Introduction

I am reviewing the Canon PiXMA iP100 Mobile Inkjet Printer which is the current-generation successor to the popular Canon BJC-80 portable printer. This particular model has appealed to those of us who need to use a printer to obtain hard copy “on the road” from our portable computer devices.

I have been lent this unit for review by a close friend of mine who had bought it to go with their netbook computer that they were using for an overseas trip they had previously done. This was intended to be used for occasionally obtaining hard copy of emails and similar documents through that journey.

Prices

Printer

The machine’s standard price AUD$449

Optional Extras:

BU-30 Bluetooth Connectivity Module: AUD$69

LK-62 Rechargeable Battery (with reviewed unit): AUD$129

PU-200U Car power adaptor: AUD$129

Inks and Toners

The printer - ready for travelling

The printer itself

The Canon PiXMA iP-100 is a very small lightweight printer that occupies the table space that a typical netbook computer would occupy. This makes for reduced storage space that this class of device would require as you travel.

Like its former grandparent model, the BJC-80, this printer is able to work from AC power using a supplied power adaptor which connects to the AC power through the typical “portable-radio” power cord; or from an optional rechargeable battery. You can also buy another power adaptor that plugs in to your car’s or boat’s cigar-lighter socket so you can run it from the vehicle’s battery. From my searches on the Internet about this battery pack, it is rated to allow the printer to turn out 292 pages on one charge.

External battery pack attached to printer

This printer is a direct-connect printer which can connect to the host using a regular USB cable or wirelessly with IRDA infrared connection or Bluetooth radio connection. The latter method can be achieved if you purchase the optional Canon Bluetooth module and plug this module in to the PictBridge USB socket.

It does support driverless printing for devices in certain situations. The first one would be wireless printing from phones and PDAs that support Bluetooth and IRDA “object-push” profiles for small documents and photos. The second situation would be for digital cameras and mobile phones that have a PictBridge connection.

This latter function can come in handy if you need to print out “example images” or “pre-approval” proofs to show to customers after you have just taken a picture. Of course, some of us may find it useful for printing out the quick snaps to pass around after we take some funny pictures.

USB and PictBridge sockets and IRDA window

Computer functions

The software loaded properly on my Windows 7 computer and it didn’t take a long time for the computer to “re-discover” the printer on subsequent connections. This would suit its intended market where the printer would be brought out and connected as required.

Output Quality

The printer will turn out very sharp text that would yield a very easy-to-read document. When I print photos,there is strong contrast but sometimes there may be a bit of paleness in the picture. For colour reproduction, there is still some strong colour saturation and it can properly reproduce the skin tones.

Limitations and Points of Improvement

The Canon PiXMA iP-100  could benefit from higher-capacity cartridges, especially high-capacity black cartridges. This is especially more so if it is to be used by a tradesman like a repairman who has to turn out multi-page quotes or invoices; or if it is being used frequently to turn out “proofs”. As well, it could improve on the printer’s operational economy.

In the same context, the printer manufacturers who sell “mobile” printers could do some research in operation-economy-improving techniques like four-cartridge printing and higher-capacity cartridges.

As well, there could be some work done on making it feasible for smartphones and tablet computers to print out using the iP-100. At the moment, this may require use of the Bluetooth module as well as iOS and Android apps that link with the email, photo-viewing and document-creation functions of these devices.

Conclusion and Placement Notes

I would consider this Canon PiXMA IP-100 portable printer as being suitable for basic printing needs that occur primarily in the field like printing quotes and invoices to hand directly to the customer for example. It would also work well for business travellers who need to obtain hard copy of documents or photographs without the need to pay higher costs or face embarrassment when using other equipment.

Introduction

I am reviewing the Dell XPS L702X 17” multimedia laptop computer which is the first laptop that I have reviewed on this site that is powered by the Intel second-generation “Sandy Bridge” chipset. I have previously talked about the configuration as being something that will change the game for most desktop and laptop computers.

The computer itself

Aesthetics and Build quality

A feature that may position the Dell XPS as an alternative to the one with the glowing Apple logo is the use of aluminium finishing. This is more so with the top of the lid and the bezel around the keyboard area. As well. it is a well-built computer with a sense of quality in the manufacture of the unit.

Side vent grille helps keep the laptop computer running cool

This machine doesn’t get too hot too easily through normal use. It has been brought about through a battery that has a flange that places the computer on a slight angle, a large vent on the left side as well as some venting at the bottom of the unit.

