Full FeedAppletell reviews ZAGG Audio Z.buds for iPhone
Product: In-ear headphones for iPhone
Developer: Zagg Audio
Minimum Requirements: Audio device with 1/8” stereo mini jack
Retail Price: $79.99
Availability: Out Now
At Macworld, I got the chance to drop by ZAGG to see about their new in-ear headphones, the Z.buds. They told me that these are based on Shure headphone technology, so you know it’s going to be good. Since talking to ZAGG, I’ve been testing them out, and I’d love tell you about them.
First off. let’s get the specs out of the way.
- speaker diameter: 10mm
- frequency response: 20hz to 20Khz
- impedance: 32 Ohms
- max input power: 10mW
- cable length: 1.37 meters/54 inches
- plug type: 3.5mm
- sensitivity: 94dB +/- 3dB SPL/mW
ZAGG would probably like to brag about those specs, but they’ll have to be content with me mentioning that these won the CES Innovations award for 2009. Needless to say, my expectations were high when I first tried them out. Did they live up to the expectations?
Mostly, yes. Let me explain. I don’t want there to be any confusion about this; these headphones are amazing concerning the most important part: audio. No question there, they sound fantastic. And for $79.99, they should. Actually, you could probably stop reading the review right here if that’s all that you care about. My problems are all small ones. But there are quite a few.
Starting at the top, there’s no label for which bud goes in which ear. Did you hear that? That’s the sound of a product engineer somewhere hitting his or her head and swearing. Thankfully, you can tell the buds apart by the microphone placement. All you have to do is remember that the right ear has the microphone…or is it the left? Crap.
There’s a lot of hardware on these, which is good, in my opinion. From top to bottom, there’s a mic, a clicker, what I’m told is a button hold for the business crowd, and a volume wheel. I’m sorry, but I hate the clicker. It’s too small and recessed. I know they don’t want you pressing it by accident, but it’s a bit harder to press on purpose. Still not a huge problems, just minor annoyances.
The cord is made out of a woven material which makes it pretty resistant to tangling. I’ve always loved this idea (it might have been the only thing the Zune got right). It’s a pretty long cord and it has three “chrome” beads. They’re actually plastic, and it’s pretty obvious. Come on, how much could half an ounce of metal cost?
You’re supposed to wear these headphones like a necklace. Feels and looks a little funny, but it works to keep the headphones always accessible and prevents them from ripping out of your ears. Just do it before you leave the house and no worries, right?
The ear buds also come with a ton of different fittings, with different materials and sizes. So, you don’t have to worry about these not fitting in your ears. Seriously, they didn’t leave anybody out here. I just stuck with the foam ones that came with it since they seem to fit my ears pretty well. You also don’t have to worry about it fitting in your first gen iPhone. Thanks to Apple, headphone jacks have permanently gone on a diet.
So, let me review. There’s no label on the buds, but you can tell them apart by the mic placement. The clicker on the mic is hard to press. You have to wear them like a necklace and the “metal” beads are actually plastic. But, they sound fantastic. Again, all of my issues are pretty minor, so I’m not all the concerned. It’s something to think about when you’re spending $79.99, but I still think they are great headphones.
Appletell Rating:
Buy ZAGG Z.buds
Also see Gadgetell’s Z.buds for iPhone review.
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Great review! Very insightful!
Note: The sliders (beads) are actually chrome, not plastic, and you don’t have to wear Z.buds around your neck, it’s just an option.
on January 21, 2009 at 11:39 AM - LINKTo be more specific, the sliders are chrome encased.
on January 22, 2009 at 09:01 PM - LINKI bought these after seeing the 2009 CES design and innovation…. yadda, yadda award, thinking that these would have to be the king of aftermarket, mid-price, hi-fidelity, iPhone-compatible headphones.
Boy was I wrong. The first pair never worked right, then eventually failed. The replacement pair lasted about two weeks of just normal, daily use before failing. So, what failed? On the first pair, the answer/hang-up or play/pause button never worked. That was frustrating, but I decided to suck it up. within about two weeks though, the connection between the cord and the 1/8” jack must have dislodged, as one channel just stopped coming through. If I manipulated it just so, I could get it to play, but would have to hold it in some awkward position to get it to work.
So, I called ZAGG and told them what happened. They offered to replace them, but when I mailed the Z-Buds in, I got an email telling me that they were out of stock, and I would have to wait three weeks to have the replacement shipped. That was frustrating, and so I wrote their customer service representative an email saying that I was disappointed that I had spent a fair amount of money on their product, and that I essentially had only a semi-working pair of Z-Buds for a matter of days, but had purchased them nearly two months prior. I also expressed my skepticism about the quality of their product, and wondered whether the new pair would eventually fail also.
The customer service representative replied with some trite, canned response aimed at dismissing me and my concerns. So I let it go.
The new pair arrived about 10 days ago, and they worked as they should, until today. Now, the connection between the cord and the jack has failed in a new and amusingingly odd way. Now, if I bump or nudge the jack or its housing, the Z-Buds think I’m pressing the pause/play or answer/hang-up button. You can imagine how frustrating that is, when the headphones just hang up on people.
So, my opinion is that the design and manufacturing of these is trash. They may well be made of tin foil and chewing gum, judging by their hold-up value.
To be fair, when they are working, the sound quality is very good. Unfortunately, the Z-Buds will last about as long as the flavor in the chewing gum that holds their internal parts together.
on March 6, 2009 at 09:07 AM - LINKSave your money, and the headache. I thought the Z.Buds from ZAGG looked like an innovative idea, so I bought a pair. After waiting several weeks for them to arrive (they were on backorder) I received them and immediately got hooked on the ‘round the neck design. Kudos on a well-executed idea.
on April 13, 2009 at 02:49 PM - LINKBut after a few weeks of normal usage, I began to have problems with the 3.5mm connection. The nylon wrapper around the cord, which had been one of the primary selling points for me, dislodged from the 3.5mm connector and began sliding up and down the rubber cord. Soon after, the rubber nub that holds the cord in place at the 3.5mm connector also became dislodged. I was very disappointed.
I contacted customer service and was even more disappointed. They told me I could pay $20 under their “Lifetime Trade-In Guarantee” program and they’d fix or replace them. Six weeks into ownership, and just a few days past the return window, I was more than a little frustrated that they wanted $20 [after $80 for the headphones!] just to repair a defect resulting from poor workmanship. Needless to say, I declined.
The overall fit and finish feels a bit cheap. The plastics in the mic/button and volume control betray some corner-cutting, and the 3.5mm connector really poses some problems. Save your money.