Samsung Gear Iconx Review Facts
Looking for a good truly wireless headset? Well if your hunting for Androids answers to the Apple Earbuds, then you have the right set in sight. While these are able to be used with Apple products, they are Samsung brand- and just as Apple tends to make any advanced features strictly to their own, Samsung does the same. That is not to say this is a bad pair regardless. We will not know the exact specs till we start digging into the story of how good they have done for various customers and research what it is that makes this pair stand out. We may find ourselves surprised and be nodding by the end and saying, ‘you know, these are worth every cent- even outside of Samsung tech’. We have, after all, been surprised before with such results.
Our job here at Gear Hunt is to go digging for all the nitty-gritty so you won’t have to hunt it all out yourself before deciding on your next gear. We look through a lot of details and do not color our words just to sell a product, our goal is to make sure when you are reading on our site, your getting the truth of each and every item. By bringing you what we have found, we know that we have given you a solid look on the things on your Wishlist, so you can either stop hunting or keep going based on what is really going on. Without further ado, let us dive right in and see what is good, what is the bad, and what is the end outlook for this amazing new tech in our product universe.
Activities
While they aren’t the greatest for longer exercise, their battery life kills it which will be given more detail later, if you tend to go for shorter lengths of time they will easily stay in your ears for use. They can go for gym style of exercise or a jog as easily as they work for easy listening. They are perfect for most activities as long as the battery holds out. The only downside is that they are designed for Samsung/Android use and are a little harder to utilize at their best with Apple equipment. That being said, the length of time the batteries word seems to vary from one user experience to another’s which may mean that it depends how you have them set up. But, for the sake of this particular category, let us just say they are great for any activity- including swimming. Being waterproof has its perks!
Advanced Features
This is where these earphones have done a decent job at setting themselves apart from the other brands that are out there and available. They have 4GB of storage space to allow you to directly download music to the
headset itself, so you do not need to worry about connecting them to another device to listen to your tunes while using them. No surprise here to learn that if you choose to listen to music with this method, the battery life is a bit better for it. Even better is that their app also allows you to download new setups for your headset to adjust quality levels to be in your preference- focusing your music playback on high, mid or bass tones or equalize them more. This gives them an even better sound quality which was not initially available when they came out.
Another cool ability of these ‘True Wireless’ earbuds is something quite a few of those interested in health tracking may have a double take at. If you have android equipment (sorry, the Apple equipment is not built in for it) you can even have this headset track like you would with your health tracking watches- at least the very basics thus far. The idea that you can not only ditch your phone but leave your tracker at home and still get qualities from both is an incredible leap forward shining with this modern tech.
Basic Features
The most basic features of this set are made obvious when you go to hook them up with anything outside the company it was specifically designed for. Much like going from PC to Apple, certain features in programs, and whole programs, suddenly disappear. With this
headset, you get completely wireless, hands-free use. The connect to iPhones, but the connection is not the best, and if your downloading music, you will still need to use a USB cord if you are using something, not on the Samsung codec list- which basically means the wireless transfer is corralled to Android phones when it comes to files like music. The use of the app to reset what your sound quality is focused on is also something corralled to the Samsung Android technology. So, for basic features, you get your standard true wireless that can answer your phone and connect wirelessly to your phone to listen to the music, but if you want the bonus stuff- you need to have the right stuff.
Of course, one of the features is the quick answer double tap that some sets do not offer to answer your phone when you do have them connected to that device. This is a great feature that means you have less of a chance of missing an important call trying to reach your phone or any button on a chord. Looking at the list, with just how many Android and Samsung products it can connect to quickly, just by turning them on, is awesome! Once synced to your phone, it seems this little pair easily transitions between everything you need it to quite seamlessly.
Connectivity
When it comes to the brand these were designed by and for, they are actually good quality for their particular line. While not as good as some of the more expensive lines produced by Samsung, they really are worth every penny and then some for their build. They connect easily to most Samsung/Android devices and rarely lose connection to those. Not only do they stay connected, but if what you are using is Samsung equipment, they are easy to connect and do not really require you to do much to get started. Of course, if you are using Apple, it takes a bit more to get started, and the connection is a bit weaker. Whereas with Android you don’t need to use cords for anything really (including uploading your music) With the Apple products you are going to have to go about things the old-fashioned way- with a USB style cable for your phone. This may be a clincher for those who prefer to mix and match
equipment, but most tend to stick to the same brand across the board, so if you are looking at this set you are probably in the green for being completely cordless.
