Tws true wireless stereo

The lack of cables also makes it easy to use true wireless headphones or practicing with them. Comfort and convenience are always important in these circumstances, but you should also be careful to pay attention to whether or not they have the proper protection.

TWS wireless headphones: how to turn them on, plug them in, use them, charge them?

In the comments to other similar articles I see a lot of different questions related to the use of TWS wireless headphones. Most of the time I see some strange moments with the Chinese headphones. The thing is that these headphones rarely come with instructions in Russian or Ukrainian. At best in English, and at worst in Chinese, or there is none at all. And the operation of these headphones is not always stable, and it is not always clear how they work and how to use them. In the sense that almost all have different control, connection, synchronization, etc.

The format of these headphones cannot be called simple (below I will explain in detail how they work) . Even the popular giant manufacturers make these headphones with some problems (in the form of desynchronization, dropped connections), and our friends from China are stamping them for a few dollars apiece and do not really care about the quality and usability.

I decided to write a small manual in Russian on the use of wireless TWS headphones. We are mainly going to talk about headphones from China. These are the popular models TWS i7, i7s, i8, i9, TWS i9s (5.0), i10, i11, i12, i18, F9. As for the headphones from more well-known manufacturers such as JBL, Xiaomi, Haylou, QCY, etc., there are fewer questions about them. Well, there are instructions, support, and in quality they are better, it's hard to argue with this.

In this article I will answer a few popular questions:

1. How TWS headphones work.
2. How to turn TWS headphones on or off.
3. How to connect TWS headphones to your phone, laptop, or other device. Separately, let's look at how to connect both headphones.
4. How to use TWS headphones, how to wear them, how to control music and calls.
5. How to charge the TWS headphones from the case. How to charge the case itself. How to know if the headphones are charging and how to know the charge level of the case and the headphones themselves.

How do they work?

TWS stands for True Wireless Stereo . The two headphones are completely wireless, connecting to the device and to each other via Bluetooth. The TWS headphones consist of a charging case and two separate headphones, right and left. The case has a built-in battery that charges. And the earphones are in turn charged by the case. The case is used as a charger and a case for storing and carrying the headphones.

The operation of these headphones is very simple. After turning on the right and left earphones (automatically, after removing from the case, or manually), the earphones are synchronized. They connect to each other via Bluetooth. After that they (as a pair, in stereo mode) can be connected to a sound source (phone, laptop) using Bluetooth connection. If necessary, you can turn on only one headphone and connect it to the device.

How do I connect wireless headphones to my phone?

Step 1. If you bought TWS headphones with a charging case, then open it and without taking the headphones out, press the small button on the case itself for 2-3 seconds.

Step 2. If the headphones come without the case or there are no buttons on the case, then put the headphones in your ears (or put them on your head) and press the button or touch pads on the headphones for 7 seconds.

Step 3. Open the settings on your smartphone and go to Bluetooth.

Step 4. Your phone will start searching for Bluetooth devices and as soon as you find your headphones in the list of available devices, select them by tapping on the name.

Step 5.. Done! It's important to note that you only need to go through these steps once (or the first time you connect to a new device). Going forward, the headphones will automatically connect to your smartphone as soon as you remove them from the case or turn on the power.

Comments on instructions for connecting Bluetooth headphones to your phone

If you have problems or questions about any of these points, then read on for more detailed instructions with illustrations and comments.

First, decide what kind of headphones you have. If they are fully wireless TWS headphones with a charging case, then look carefully at the case to see if there is a button on it.

See where that button might be located and what it looks like on the Apple AirPods:

If there is such a button, then open the cover of the case and press the button for 2-3 seconds. You will see the LED indicator inside the case start flashing white rapidly. This means that the headphones are in pairing mode and are available for connection to any device.

