Toshiba RZE-BT180H wireless headphones review: Loud audio, Punchy bass but misses on clarity

 

Design: Looks good but average build quality

Toshiba RZE-BT 180H wireless headphones are designed quite well and come in four different dual-tone color options. There is the regular black and blue color variant which has grey outlining and the fluorescent green and orange color variants. And while the headphones look good, the build quality is questionable. It appears that in a bid to design a good looking headset, the company lost its touch in the build department.

Coming to the headphone's build, Toshiba seems to have used a not-so-good quality of plastic to design the pair. The earpads are also not foldable which makes it slightly difficult to carry them around in a small bag. The cushions on the earpads are decent; however, the small earcup size makes the prolonged music sessions quite difficult. The headphones are not very comfortable for longer durations and you will start feeling your ear aching after a while, probably after an hour of use.

The headphones have a light grip on the head and it tends to fall off with extensive activities such as running or even while exercising. This means that the headphone is suitable as a desktop audio driver and not for outdoor activities. The headband is also less flexible which further hampers the headphone wearing experience.

As for the placement of keys and ports, the right earcup of the headphone accommodates the 3.5mm audio port, a microUSB port for charging and the volume adjusters along with play/pause key. The play/pause key doubles up as a power key for the headphone and you can use this key to switch it on or off. On the other hand, the volume keys can be used to navigate through the songs without the need of taking out the connected device. The LED indicator right next to the volume down key glows blue once a device has been connected and glows red when the device battery is low. In short, the headphone features a good looking design but is not very comfortable for longer durations.

Audio: Loud sound output but lacks in clarity

Toshiba RZE-BT 180H is a loud sounding pair, however, as mentioned in the title, the headphones lack in clarity. No doubt, the pair delivers a punchy bass but it tends to fade the clarity of instruments playing in the background. I played a wide genre of songs and noticed that you cannot play these at maximum volume levels. The audio starts leaking out and people around you will know what music is being played. Moreover, I also found that the audio produced by the headphones lack clarity. Vocals, bass, and other important elements start playing at the same pitch which hampers the overall audio performance. You are certainly not going to have an immersive audio playback experience with this pair. However, the loud sound output and heavy bass are what saves it from delivering a super bad listening experience.

The headphones are good for daily commuters who would want to have a loud audio output; however, for true audiophiles who need clarity at every step, this doesn't cut the deal.

Connectivity: Supports Bluetooth v4.2

The RZE-BT180H headphones come with Bluetooth v4.2 support for wireless connectivity. You can connect this pair with two devices at once which does come handy sometimes. The headphone has a good connectivity range and the connection didn't break frequently with continuous audio playback.
There is also a 3.5mm headphone jack with which you can use this headphone as a wired device. The company does provide a 3.5mm AUX cable inside the retail box which also appears to be of average quality. Also, there is an in-built microphone which will allow you to take calls while wearing the headphone. The call quality might not be superior but it does the trick.

Battery: Up to 8 hours of backup

The battery is a strong forte of the RZZE-BT180H wireless headphones. The headphone lasts for up to 8 hours with one full charge and mild audio playback. Meaning, with audio levels around 60 percent this pair can deliver a back up of up to 8 hours. And with standard microUSB charger, the headphone takes around three hours to get charged from zero to 100 percent which is adequate.

Verdict

Toshiba has designed a good looking headphone; however, the average build quality and underwhelming Audio output are a big letdown. The headphones fail to deliver on audio which should have been the priority considering the competition in the market. The headphones are not comfortable for long term usage which again adds to the negative aspects of this pair. Although, the audio delivered is loud but it lacks in clarity, which hampers the fun of listening to music while on the go.

The only takeaway from Toshiba - is the appealing design. If audio and comfort is your priority then you can opt for other popular headphones in the sub Rs 2.5K budget segment such as Sony MDR XB-400, JBL T450BT Extra Bass, Sennheiser HD 202 II and TAGG Powerbass 700 among others.