After reviewing Brainwavz M2 IEM's, I was really impressed with the quality & performance offered by Brainwavz at a reasonable price. Brainwavz M2 was my first ever Brainwavz product and I was really impressed with it. Once I was done with M2, I started exploring more Brainwavz earphones. I was told that Brainwavz is known for its amazingly priced & high-quality Bluetooth earphones, that was enough to get me started in this direction. Brainwavz has previously launched BLU-100 Bluetooth earphones which had some good & some bad things, to counter that Brainwavz launched an improved version with better performance, range and quality, The Brainwavz BLU-200 earphones. They are reasonable priced for a Bluetooth earphones and are a lot better than others in the same price segment. Today I'll be reviewing Brainwavz BLU-200 Bluetooth earphones in detail, I hope it will answer all your questions.
Brainwavz BLU-200 are Bluetooth based In-Ear headphones, designed for active people & fitness enthusiasts, who love listening to music while working out or when on the go. These earphones fall under budget category and are reasonably priced.
Brainwavz BLU-200 are Bluetooth based In-Ear headphones, designed for active people & fitness enthusiasts, who love listening to music while working out or when on the go. These earphones fall under budget category and are reasonably priced.
Testing Procedure
Since 10 days, I'm testing Brainwavz BLU-200 earphones and finally I was ready with my verdict. Before beginning the review, I would like to elaborate more on the tests I performed on the BLU-200 so that you can have an idea of what these things went through. To ensure that I can test them on their uppermost limit, I used high-quality audio files & Lossless formats. For MP3's, I used 320KBPS files and for Lossless formats, I used FLAC & WAV files. To squeeze out the best performance out of them, I used custom equalizer settings & tweaked them throughout to test their extreme capability. For mobile listening, I used custom music player (Poweramp) to get more control over the output & to boost the performance. On Laptop, I used iTunes music player & VLC player. Throughout, I used high-quality music files and also tested them on different phones. After testing them for 10 days, I started writing my review.
Unboxing Brainwavz BLU-200
The box which was shipped to me was very compact in size and had pictures of the product on it. On opening the box, I found a Hard Carrying Case in it which further contained the earphones and other accessories. We did a video on the unboxing of Brainwavz BLU-200 earphones and it was uploaded to our YouTube channel, you can watch the video here. Please do like it, share it & Subscribe to our channel for more videos in future.
To sum it up, the box contained a Hard carrying case, in which there were the Brainwavz BLU-200 earphones, neatly wrapped in a velcro belt with Brainwavz branding. There was a Warranty card cum User manual, 3 pairs of silicone Ear Tips in three different sizes (Small, Medium, Large), a MicroUSB charging cable, a pair of Comply Foam Tips S-400, and a pair of Silicone Ear Hooks. I was happy to see the Comply foam tips inside the box, these ear tips are very good at noise isolation & come with memory foam, which perfectly takes the shape of the ear for better comfort & isolation.
Technical Specifications
Like always, this section is for those who like checking out the technical details. Others can skip this section. This information is as per the product website & retail package.
- Frequency range: 20 Hz to 20 kHz.
- Features 9.2 mm Dynamic Drivers.
- Rated Impedance of 16 ohms (closed dynamic)
- Sensitivity range of 96 dB at 1 mW.
- Bluetooth 4.0 with aptX
- Supports HFP, HSP and A2DP.
- Operation Range: 10 meters or 30 feet.
- BLU-200 comes with 60 mAh battery.
- 100 Hours Standby, 2 Hours for Ful charging.
- 4 Hours Playback time on single charge.
- Microphone with In-line remote.
