Urbanears Plattan Headphones

So for the past week, I have been using the Urbanears Plattan headphones in black. The headphones I have been using for the past few years have been the Apple In-Ear headphones which are $80 and I’ve had no problems with them at all but I was looking for a stylish but minimal on-ear headphones. I tried out the Solo Beats By Dre headphones and after 3 days I returned them. It is difficult to compare headphones that are $200 (Solo beats) to headphones that are $60 (Urbanears) but I will try to since these are the only on-ear headphones I have experience with.

Style: The Urbanears Plattan headphones have a very minimal design which prevents you from looking like a tool, which I cannot say for the Beats By Dre headphones. It is impossible for anyone to tell who makes the headphones you are wearing if you have the Plattan since the only branding are located on the inside above the ear cups and a little tab with the logo on the lower end of the headband. Compare that to the Beats headphones which has the logo on each ear cup and on the headband. If you want to look like a flashy douchebag, get the Beats headphones. The ear cups on the Plattan also lay flat on your ears making you look less like a robot. My main issue with the Beats headphones was that the cups bulge outwards making you look like Will.I.Am (and you never want that.

You don't want to look that douchey, do you?

Sound: Let’s face it, this is the most important feature about headphones: how they sound? In my opinion, they sound find. You can find plenty of negative reviews of the sound quality of these headphones but I did not find these negative aspects. In terms of bass, the Beats headphones did have a lot more bass, so much in fact that I felt like my brain was being rattled loose. The Plattan has bass that does not get muddy or feel overpowered like I thought the Beats did. If you like lots of bass, then maybe these headphones aren’t for you. Don’t get me wrong, when listening to a bass heavy song on high volume, the ear cups did vibrate quite noticeably without getting muddy, so there is bass here, just not overkill.

Comfort: For on the ear headphones, I thought these did great with hours of use. Wearing them with glasses got a bit painful after about an hour but without was fine. I was wearing them in 2 hour intervals without any discomfort. They are pretty loose-fitting on your head so it doesn’t feel like it is crushing your skull, which was another problem I had with the Solo Beats headphones.

Price: For $60, you get a lot: a mic with music control and a fabric cord which tangles less than traditional headphone wire and is nice and sturdy. The headphones also fold in for easy transport. There is no carrying case or noise cancellation, though.

Complaints: I am not thrilled with the fact that there are no volume controls built into the inline mic/song control. I am also worried by the fact that the ear cups themselves are secured only by a thin piece of metal with looks like it could break or get twisted very easily.

Final: I like these headphones and I will continue to use them. I feel that they are stylish and don’t make me look like an Jersey Shore toolbag. They sound fine while keeping out a good amount of outside noise. The audio is clear even on high volumes. For $60, you cannot go wrong. Give them a shot and see what you think. They get my approval.

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urbanears.com   http://www.urbanears.com/press

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