User interface

The Dell XPS uses a large illuminated chiclet keyboard with a regular numeric keypad;. This is very different to other Dell laptops which I have used where there is a keyboard style not dissimilar to the typical desktop keyboard. It is still accurate for most touch-typing tasks. The only limitation that I have against it is the small top row which has the function keys as well as the ESC and “Insert”, “PrtSc” and “Delete” keys.

Dell have still marked out the trackpad as a distinct area; with the buttons kept as separate buttons rather than as zones on the trackpad. This still keeps this laptop a very useable computer without having to adopt a new learning curve.

They have also kept the function keys as their regular intended functions but you can use the Mobility Control Panel to change that option. Above the keyboard, in the indicator area, there are three touch buttons which give you one-touch access to the sound-card settings, the Mobility Control Panel as well as a user-defined option.

Illuminated keyboard

Audio and Video

The audio experience for the Dell XPS L702x is markedly different from the typical laptop computer that I have used. Here, I have noticed that this unit can reproduce music with a deeper bass and richer tone at a level comparable to a good portable radio;  and the dialogue and sound effects in a movie have the “full body” in them even through these speakers. This is a prime example of computer builders having compainies with audio-reproduction and speaker-design knowhow “working” their premium and multimedia laptop-computer designs to break away from the mould of “tinny” sound on this class of computer.

This example has been “worked” by JBL, one of a few companies known for extensive speaker design; as well as the use of MaxxAudio DSP logic for processing the sound. There is the option to have Creative Labs technology in the computer alongside the MaxxAudio technology and is available in this review model.

An improvement could be to move the speakers above the keyboard or on the screen so that the sound doesn’t get muffled by you resting your hands over the palm-rest speaker grilles. Of course I would find that headphones or good-quality external speakers would make this sound better.

The display subsystem is based on an NVIDIA chipset but has 3D playout functionality when connected to a suitable external display like most of the “lounge-room” TVs currently offered by most of the major manufacturers like LG, Samsung and Sony. It doesn’t seem to provide support for dual-mode “overdrive switch” in the review sample; but there are cheaper or better options that have this function but under automatic control using the Optimus feature in the new NVIDIA chipsets.

The video display handled the “Top Gear” online videos as best as the site could allow as well as some YouTube videos that I had played through the system. It as also able to hanbdle the special effects in “Munich” off the DVD very well, especially with a lot os smoothness.

Battery life

I had run this machine through a few mixed-task sessions where I had done some text editing, music playback and video playback with the machine always online through the Wi-Fi network. This was done using the default “Dell” power plan and the battery was able to cope for around two hours.

It was able to run through a DVD movie for 2 hours 33 minutes on regular power mode with the Wi-Fi network still running. This is on the standard battery that came with the system and is a benchmark that I have observed for Sandy-Bridge based laptops.

Conclusion

I would recommend the Dell XPS L702X as a desktop-replacement laptop for someone who wants to head towards the “new computing environment” but want to use a laptop that has the abilities of most current-issue standard desktop computers.

It would work well also as a work-home laptop computer for small-business owner. This is more so if you place value on the multimedia applications such as photo, audio and video editing where you need to use the latest multimedia techniques like Blu-Ray or 3D. In some ways, It could be another of those laptops that could be considered as an alternative to the Apple MacBook Pro laptop.

Introduction

I am reviewing the HP OfficeJet Pro 8500a Plus, which is the high-end model in Hewlett-Packard’s business inkjet printers. It is snapping at the heels of the previously reviewed LaserJet Pro CM1415 and its peers as a general-office colour workhorse printer and I will explain further why it is doing so.

Prices

Printer

Recommended Retail Price AUD$449

Optional Extras:

Optional high-capacity paper tray

There is no need to pay any additional fees to use the HP ePrint service.

Inks

The printer itself

Front-loading ink cartridges

This high-end printer has the ink cartridges installed up front in a similar manner to the Brother inkjet printers. It therefore avoids the need for users to lift a heavy lid when they need to install new cartridges in this unit; and there isn’t much effort needed to make sure the cartridges are in place; both of which I also find very important when this printer is used by older users or those with limited dexterity.  As well, this arrange also allows HP to use cartridges that have a page yield similar to that of their LaserJet printers.