Built Quality & Design
Brainwavz BLU-200 sports a metal housing which is a bit longer than regular earphones (obviously due to inbuilt battery & Bluetooth chip) but still they seem better than other Bluetooth earphones. The BLU-200 has a nice flat cable, which is short in length & is tangle free, since you won't be plugging it in physically, the size of the cable provided is perfect. There is a slider on the cable which can be used for shortening the cable as per your requirement. The color available is Black, but Brainwavz designed it so well that it still seems appealing to the eyes. The default silicone tips which come onboard are of a greenish hue with a yellow interior. The overall color combination looks great. The housing comes with Brainwavz branding on both the buds and also has clear labeling of L & R sides.
There is also a microphone & in-line remote control with three buttons on it for different functions. The R earbud has an opening flap on the back side, where you can connect the MicroUSB cable for charging. Overall the built quality is very good and feels awesome in hands, the metal construction feels premium & durable. They are a bit heavy and sometimes keep slipping from your ears (due to the weight) but you can put on the ear hooks (provided inside the box) to keep them sticking to your ears.
There is also a microphone & in-line remote control with three buttons on it for different functions. The R earbud has an opening flap on the back side, where you can connect the MicroUSB cable for charging. Overall the built quality is very good and feels awesome in hands, the metal construction feels premium & durable. They are a bit heavy and sometimes keep slipping from your ears (due to the weight) but you can put on the ear hooks (provided inside the box) to keep them sticking to your ears.
Microphone & In-Line Remote Functions
The microphone of Brainwavz BLU-200 is of a superior quality and can be used for hands-free calling. During my test calls, I found that the person on the other end was able to hear my voice clearly with no disturbance whatsoever. The In-Line remote contains three buttons, which can be used for different functions listed below.
Turning On & Off
Power On: Button 2 (⏯) press for three seconds.
Power Off: Button 2 (⏯) press for two seconds.
During Music Playback
Play/Pause: Button 2 (⏯) press once.
Volume Up: Button 1 (+) press once.
Volume Down: Button 3 (-) press once.
Skip to Next Track: Button 1 (+) keep pressing for few seconds.
Skip to Previous Track: Button 3 (-) keep pressing for few seconds.
During Call
Answer Call: Button 2 (⏯) press once.
Reject Call: Button 2 (⏯) keep pressing for 3 seconds.
Voice Prompt & LED Indicator
There is a small LED light on the microphone which lets you know if the earphones are ON or OFF when turned ON, the light blinks for a few seconds, indicating Power ON, and simultaneously you'll hear a voice prompt saying "Power ON" - the same thing happens when your turn them OFF, the light indicates OFF and at the same time you'll hear a voice prompt saying "Power OFF" and the earphones will turn off. This is a nice little feature and helps you know the status while wearing them. Other voice prompts happen when the earphones start to pair with the device, at that time you hear a prompt saying "Pairing" and when they find a device to connect, a prompt says "Connecting" that's when you can start enjoying the earphones. Apart from all these the earphones prompt when the battery is low, at that moment you'll hear a prompt saying "Battery Low" that's when you need to charge it.
Charging Brainwavz BLU-200
The earphones come bundled with a MicroUSB cable which can be used for charging it. Just open the flap on the Right earbud and connect it with the cable provided. You can plug it into a computer or use a USB adapter. When connected, the LED indicator turns on and stays on until the earphone is fully charged. According to Brainwavz, it takes Two hours to charge the earphone fully and that's quite true. The playback lasts 4 Hours according to the company and that again is quite true. It easily gives a playback time of 3 hours 45 minutes to 4 hours and in some cases more than 4 hours.
Audio Quality
I was very excited to test the audio quality of the earphones when I connected them for the first time. The audio was surprisingly good with good amount of bass & clarity. Initially, they seemed bass heavy but after some time, the bass seemed on a lower side. The default ear tips seemed to fit me perfectly, they sealed my ears well, so I'll recommend you to experiment with different ear tips and see which one fits perfectly. The sound quality is good I must say, it still a bit bass heavy but the overall soundstage was quite balanced. The treble was average and the mids were decent. I enjoyed listening Rock music with good Bass guitar lines, kick drum thumping & guitar solos. Throughout I felt that the mids were good with Bass somehow overpowering the treble but during the guitar solo the treble sounded great. Some Equalizer tweaking helped me improve the treble, keeping the bass at a perfect point where it seemed enjoyable to me (since I prefer Bass heavy music, I had no problems with heavy bass which BLU-200 produced, in fact, I'm used to heavy bass ear monitors). At any point, if you feel that the bass is overpowering, you can tweak the equalizer to reduce the bass and boost the treble.
