Comparison Soundcore Life Q20+ vs Soundcore Life Q20

The range of audio frequencies that headphones can reproduce.

The wider this range — the more fully the headphones reproduce the spectrum of sound frequencies, the lower the likelihood that too low or too high frequencies will be inaccessible. However, some nuances should be taken into account here. First of all, we recall that the range of perception of the human ear is on average from 16 Hz to 22 kHz, and for the full picture it is enough that the headphones cover this range. However, modern models can noticeably go beyond these limits: in many devices, the lower threshold does not exceed 15 Hz, or even 10 Hz, and the upper limit can reach 25 kHz, 30 kHz, and even more. Such extensive ranges in themselves do not provide practical advantages, but they usually indicate a high class of headphones, and sometimes they are only given for promotional purposes.

The second important point is that an extensive frequency range in itself is not a guarantee of good sound: the sound quality also depends on a number of parameters, primarily the frequency response of the headphones.

A technology used in Bluetooth models (see "Connection") that allows the headphones to connect to multiple devices at the same time. Thanks to this, you can, for example, listen to music from a laptop, and when a call comes in on a mobile phone, switch the headphones to a conversation. This technology has its own characteristics for different manufacturers, and therefore, if the multipoint function is critical for you, you should separately clarify the details of its operation in the selected model.

Headphones with voice assistant support the user interaction with the device to a new level. The call of the assistant. is carried out by pressing one of the control buttons on the headphones or by a specific voice command (for example, «Ok, Google» for the Google Assistant virtual apprentice). The assistant pauses playback, instantly changes the volume of the music, can notify the user of new alerts, helps to answer messages without the help of hands, and commands are given to the paired smartphone via voice control from the headphones.

The type of connector used to charge the built-in headphone battery, or more precisely, to connect an external charger. The role of such a device can be played by a network or car adapter, a power bank, or even a USB port of a PC or laptop (if the appropriate cable is available). At the same time, in true wireless models (available with a long stem, a short stem, without a stem, with a behind-the-ear mount and a clip (Clip-on)), the “charger” wire is connected to a special docking station, where the “ears” are placed during charging (with In this case, the station itself usually has its own battery and can also work as an autonomous power bank). And in wireless and combined solutions of a more traditional design, the charging input is often located on the headphone body itself. As for connectors, the most common options are:

- microUSB. A smaller version of the USB connector designed for portable devices. It appeared quite a long time ago, but does not lose popularity in our time and is used by the vast majority of manufacturers.

- USB C. A miniature USB connector, positioned, among other things, as a potential successor to microUSB. Unlike its predecessor, it has a double-sided design, thanks to which the plug can be...inserted into the socket on either side. It is still relatively rare, but the situation is likely to change in the coming years.

- Lightning. Apple branded connector. Like USB C, it has a reversible design, while being somewhat more convenient and reliable, but the use of Lightning is limited to products from Apple itself and its Beats brand.

The total weight of the headphones; for true wireless models (see "Cable Type"), the weight of each individual earbud is listed.

This parameter is directly related to the design (see above) and some features of the functionality. Thus, the mentioned true wireless devices are very light, their weight does not exceed 25 g. More traditional in-ears and in-ears can be noticeably heavier, up to 50g for in-ears and up to 100g for most in-ears. Overhead models, for the most part, are quite massive: among them there are many models weighing 200 – 250 g, 250 – 300 g and even more than 300 g. It should be noted that a significant weight for false ears is often not a disadvantage, but an advantage: it allows them to stay on the head more securely, creates an impression of solidity and reliability, and most often does not create significant inconvenience.