the retro looks and, apart from dropping out a couple of times when in places such as Liverpool Street station, have performed amazingly for the price.

I have yet to come across any Bluetooth headphones at this price that could challenge the KitSound Arcade – if you know otherwise, tell me.

The post KitSound Arcade wired / Bluetooth headphones review appeared first on GadgetyNews.

It was time for some new headphones. This is a regular occurrence as I wear headphones on my daily commute, when walking about town and when rehearsing bass at home and recording/mixing musical ideas. They get a lot of hammer and lately my Audio Technica ATH-SJ3’s have handed in their notice.

I had tested the current favourite on the streets, the Beats by Dre Solo’s but they’re very expensive and not the cleanest sounding to my ears and seemed to favour the bass-end too much – that’s coming from a bass player! I also didn’t fancy wearing the ‘mug me now!’ sign that these would probably give out to certain people in certain areas of London.

My headphones always die at the same point – the cable. So, I was considering going wireless with a Bluetooth set and really fancied trying out Jaybird’s Sportsband but no matter how many times I contacted them to test some I never had a reply. I even Tweeted Judd direct – still nothing.

Then I thought – well, if I’m after some headphones that will do all the jobs I want then Bluetooth wont do it. I can’t link them to my bass amp, my soundcard, etc.

So – it would be a wired set which set my spider senses tingling. I’m going to have to head to premium sets that have a removable chord. I knew that Bose and Shure did cans like that – but I also knew that they were well into triple figures.

After rummaging around the interwebs I found some that looked as light (or almost) as my old Koss Porta Pro’s and as comfy as my Audio Technica’s.

The headphone’s in question are the AKG K450. I am no stranger to the Austrian brand as I’ve used their mics a number of times in studios and knew that they were quality.

Originally I was put off by the K450’s £130 RRP but, before you run away, I bought the headphones from Amazon (of all places) for £44. Bargain!

Design

I prefer headphones to earphones partly because I believe the ear was not designed to have a sound source shoved into it and partly because headphones have a certain classic and timeless style about them. The headband on the K450 allows for good adjustment to allow for a large head or big hair. The cans themselves are a closed-back design with lovely soft padded cups for better comfort.

The left can has a port for the detachable cable which was what I was particularly on the hunt for. You also get two cables in the box of varying lengths as well as a pair of jack adapters (2.5mm/6.3mm).

The K450’s fold flat and in on themselves for travelling. To protect them further you get a padded case – so shoving them into your hand/man-bag wont leave them all scratched and battered. There’s internal pockets inside the case for your leads and adapters. It’s not a tiny case but it does offer your kit a lot of protection.

Hands free

The one thing I liked about the Beats was that they came with an inline remote and mic – the K450’s come with 2 different length cables but neither have a phone kit. So, to make the headphone’s more iPhone friendly I bought the additional AKG HA450 Communication Kit (RRP £50) new for £35 from an eBay store.

That’s a grand total of £79 with the headphones! I got free shipping on both items too!

I’m guessing offerings from Griffin et al will work but I liked the idea of making a hands-free call using an AKG mic

The HA450 Communication Kit gives you the cable with a remote, as well as adapters for Nokia and Blackberry mobiles and a splitter lead so that you can use your headphones and mic for gaming and VoIP on your computer – one jack for the headphones and the other for the mic.

Hands free calling gets top marks. The voice in the headphones is extremely clear and, on the other end, my voice came through the AKG mic very well and, as yet, I’ve not had to repeat myself due to call quality.

The in-line remote is a one button job without volume control which is slightly disappointing. It is rare that I need to adjust the volume between tracks so it’s not that much of a deal breaker for me but it is something that you may want to keep in mind.

Sounds

What I love about the sound coming out of the AKGs is that it’s extremely even. Don’t confuse that with flat by the way.

None of the ranges are battling for supremacy – bass, mid-range and treble are all given equal attention. The bass isn’t overbearing yet punchy and clarity is excellent thanks to the crisp high frequencies.

Vocals come through with plenty of detail and are at least equal to that of headphones three-times the price I paid for these.