Overall the audio quality was decent with good amount of Bass, good mids, and decent treble. People who love listening to Bass heavy music, Rock, Hip-Hop etc. will love BLU-200, those who prefer classical, slow music or tracks with a good amount of vocals will not be impressed with them. You can always tweak the settings to match your preference.
To know more about my testing procedure, scroll up to the Testing Procedure section.
There is a small LED light on the microphone which lets you know if the earphones are ON or OFF when turned ON, the light blinks for a few seconds, indicating Power ON, and simultaneously you'll hear a voice prompt saying "Power ON" - the same thing happens when your turn them OFF, the light indicates OFF and at the same time you'll hear a voice prompt saying "Power OFF" and the earphones will turn off. This is a nice little feature and helps you know the status while wearing them. Other voice prompts happen when the earphones start to pair with the device, at that time you hear a prompt saying "Pairing" and when they find a device to connect, a prompt says "Connecting" that's when you can start enjoying the earphones. Apart from all these the earphones prompt when the battery is low, at that moment you'll hear a prompt saying "Battery Low" that's when you need to charge it.
Charging Brainwavz BLU-200
The earphones come bundled with a MicroUSB cable which can be used for charging it. Just open the flap on the Right earbud and connect it with the cable provided. You can plug it into a computer or use a USB adapter. When connected, the LED indicator turns on and stays on until the earphone is fully charged. According to Brainwavz, it takes Two hours to charge the earphone fully and that's quite true. The playback lasts 4 Hours according to the company and that again is quite true. It easily gives a playback time of 3 hours 45 minutes to 4 hours and in some cases more than 4 hours.
Audio Quality
I was very excited to test the audio quality of the earphones when I connected them for the first time. The audio was surprisingly good with good amount of bass & clarity. Initially, they seemed bass heavy but after some time, the bass seemed on a lower side. The default ear tips seemed to fit me perfectly, they sealed my ears well, so I'll recommend you to experiment with different ear tips and see which one fits perfectly. The sound quality is good I must say, it still a bit bass heavy but the overall soundstage was quite balanced. The treble was average and the mids were decent. I enjoyed listening Rock music with good Bass guitar lines, kick drum thumping & guitar solos. Throughout I felt that the mids were good with Bass somehow overpowering the treble but during the guitar solo the treble sounded great. Some Equalizer tweaking helped me improve the treble, keeping the bass at a perfect point where it seemed enjoyable to me (since I prefer Bass heavy music, I had no problems with heavy bass which BLU-200 produced, in fact, I'm used to heavy bass ear monitors). At any point, if you feel that the bass is overpowering, you can tweak the equalizer to reduce the bass and boost the treble.
Overall the audio quality was decent with good amount of Bass, good mids, and decent treble. People who love listening to Bass heavy music, Rock, Hip-Hop etc. will love BLU-200, those who prefer classical, slow music or tracks with a good amount of vocals will not be impressed with them. You can always tweak the settings to match your preference.
To know more about my testing procedure, scroll up to the Testing Procedure section.
Battery Life & Connectivity
As per the technical specifications, Brainwavz BLU-200 earphones come with an inbuilt 60 mAh battery which according to the company, can give Four Hours of playback time on a single charge, takes Two hours to charge fully and can give up to 100 Hours Standby time. As per my tests, the timings were somewhat similar. The BLU-200 constantly gave 4+ Hours of playback every time and took around 90 minutes to 2 Hours for charging (depending on the charging device). I was satisfied with the battery life of Brainwavz BLU-200 earphones, they lasted pretty long for my daily needs, and as compared to other Bluetooth earphones in the same price segment. It connects over Bluetooth v4.0 and has a range of 10 meters (30 feet) from the source. The earphones support HFP, HSP and A2DP connectivity. The connection throughout was very good indoors & even outdoors. But in windy areas, when the source was away, the connection seem to break sometimes. But overall the connectivity & Battery life was satisfactory.
