Recently, LG unveiled its latest TONE Active (HBS-850) earphones in Singapore. This is an addition to its TONE series Bluetooth headsets which also include the high-end LG Tone Infinim (HBS-900) and the seamless LG Tone PRO (HBS-760).
A model poses with the LG Tone Active headphones.
(Photo by LG)
Compatible with any Bluetooth-enabled headphone, the newly launched LG Tone Active headsets are water and sweat resistant and the ears retract fully into the headset – to eliminate tangled cords. The earbuds also come with two custom-fitted sizes, which help to provide for a secure and more comfortable fit.
TONE Active headsets are the ultimate wireless solution
Said Mr Scott Jung, Managing Director for LG Electronics Singapore, “Our designers saw an opportunity to expand on the LG TONE series with a headset that will pair perfectly with people’s daily, active routines.”
He continued, “Our newest TONE Active isn’t just for exercising. They are perfect for anyone who’s constantly on the move, whether at home, work or at the gym. TONE Active was designed to be the ultimate wireless solution to withstand any and all activities.”
The launch event of the LG TONE Active took place recently.
LG recently asked me to test out their TONE Active headsets and review them. Here are my comments.
First Impressions
The LG TONE comes in four attractive colours – Lime, Orange, Blue and Pink. The headset that I was tasked to review was the Lime coloured one. I thought that the colour was pretty bright and attractive and pairs together very well with the bright sports apparel that is readily available in the market nowadays.
There are four attractive colours.
The retractable earbuds are gently pulled out of the headsets via a thin wire – at the beginning, I thought that this does appear to be a little fragile, because the wire seems to be very thin. But in the few times that I have used these headsets though, they have continued to hold firm. So perhaps they may be more sturdy than they appear to be.
Charging the headsets
It took me a while to locate the position of the charging mechanism on the headset in order to use it for the first time, but apart from that, I thought that these headsets are pretty easy to use. All you need to do is to charge them up till they are full and sync them to your phone. You are then all good to go.
These headsets take less than two hours to charge and they are able to play up to 9.5 hours of music or 13 hours of conversation on a single charge – which makes them pretty good for marathon runners like myself.
Using the headsets
For starters, I thought that it’s pretty good that these headsets don’t have wires dangling down your chest when you are taking part in sports activities. That is because most of the time, I find myself getting tangled up in the cables midway through a run and I have to either put up with it or untangle myself.
The LG TONE Active is good in the sense that the earbuds are retractable.
At the same time, the smaller pair of earbuds were a snug and secure fit in my ears – and they don’t come out after using them – even for an extended amount of time.
DESIGNED TO FIT SNUGLY AROUND THE NECK
The headsets are supposed to have been designed to fit snugly around your neck for a comfortable fit, but unfortunately, I found that this was not the case for me.
That’s because less than a minute into my run, I found that the headsets were constantly bouncing up and down my neck – when I was trying to run. So I had to resort to putting the headsets on my head rather than around my neck, which helped out to some extent.
The headphones are supposed to fit snugly around the neck.
However for light exercises such as yoga and slow walking, these headsets don’t really cause much problems in terms of bouncing.
When I brought this up with LG themselves, they had mentioned that perhaps the slimmer necks of Asian females may not have initially been taken into account in the designing of these headsets – as the headsets do not bounce on the necks of most guys who have tested them out. But that said, they are currently looking to improve on this issue though.
THE SOUND QUALITY IS GOOD
Nevertheless, this is a real pity, because otherwise the quality of the music – for a pair of bluetooth headsets, is really good as it does not crackle when you are using the headset. At the same time, I also found the sound to be rather crisp and sharp and my music was a real joy to listen to.
SWEAT PROOF AND WATER RESISTANT
At the same time, the TONE Active headsets are also designed to be sweat proof and water resistant so you need not worry about them getting ruined with your continuous sweating.
The headphones are sweat and water resistant.
As such, they should also be able to withstand the rain, if you are caught outside during one of Singapore’s tropical storms. However I haven’t had the chance to test these out yet on a rainy day.
Overall Comments
Apart from the problems with the headset bouncing on my neck, this is a decent earphone set and the sound quality is quite strong. I think that music audiophiles who don’t like plenty of wires hanging down their chests – would probably like the LG TONE Active earphones.
Where to purchase the TONE Active headsets
Models pose with the LG headsets.
(Photo by LG)
The LG TONE Active headsets retail at SGD189.00. Together with the Tone Infinim (SGD209.00) and the TONE Pro (SGD109.00), they are available at EpiCentre, Challenger, Newstead, Courts, Sprint-Cass, Decibel, Soundwave, Mustafa, Moby, SixFive, The Headphone Gallery and online at Lazada and Headphone.Sg.
Thank you LG for the opportunity to try out the TONE Active headsets.
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