Touchscreen control panel

Like the LaserJet CM1415 printer that I previously reviewed, this printer uses a touchscreen as its control panel. This provides for access to the common functions as well as the HP ePrint Apps; and can provide for a more intuitive usage experience. As well, it uses this display to show animations concerning maintenance and repair procedures like ink replacement, paper loading or paper-jam rectification when these procedures needed to be done thus reducing the need to have others train new users in these procedures.

It connects to the network via Ethernet or 802.11n WPA2 WPS Wi-Fi and has automatic wireless override if it is connected to an Ethernet or HomePlug network. A feature that I am pleased about and is becoming very relevant nowadays is that the OfficeJet can now work properly on an IPv6 network as well as a current-generation IPv4 network.

Walk-up functions

This unit has a very capable copy function that would satisfy most business requirements including ID-copy functionality where you can copy both sides of a small document like an ID card on to one side of one sheet of paper; a function I had first come across with the LaserJet CM1415.

But the feature that most impressed me with this printer was the quick duplex-copy function where it could copy both sides of a document on to both sides of a sheet of paper. I ran this printer on a duplex-copy “race” against my regular HP Photosmart Premium Fax C309a and found that this can copy both sides of an A4 page much quicker than the Photosmart could. This is more so due to the printer being pitched at the small office where throughput is considered very important.

This printer works with the HP ePrint cloud-based printing functions and is able to perform as the “network printing appliance of the office”. This functionality was able to work as expected especially with “email-to-print” and the print apps.

Computer functions

The driver installation can be a pain especially if a software desktop firewall takes too long to respond but, after I suspended the McAfee firewall software, it installed very quickly.

After that, it worked as expected for printing via the network. Windows 7 users will benefit from the tightly-integrated “Device Stage” presentation which has the “branded look” but without the excess baggage of the typical device driver / print monitor package.

You can scan to the PC but can also set the printer to scan directly to a folder anywhere on the network, which can be useful if you don’t want to have a computer running a troublesome scan monitor program in order to provide control-panel-started “scan-to-computer” abilities. You still have to use the HP software or the printer’s Web interface to determine the path where you want scanned-document images to end up at and this will work with the standard network file-transfer protocols.

Print Quality

As I have said before, this printer is intended to “snap at the heels” of an economy colour laser multifunction printer. This is demonstrated more so with documents that look just as sharp as those emerging from the HP Colour LaserJet Pro CM1415fnw which is a “general office” colour laser printer that I am measuring this up against. It doesn’t have the “laser shine” that is part of a laser printer’s output and may not be considered “up to snuff” for some business users.

The auto-duplex print mechanism is very accurate with the registration but still requires the blank top and bottom margins for it to work properly. Thankfully these are slightly smaller than on previous auto-duplex HP printers that I have reviewed before.

When this printer prints photos, the images look sharp and very defined but the colours don’t have the saturation that one would expect. It is similar to the picture quality that a laser printer would yield for a photograph; and may be good enough for quick hard-copy requirements. This may be a problem with printers that are “pitched” at business users because manufacturers don’t see don’t see mainstream business users printing out many photographs even though they may take pictures as part of their business life.

Limitations and Points Of Improvements

There are still a few shortcomings with this printer that HP could improve on.

Firstly, the printer could benefit from T.37 email-fax and T.38 real-time-fax endpoint functionality in order to make it relevant with other IP-fax solutions. This could be implemented either as an HP ePrint gateway service or as a local facility that uses “wizard-based” setup. I have raised this in relation to having this machine support a full-functioned fax service because of the impending arrival of packet-based telephony networks in most countries.

As well, I would like to see the implementation of flash memory functionality in a manner similar to the Colour LaserJet Pro’s fax functionality in this printer. Here, it could permit a proper “fax-vault” functionality for handling confidential faxes or permit improved fax archiving. This function could be taken further to provide fail-safe printing and improved fail-safe ePrint functionality.

The printer could Improve on photo-printing quality especially with the saturation. If they don’t feel it is appropriate to create an OfficeJet business inkjet printer with the high-quality photo-printing abilities of a Photosmart printer, HP could market-test and create a “bridge” printer lineup with the high-quality photo output, quick document output and cost-effect consumables.

Conclusion and Placement Notes

This printer is one that can put you in to a quandery whether to buy a printer like the HP Colour LaserJet Pro CM1415fnw laser or this model for use as a colour workhorse printer even though this printer is relatively cheaper to buy and run; and has some more functionality and media flexibility than the LaserJet.