As per the technical specifications, Brainwavz BLU-200 earphones come with an inbuilt 60 mAh battery which according to the company, can give Four Hours of playback time on a single charge, takes Two hours to charge fully and can give up to 100 Hours Standby time. As per my tests, the timings were somewhat similar. The BLU-200 constantly gave 4+ Hours of playback every time and took around 90 minutes to 2 Hours for charging (depending on the charging device). I was satisfied with the battery life of Brainwavz BLU-200 earphones, they lasted pretty long for my daily needs, and as compared to other Bluetooth earphones in the same price segment. It connects over Bluetooth v4.0 and has a range of 10 meters (30 feet) from the source. The earphones support HFP, HSP and A2DP connectivity. The connection throughout was very good indoors & even outdoors. But in windy areas, when the source was away, the connection seem to break sometimes. But overall the connectivity & Battery life was satisfactory.
Warranty & Price
Brainwavz BLU-200 Bluetooth Earphones comes with Two Year Warranty (24 months) just like other Brainwavz premium headphones. It's good to know that the brand keeps you covered for two years straight, whereas others just provide one year warranty. Not just that, they are even priced reasonably.
Brainwavz BLU-200 Earphones are Priced at Rs.3,099
Available for purchase at Amazon India & Brainwavz Website.
Brainwavz BLU-200 Bluetooth Earphones comes with Two Year Warranty (24 months) just like other Brainwavz premium headphones. It's good to know that the brand keeps you covered for two years straight, whereas others just provide one year warranty. Not just that, they are even priced reasonably.
Brainwavz BLU-200 Earphones are Priced at Rs.3,099
Available for purchase at Amazon India & Brainwavz Website.
The Verdict
Brainwavz BLU-200 Bluetooth earphones are one of the best Bluetooth earphones under Rs.4000 price tag, they deliver decent performance and are value for money. The design is very good & durable, though they are a bit heavy but it never seemed to me as a problem, It took me some time to get used to the Ear Hooks, but after that, it was an easy ride.
I wore them while running, working out and even when traveling in public transport, they never popped out (with Ear Hooks) and were good at isolating the noise. The Overall audio quality is decent with good bass, mids & decent highs. I'll recommend these to people who are more into Bass, Rock, Hip-Hop and even Pop music, they'll enjoy it. Also, I'll recommend these to fitness enthusiasts & runners.
Brainwavz BLU-200 Bluetooth earphones are one of the best Bluetooth earphones under Rs.4000 price tag, they deliver decent performance and are value for money. The design is very good & durable, though they are a bit heavy but it never seemed to me as a problem, It took me some time to get used to the Ear Hooks, but after that, it was an easy ride.
I wore them while running, working out and even when traveling in public transport, they never popped out (with Ear Hooks) and were good at isolating the noise. The Overall audio quality is decent with good bass, mids & decent highs. I'll recommend these to people who are more into Bass, Rock, Hip-Hop and even Pop music, they'll enjoy it. Also, I'll recommend these to fitness enthusiasts & runners.
My Overall Rating: 4 Out of 5
Design: 3 | Audio Quality: 4 | Price: 4 | Battery Life: 4
I hope you liked my review, I tried to answer all the questions which I think you all might be having, if you think there is something left unanswered, just leave a comment below and I'll try to reply as soon as possible. Also, please share this articles using the below social links, we'll keep on bringing more reviews in future. Till then stay tuned.
Also Read: Brainwavz M2 In-Ear Headphones Review
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