If mine look at little used, that would be because they are. I have had this pair since about May of this year and have pretty much put them through everything, which brings up the first point. On first touch the plastic feels really cheap, and there is a certain expectation of poor build quality. When I got these I was a little more than concerned about how the headphones would handle high-humidity environments, much less how the buttons would respond to repeated use. I was also a little concerned about the connecting band. Six months later the headset still feels exactly the same to wear, so while the plastic feels a little cheap, the unit itself is still fairly rugged.
The largest complaint on build quality is the selection of the physical charging connection. Artic Cooling is using a half-depth USB Mini-port. Thus USB Mini cables will not be able to make a secure lock while charging. The use of a half-depth port also makes it more likely for the user to accidentally expand or warp the connection point, resulting in poor USB Mini cable connection.
The second complaint is the bluetooth connection itself. These headphones have worked perfectly with every single Android device I have been able to get hands on with. All the functions are at least working under VLC, Mort Player, the default Android 2.3 Player, and even Google's Play Music application. Other platforms haven't been so friendly. A quick visit to an Apple store and of the bluetooth equipped devices on hand, the showroom Ipads didn't know what to do with the headphone, but the showroom Iphone's did. The showroom OSX Macbook Pro could not use the device, but the showroom Macbook Air connected without a problem.
I saw the same sort of behavior of Windows. Windows Vista connected and used the headphones flawlessly. Windows 7? Not so much. My /Linux systems were able to detect and connect to the headphones, but just not pipe audio to the headphones.
From a usage standpoint then the P311's are a bit of a mixed bag. If you are intending to use them with an Android Device they will probably work perfectly. If you intend to use them with anything but an Android device, it's almost a gamble as to whether or not they will work. According to Arctic Cooling's support staff the P311 does not require a driver. Well, Windows 7 says it does.
Personally, I am inclined to believe the Operating System's own reports.
If you can deal with a less than perfect charging method and a grab-bag of supported platform driver issues, the headphones themselves have adequate sound reproduction quality. Granted an average retail price point of around $30 is not exactly premium sound pricing.
Rather, where these headphones really stand out is the battery life and weight. Arctic Cooling claims a weight of 71 grams on the official product pages, and that means you can wear these all day long without developing a migraine The battery life will also keep up with you. Artic Cooling claims 18 hours on the product page, 20 some hours on the marketing page, and it's my opinion that is a bit conservative. I've gotten better than 24 hours out of a single charge myself, although that was reached by connecting the headphones to the Windows Vista system and simply looping Chrono Symphonic.
In practical terms the P311 will easily handle daily usage patterns such as taking calls or voice chatting through Steam. Are there better bluetooth headsets in the $30 price range?
Honestly, yes and no. These headphones appear to also be available under the brands Kinivo, CyberBlue, Avoi, NoiseHush, Samsung, and iKross. If you shop carefully you may be able to get these headphones for closer to $24 with shipping.
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