Mobility Digest Review: Arctic P31X PACK Stereo Bluetooth Headset with USB Adapter

Headphones are nice, but being tied to your device with a wire isn’t exactly for everyone. I don’t mind the wire much, especially since I have good headphones, but sometimes I want to be free. Free though doesn’t mean I want to sacrifice sound quality. Today for review I’ve got the P31X Pack Stereo Bluetooth Headset from Arctic that is not only inexpensive but sounds great. It’s actually a bundle that includes the headphones, USB adapter, cable and a very nice carrying case. So let’s get this started…

Author:  Kristofer Brozio

Vendor:  Arctic

Price: $59.95

Overall Rating: 5/5

Specs/Features:

P31X PACK
Stereo Bluetooth Headset with USB Adapter

Enjoy your music and answer phone calls with just one click. The P311 Bluetooth headset is ideal for people on-the-go. Connect it with its UD2 USB Bluetooth® Mini Adapter in this bundle pack to make it compatible with your notebook and PC as well!

Wireless and Free
The P311 works seamlessly with any gadget that supports Bluetooth technology such as mobile phones and notebooks. You can also use it with your PC by simply connecting it with its UD2. With a range of up to 30 meters, this headset gives you full flexibility without disturbing people around you. The integrated lithium-ion battery lasts up to 20 hours of music playback before it needs to be recharged via USB.

The UD2 allows 3 people to share music at the same time. The chipset is optimized for CD quality music transmission.

Absolute Control
Thanks to the five functional buttons, integrated into the right earcup, you always have full control over your music. You can start/pause/skip music tracks, answer incoming phone calls and control volume levels.

Outstanding Audio Quality
The integrated 28mm drivers excel in high fidelity. Whether it’s rock, jazz or classical, all different genres of music can be enjoyed without any compromise. Thanks to the outstanding bass, this headset enriches your listening experience when listening to your favorite music or when watching a movie. The good signal-to-noise-ratio of 95 dB of the integrated amplifier guarantees best digital sound.

Versatile and Comfortable
The soft earcups and the supra-aural design not only provide a comfy fit, they also isolate your ears from exterior noise. Thanks to its light weight of only 71g, the headset doesn’t become uncomfortable, even after long periods of use. This makes the P311 perfect for sports, as it doesn’t get loose while jogging or biking. The device can conveniently be stored inside the included travel case for travelling purposes. Besides, the integrated microphone enables all forms of voice communications, such as MSN and Skype from your PC .

Headset Specifications:     
Wearing Style: Supra-aural, neckband
Bluetooth Version: V 2.1 with EDR, Class 2
Frequency Response (Hz-kHz): 18 Hz – 22 KHz
Total Harmonic Distortion: 0.1%
Battery: Rechargeable 400mAh Li-Polymer battery
Playback Time: Up to 20 hours
Net Weight: 2 g

What’s in the Box?

The P31X Pack comes in a flashy silver box with a nice big window on the front and info on the back.

Inside you’ll find the case and the headphones.

In the case is where you’ll find  the user manual, USB Bluetooth adapter and a USB cable along with a mini-CD that holds the drivers.

The USB adapter is very small as you can see from the following picture:

The case is very nice, it looks like carbon fiber and has dual zippers on it. The Arctic logo is on the top, it’s soft inside and the case itself is rather hard.

Here’s what it looks like with the headphones inside, it is a bit cramped in there.

The headphones are over the back of the neck style, not my favorite kind, but I don’t hate the style either.

The right side earpiece is where you’ll find the controls for volume, skip and play/pause or answer/end. The center phone button is both play and answer.

The left side just had the Arctic logo on it and a design that mirrors the right side.

The P31X gets charged via USB and the connector is hidden behind a rubber door on the side.

The earpds are very soft and ‘puffy’ making them comfortable.

 

Impressions / Review:

As I said the headphones charge via USB, and when charging there’s a red LED on them. Sadly I really didn’t pay attention to charge time, I plugged them in and got some work done while they charged. It did seem though that they didn’t take that long at all to charge.

For testing I used the P31X with my Samsung Captivate, Le Pan Android tablet and my HTC Surround WP7 phone. When the headphones are connected the LED will blink blue every so often. They connected easily and with no hassles to each device.

The controls worked with all of my devices, everything was controlled perfectly with no issues at all.

The range on these headphones is just amazing and it seems like not much interferes with the signal either. I can easily walk around the house and even upstairs and have no signal lose at all. No interruptions in the music, just nice and clear sound.

Speaking of sound, the quality is excellent really. I didn’t expect that much honestly but I was pleasantly surprised by just how good the sound is. The highs are clear, and the lows are nice and low,. There’s not a lot of bass, but it’s there and that’s fine with me. I’m not one for thumping bass in my ears.

They can get loud and  still remain clear, and they do a decent decent job of  keeping outside sounds out.

The P31X earpads are very comfortable for long periods of use, they’re very soft.

The included carrying case is a nice addition, and it will protect the headphones but the case is rather tight, you have to move them around a bit to get them in there. The case being hard will protect the headphones from most anything you can throw at or on them. You can just toss them in your case and then toss the case in a bag and not worry much at all.

 

Conclusion:

This is a mobility site so you may not know this but, Arctic used to be named Arctic Cooling and they specialized in quality cooling products.  They’ve come a long way from cooling that’s for sure…

The P31X Pack Bluetooth Headphones were certainly a surprise in both their build quality and sound quality. These are some of the nicest Bluetooth headphones I’ve had the chance to review or own. The sound quality  is very good, I would have to say excellent really. Decent highs and nice bass, not too much, but it’s just right for me.

The included carrying case is a nice way to carry them with you and make sure they’re protected . The case is hard so they won’t get crushed, you can just toss them in your bag and not worry too much about them.

You can use the P31X with pretty much any Bluetooth enabled device but you an also use them with your computers thanks to the included USB Bluetooth dongle.

It’s a package deal, and the price is $59.95 which I think is well worth it really.

If you’re looking for a new BT headset than I can highly recommend these to you. I think you’ll be very happy with them, I know I am.

 

 

Pros:
+Nice case included
+Excellent battery life
+Great range
+Comfortable for long periods
+Works with everything I tried

 

Cons:
-Tight fit in case