If you simply want a highly-flexible general-purpose “workhorse” printer for that office, professional practice or shop; I would recommend this machine. On the other hand, if you are needing the speed and exact output capabilities of the colour laser printer, head for the Colour LaserJet CM1415fnw as a “general office” printer.

Introduction

I am reviewing the Rotel RCX-1500 network CD receiver which is one of the first “big-set” hi-fi units that I have reviewed that can do proper Internet radio and benefit from the DLNA Home Media Network. Previously I have been reviewing Internet radios that are mainly “small-sets” which are table / clock radios or portables and are intended for use as secondary or auxiliary audio devices.

The product class

This unit is infact a CD receiver, a class of “single-piece multi-function” hi-fi music system which continues from where the music centres and casseivers (receivers with integrated cassette decks) of the 1970s and early 1980s left off. Here, some of these units were equipped with the functionality and quality of modest separate-unit hi-fi systems yet they offered this in a single box, which you could just hook up a pair of speakers to. The manufacture of high-sndard pieces of this class of equpment had diminished through the late 80s. This is although Bang & Olufsen were consistent in this field at a premium price and a few other manufacturers like Proton, Bose and Onkyo were releasing in to their model ranges  one or two receivers with integrated CD, tape or MiniDisc transports that weren’t just second-rate music systems.

Then there had been a slow but sure renaissance in this class of good-quality integrated-function hi-fi equipment as the trend for “downsized” living especially in “executive” city apartments became more intense. This is where most of the good hi-fi names ran with at least one CD receiver in their line-up that didn’t come with a set of substandard speakers and this Rotel RCX-1500 that I am reviewing is one such piece of equipment.

Price

Unit alone: AUD$1999 (recommended retail price)

Speakers (Cabasse Antigua MT30): AUD$999 / pair (recommended retail price)

Functions

Connections

Speakers

This unit was tested with a pair of Cabasse Antigua MT30 bookshelf speakers connected using premium audio cables. These speakers were also on loan from the distributor so I can review this unit properly. They are built using an orthodox two-way driver arrangement and use a bass-reflex enclosure and can work with amplifiers that have a minimum power output of 75 watts and maximum of 500 watts. As far I was concerned, these speakers worked very properly with all kinds of music and could yield a decent sound for their size.

The Rotel CD receiver

Functionality comments

Slot-load CD player

It is also worth knowing that this CD receiver has a pair of pre-out connections so one can connect it to a more powerful and better-sounding power amplifier or a pair of active speakers like an active subwoofer or some of the active speakers like B&O’s Beolab range or any of the Bose Powered Acoustimass speakers.

It can connect to your home network via Wi-Fi or Ethernet using supplied network-adaptor dongles. The Ethernet option can also allow it to be used with a HomePlug AV network segment using an appropriate “homeplug” adaptor and I would recommend this as a “no-new-wires” option for connect this CD receiver to the home network.

This functionality allows this CD receiver to provide Internet radio or work with a DLNA-compliant media server that is on your home network. The only limitation with this function is that it doesn’t work as a MediaRenderer which means that you have to select your network media using the Rotel CD receiver’s display.

The tuner is “up to the minute” with broadcast radio in Europe and Australia by supporting FM RDS as well as DAB+ radio. There are two antenna connections for both FM and DAB but you can choose to use the FM aerial for DAB. It came with two aerials – the typical “T-wire” for FM and a small whip one for DAB. With this one, it was able to pick up Melbourne’s DAB multiplexes reliably as long as it was near a window.

But I would rather that this unit be connected to an outdoor aerial especially for FM reception so it can provide clear signal reception. You may also be able to use a digital-optimised Band III aerial for better DAB+ reception especially on fringe areas.

You can connect an iPod or iPhone to the front USB socket using the data cable supplied with your Apple device and the sound that is played off the iPod will be converted to an analogue form using the Rotel receiver’s internal digital-analogue converter. As well, this same socket is used for playing music held on USB memory keys.

The CD player is a slot-load type that performs as expected for a decent-standard player. It can play the regular CDs or file-based MP3 discs and gives “best-case playback” for any CDs recorded with the HDCD mastering technique. This does yield to high-quality sound from these discs.

As for connection of external equipment, this is feasible with a line-in connection in the form of RCA connectors or SPDIF digital in the form of coaxial or optical connectors. There isn’t a line-out connection that is independent of the volume control for use as a recording connection, which may limit this unit’s utility with cassette or MiniDisc decks.

