Motorola held ‘A Better Mobile Relationship’ press event this morning to announce some new hardware, including the third-generation Moto G handset, a second Moto X called the Moto X Play and its brand new flagship, the Moto X Style.
In addition to the new smartphones, the handset maker has released a pair of new wireless headphones: the $59.99 Moto pulse on-ear headphones and the $69.99 Moto surround in-ear earbuds.
Both are Bluetooth 4.1-compatible and use Motorola’ companion iOS app called Motorola Connect for battery management, easy pairing, Find My iPhone-like functionality and other perks.
Moto pulse
Featuring a wireless range of up to 60 feet, which Motorola says is two times the standard range of competitors, these on-ear headphones have 40mm drivers and feature a light design with a pair of ear cups that fold flat.
The audio accessory weighs in at just 111 grams.
Its pressure-free headband and soft ear cushions provide comfort and the rechargeable battery provides up to 18 hours of playtime. You can even pair them to two devices simultaneously, such as your iPhone and iPad, or a Mac.
Additionally, the Moto Pulse sports the built-in mic so owners of iOS and Android devices and Bluetooth-enabled computers can take phone calls and engage in VoIP calls over Skype and other services, hands-free.
Available in chalk and black, the Moto Pulse is priced at $59.99.
Moto surround
The Moto surround is built for sports fans and fitness buffs.
For starters, they’re both waterproof and sweat proof via HZO Protection and come with a light collar band with the built-in mic and talk button and dedicated play/pause/skip buttons. Sweat proofing allows you to use your buds in the gym without worrying that your sweat will get inside and wreak havoc. The extended Bluetooth range lets you enjoy hands-free music with up to 150 feet of range.
The buds offer full HD sound via built-in aptX technology designed to preserve the audio quality over Bluetooth while delivering the entire music bandwidth to your ears.
Customizable sound profiles let you adjust built-in presets and sound quality to your liking. And when a phone call comes in, the collar vibrates even when the buds aren’t in your ears. Motorola claims up to twelve hours of playtime on a single charge.
Like the Moto pulse, the Moto surround lets you pair two devices simultaneously. Weighing just 39 grams, the earbuds are available in Black & Blue and Black & Charcoal and cost $69.99 a pop.
As mentioned before, Motorola’s companion iOS app includes features that make it easy to pair the new headphones with your iPhone, iPod touch or iPad. As a bonus, the app lets you get notified when the battery gets low and even find your lost headphones by locating the last location they were connected on a world map.
The Motorola Connect app requires an iPhone, iPod touch or iPad with iOS 7.1 or later and is optimized for the iPhone 5/5s/5c, iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus screen sizes.
Are these new headphones a better deal than Beats, do you think?