I listen to a broad range of music and have had Ministry, Nine Inch Nails, Rothko, Adam and the Ants, Angelo Badalamenti, Lamb, Mozart, Sibelius, Old 97s, Love, The Strokes and many more pushed through them over the past week and all sounded clear, defined with a decent punch from the bass. I’ve not noticed any glaring looks on the tube caused by leakage either. Obviously you’re not going to get the same performance from some mini-headphones as some fully enclosed cans but these are rather good.

Verdict

The AKG K 450 headphones look like premium mini-headphones. They’re stylish, classy and are really comfortable as well as having the ability to be packed away into a small space. The added bonus is that the average chav probably wont give the brand a second look – unlike the Beats

The removable and, more importantly, replaceable cable means that the life span of these cans should be much more than the 6-18 month life expectancy most of my headphones get.

It is a shame that you have to fork out for the Communication Kit to make them the perfect iPhone/iPod headset but you also get additional cables with that so you can Skype and game with them.

Sound-wise I don’t think you’d be disappointed if you had paid £130 for the K450s but at £44 you’re laughing!

The post Best iPhone Headphones for Under £80 – AKG K450 with HA450 Cable Kit appeared first on GadgetyNews.

Righty – you love the retro vibe, perhaps wearing some cool Space Invader tights, but you’re rocking some modern headphones – you’ve ruined the look!

You could get yourself some mighty fine Koss Porta Pros, which I’ve owned and loved but they might be a little ‘off-the-shelf’ for someone as cool as you.

May I present the ‘Tracks’ headphones from the fantastically named Danish company – Aiaiai!

These have a distinct whiff of the Walkman ‘phones and are admittedly styled on the personal audio classics which must’ve helped Sony beat Phillips in the compact cassette player wars back in the 80’s.

You get the comfy foam ear-pads that slide on brushed steel head braces.

Whilst their looks are stuck in my favourite style period the ‘Tracks’ are 21st Century with the latest in driver technology and you should be getting decent audio from the 40mm speakers.

These will also play nice with Blackberry’s and iPhones so there you go.

£44.50 will get you stepping out from the crowd!

Check the range out at Aiaiai.dk

The post Tracks by Aiaiai – 80’s Headphones for 2010 appeared first on GadgetyNews.

Righty, you’ve probably read the bad news about the iPod Shuffle.

Yup.  Apple, in their wisdom, have moved all of the buttons from the Shuffle itself and put them on the earbuds cable.

So, now there’s plenty of manufacturers out there making their own versions especially for the Shuffle and for ca$h.

Fine.

But, like you no doubt, I already have ‘phones that i use and enjoy – for me that’s my Koss Porta Pros and Audio Technica ATH-ES7’s .

Neither of which I would fancy having to get rid off just because the Shuffle comes with those “great” Apple phones.

Thankfully Scosche have created a solution.

Their adapater will allow you to plug in any set of earbuds or headphones  into your Shuffle and still have those controls.

It also makes it so that you can plug your shuffle into an aux input.

Unfortunately that’s just about all I know at the mo.

But, to me this is a better idea so, as soon they start releasing more information I’ll let you know

OhGizmo

The post New iPod Shuffle Earphone / Headphone Adapter from Scosche appeared first on GadgetyNews.

I’m not a huge fan of earbuds but I am a huge fan of Koss.

I like the idea of Koss’s new CC_01 earbuds.

They’ve replaced those easily-lost foam or rubber tips with an expandable and contractable system.

In other words, just turn the metal screw top on the back of the ‘buds, and the tips will adjust to fit.

Koss products have served me well, and anyone that knows me will testify that I’m generally wired up to music and all my headphones and earphones have a lot to put up with.

I’ve found Koss stuff pretty reliable and pretty low-cost – but I was a bit shocked to see that these buds are gonna be costing around $150.

The Koss CC_01 will be available this March.

DVICE

The post Koss CC01 Earbuds Have Screw Adjustable Lug Comfort Built-in appeared first on GadgetyNews.

The quickest way to make anything look hi performance, modern and cutting edge is to construct it from carbon fibre.

This even works with a pair of studio grade cans!

These are Phiatonâ€s latest model weighing in at a mere 6.5oz.