It is also controllable by a supplied remote control which has a numeric keypad for direct access to 30 presets in each of the radio bands – FM, DAB and Internet. As well, this remote also allows for direct access to tracks on a regular CD and is a preferred control surface when you are searching content on a well-stocked media server or using the CD receiver’s setup menus.

The unit's remote control

This unit’s amplifier is engineered for sound quality. Here, the volume control is a motor-driven potentiometer managed through the control on the front or the remote control. There aren’t any tone-control options, which may please audio purists who believe that tone adjustment affects sound quality.

The display is the white bright fluorescent display but uses four lines of text. This also works with the menu-based operation for advanced functions.

Sound quality

The sound quality for the Rotel RCX-1500 CD receiver is what you would expect for equipment in its class. This is even so with the Cabasse Antigua speakers that I am testing this unit with.

It comes across as being tight and good across all frequencies. This means that it gives all the instruments in a sound recording a proper chance rather than sounding like the old pub jukebox. This has come across so well with well-recorded rock like Peter Gabriel’s “1 – Car” album which was considered to be in the same league as Pink Floyd. Here, you still had that “punchy sound” while hearing the vocals and other instruments.

This system was even performing well with classical music especially as I was playing through a recording of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto which was done with “period” instruments. Here, the combination of this CD receiver and the Cabasse speakers shone through the whole of this popular concerto and was clear with all of the instruments.

As for handling the audio codecs, this amplifier answers the requirement for handling properly-encode music properly especially if you use the “maximum” throughput settings for the codecs like 320kbps MP3 or 192kbps WMA.

Limitations and points of improvement

The network connectivity could be improved on by not requiring the user to deal with easy-to-lose dongles. This is more so with Ethernet as most Internet-enabled hi-fi components and TVs use integrated circuitry with an Ethernet socket on the back.

As well, the Rotel could benefit from WPS setup for Wi-Fi wireless networks especially as most current-issue routers implement this easy-to-use setup method.

An improved version of this unit could support a proper tape loop and a phono input for use with a turntable especially as a lot of the older people may keep records or tapes lying around and could benefit from a simplified system with these inputs.

Conclusion

This is one network-enabled CD receiver that I would recommend for people who have a pair of good-quality bookshelf or “piece-of-furniture” speakers that they wish to keep going but want to benefit from newer sources like music held on their home network or iPod; or Internet radio. I would also consider this unit as a the core of a simplified music system if they want to choose their own good speakers.

This unit, along with the Cabasse Antigua speakers or bookshelf speakers of a similar standard, would be an ideal simple music system for use in an apartment or small house by people who place high value on music. It is especially more suitable with older retired people who are moving towards smaller flats or retirement villages.

Introduction

I am reviewing the Canon PIXMA MG-6150 multifunction inkjet printer which is positioned as the top inkjet multifunction in Canon’s lineup that isn’t equipped with fax functionality.

Prices

Printer

Recommend Retail Price: AUD$299

Optional Extras:

Bluetooth module: BU-30 $69

Inks and Toners

The printer itself

This machine comes in a piano-black finish and has the user-interface LCD lying flat with the top of the lid. But when you turn it on, the LCD screen lights up and various touch buttons light up in a manner that isn’t dissimilar to either the way a pinball machine or the dial panel on a mid-1970s stereo receiver lights up.

As you use the printer in its various operating modes, some of the buttons light up as required. These buttons are actually touch-panel buttons which will make you think somewhat of operating some of the mid-1980s B&O hi-fi equipment, especially the Beogram CDX CD player which had this similar kind of touch panel. As well, the main display is able to come up at an angle by pushing on a button located behind the display.

The display can come up at an angle

The printer lit up in operation mode

Walk-up printing

The printer has various “walk-up” functions like copying and printing from camera cards. As well, it can print from cameras using PictBridge, which I have used to print “proof-prints” of the pictures that I took for this review. It can even print PDF documents from USB memory sticks. But its handling of this function can be very fussy at times, especially if you use a PDF prepared by a desktop-publishing program.

As well, there is the ability to create your own stationery like notepaper, graph paper and music manuscript paper. For this latter paper type, you can turn out 12-stave pages which is a lot more flexible for most music tasks like “vocal and piano”, organ or “four-part harmony” music.

