Category Archives: Reviews

Taotronics SoundSurge 90 Headphone Review

Leave a reply

Welcome to this Taotronics SoundSurge 90 headphone review. Below we will run through the main pros and cons of these budget noise cancelling headphones. I’ve been using these for a few months now so thought I’d share my experiences.

One huge plus i discovered when I opened the box, is that the SoundSurge 90s come with a hard travel case. This is hugely useful when traveling and it offers good protection to the headphones when not in use. Most other budget headphones typically only come with a soft pouch so in my opinion this is a huge advantage of the 90s as to buy a similar case is likely to cost in the region of ~£10.

SoundSurge 90 Build Quality & Comfort

The build quality of these headphones seems to punch well above their price. They have a reassuringly solid feel and fold away neatly when not in use. Only time will tell but i’m confident that if they are looked after they will last well.

In terms of comfort I have no complaints. I can where these for several hours at a time and not suffer any aches or pains. The ear cups are soft and snug without being overly tight.

Active Noise Cancelling (ANC) Performance

The Active Noise cancelling (ANC) is the main reason I bought these headphones. This is what makes these headphones really superb for the money. I’m not a hardcore audiophile but the sound quality appears superb to me. While i’m working from home I tend to listen to ambient music (like this)  to help me concentrate. With the SoundSurge’s on, the sounds of my screaming ferrel young children downstairs are completely nullified. It’s like they no longer exist!

Taotronics SoundSurge 90 Headphone Review

The ANC is so good it actually removes the sound of my typing away on my keyboard. I found this a bit strange at first but soon got used to it. The building site next door can no longer be heard.

With all of these sounds gone while i’m working my ability to concentrate has increased massively. These headphones really are a game changer for my work productivity.

Another nice feature not seen on earlier versions of headphones from Taotronics is that the ANC turns off when you turn the headphones off. This greatly reduces the risk of you forgetting to turn the ANC off and draining your battery in between periods of use.

Battery Runtime is very good. I use them for between 2-5hrs a day and typically only have to charge them once per week.

I have not measured the battery life but based on my usage to date I have no reason to doubt the claim of 35hrs (with only Bluetooth on) or 30hrs music playback (with Bluetooth & ANC on). The headphones charge quickly too. A quick 5 minute charge will give you roughly 2 hours of playback which is great if you get caught out with low battery charge.

Usability

The headphones are pretty easy to operate once you’ve used them a few times. Pairing seems to work seamlessly with my phone or laptop.

It is worth remembering that if you have paired them with say your phone and you want to then pair them with your laptop you’ll first need to disconnect them from your phone. To do this simply hold the on/off button along with the down volume for a few seconds until you see a purple light. Then simply pair the headphones using the bluetooth connection settings on your laptop/phone as normal.

Charging is done via a Micro USB port. It is slightly annoying that they do not include USB-C charging on this model however the better sound quality makes these the ones to go for in my opinion.

CSoundSurge 90 Conclusion

Hopefully this Taotronics SoundSurge 90 headphone review has been useful. If so please help support the channel by using our Amazon affiliate link to purchase these headphones.

If you are in the market for a cheap set of noise cancelling headphones I would thoroughly recommend these. They aren’t going to give you studio quality hi fidelity sounds. However they will give you great ANC performance and decent sound quality that will satisfy most users needs for the fraction of the cost.

In fact I like them so much i’m just about to buy another set for my wife because she keeps borrowing mine. If you want a pair you can pick them up on Amazon here.

Alpkit Qark Head Torch Review

Leave a reply

I’ve been using the Alpkit Qark head torch for just over a year now so feel like i’ve given it plenty of time to show me its strengths and weaknesses. In this review I’ll give you my honest opinion about it’s strengths and weaknesses.

What I Use the Qark Head Torch For

Before you read my opinion about this torch you should probably understand what I use it for.

I bought the Qark primarily for night time running. Initially this was on my daily commute to the train station. I live in the UK countryside and run on a mixture of footpaths, bridleways, tracks and country lanes/B roads. Some of it is through woods, some across fields and some on the road. This means all of my running (even the road section) is unlit so when it is dark it is really dark. The terrain I typically run on isn’t  the roughest you’ll find in the UK. However it is certainly varies with much of it is off road and some section a mix of stones, mud, rutted grassland etc.

Alpkit Qark Head Torch Review

Why Did I buy the Qark?

