Review: Sony SBH70- Stereo Bluetooth Headset - Xperia Z3 Accessories

Just got my item and I will do a short review for those who want to know about it.
Physical: The Sony SBH70 is a very light headset which can be worn comfortably. You can actually just put around your neck and forget about it. The buds are the same to the Sony STH30 (or to Apple earpods in case you haven’t saw the STH30). This means that the wire going from the unit on the neck to the buds is thin and flimsy just like on the STH30 headset. I feel it can snap if it would be drag but good thing the band wraps nicely around the neck and there’s a little possibility that the wires going to the buds would be damage or pull. It’s really ergonomically to wear and it’s never intrusive. Also you can fold the band, it’s flexible. You can put it in your bag without the fear of breaking, just make sure the earbuds are protected against tangling.
Function: Controls are as follow, Power button, the pause/play key which also is use for answer key or reject key, the volume up key or long press to skip track. The volume down key which also acts as a previous key if you long press it and there’s an led indicator but goes off when it’s paired. Press the vol up and down at the same time to record voice memo (you must have lifelog installed first). It was stated on the site that it has multipoint capability but on the box there was no manual on how it works or how will it be activate. Luckily I searched on if there’s a manual and found one but it was for SBH80, I tried it and it also applied on the SBH70. To activate multipoint feature, turn off the unit first, then hold power+volume up key until it turns on, then it’s multipoint activated. Multipoint means you can receive calls on a second Bluetooth device without having to switch/disconnect or do something. Music stream would still only come on the first device. To return to singlepoint mode,power off the headset, press power+volume down until it powers on. Now it’s only singlepoint, one is to one connection.
Sound quality vs. Apple Earpods and Sony STH30: On my previous review/comparison between the Sony STH30 and Apple Earpods, it became clear that STH30 sound quality is superior than the earpods from apple but the loudness isn’t that great which means you won’t appreciate the nice sound on a noisy environment (and this is made worst by the weak headphone volume output of the Z3). The SBH70 isn’t that bad and is actually great if we compare it to other Bluetooth headsets and other wired headsets including the stock headset of the Z3. The bass is okay, loud enough but feels muffle as you increase the volume. What I’m not impressed is the mids and high. No matter how I adjust the equalizer and Surround effect on the Z3 walkman app (or music app), it’s really not good enough. Even the stock Z3 headset beats this when it comes to mids and high (treble) but overall sound quality is comparable or a little better on the SBH70. The bad thing is that DSEE HX won’t work on Bluetooth headset and therefore won’t boost the sound quality as what it does with wired headsets. Also the preset Headset settings won’t take effect if you’re on Bluetooth headset. So for sound quality it’s okay, passable, but not really that nice compared to wired headsets and I’m sure audiophiles would agree on this. Bluetooth headsets are rarely better than wired ones (excepts for those expensive Bluetooth cans/headphones). Even the Apple Earpods sounds better. By the way, I can’t confirm if this has AptX since Sony’s site don’t give any info if it has.
Others: Battery life is rated at 10 hours though for me it was a bit short (around 8 hours combined) and my usage wasn’t continuous. Lasted 4 days before I charged. The SBH70 app on playstore would provide info about the battery life. There’s no voice prompt of any kind. And by the way, sony claims that it would vibrate if you would receive notifications but haven’t experienced that. Yes it vibrates for incoming call but never for notifications. Maybe there’s a function that can be done and the problem is the lack of documentation on the box, on Sony site or ever the app from playstore.
Final Verdict: Sound quality wise, it’s okay, it’s not garbage as what may others think about Bluetooth headsets. It’s good but not good enough for music lovers or for audiophiles. Volume loudness is okay but is overpowered easily if you’re on loud environments. On the plus side it won’t make you less aware of the environment and some may prefer that. I love the convenience of not being tangled by wires when I go for a run, or just commute. It’s a relief not to deal with those wires anymore but honestly, I miss the sound quality and power of my wired headset (Sony STH30). When I’m at home and just want to enjoy the rich tones of my music library, then I would definitely pick my wired headset over this.