Computer functions

The software that is supplied on the CD-ROM can be very tricky to load and can think that there isn’t the printer available. But I have visited Canon’s Website and downloaded the latest version of the software and this has loaded properly and discovered the printer as it should.

The device-initiated scan-to-PC software leave a lot to be desired. The user interface looks very pale and confusing and you can only allocate one path for device-initiated scan jobs. This would be to place the files in a particular folder on the host computer or to attach them to an email in Outlook. As well, it doesn’t support other email clients for scan-to-email. You can determine how the document should be scanned from the printer but there are two forms already set – A4 document to PDF or 4×6 snapshot to JPEG.

Paper handling

Paper loading paths in this printer

The paper handling is very similar to some of the other high-end A4-capable PIXMA printers like the direct-connect MP-610 and the fax-enabled network-connectable MX-870 that I previously reviewed on this site. Here, the printer has a front-loadable tray for A4 plain paper as well as the standard rear-mount paper feed tray. This means that you can keep a reserve of ordinary paper on hand in the printer yet use the back path for glossy paper and other special media.

Also, these printers have a fabulous auto-duplex function that has very little registration problems for double-sided documents and can work “to the edge” as far as margins go. This would put the double-sided printing function beyond satisfying the need to avoid wast and in to a league where you can work on both sides for your desktop-publishing needs.

As well, there is a CD printing attachment that slides in the front but you have to flip down a tray that is deeply hidden there. There isn’t any storage for the CD printing attachment so you could then easily lose that part if you occasionally print on CDs.

Printing reliability and quality

The printer is very reliably as far as the mechanism is concerned and could handle large print jobs very easily.

Its document-printing quality is what you would expect for a high-end consumer inkjet unit. When it prints photos, the pictures come out strong on saturation but do lack a bit of definition.

6 ink tanks in this printer

This is even though it uses a six-colour ink system whereas most inkjets that I have reviewed use either four colours or five colours if they are “photo-rated”. Sometimes it may be true that the number of colours in a photo-rated inkjet may not yield particular improvements.

Points of improvement

The printer could benefit from an improved scan-to-PC program which gives the user greater choice on how the image should be handled. As well, it could support the ability to define more than one path for scan-to-PC jobs initiated from the control panel.

As well, Canon could supply high-capacity cartridges for these printers as an extra-cost option so that users are covered if they have a huge run of print jobs from the printer.

Conclusion and Placement Notes

I would recommend this printer as being on my shortlist of printers worth deploying as a home-office or secondary-use (study) multifunction printer for the home if you don’t value faxing or email-to-print.

Introduction

I am reviewing the Bang & Olufsen Form 2 headphones which are a very stylish set of premium lightweight headphones that are suitable for use with your portable media player, smartphone, or laptop. Here, these headphones are designed and made by a company that is one of a few “names of respect” when it comes to audio-equipment and speaker design. I have even raised this name in this site in connection with their involvement in designing the sound system for some of the ASUS premium laptops.

HP Envy alongside some premium B&O headphones

Regular followers of this site may have noticed these headphones as a prop in a picture that I took of the HP Envy 15 laptop, where I was emphasising the “Black Label” positioning of this premium laptop.

These “over-the-head” headphones sell at B&O stores for $199 and if the earpads wear out, you can replace them for $10 a pair but I had received this pair from some close friends as a 40th birthday present. As you will read further, you will find that they are a real treat to use.

Look

Like with all B&O products, the style of these headphones is a very strong point. Here, there is a large black aluminium headband with the square earpads anchored to the headband by bands that look as though they are part of an elegant watch’s band.

Even the plug is designed to match the look and positioning of these headphones. Here, it is a small plug with gold-plated contacts which are known to provide the high-quality sound transfer.

Comfort

Bang & Olufsen Form 2 headphones

This has allowed for a snug comfortable fit on the user’s head with the earpads pressing in on the user’s ears. As well, they are not too heavy and will not fall off your head too readily unlike a lot of cheaper headphones.

Here, this allows for use of these headphones over a long time, yet you can still slide them aside if you need to talk to someone nearby while you are wearing them.

Sound quality

The real story with these headphones is in the sound quality, whether you are listening to music or audiobooks, watching movies, playing computer games or using them with a microphone adaptor for handling phone calls with your mobile phone, This has been based on B&O’s reputation in designing speakers and headphones that go with their stylish and luxurious hi-fi systems.

