INTRODUCTION

   Much like Wi-Fi connectivity Bluetooth wireless devices have gained significant ground compared to their wired counterparts and although again consumers shouldn't expect the same results between those two types there's no denying that having less wires around is a good thing. Now as many of you are aware I’m always on the lookout for new Bluetooth wireless headsets since i enjoy listening to my favorite music while at the office, on the road or even when at home without disturbing everyone around me. Still even after having tested a large number of Bluetooth headsets i still haven't found the one to be our point of comparison for all others. SuperTooth released a very interesting Bluetooth wireless headset a couple of years ago called the FREEDOM and today we're going to be taking a thorough look to see if this is the one we've been all waiting for so long.

   SuperTooth, headquartered in France, is a world leading manufacturer of Bluetooth speakerphones and portable accessories, with a presence in more than 50 countries. In 2004, SuperTooth created the concept of a Bluetooth speakerphone that could be clipped to a car’s sun visor providing hands-free phone call capability. Today the Bluetooth expert is continuing to pioneer audio accessories that are powerful, reliable and affordable, also integrating new NFC technology. SuperTooth owns its own factory, managing and operating the entire production and supply chain – from initial designs and concepts, to the manufacturing and packaging.

   First of all I’d like to mention something regarding this review. SuperTooth did send us the FREEDOM wireless Bluetooth headset back in 2015 but between us moving all our samples to another place and the amount of samples we received since then the headset was misplaced and thus we finally got our hands on it last month. For that i feel that i do need to apologize to SuperTooth and since I’ve always believed that transparency is the way to go i wanted all of you to know. With that out of the way we can focus on the FREEDOM a closed-type headset that features two 40mm dynamic drivers, Bluetooth v4.0 connectivity with AD2P, AptX and NFC (Near Field Communications), Omni-directional microphone and a lithium-ion battery pack which gives it up to 15 hours of music playback (unfortunately at this time we don't have detailed specifications for the drivers, microphone and Li-Ion battery pack).

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

The FREEDOM wireless Bluetooth headset is shipped inside a box which is mostly made out of clear plastic at the front allowing people to actually see the product prior to purchasing it.

On the left side of the box SuperTooth has listed the main product features while on the right side we see a drawing of the left earcup.

The features list is also printed at the rear in 6 languages right next to the picture of a blond model wearing the headset.

Contained in the box is the FREEDOM wireless Bluetooth headset, velvet carrying pouch, 3.5mm to 3.5mm cable (gold plated plugs), USB to micro USB cable, warranty papers and the user guide in 6 languages.

THE FREEDOM

The FREEDOM wireless Bluetooth headset weighs just 200g and its exterior is made primarily out of glossy plastic.

Size-wise the FREEDOM is not really large as you can see from the above comparison with the REVO Wireless by Jabra (it does have much larger earpads however).

SuperTooth has placed their logo on the exterior of both earcups but the entire right earcup is also the answer/end call and play/pause button (the NFC sensor is placed at the top end and an activity LED is placed right next to the play/pause phone drawings).

Left and right markings are printed on the interior of the headband right over the earcups.

The 3.5mm port is placed at the base of the left earcup and is covered by a rubber cap.

Same deal with the micro USB port only this is placed at the base of the right earcup.

SuperTooth has placed the on/off power button and the volume up/down buttons at the rear of the right earcup.

Both earcups can fold to make it easier to store the headset.

The FREEDOM has large earpads and as usual they both feature memory foam inside dressed with synthetic leather.

Again same goes for the headpad although it may not be as thick as some people would have liked it to.

You can extend the headband up to 4cm on each side via 19 increments (unfortunately there are no visible signs on either side).

CONCLUSION

   SuperTooth is may be especially known for their wireless portable speakers and car speakerphones but they’re not what I’d call popular when it comes to headsets so when they did send the FREEDOM last year we didn’t really know what to expect. At first glance the design of the headset with its glossy plastic was enough for us to start thinking that this could actually be quite good but it wasn’t until we started using it last month that we found ourselves pleasantly surprised. It’s not so much the clear and accurate mids (a bit flat however) produced by the 40mm drivers but rather the impressive bass and volume levels. We’ve used headsets in the past with deeper and warmer bass but the FREEDOM is also very good in that area and on top of that it produces very high volume levels without any audio distortion. The headset is also very comfortable thanks to the large and thick earpads but I think having the on/off and volume buttons at the rear of the right earcup was not the best way to go. Personally I think placing them on the exterior of the left earcup (like the E50 by JBL) would be best since on one hand they buttons are not very large so especially the on/off one is not very easy to use and on the other since the right earcup doubles as the play/pause track and answer/end call sometimes you may end up clicking it too. We also used the Omni-directional microphone a few times but no surprises here either since once again the results were mixed. As for battery life well SuperTooth claims that the FREEDOM can last for up to 15 hours but after wrapping up our tests we were never able to go over 11 hours and 15 minutes. However as most manufacturers SuperTooth probably measured time with the volume level set at half so we never really expected to hit 15 hours.

   So far SuperTooth has done a good job in keeping their products quite affordable (unfortunately it’s not available in the USA) and the FREEDOM wireless Bluetooth headset is really not an exception since currently it retails for 116Euros inside the EU (Amazon.co.uk). Some of you may consider this price as a bit high but we think that after taking into account the build quality, design and performance of the FREEDOM that it’s well justified. Of course we do feel that SuperTooth can further improve the FREEDOM (and we hope they will) but it’s still one very good Bluetooth wireless headset and that’s why it gets our Golden Award.

PROS

- Good Build Quality
- Clear And Accurate Mids
- Very Good Bass & Volume Levels
- Battery Life (Up To 15 Hours)
- Wired & Wireless Use
- Earcup Controls
- Design / 3 Available Color Combinations
- Weight / Comfort
- Foldable Earcups

CONS

- Controls Position
- Highs