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C**N
Second time creative made an excellent uncommon product that saved my setup
Excellent. I'm normally too busy to write reviews but I'm super happy with my current audio setup thanks to the W5.This is the second time Creative made a product for an uncommon setup that I really needed to get the ideal configuration with the hardware. The last one was an audio dock/converter that allowed you to receive full surround sound via optical/coaxial cable with your 5.1/7.1 computer speaker system, brilliant. This dongle allows you to use Bluetooth with your Windows PC. Sounds dumb on the surface, like who's using a modern pc without Bluetooth? Wrong, I do enjoy using Windows over the years but the Bluetooth support is kind of awful and just barely there in terms of functionality, even basic stuff is buried deep in the old Control Panel instead of Settings. Anyway this product allowed me to get proper Bluetooth support that doesn't disconnect every so often or act weird because I accidentally tried to use the microphone (Windows just can't seem to do audio in and out at the same time at reasonable quality, despite Bluetooth supporting the standards for decades and getting better every few years).It's kind of jank sometimes but that could be the specific Bose Ultra Open ears I use. I use these while I'm at work because for my job I need to be able to hear if people need me. I've tried other open earphones and of course transparency mode on popular wireless earbuds and none of them work as well for my job or sound as good as these do. And sound good they do thanks to the W5 supporting multiple codecs and having several options. I mentioned some jank but I found the perfect solution I've been using for 4 days so far with zero issues or features not working. I plug the dongle in and immediately turn on my Bose ultras (by taking them out of the case) and they work 100% of the time. Before I tried leaving the dongle plugged in and would get issues connecting half the time. Not a problem anymore.They sound just as good connected to the pc or phone. The options can make the earbuds sound even better. I usually avoid audio presets but I tried the gaming preset and it sounds very good. Makes it sound more full, which is great for an open ear earbud. I work in a college, so imagine tons of wifi signals coming from the access points as well as students and signal strength is great.
A**M
Works as expected
As mentioned by others, A2DP implementation in macOS leaves much room for improvement (in my case,15” Late 2016 MBP). Audio was choppy and latency perceptible regardless of the codec used (SBC, AAC or AptX). Switching over to the BT-W2 with Aukey EP-B80 earphones was a massive upgrade. While sound quality remained the same, chops and cutoffs were gone - as was the lag (as if you’re using wired cans). The sound was stable, clear and lag-free, in real-time.Admittedly, B80s do support AptX-LL, which makes all the difference in latency department. But even without said benefit, the lack of interference was impressive: using Magic Mouse 2, Magic Keyboard and several 2.4GHz networks near the adapter had zero impact on signal quality. Speaking of which, it holds up about 7-8m line of sight, and penetrates one brick wall before dropping off. Pairing was easy, and took 4-5 seconds only.As for cons. I could never make the audio-in work, despite LED light telling me it’s on, and macOS recognizing the mic. It just stays silent. Also, volume control is tricky: technically, it IS adjustable with volume up/down buttons (you can hear it) — but controls neither system nor app volume. Think of it as an external, analog amp, in terms of OS interaction.Last but not least. Is Bluetooth 2.1 EDR outdated? Yes, but only if you need hi-res audio. Otherwise, there is little difference in Bluetooth Classic A2DP implementation across 2.1, 3.0, 4.0, 4.1 or 4.2 iterations. 5.0 on the other hand, could certainly improve the range, support heavier codecs and concurrent clients - but in my experience, it works as intended. No hiccups.
A**E
Pretty awesome
What I like: it beats the pants off Windows stack bluetooth audio with the ability to actually choose your sample rate and bit rate. I can actually play BT audio at 24bit/96000hz! Also, I really like that once paired in Windows, it'll stay connected to any other device its plugged into, such as working when booting to Linux. Normally bluetooth devices paired in Windows or Linux cannot be used with one another. Another thing is the built in crystalizer and the equalizer, two things that I no longer need a separate app for.What I don't like: lack of AAC. Plus I've yet been able to find a way to switch the codec manually in the app. AptX HD is pretty good, tho, and standard Windows BT doesn't offer AptX HD (but it does use AAC). Also my Crusher ANC when using Bass Boost in app actually makes the bass quieter.But yeah, this dongle is really good.
Trustpilot
1 month ago
2 days ago
