Asus HS-1000W wireless headset impresses us in the lab - Value and Conclusion



09-stuffHave you noticed that the selection for good quality audio components for the PC is dwindling? I mean the number of companies that make add-in sound cards, good quality analog (and digital) speaker sets and yes even head phones (for those of us that have to maintain a low volume presence). There was a time when the choices in audio gear was large enough that you had to do quite a bit of research to get something that fit right. Now, well the pickings are slim. However, just because they are limited does not mean there are not any good ones out there. As we recently found with the Cine5 from Asus some companies are getting back into the audio game. We had the chance to talk to Asus about their recent improvements in quality audio products (both on their boards and their own line of audio gear). Asus said they recognize that gamers, enthusiasts and HTPC owners are looking for better audio from their components; as such Asus is moving to provide these parts at all levels to meet this need. One of the products they have released is a set of plug and play wireless headphones; the Travelite HS-1000W. These headphones operate from a single USB audio dongle that acts as both audio processing device and charging connection. They are lightweight and while not exactly “stylish” still look pretty good. Now it is time for us to see if they work well or not.


Value -
At a $49.99 the HS-1000W is a great deal. It is priced well below what some lower quality wired headsets run. But with the HS-1000W you get not only the wireless headphones and microphone but an audio device that requires almost no interaction (with Windows Vista or Windows 7). We were hard pressed to find another product in the same range (even different versions of same core components) at the same price.

Conclusion -
Asus’ HS-1000W is a nice product. The plug and play aspect of the HS-1000W was amazing and is possibly the simplest audio product I have worked with. Even on a motherboard with no sound card installed you can drop this in and get running in about 3 seconds. The fact that the headset and USB dongle are already paired makes the connection even simpler. There is no mucking about with Bluetooth pairing or the loss of audio quality that happens with the Bluetooth stereo stack (on many products). Once you get past the three to four seconds it takes to get things up and running you will find that audio quality is also very good. Some people might experience a closed in sound due to the pressure of the HS-1000W headset pressing on their ears, but that is not everyone. The audio quality from the microphone is also good; we did not hear any complaints from the people on the other end of the Skype conversations. As far as travel goes the HS-1000W is a good choice, but I would have liked to see it get a little smaller. Even with it inside the included case it is still pretty big. One of the things that we wanted to do was to see if the HS-1000W could add to the immersion of 3D Gaming. Unfortunately for me at least it did not due to the closed in feeling to the audio. For others it did add to it with the HS-1000W’s full bass, clean signal separation and crisp high end. If you are looking for a wireless headset that is easy to use, inexpensive and has great audio quality then the HS-1000W is an excellent choice.

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