INTRODUCTION

   Just like everyone else out there over the course of my life there have been quite a few occasions when I’ve been out looking to get a set of earphones but had to compromise either in terms of quality or clarity due to a limited budget. For good or bad i am a strong believer that almost always you get what you pay for (obviously excluding the times you pay way too much for a brand name) and that's especially on the spot when we are talking about audio and video related devices such as headsets, graphics cards, LCD screens and more. However there have been a few very rare occasions when I’ve come across cost-effective products that manage to go head to head with others that are many times more expensive and promise everything you’d ever want. This is exactly what happened with the brand new Oxygen In-Ear ProGaming Headset by OZONE which has been keeping us company for nearly two weeks now.

   OZONE Gaming Gear, is an European brand of gaming peripherals that revolves around the concept “It’s all about Evolution”. OZONE is a brand created by and for gamers, the evolution is part of our gaming life, we all want to improve and evolve into a better gaming contender. OZONE is committed to the development, engineering and evolution of innovative gaming peripherals with a unique style and the best performance, to allow gamers to exceed their limits and become the best. It’s all about evolution. In the recent years the gaming industry has developed into the ultra-competitive arena that we see today, and the gamers have also developed into a more demanding, sophisticated and exigent consumer. There is an ever increasing demand for better design, increase number of functions and higher performances. Due to the development of newer and better gaming peripherals, the market has suffered a transformation. New segments of high performance gaming accessories have grown to become more specialized and subdivided. But this change in the market has also come accompanied of an increase in the price levels of those products. OZONE provides customers a wide range of gaming peripherals. Everyone from the occasional user to the professional gamer is ensured to find a OZONE product at a reasonable price which will fit their requirements to enjoy their favorite games.

   The Oxygen In-Ear ProGaming Headset by OZONE is not like your average earset since it uses the same design we've seen with the ISO Bluetooth wireless headset by a.m.p to provide a better fit with improved noise-suppression and that's a very good thing since we are talking about an earset aimed towards gamers who attend LAN events which are almost always noisy places. Specs-wise under the hood OZONE has given the Oxygen two quite large 11mm dynamic drivers featuring a frequency response of 20Hz-20KHz with 116dB (+-4dB) sensitivity and 24Ω (Ohm) impedance. Of course since we are talking about a gaming peripheral an in-line Omni-directional microphone is also in the picture with a frequency response of 100Hz-10Hz, -42dB (+-3dB) sensitivity and 2.2KΩ impedance. So leaving out the rather large 11mm drivers the rest of the specifications sheet is not really something to get excited over but could the drivers be enough to make a difference? Let's see.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

The Oxygen headset gets shipped inside a very small black/red box with a large picture at the front and the main features listed right next to it.

On the left side OZONE presents one of the new professional eSports players that helped them with the Oxygen.

Another product picture is placed on the right side of the box along with the Designed In Europe remark.

At the rear we see the units features printed in 10 languages and placed right above its specifications.

I was surprised to see such a rich bundle alongside the Oxygen headset. So you are also getting a rubber/cloth/plastic carrying case, user’s manual, 2 sets of silicone ear tips and two mini jack to dual mini jack adapters (for mic/headphones ports) one short and one long.

THE OXYGEN

Although even the pre-fitted silicon ear tips worked well for me OZONE also packs two more sizes to please everyone.

The carrying case is quite thick and although quite tiny you can fit the entire bundle in it.

As you can see the 120mm long cable of the Oxygen is not small, still you can use the long extension to boost that to well over 2m.

The entire design is very similar to what we've seen with the ISO wireless headset so once again we see the somewhat innovative sound tube angle along with the small bass-reflex space at the rear (also do notice the L/R markings on the red interior).

Usually earphones use 8mm dynamic drivers so fitting an 11mm one inside the Oxygen although not easy (the design has also changed because of that) was a one way really since we are talking about a gaming oriented product.

The Omni-directional microphone has a small button on the other side which you can press either to talk while gaming or to answer incoming calls (yes you can use it with smartphones as well).

Unfortunately just like the ISO the cable of the Oxygen is not braided and although this makes it easier to use i don't know how durable it will turn out to be. I'd also like to see a gold plated 3.5mm mini-jack but it's not really needed, not for a pair of gaming earphones.

CONCLUSION

   Remember the ISO by Antec Mobile Products which we reviewed a while back? Well the Oxygen is pretty much an ISO but without Bluetooth connectivity. Now the reason i say pretty much is because the audio quality is not 100% on par with the ISO but the Oxygen still offers a very good amount of bass without compromising in mid/highs which are surprisingly clear and accurate. It also offers the same noise-suppression thanks to the design of the earphones and the silicon ear tips something which many will find quite convenient especially in places with lots of exterior noise. The in-line Omni-directional microphone on the other hand could be a lot better but for games where you don't really need the best possible sensitivity it did ok. My only slight issue with the Oxygen is its cable (yes just like with the ISO) since it doesn't look like it can take much beating and so people who attend LAN events often and may end up using them for many hours at a time this might become a problem sooner rather than later. The good thing is that OZONE offers a nice carrying case which easily keeps the Oxygen headset safe but outside from that i just don't know (of course we could be wrong and you may end up using the Oxygen for many years without issue).

   Price is perhaps the strongest point of the Oxygen In-Ear ProGaming Headset by OZONE since currently it retails for just 30Euros inside the EU (Amazon.co.uk). Unfortunately no matter how much we looked the Oxygen is not currently available in the USA (at least none of the large online stores carry it) so we can't comment on the price (although it should be at around USD40). Bottom line if you want a cost-effective gaming earset which you can take along with you at LAN events (or while at home) and also use with your smartphone then look no further than the Oxygen In-Ear ProGaming Headset by OZONE since it does offer an excellent bang for your buck and that's why it gets our golden award.

PROS

- Overall Build Quality
- Volume Levels
- Good Mids/Highs
- Very Good Bass Levels
- Design
- Noise Suppression
- In-Line Omni-Directional Microphone
- Bundle
- Price 

CONS

- Cable Quality?
- Availability
- Microphone Transmission Quality Could Be Better