Comfort
When it comes to comfort, these actually rank way up on most scales. They are small enough that they do not make themselves known or
wear on your ears, but large enough to stay in place even during a brisk jog. They have a softer base as well so that they don’t dig into the ear where they are sitting, but rather almost seem to conform to it (instead of trying to force your ear to conform to them- ow!) allowing for comfort without loss of grip or falling. The only downside to them comes from something we will mention in the ease of use area of this article, we will only mention here that it basically means you may end up taking them in and out a lot of you are not finding memorizing controls to be your forte. If it weren’t for that one issue, it is an agreement that they are one of the best in this particular area of design.
Style
The style is nothing to write home about in many ways, at least if you like to be flashy. These are
discreet, and, in most cases, people won’t even realize you are wearing them. They aren’t bulky, and the black casing helps them to hide away tucked into your ears and stay out of the way as you exercise or commute from one place to another. Their case is also smaller and more discreet which lets them get easily tucked away when not in use. So, for those of us who prefer to not draw attention while we listen to our music, these might actually come into our sight as being extremely stylish after all.
Durability
This pair does surprisingly well for durability. Most of this comes in the choice of materials for their build and the fact that the materials are of a high enough quality that those who might replace something on any other set, do not feel the need to. The fact that they don’t tend to fall out of your ear, and yet sit comfortably makes them noteworthy as well. Less chance of an accident. Though, as with any product made of plastic, if they do drop- you may want to be careful where you step- it is better you don’t test them with full weight just to see if they hold up.
Ease of Use
This particular pair uses touch style controls, and this is either going to be easy or difficult, not in between. For those out there who have no issue memorizing how many taps on a button it takes to get what action, this will come off as being the easiest and nicest pair of earphones you can get. However, if you are like some of us out here who can’t remember what number of taps does what, this can quickly become a frustrating aspect of their use. This is where the earlier statement came in under comfort: if you can’t keep track, you may just resort to taking one or both out if someone comes along to talk to you. There is also the fact that no matter what style of touch equipment you are talking about, each set may have a different level of touch sensitivity, and if you are unlucky with this sort of thing, you may get a pair that simply doesn’t seem to respond right even when you do have the right number of taps memorized. As for the set up itself, it’s easy as long as you are using Android tech, but switch it out for Apple, and you will find many of the controls and ease of their use gets quickly lost due to the codecs applied.
Power Source
The IconX, like many of today's modern tech that works wirelessly, has rechargeable inbuilt batteries. Unlike many brands we have seen which have a USB adapter or that have a difficult time recharging, this pair easily sit in their case to recharge. We found that most who have them like them because they are easy and fast to recharge- and they don’t have a hard time staying in the recharge station like a lot of others out there.
Price
These are still a little on the pricey side for the quality they put forth, which seems to be the biggest complaint overall. The reason that they feel overpriced is due to the fact that there are other earbuds out there with more options than the IconX for right around the same price range. These options include actually having a better ability to connect to devices outside of the Android brand and still having all their setting available. The big news is that for the IconX, as an Android brand, it has been updated on the app with other changes in 2018, so maybe they will become better over the next year to where they not only have all the good that they started out with, but also gain in grounds where they lacked. Products that are still being updated are a good investment no matter how you look at it, and worth the money. You can find this pair for about $175 as the going price new, though Samsungs refurbished pairs do sell for about $107 through their own pages.
Sound Quality
This too seems to vary from one customer to the next, however, they do offer adjustable settings via your Android (sorry if you are using Apple, this isn’t available) which can change the opinion quickly. The original set did not offer the ability to change the balance of the tones, however, in a recent update to the app, you can now decide to have them focus on highs, mids or lows depending on your taste. Most agree that it does change the quality in a good way, but they still are not perfect. The original focus of sound on these was to try and make the highs stand out apart from the lows easily and straight out of the box, without the apps tweaking, they actually do really well for this. All three tones are fairly decently separated and balanced; however, it can be said that there are some points where the mids seem to blend out one way or the other and it can cause some sounds to seemingly vanish under a flood of bass or soprano sounds. No matter what though, for its rather old-fashioned codec quality, they still have an incredibly good sound- even if it doesn’t match up to higher quality, more expensive, styles and brands.
Key Features
-Waterproof
-4GB sound storage
-Adjustable sound quality (on Androids)
-Fit comfortably
Bottom Line
If you need a good headset for your Android stuff, this set is definitely a good one to look into. Between the fact its app allows you to adjust the sound balance, its memory storage and the fact they are waterproof you have a great deal on these. They even have a warranty if purchased from Samsung, so it isn’t too big of a risk. In 2018 they updated things as well, so the fact these aren’t old enough that they can’t keep up is a major plus. If you need something for Apple stuff though, these might not be your best option.