Riwbox XBT-880 Headphones

The Riwbox XBT-880 Headphones are a Bluetooth enabled set of wireless foldable headphones.  You get 40mm built-in aperture drivers, soft cushioned earpads, and universal use across many different devices.

Handsfree calling and the ability to redial and reject incoming phone calls is a feature that’s built into the Riwbox XBT-880.

You also get multiple colour combinations to choose from, you can select Black & Gold, Black & Grey, White & Blue, and White & Gold.

But are these headphones any good? What is the sound like? Time to test them out!

Packaging.

The Riwbox XBT-880 come packaged in a Dark Grey cardboard box with product images printed on the front and reverse. The box measures 18.5cm x 15.0cm x 9.0cm and weighs 380G.

Contents.

When you open the Riwbox XBT-880 box you will find: 1x Headphone, 1x Micro USB Charger Cable, 1x AUX Cable, 1x English/Chinese User Guide, 1x Company Contact Card.

Riwbox XBT-880 Headphones.

The Riwbox XBT-880 headphones are made from mainly plastic materials with PU leather padding, they’re Black & Gold in colour. They measure from ear-cup to ear-cup (Measuring from the bottom of the ear-cup and across the top of the headband to the bottom of the other ear-cup) 50.0cm but can extend upto 55.0cm and weigh 195G. These headphones also fold away to a nice compact size for easy storage. But, be careful folding/unfolding as the hinges are quite stiff and could easily snap if too much pressure is used.

The headband is also padded with soft PU Leather and sits comfortably on the top of your head.

The Ear-Cups.

The ear cups swivel inward/outward about 20° and each one is heavily padded with foam and PU leather, each ear-cup measure 8.0cm x 8.0cm with a centre holed diameter of 4.0cm.

All functions can be controlled via the left ear-cup.  You get 4 tactile buttons which control functions such as:

Pause/Play Button – This button can pause and resume your music.

Volume + Button – This increases the volume and by pressing and holding will skip forward a track.

Volume – Button – This decreases volume and by pressing and holding will play a previous track.

Power/MFB Button – This button powers on/off the headphone, this also answers and ends any phone calls.

Just underneath the left ear cup behind a rubber plug you’ll see the 3.5mm AUX Port, and the Micro USB ports.

Using the Riwbox XBT-880.

Before you can start using the Riwbox XBT-880 you’ll need to give a charge using the supplied Micro USB Cable (Which measures 51.0cm in length).  Charging takes around 2 hours to fully charge and then you should be able to use the Riwbox XBT-880 for around 12 hours!

The Riwbox XBT-880 have been heavily designed to be used as a wireless set of headphones via a Bluetooth connection, but can also be used as a cabled 3.5mm set of headphones.  This additional feature is great if using on a non-Bluetooth enabled device.  It’s also a great feature if the in-built battery is flat, it will allow you to still use the Riwbox XBT-880, but with a cabled connection.  The supplied AUX cable has a length of 135.0cm and features in-line user control.

To connect via a Bluetooth device, you’ll need to press and hold the power button.  An automated voice is activated, perform a search on your device for ‘XBT-880’ and confirm pairing.  And that’s it! You’re all set.

Once connected these headphones will automatically connect to the last paired device upon powering on, so there’s no need to repeat this process every time.

Sound Quality of the Riwbox XBT-880.

The sound quality is a strange one, for some songs the sound is OK and for others there’s a slight distortion noticeable.  Also, when a track has finished, and just before the next one starts you hear a buzzing interference sound, this sound disappears when the next track begins. It also re-appears if you pause the headphones, it’s just plain annoying!

The sound overall is very flat, there’s no real distinction between bass and treble tones and all your music library will sound very flat.  If you’re a fan of big bassy soundtracks, then the Riwbox XBT-880 will certainly disappoint you. Increasing the volume will do nothing to improve the sound either, in fact it gets worse!

Overall the sound is disappointing, and very budget! Think bargain basement shops and their own branded headphones, that would be a fair sound comparison.

The Riwbox XBT-880 fit quite snuggly onto my ears, but although comfortable, they give me a hot ear.  This is common for PU Leather ear cups that don’t quite overlap your ear area and sit on them instead.  So, although one aspect of the Riwbox XBT-880 is comfortable the other indirect aspect makes them equally uncomfortable at the same time!

Also, the Riwbox XBT-880 feature a glossy finish to both the headband and ear cups, which of course looks very pretty, but isn’t practical for the following reason.

Fingerprints! AHHHHHH! All over the place.

Other Features.

Sound isolation is actually very good, you can easily become unaware of your background, it’s just a shame the sound wasn’t better.  To have a great set of sound isolating headphones that also sound great would be a perfect combination.  But certainly, you aren’t able to hear people talking around you.

The noise isolation is OK, you get some sound leakage at about halfway in terms of volume.  If you decrease the volume to just below halfway then people can’t hear the Riwbox XBT-880 headphones.

You also get a handsfree calling mode, you’re able to answer/end phone calls directly on your headphones. The microphone produces a very muffled sound, so the other person will struggle to hear you clearly.  There’s also quite a noticeable lag in terms of the other person talking to you receiving the sound via the headphone.  Also, the headset didn’t answer the call using the advertised button, instead you need to press the Play/Pause button to answer/end the call. So yes, the Riwbox XBT-880 has handsfree calling built-in, but the quality is very poor and pretty much renders the function useless.

Technical Specifications.

• Brand: Riwbox
• Model: Bluetooth Headphones
• Model Code: XBT-880
• EAN: N/A
• ASIN: B07HD24RMS
• Bluetooth Version: Bluetooth 4.2
• Bluetooth Profiles: AVCTP v1.4, AVRCP v1.5, GAVDP 1.0, AVDTP v1.0, A2DP v1.0, HF v1.5
• Speaker Size: 40mm
• Speaker Sensitivity: 107 ± 3dB
• Resistance: 32?
• Speaker Material: NdFeB
• Power Rating: 30mW
• Frequency: 2.402 – 2.480GHz
• Battery: 3.7V/300mAH Lithium Ion (Built-in)
• Charge Time: 2 Hours
• Play Time: 12 Hours
• Microphone Sensitivity: -58 ± 3dB
• Mic Type: Capacitance
• Microphone Frequency: 30MHHz -16 KHz
• Bluetooth Distance: 10M
• Compliance: CE, FCC, RoHS

Conclusion.

I’m very disappointed with the Riwbox XBT-880 Headphones. The sound quality is very poor, and the other advertised features are also very poor in terms of quality.  There’s some Bluetooth interference that you just can’t ignore and after a while it became very annoying.  I’m struggling to find any real great points for the Riwbox XBT-880 headphones, and the only thing I can think of really is the background noise isolation of the ear cups.  It’s just a huge shame you’re not left alone with great sound audio at the same time!

I suppose if you’re after a budget, and I mean budget set of audio sounding headphones then the Riwbox XBT-880 would suit your purpose.  But, for me they’re are miss and I can’t really recommend them!

If you want the Riwbox XBT-880 Headphones for yourself, they’re available for purchase only on Amazon. The RRP for this product is £24.98.

Product sample provided by Riwbox in exchange for a detailed, unbiased review.

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