Mobility Digest Review: iFrogz EARPOLLUTION Ronin

Doug Smith | December 1, 2010 | Uncategorized | 3 Comments

I have bought a lot of devices in my time and the one thing that always comes with the device is some ear buds for listening to music or using it as a wired headset for voice calls. I have quite the collection of them and some of them are actually quite good, while others are pretty poor. Aftermarket headphones can range from 10 dollars all the way up to 300 dollars. The fact of the matter is you don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars to get great sound. With the new iFrogz EARPOLLUTION Ronin Professional Style Headphones, great quality can be yours for just $49.99.

So if you are in the market for some headphones, and want to get rid of the ear buds you were supplied with your device, read on for my full review of the iFrogz EARPOLLUTION Ronin Professional DJ Style Headphones.

What are Ronins? Ronins are reminiscent of iFrogz’s Hustle style DJ headphones, but are available in extremely stylish colors, such as red and blue, white and black. They also deliver extreme comfort and beautiful bass to listeners. iFrogz has included a padded mesh headband and rotational cups for enjoyable extended use.

And according to iFrogz (I thought this was a cool description):

“Do you find yourself without a master, wandering the feudal Japanese countryside? Restore your honor with deep bass and crisp treble by wearing our new Ronin headphones! Featuring a katana-proof cord.”

Let’s kick things off with my video review:

What do you get in the Package? One complete set of iFrogz EARPOLLUTION Ronin Professional DJ Style Headphones and one completely sealed clam shell package. Rest assured that you will most likely destroy the packaging opening the products which I thought was good to ensure the fact that your purchase was fresh from the factory, and not a test unit or return.

The cord on the Ronin is excellent quality and well designed for long life. The 3.5mm male audio plug is gold plated and rests in a very heavy duty hosing. So heavy duty in fact that the outside diameter did not fit in my OtterBox Defender Series case for the iPhone 4. To test the unit I had to remove the case and use it unprotected. This will be something you want to be careful of when buying a case is that the audio access provision is large enough to accommodate the Ronin plug diameter. Having said that, it would not be too difficult to enlarge the Polycarbonate inner case of my OtterBox to fit the Ronin Plug, but it is necessary to mention it in my review.

The cord length is 1.5m or 5 feet in length. Plenty of cord to carry your device in your pocket or have it cradled or sitting on a desk in front of you. The cord is a very large diameter and top quality silicone. There is not doubt that this cord will stand some abuse.

At the base of the headphones, the cord is protected with an inch of heavy gauge silicone to guard against over bending the cord and causing damage to the headphones. Probably one of the most common causes of premature failure of a headphone is pulling the cord out of the base of the headphones. this added protection by iFrogz will guarantee a longer life for your Ronin Headphones.

The build quality of the iFrogz Ronin is excellent. A lot of attention to detail went into making the a great looking product, but a well constructed product as well. The top of the Ronin Headphones is nice leather covering with a cool looking “EARPOLLUTION” stitched logo across the entire surface area. The padding underneath is quite thick which makes for a very comfortable fit. The construction is also very good in this area as it still bends for a custom fit on the user, but has some rigidity that to me will last the life of the product.

The iFrogz EARPOLLUTION Ronin Professional DJ Style Headphones have a “Rotational Spring Loaded Hinge” that makes folding the headphone up for storage or travel quite nice. The Hinges also add to the custom fit of the Ronin Headphones giving the listener an excellent fit.

The iFrogz Ronin Headphones have a very comfortable earpiece and even though not advertised, I thought they did a good job of blocking out external noise. The padding is very well constructed and the inner padding covering the speaker has some cool EARPOLLUTION logo and artwork printed on it.

The Ronin Headphones have a seven position expandability to allow even the largest listener (Like me) to have comfortable fit with these headphones. Other headphones I have tested only expand just enough to reach or cover my ear. any side to side movement pulls the headphones off the ear and is not good for walking or any sort of exercise. The positions on the Ronin Headphones are labeled 1-7 for easy adjustment each time you use your headphones.

The Sound quality of the iFrogz EARPOLLUTION Ronin Professional DJ Style Headphones is simply excellent for a $50.00 set of headphones. I tested the Ronin Headphones on both the iPhone 4 and the Dell Streak Android Tablet and I was very happy with the performance on both. Compared to the apple supplied ear buds, which I thought we very good for included device ear buds, the Ronin Headphones were a night and day difference. The richness of sound over the supplied ear buds was incredible. With the 50 mm Driver Unit, the Ronin Headphones are advertised as supplying the listener with a great bass experience. I would have to agree with that statement, but I did think that the bass could have been a little better to compare with the excellent midrange and clarity of sound. I really enjoyed listening to bands like Dream Theater (Pull Me Under) and Rush (Subdivisions) that have a lot of layers of sound and really showcase speaker clarity. I also sampled several Hip Hop and Rap songs and I did not think the Ronin Headphones “Hit” like I expected them to. But I will say that the bass was very good and enjoyable to listen to.

Technical Specifications:

Driver Unit: 50 mm
Impedance: 32 ohms +/- 15%
Sensitivity: 105 dB +/- 3 dB
Frequency Response: 20-20,000 Hz
Cord Length: 1.5m (5ft)
Plug: 3.5mm

Available in three color schemes: Bright Blue/Red, Midnight, and Snow

The iFrogz EARPOLLUTION Ronin Headphones have an excellent build quality and attention to detail built it. I was very pleased with price pointed headphone like the Ronin that comes in at 50 dollars have so much quality built in. Musically the Ronin Headphones were a great leap from the the device supplied ear buds that you get. I would really recommend these to the music listener that is looking for high build quality, great sound, and at an affordable price.

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