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Henry Northmore checks out some of the best headphones on the market
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Lifestyle Technology
Jabra HALO 2 £99.99 available from amazon.com Boasting ‘Virtual Surround Sound’ and ‘Power Bass’ coupled with incredible comfort, HALO 2 can also link wirelessly to any Bluetooth device and are capable of taking calls via your mobile while the touch sensor on the side means you can adjust volume, skip tracks or pause/ play via the headphones. Redemption Song IE2 £59.99; £69.99 (with mic and three button controller) available thehouseofmarley. co.uk Officially endorsed by Bob Marley’s family, House of Marley offer a range of headphones all featuring eco- conscious designs and a proportion of proceeds go to 1love.org. This particular model has noise isolating in-ear buds and the option of Apple compatible controls.
BlueAnt Embrace £149.99 available from amazon. com and myblueant.com These ultra-comfy full ear headphones keep external noises out and have been specifically designed with the idea of long haul flights and are perfectly padded for extended wear as well as killer sound quality with adjustable EQ and a frequency range of 20 Hz to 20 kHz.
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Form 2 £90 available from www.beoplay.com When you learn these are from Bang & Olufsen you know you’ll get the perfect mix of classic design (designed by Steve McGugan in 1984, they can be seen at New York’s MOMA) and sound, the dynamic drive units offering true defined sound. Now available in four new colours (red, orange, yellow and white).
Jabra SPORT £99.99 available from amazon.com These wireless headphones are specially designed so you can listen to music (or take calls) while you workout and come with a free download of Endomondo Sports Tracker, a running app for Smartphones designed for Jabra SPORT, keeping you updated on speed, distance and lap time simply by tapping the headset. DS-321D £69.99 from Richer Sounds, Carphone Warehouse and Play.com Digital Silence’s in-ear range are designed expressly for their noise cancelling tech in mind using ‘Digital Ambient Noise Cancelling Technology’ (if you want to get technical) so you can hear the music as intended. The HD speakers and voice mic are an added bonus.
GAMES REVIEWS
Mass Effect 3 PC/PS3/Xbox360 (EA) ●●●●● In tying up the story of Commander Shepard and his/her battle to rid the universe of the genocidal alien Reapers, the final part of Bioware’s epic trilogy not only maintains the series’ momentum but manages to best some of its more jaw- dropping moments. Right from its apocalyptic start, this is ambitious storytelling with the technical chops to do it justice. Alan Wake PC/Xbox 360 (Nordic Games) ●●●●● This odd fusion of Stephen King and Twin Peaks comes from Remedy, Finnish creators of Max Payne. Novelist Wake has retreated to the fictional town of Bright Falls where he spends his evenings battling a cavalcade of gothic beasties. Using a fiddly combination of light and firearms to defeat enemies, its short episodic structure and gorgeous landscapes help distract from a hokey plot and repetitive combat.
Silent Hill HD Collection PS3/Xbox 360 (Konami) ●●●●● This ‘collection’ features a paltry two Silent Hill games, neither of which have been polished enough to justify the HD tag. Silent Hill 2 is by some stretch the better game, thanks to some now-iconic design work and the cacophonous, clattering audio mix. Its follow-up mistakenly ramps up the combat in preference to atmosphere, making it frustrating and repetitive.
19 Jul–2 Aug 2012 THE LIST 33