2019-09-01_Computer_Shopper

40 SEPTEMBER 2019 |COMPUTERSHOPPER|ISSUE 379

MOSTOUTDOORWIRELESSspeakersfocus

on ruggednessand portability,and toooften

the trade-offisaudio quality.The EscapeP9,

happily,makes no such compromises.

As is obvious from aglance,the EscapeP9

is not an ordinaryBluetooth speaker.Available

in tan, whiteand black, it towers at 731mmtall,

with asquare footprint measuring293mmon

each side.Inside,aset of four full-range

drivers and aseparatesubwooferprovide 360°

sound, and an internal lithium iron phosphate

battery runs foreight hours betweencharges.

All of this makes it rather heavy,but a

sturdy aluminiumhandle on tophelps you lug

its 12.3kg weight around.And while it’s not the

most portablespeaker,the EscapeP9 is made

forthe outdoors, with an IPX4 weather-

resistantdesign and rubber flaps that cover up

the chargingport at the bottom and 3.5mm

jack and USB connectors at the top.

The speakerwill connectto any standard

Bluetooth source,with supportforboth AAC

and the higher-qualityaptX codec. Youcan

ESCAPEP9

★★★★★

£999•From http://www.stoneaudio.co.uk

VERDICT

Auniquespeakerthat’sloudenoughto fillyourstreetwithsumptuous-soundingaudio

OUTDOORBLUETOOTH SPEAKER

WIRELESSIN-EARHEADPHONES

also use it over Wi-Fi via the Escape

app,which lets you streammusic

from servicessuch as Spotifyand

Tidal, and gives you the option to

pair asecond P9 in astereo

configuration.Afive-bandequalisercan be

tweakedto your liking, or you can use one of

the indoor and outdoor presets,which adjust

the bass responseto suit your surroundings.

Once you’ve chosenthe right settings,the

sound quality is incredible.With the outdoor

preset enabled,it gave the best performance

we’ve heard from any Bluetooth speaker.Bass

rumblesalong withoutbecomingmuddled,

while vocals are clearly broughtto the

forefront. Mid-rangereproductionis excellent,

with electricguitar strokesextending

flawlesslyintothe upper range.

Impressivelyforastandalonespeaker,the

speaker’s 360° design also producesawide

soundstage,with excellentinstrument

separationand fantastic tonality throughout

the frequencyspectrum.

What’smore,it’s all poweredby a

heavy-duty digital amplifierrated at

100W RMS. That’s loud enoughto

deliver crystal-clearmusic to awhole

street, let alone asingle garden.

The price looks scary,but there’s nothing

quitelike the P9 on the market.The £359 JBL

Boombox(Shopper369) could fill asimilar

outdoors role,but it doesn’t have anythinglike

the sheer audio quality and volumeof the P9.

The EscapeP9 fills aniche between

floorstandinghi-fi speakersand portable

weather-resistantBluetooth speakers–and

it does so brilliantly.Quitesimply,it’s the

best outdoor speakermoneycan buy.

ChristopherMinasians

HUAWEI’SFREELACEHEADPHONESmight

look like any old set of neckbandwireless

headphones,but they’re not withouttheir

quirks. Whereasmost wirelessheadphones

are chargedby pluggingacable intoahidden

port, the FreeLace are topped up by pulling

them apart to exposeaUSB Type-C plug, then

connectingtheplugto aType-Cportoradaptor.

Theycan also be chargeddirectlyfrom a

phone’s USB Type-C port, which is handy,and

even if you’d rather charge via astandardUSB

port, Huaweiincludesan adaptor in the box.

Battery lifeprovides asuperb 18 hours of

continuousplayback. When you do run out of

juice,theycharge rapidly,gaining four hours’

worth of listening time in only five minutes.

The FreeLace is aneckband-styleset of

in-ear earphones,which means the cable that

connectsthe two earpieceshangs aroundthe

back of your neck while you’re wearingthem.

This might make them distractingto wear

while exercising–the band can bounceup and

HUAWEIFreeLace

★★★★★

£90•From http://www.amazon.co.uk

down when running–but there are

benefits, too. When they’re not in

use,you don’t have to stuff them away

in acase; you can simply leave them hanging

againstyour chest, ready to go.

The FreeLace clip together when they’re

not being worn, automaticallypoweringdown

to save on battery capacity.Assoon as they’re

separated again, theyinstantlyreconnectto

your phone.This might sound simple,but it

makes abig differenceto usability.

Neckbandaside,the FreeLace’s earpieces

are lightweightand comfortable.Theylook

good and are IPX5-rated, which means they’re

asplash-resistant,but not waterproof.

Connectivity,particularlyvia Huawei

phones,is exceptional.Plug them in to the

HuaweiP30 or P30 Pro and theyautomatically

pair with the handset.Unfortunately,codec

supportisn’t as impressive,with supportonly

forAAC and SBC, rather than the higher-

fidelity aptX, aptX HD and LDAC codecs.

As aresult, the

headphones’9.2mm dynamic

drivers are leftwith plenty to

do; alas, theyfail to carry the weight.Bass is

underwhelming,and the lower-mids aren’t

awe-inspiring,either.The upper-mids and high

frequenciesare better,but the soundstageis

disappointing.Althoughthe earphoneshave

great tonality,instrumentseparationis

sub-parand the overall sound is shallow.

The FreeLace provide aset of

commendablefeatures that set them apart

from other Bluetooth earphones,but with

this disappointingsound quality and ahigh

price,they’re farfrom essential.

ChristopherMinasians

DRIVERS (^3) • RMSPOWEROUTPUT100W•DOCK
CONNECTORNone•WIRELESSBluetooth•DIMENSIONS
731x220x220mm•WEIGHT1.2kg•WARRANTYOneyear
partsandlabour•DETAILSwww.escapespeakers.com•
PARTCODEP9
HEADPHONESSUBTYPEIn-ear•PLUGTYPENone•
WEIGHT27g•CABLELENGTHN/A•WARRANTYOneyear
RTB•DETAILSconsumer.huawei.com•PARTCODEFreeLace
SPECIFICATIONS
SPECIFICATIONS
VERDICT
Anintriguingdesign,buttheseearbudsfailto deliveranengagingsound