Outdoor Technology Wired Chips 2014

Notable features/positives

The Wired chips are A LOT less bulky than anything else that would deliver the high level of sound quality they do. This is something I noticed the most out of anything. Compared to the Skull Candy Icons, which sound is great but still not quite as good, they are a lot more convenient. You will barely notice they are there, because they are concealed inside the helmet flaps.

Volume, play, pause, and the ability to answer calls is available on the wire leading up to the Chips. The wire can also be detached from the headphones and used for something else, which was nice for using it as an aux cord in the car. If you plan on only using the Wired Chips for skiing, which is what I did, you can remove the cord and leave the Chip in your helmet for later use, and use the cord for something else in the meantime.

The sound quality was actually pretty impressive for the cheap price of $40. I would definitely it say they live up to the HIFI standard of quantity. I never noticed any distortion of sound, even in colder temperatures, and they have high quality bass. Compared to the apple headphones, the sound was definitely higher quality. I also noticed that the mic distorted my voice while on the phone a lot less than the apple microphone. I have got a lot of complains while skiing and talking on the phone, and have had to repeat myself often when trying to get a message across. However, with the mic on the Wired Chips I never was misunderstood due to distortions in the call from the microphone.

Restrictions on use/negatives

I was able to review the headphones using an Anon helmet, with earflaps and the wired chips worked perfectly. The problem I encountered with the headphones was a lot of other skiers and myself like to ride with our goggles under our helmets and with no earflaps. Due to the fact that the Wired Chips are designed for ear flaps, it made it a bit frustrating because I had to decide between quality music or riding with my helmet and goggle setup the way I usually like it. Now the first solution I came up with, is to upgrade to the wireless chips. This way if you ride with a hat under your helmet, you can use the rolled up part as a place for the chips. The second alternative I did was wearing a tight balaclava. A tight balaclava was enough to hold the Chips in place, but they definitely would slide around if I had a hard landing. It was also frustrating that they can only really be used properly while wearing a helmet, but that is what they are designed for.

Overall, I would recommend these for anyone who rocks ear flaps while skiing. The sound quality is extremely high, and fact that they take up relatively no space is amazing. However,this recommendation is only for people who are going to use them with ear flaps.

• Design
  Clean
  Busy
• Weight
  Light
  Heavy
• Durability
  Fragile
  Durable
• Style
  Uncool
  Cool
• Battery Life
  Poor
  Excellent
• Features
  Basic
  Full Featured
• Usability
  Easy
  Complicated
• Sound Quality
  Poor
  Excellent
• Fit/Wearbility
  Awkward
  Comfortable