It is very much what you would expect from true hi-fi headphones. Here the sound was clear and tight and not boomy and it didn’t matter if the headphones were fed with music or sound effects from a movie or game. For voice applications, including telephone calls, the Form 2 excels on the voice clarity and could be suitable as part of a headset system for wideband telephony setups.

These headphones don’t have any noise-cancellation circuitry and are of the kind that sit on your ears. These factors may be a limitation with using them in noisy environments like aeroplanes, buses or diesel railcars but their snug fit reduces the noise impact from these environments slightly.

Earpad and watchband-style bracket

Points of improvement

There aren’t really any points of improvement except for B&O to make a derivative headset that has an integrated microphone for use with smartphones and other telecommunications applications. This would be of importance when it comes to designing a headset fit to be used with HD Audio and other wideband telephony setups.

As well, they could provide a “travel-kit” as an accessory for these headphones and other headphones in their range. This would consist of an elegant storage case, an active noise-cancellation module and a “jet-plug” adaptor to connect these headphones to inflight-entertainment systems.

Conclusion

I would recommend these headphones if you value good-quality sound, style and comfort from a set of “over-the-head” headphones. Even if you can’t afford a set yourself, it may be worth wish-listing it as a gift for an upcoming major birthday or anniversary. As well, once you use them, your ears will certainly know the difference between good headphones and cheap headphones.

I would even say that these headphones are a good partner accessory for a premium laptop like the Acer Ferrari or the HP Envy laptops.

Introduction

I am reviewing the Pioneer NAC-3 (XW-NAC3) Internet music system with 2 iPod docks. This DLNA-enabled network media unit is a flagship model that heads a series of iPod speaker docks that Pioneer has recently released and is the latest attempt by this company to sell “small-set” audio equipment like portable, clock and table radios.

This Japanese company has always been known for high-quality home audio / video equipment since the 1960s and car audio equipment since the 1970s but has dabbled in the highly-competitive product class at various times through the 70s and 80s, initially selling these goods under the “Centrex” brand in some markets but eventually simply selling them under their own brand. This unit is an example of how Pioneer, along with the other Japanese consumer-electronics companies are trying to get their claws back in to a very competitive product class which is awash with many cheap Chinese-built products that are sold under many different brand names.

As an echo to the earlier attempts in the “small-set” audio product class, this unit has functionality that makes it stand out from the pack. One party piece is to work with 2 iPod or iPhone devices and play tracks from one or both of the devices and another one is to properly implement “three-box” DLNA Network Media functionality where it can be managed by a Windows 7 computer or other DLNA control point.

It will also be the first time I have reviewed a network media device and am implementing these “at-a-glance” tables for this class of device. Regular readers may have noticed that I am implementing these “at a glance” tables when I review laptop computers and printers so people can see the basic facts about these products before they read the review text.

Price

Recommended Retail Price: AUD$699

Functions

Connections

Speakers and Sound Output

The unit itself

Card-type remote control

This unit has been designed to appeal to the young generation who just want something new rather than your “father’s old station-wagon”. Here, it has a shape that is similar to a banana and is finished in a glossy-white plastic cabinet. It can come with three different speaker-cloth colours – burgundy-red, black or white. As well, it comes with a card-size infrared remote control which you have to use for operating most functions including access to Internet radio.

This unit can play music from 2 iPod or iPhone devices; a Bluetooth A2DP-compliant audio source, a USB Mass-Storage Device or a line-level source as well as material over the network. But this set lacks some functions that I have been used to with most Internet radio units that I have reviewed previously on this site.

One function that it misses is the ability to connect to the host network via Wi-Fi wireless. Here, you have to connect it to the network using an Ethernet cable, but you could use a HomePlug kit or a Wi-Fi-Ethernet client bridge to connect it to the home network and want “around-the-home” flexibility without needing to lay Ethernet wiring. The other function that it lacks is access to regular broadcast radio, whether FM or DAB+ digital radio. This may not be of concern if you are seeing this unit as an Internet-enabled complementary radio / network music terminal / iPod speaker doc while you use your ordinary radio (which most households have plenty of) for listening to regular local broadcast radio.

iPod playback

You can play and charge two iPods or iPhones here

The ability to play and charge 2 iPod or iPhone devices is useful for quite a few applications. For example, a person who has one of those high-capacity “iPod Classic” series devices can still use this device as a “jukebox” alongside their new iPhone 4 that they have just signed a contract for. This is infact the demonstration setup that I used with an iPod Classic and an iPhone that I had borrowed from a teenage boy that is living with me.  Similarly, a household with many “iDevices” can this as a charging station for two of these devices. The two-iPod function is augmented by a dual-device shuffle mode which plays tracks from each of these devices sequentially. The iDevices can even be put in to “shuffle” mode so as to allow the unit to randomly pick music across the devices.

