It’s not everyday that I get asked to review tech such as the latest K Sport Bluetooth earphones from start up company, Kuaifit, so it makes a nice change to the usual industrial technology articles I tend to write these days. Wireless headphones, earphones or ear buds as they are better referred due to their lack of head strap or any kind of joining wire, have advanced a lot over the last few years. Reliability, usability and sound quality have all improved massively and so have their designs. In-ear style earphones such as these new K Sports from Kuaifit have also become a lot more comfortable to wear, so they are a viable option for wearing when working or training.
That brings me on their use in the industrial sector. Many factory floor workers either wear some form of ear protection or earphones when going about their daily tasks, so being completely wireless, comfortable and sweat proof and featuring excellent sound quality and noise cancelling technology, these new K Sport buds are going to be very appealing. Couple this with a long 10m Bluetooth range, three-hour playback and an amazingly good value price and they become an even more attractive proposition.
Training app
In order to stand out from other affordable earphone brands, Kuaifit combines its product with an app that provides training plans and fitness coaching for a wide range of activities. Their development has also been funded by a Kickstarter campaign with quite a low goal of just £5,000 which was reached in just 48 hours of going live. At time of writing nearly £13,000 has been pledged making this a very successful and viable campaign. Being a Kickstarter campaign means prices for the K Sports start from just a £22 pledge, but it’s worth checking the Kuaifit page of the Kickstarter website for the latest details.
Design and construction
The K Sports are made from a good quality soft feel plastic and feature a solid construction. They are quite light which adds to their overall wearability and comfort. There is a large ‘K’ logo on the outside of each earpiece which is in the centre of the operation button, you hold this down to power them up, and single or double clicks carry out various functions. Each ear bud has a microUSB charging port, but there is no rubber seal to protect them. They are IPX5 rated which means they are protected against liquid ingress which should mean they are sweat and water proof.
A dual microUSB charging cable is provided with the K Sports and using a standard mobile phone charger they will reach a full charge in around an hour and a half. This should then provide enough juice to keep them going for around three hours.
As previously mentioned, there is an iPhone or Android app available to use with the earphones, but this isn’t required to pair them to a device. This is easily achieved by powering them up, linking them together using a long button press and then searching for them using your device’s Bluetooth settings menu. My iPhone found them easily and once I had switched both buds on and linked them together they paired first time, something that doesn’t always happen with far more expensive hardware. There was the odd brief dropout when listening to music, but that’s something I find affects most Bluetooth earphones and it only happens now and then for a split second.
There are three different sizes of ear bud covers supplied with the K Sports, mine came fitted with the medium rubber covers which seemed to fit my ears perfectly. Sound quality will depend a lot on the fit and getting a good seal, so it’s important to experiment with the buds until you find the best size and fit for you. Once in they stay in place very well with little risk of falling out when walking, jogging or any other activity. Again this can’t be said of all makes and models, which is another plus point of the K Sports.
In use performance
Sound quality is of course subjective, but for the price the K Sports deliver very pleasing results. They provide a good level of volume with a reasonable level of bass and decent mids and highs, so offer a good all round pleasing sound and manage to suppress outside noise very well. Personally I’d prefer a bit more bass, but it’s difficult to achieve perfect results with such small units. Overall they can’t compete with high-end brands, but then they cost a tenth of the price, so offer superb value for money.
Kuaifit is keen to push the fitness training aspects that are provided through the app, which can be accessed and downloaded by scanning the QR code on the packaging. They come with a three-month free trial and following that the training features costs $4.99 per month. The app works in a similar way to other fitness apps where you can track your run with GPS and its integrated heart rate tracking. This tracking is then complimented by vocal coaching, so if you are looking for some support with your fitness workouts, these earphones and the associated app can certainly help. Overall, the app is pretty easy to use, and once signed up, there is a wide range of training plans for running, cycling, and weightlifting so something for everyone.
Overall verdict…
If you’re looking for a comfortable pair of wire-free earphones that provide decent sound performance that you’re not going to be too worried about losing, the K Sports are a great option. They look good, feel nice and sound great, so really are hard to fault for the price. Add in the extra workout coaching features provided by the Kuaifit app and you really are getting a good value package. The fact they are completely wire-free makes them a great option for anyone working in a manufacturing or warehouse environment where you don’t want to risk snagging a cable.
Having owned many different wired and wireless earphones, I’ve found K Sports to be among the most comfortable to wear and best performing at this price point and I recommend that you check out the K Sport Kickstart web page and make your pledge for a pair while you still can.