The main reasons I bought the Qark were:

  1. The ability to use both the rechargeable battery that comes with it as well as swap that out for AAA batteries as a backup. Much of my use is on part of my work commute so a backup battery solution for when i forgot to charge it was required. The most i run in a days is 2 x 12km runs which the battery can easily handle.
  2.  Alpkit quote a max brightness of 580 lumens. Given none of my running is on lit roads/paths this was a big factor in my choice.

So Is it Any Good?

Battery life has so far been great. After a year of use several times a week I have yet to run out of power mid run. As a result I haven’t had to resort to using the AAA backup batteries I faithfully carry around during my commutes. I’ve seen no major degradation int he battery over the year so no complaints on the battery front.

The brightness is fantastic. There are 5 modes (3 white and two red) to choose from. I always use the white and typically the middle one is bright enough when running off road. If conditions are particularly bad I sometimes switch it on full power.

One feature that has proved fantastic that I didn’t give much thought before buying it is the ability to change the ‘focus’ of the light beam. You can simply twist the ring around the bulb when running to alter the beams direction/size. You can adjust it to shine a brighter spot further away or to give a slightly less bright but much wider field of light. This is very useful when the terrain you are running on changes.

My initial impression when I opened the packaging was ‘wow, it’s a bit big maybe I should have got something smaller’. After a year of use I can honestly say it is incredibly comfortable and the size has never bothered me. The head band keeps the torch snug to my scalp so I barely notice it is there once i’m running.

Post run the head torch gets left by the back door where I charge it. As a result it also gets used regularly for taking the bins out, popping to the post box after dark or even used during a power cut. As a result it gets knocked about a bit and has been dropped several times. So far I’ve had no issues with reliability or build quality.

Alkit Qark Head Torch Review Summary

Would I buy it again? Certainly. It is incredibly powerful making night running on cloudy moonless nights off  road very easy. The battery services all my needs and gives me the backup of AAA batteries should I every need it. It’s comfortable and waterproof so can withstand a good soaking in the rain. Alpkit offer a 3 year guarantee on the Qark which shows they.  have faith in the build quality.

 

 

Addidas Galaxy Trail Shoes Review

Leave a reply

Over the last year or so I’ve transitioned off the road and I am no doing most of my running on the fields, footpaths and bridleways near where we live. At the tail end of last winter I was often struggling for grip on the muddy trails so started looking at replacing my road running shoes with some trail shoes.

I’m not a natural runner. Despite having completed a couple of marathons (slowly) I tend to pick up a lot of injuries when running. My normal pattern is to start running regularly, get competitive with myself and up either the mileage or speed too soon and pick up an injury after a few months. Then I don’t run for 6 months before i begin the cycle again.

In the past gait analysis has shown that I over pronate so I’ve tended to end up buying expensive running shoes with lots of cushioning and arch support, supplemented with orthotics for extra support.

Having read the excellent book Born to Run I started to think more about my persistent running injuries and whether the expensive, highly supportive running shoes I have been using all these years were helping at all. I thought maybe I should try and use an all purpose running shoe with less support…

The above thinking lead me to buying a pair of Adidas Galaxy Trail Running Shoes. They were cheap (£25 in a sale), looked pretty inoffensive and reasonably light.

The thing I like about these shoes compared to my usual road running shoes is you feel more in contact with the ground. I assume due to the thinner sole I can feel every little undulation in the ground. When I’m running off road this seems to give me more confidence that I am less likely to turn an ankle. I feel more in tune with the uneven surfaces I am running on.



The lower levels of support/cushioning also makes these running shoes seem lighter than my previous road shoes. Psychologically these makes me feel like I can run faster and I am lighter on my feet. They feel nice to run in.

Not only are the Galaxy’s good to run in but the styling is pretty inoffensive too. This means I can wear them when on holiday when out an about and sill have some running shoes with me when I want to nip out for an evening run.

Due to the reduced amount of support these shoes offer I’ve taken my time building up the mileage I run in them. The theory being it will give my muscles and tendons time to adapt to them and avoid injuries. So far so good. I’ve been wearing them for a few months now and I’ve yet to suffer any injuries.

All in all these shoes cost less than 1/4 of the cost of my road running shoes. The quality seems great and there are no signs of wear yet. They fee great to run in and look nice. I’ll certainly be buying them again next time i need some new runners.