Bluetooth A2DP

The system can also work with Bluetooth A2DP audio sources like a lot of mobile phones, tablet computer (including the iPad) or some MP3 players. Here, this worked as a “Bluetooth speaker” for my Nokia N85 mobile phone and had worked as expected. The track navigation and PLAY/PAUSE buttons on the remote control had controlled the music playback on my phone.

The pairing experience was a bit confusing because there was one procedure to set up the paring code but this didn’t make the unit “open for pairing”. You actually had to press the PLAY button on the remote control to achieve this goal and begin the pairing process.

Network functionality

All the media available via the home network connection is accessed when you select “Home Media Gallery” as the function source. This includes the Internet radio as well as music files available from any of the DLNA Home Media servers on your network.

Internet radio

The Internet radio works from the vTuner Internet-radio directory and has the similar directory structure to all of the other radios that I have reviewed. It has the ability to store 30 Internet-radio stations with 10 stations in three “classes”. You will have to use this function once you regularly listen to particular Internet-radio stations because if the set loses connection with the station, you will need to “retune” to that station.

It can handle jitter and latency situations OK but as I have said before, it goes to the “Home Media Gallery” menu once it drops out and loses the connection. This can happen at busy times when the Internet service is oversubscribed and there isn’t proper QoS functionality on the network between the radio station’s server and this set.

DLNA network media

This unit integrates properly with the DLNA Home Media Network. Here, it will work as a network music player where you select your content using the NAC-3’s display and remote control; and it will even list the UPnP AV / DLNA Media Servers that exist on your network when you select the “Home Media Gallery” function so you can start “delving” in to the content on your desired server.

It also works properly as a network-controlled music player when you use a UPnP AV / DLNA control point program like Windows Media Player 12 (Windows 7) or a mobile phone with a DLNA media control program. I have even tried this with my Nokia N85 phone which I use as a personal “Walkman” and have “pushed” music held on the phone to this unit via the home network. As well, unlike some DLNA-compliant media players that are meant to work under network control that I have used, this unit will even play a program of music that you direct it to play from the network-based control device.

Sound Adjustments and Quality

There are bass and treble controls accessible from the remote control but I had kept the bass and treble set at “flat” so as to hear a sound that I can assess fairly. There is a “sound-effect” button which allows the system to be switched between a “vivid” mode with a bit of extra bass and treble, a “Lo-Fi” mode which yields a cheap transistor-radio sound and an “ALC” mode which keeps the sound level constant for use in noisy environments.

Even if I don’t use the sound-effect modes and I have the bass and treble flat, this Internet radio doesn’t sound like a “gutless wonder”. There is still some punchy bass even with popular music that was recorded before there was the desire to make such music sound boomier and louder. Yet you still hear the vocals and instruments that carry the body of the music clearly and distinctly. Even the heavy bass lines from the recent dance tracks that were on the iPod and iPhone that I borrowed from the teenager to try out the dual-iPod functionality didn’t worry this music system much and they still sounded “tight” – there wasn’t that old bass-heavy “jukebox” sound.

Limitations and Points of Improvement

The Pioneer NAC-3 Internet music system could benefit from integrated Wi-Fi wireless-network or HomePlug powerline network connectivity. This is more so because it is the kind of network device that appeals to being taken around the house from room to room.

It could also benefit from a headphone jack because some people use this jack to connect a more-powerful active-speaker system or an amplifier to these devices for increased sound output. As well, the VIDEO output on this unit could be used not just for iPods and iPhones that have a video output. Here, this jack could work with the DLNA network media player to play pictures and video material through a connected TV set.

The Internet radio functionality could have some improvements in the way it operates. It could come back to the “last-tuned” Internet station or attempt to reconnect itself after a dropout. But this may have to be facilitated through a separate “Internet Radio” function on the function selector like what most other Internet radios have.

Conclusion

I would recommend this unit for people who either run two or more iPods or iPhones; a Bluetooth-enabled music-capable phone or have established a DLNA Home Media Network and want a “complementary” transportable device that can get the most out of their digital music library available on their portable devices or home network.