To keep the weight down Phiaton have made the MS-400 from carbon graphite fibre encased in a double-shell high polymer enclosure.

They also say that they have worked on the airflow, optimizing it to deliver “concert hall sound quality”.

The MS 400 features flexible joints that fold in two steps making it perfect for mobile studio engineers (kinda like the PortaPro’s that rock with my iPhone).

Light doesn’t mean cheap at $249 but if they perform like top-level studio headphones then it’s not that expensive really when you compare them with other top end monitor cans on the market.

I’d love to test them in a studio environment so…….if I could try a pair……

Other specs include:

• Weight: 6.5oz
• Drivers: 40mm electrodynamic
• Sensitivity: 98dB
• Impedance: 32 Ohm
• Input power: 1000 mW

The press release, issued today says:

“…The carbon fiber housing helps deliver crystal clear sound and eliminates any sound leakage. To ensure better resonance values, deep rich bass, a full-bodied midrange, and sparkling high notes, the carbon is encased in a high polymer enclosure with a double-shell structure

Machines That Go Bing!

The post Phiaton MS 400 Carbon Fibre Headphones appeared first on GadgetyNews.

Rejoice and give thanks my loyal flock; for I have seen the glory and bright white of my salvation.

Well, that may be overdoing it a tad – but after many years I am now part of the iFaithful.

Yup, I now own a shiny, 16gig, white-backed 3G iPhone and after my first 24 hours with it – I’m convinced I have made the right move.

As you may have read in my piece about Nokia’s E71, that was a good phone with a QWERTY board and easy email set-up. The iPhone is even easier to set up and after firing off a coupla texts and using the touch QWERTY to set up passwords, etc I find it just as easy to use.

I’ve added some tunes and apps via iTunes and as this was my first time with the whole iThing, again I have to say what a pleasure it is to use and thoroughly intuitive.

I actually attempted to get an iPhone on Friday.

I finished work early and sprinted across London to arrive at the Regent Street store at 4.20pm.  The line was closed 2 people ahead of me as they had “run out of 16gig phones” and “not sure when we’ll get any more”.

Quite miffed I consoled myself in the Phoenix Theatre’s members bar.

On returning home I checked the site and lo-and-behold they had some more in stock for Saturday! (check the site after 9pm for phone stock and note that they’re opening up at 9am Mon-Sat, there was a bunch of people turning up ‘early’ for the regular 10am opening and they had to queue outside).

This leads me to believe that they have a ration as to how many they sell per day – which is good but they’re also seemingly keeping this a secret.

I chatted to one of the guys working there and he advised that “as long as you’re here before 3pm you’re pretty much guaranteed to get one, although the black ones go real quick”.

Personally I prefer the white ones as they’re not going to show all the finger prints and scratches as bad.  Besides, it’s only the 16gig ones that come in this colour option so it also shows that you’ve got the good one.

I can also recommend you give yourself plenty of time.  For me on Saturday it was a 4 hour round trip. Got to the store at 9am (tube was playing up-I left at 8:30) and got home at 12:30. I had to queue around the lift in the store behind about 30 people then was lead upstairs to queue (this time sat down though).

The actual credit check, authorisation and activation of the iPhone takes between 20 minutes and half-an-hour.

As you can tell from the pic the apps that I have d/loaded so far include:

• Last.Fm
• Twitterific
• Facebook
• and most importantly PhoneSaber

If you’re not familiar with PhoneSaber it gives you the pointless but totally cool image of a lightsaber (you can chose the colour) and as you move your iPhone you get the iconic sound of the whooshing and clashing saber – depending on information received from the phones accelerometer.

By-the-way; all of those apps above are free, gratis! :0)

I am still slightly disappointed by the speakers and they are really easy to cover up when using the keypad for example and when you cover one speaker up you can hardly hear the remaining one.

Still on the subject of audio – the bundled earphones are ok but not brilliant.  I’ve got me some Koss Porta Pros – great headphones but I guess that the 80’s styling wont be to everyone’s taste but just think to yourself – there must be a good reason why they haven’t had to change these for 20 years………….

Righty, I’m off to see what else this thing can do!

The post All White Now – I Finally Own an iPhone 3G appeared first on GadgetyNews.