Cardo Systems, Inc. S-2

Bluetooth is becoming widespread, starting with Smartphones and portable audio players.  In order to ride this wave, Cardo Systems (leader on the Bluetooth earphone market in the U.S.) is offering the S-2.    Once placed on your head, you can get away from the constraints of cables and answer your phone without taking it out of your pocket.  So, does the S-2 also give us fine audio quality?

Ergonomics:  Despite the rather imposing size of the earphones, overall the S-2 is discreet.  The product is attractive; however, some of the materials used in construction (the plastic on certain buttons and the joint that allows folding) do not seem to reflect the high end price.  Otherwise, use is not overly intuitive and you will probably have to open the user's guide the first time.  Note that you can take/refuse a call, use voice dialing directly with the earphones and it's possible to simultaneously relay a mobile phone and Bluetooth audio player.  This all proved to be very practical.  We also liked the choice of recharging via a USB port (mini USB cable not included) or a wall socket.  In the end, the S-2 is very pleasant and we quickly became accustomed to their use.

Audio quality:  Rendering was decent even if we noticed a lack of precision and a surplus of basses.  Quality was far inferior that what we could have hoped for and sound was too dull for our tastes.  In comparison, it does better than its rival, the Logitech FreePulse Wireless.  On the other hand, changing tracks (via the earphone control) is rather hard on the ear and unless you prepare yourself at this point, a very unpleasant noise (the plastic repositioning itself) hits your eardrum.  Another small defect was small cuts in sound as soon as we moved slightly away from the audio source.  Of course, this wasn't often but the effect was not too pleasant.