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infinitylook said:
The buds are the same to the Sony STH30 (or to Apple earpods in case you haven’t saw the STH30). This means that the wire going from the unit on the neck to the buds is thin and flimsy just like on the STH30 headset. I feel it can snap if it would be drag but good thing the band wraps nicely around the neck and there’s a little possibility that the wires going to the buds would be damage or pull.
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if the wires are like the sth30 i'd say it's pretty durable. i've had my sth30 since last year and have been using it everyday since then. the wires getting snagged on door knobs, bag hooks, chairs, hand rails, etc always happen (maybe i'm just clumsy? idk) but it never snapped or stopped working. sometimes when it gets caught on something it sends my z1 compact flying with it but it's still working great. one thing i regret is that since i use it every day, my headphone jack has become loose (my phone is 18 months old so :/). would been better had i not sold my sbh80 but i could never get used to in ear headphones trying to get me killed by not letting car horns or other sounds in. haha. this is somewhat a mix of sth30 and sbh80. would definitely buy one if it sounds anywhere near the sth30 or sbh80.
thanks for the great review.

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eumanoid said:
if the wires are like the sth30 i'd say it's pretty durable. i've had my sth30 since last year and have been using it everyday since then. the wires getting snagged on door knobs, bag hooks, chairs, hand rails, etc always happen (maybe i'm just clumsy? idk) but it never snapped or stopped working. sometimes when it gets caught on something it sends my z1 compact flying with it but it's still working great. one thing i regret is that since i use it every day, my headphone jack has become loose (my phone is 18 months old so :/). would been better had i not sold my sbh80 but i could never get used to in ear headphones trying to get me killed by not letting car horns or other sounds in. haha. this is somewhat a mix of sth30 and sbh80. would definitely buy one if it sounds anywhere near the sth30 or sbh80.
thanks for the great review.
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The wires on the ear part they are actually weaker in my opinion. Although I still haven't snapped my sth30 the feel is nowhere like my earpods which are quite strong.
Sent from my SGP621 using XDA Free mobile app

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Support + First Use
In the name of GOD
Hey Guys;
I JUST bought the SHB70. Started Testing it. These are my opinion.
1- Very useful for one who owns a cell-phone with big screen sizes (>4 inches);
2- Earbuds won't get out of your ears (even while shaking your head till getting dizziness), because of nice design;
3- Sound quality, Base & Volume are nice [at least fully acceptable for me, because i'm not gono have my ears exploded by sound][common guys this is a Bluetooth headset];
4- Battery Life was very good i think;
5- Very light, soft & comfortable [both the body & the earbuds]
6- A thief won't be easily able to steal it, as much as about the tiny one's which are installed on the ear. also you won't loose it because it's always on your neck, even when you take the earbuds out.
7- For me when i drive, it's good for me to hear the sound from the environment to better take control of my car (hear other cars' sound, ...). so this type of earbuds are good.
8- U can easily wash it when gets dirty due to perspiration;or take a shower with it.
ONE IMPORTANT THING:
go to sony support website and search for SBH70 to see the complete user manual. there's a lot of useful information including:
1- How to switch between single/multipoint mode
2- How to check for battery status without using the special apk
3- How to answer a second call (also switch between them)
4- How to reset/restart the device
....
ONE MORE POINT:
Guys who say there's no battery indicator are wrong; there actually is a battery indicator but U should know who to use it; if the battery indicator was programmed to be always ON, that would increase the battery usage & take everyone's attention (on this black device), ha? SONY has done a great job (see more info on support website).
I'm a SONY FAN, because:
1- SONY is "like no other" as it says
2- Every single detail [in all SONY devices] is perfectly designed & thought about (somehow like the apple products)
3- I'm a graphics designer & also programmer, i believe that SONY doesn't miss anything & it's programmers are one of the best. because the result of their job is perfect.
I knew that what i'm gono buy is gono be a perfectly designed object, but when i got it & studied the instructions & capabilities from the support center, i was just surprised. SO NICE Programming, implementation (both software & hardware), material,...
i forgot to say my cellphone is a XPERIA Z2. that's also a great job buy SONY.

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Good review.. Yes setting this to multipoint mode is the same with sbh80. Turn it off and press vol. Up while powering it on. For manual pairing mode, turn it off, then turn it on and hold until led flashes blue continuously. About my sound issue on first review, still not as good as wired but now better than my initial impressions when I started adjustment of my EQ on my music player. GOOD headset in general, one of the best bluetooth headsets for me.
Sent from my SGP621 using XDA Free mobile app

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SBH70 on windows
Hey, i wanna ask, if i connect to PC and set default the headphones, when i start to voice chat, the headphones become disabled by Windows, it must set the headset as the default.. can we use the headphones (high-quality audio) and headset(microphone with crappy audio quality) at the same time on windows?
sorry for my bad grammar

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Not that good