If there is no such button (Xiaomi AirDots, Sony WF-1000XM3, etc.) or your headphones have no charging case at all, then:

• If you have a mechanical button on the headphones, press that button for 7 seconds until the LED on the headphones starts flashing white
• With touch control, press the sensors on both headphones at the same time and hold for 5-7 seconds until you also see the LED flashing white

Codec support and sound volume TWS headphones

Many people make the mistake of thinking that the cost and quality of a smartphone can somehow miraculously affect the sound quality of Bluetooth headphones. This common misconception comes from an analogy with wired headphones.

The fact is that when we plug in a wire, the signal has to be converted from digital to analog and then sent to the headphones on that wire. The quality of the digital-to-analog conversion is important and a special device inside the smartphone called a DAC is responsible for this.

But when we connect wireless headphones, there is no conversion from digital to analog and there can't be. The signal has to be sent digitally via Bluetooth to the headphones, and the TWS headphones, having received this digital signal, convert it to analog before feeding it to the speakers.

Accordingly, the DAC and smartphone amplifier have no effect on the sound quality of wireless headphones. It all depends on the DAC and amplifier, which are built directly into the headphones. For the same reason, the volume of the headphones is often independent of the smartphone. But, sometimes there are exceptions when the volume is limited by the smartphone software.

And yet, something in a smartphone can affect sound quality – it's the set of supported codecs. For a better understanding we need to dwell on this issue in more detail.

The main problem with wireless sound is the bandwidth of the Bluetooth channel. We cannot use Bluetooth to send uncompressed files with high bitrate (data rate) to the headphones. The bitrate of most Bluetooth headphones is limited to 256 or 328 kbps.

No matter how good our audio file is (even if it is flac at 1411 kbps), the headphone's DAC will only reach an mp3 (320 kbps) quality file.

This is because the smartphone first compresses (encodes) the original file with certain losses, and then sends it to the headphones. Those, in turn, must decode the signal. But since certain data is lost during compression, it won't come back when decompressed.

Using TWS headphones as a headset

Many people buy TWS headphones to use, among other things, as a headset (to talk on the phone). Whether it's to escape phone radiation or just to be more comfortable, it's important to understand that not all TWS headphones are good at this task.

First of all, don't forget about the design of the headphones. Earbuds will be the most comfortable in this regard. On the other hand, there are quite a few in-ear headphones on the market with sound permeability. When this technology works, the headphones use microphones to pick up external sounds and feed them through the speaker at a certain volume. This makes it appear as if the headphones are not there at all.

However, this feature does not work in the same way on all models. For example, the first Galaxy Buds sound like a hearing aid in this mode. Sennheriser Momentum TW and Sony WF-1000XM3 are nicer in this respect.

And the Apple AirPods Pro headphones have literally perfected this feature. When you turn on permeability mode, it's like the earbuds disappear. You hear all the sounds around you without the slightest distortion.

The first conclusion is that you're better off with earbuds or in-ear headphones that have a permeable mode for headset use.

The second important point is the number of microphones in the headphones. If there is only one microphone on each TWS headphone, it will be very difficult to use them for a conversation in a noisy place. Your conversation partner will hear all the surrounding noise, perhaps even louder than your voice.

Two or more microphones on each earpiece are used for noise cancellation to cut out all extraneous sounds.

However, two microphones is not a cure-all. Some models still do a poor job with noise cancellation during a call, especially in a noisy place. The same Sony WF-1000XM3 is a clear negative example.

Which codecs are best for wireless headphones

For Android devices, Qualcomm aptX, aptX LL, aptX Adaptive, aptX HD, aptX Lossless codecs are usually better than SBC (sub-band codec), which is the standard codec supported by all Bluetooth audio devices. The main reason is that aptX has MORE bandwidth than SBC, which can have a positive effect on sound quality. AptX Adaptive also automatically adjusts the data rate in real time to ensure smooth playback and reduce loss.

AAC (Advanced Audio Codec) is also widely accepted and is the preferred codec that YouTube uses. While iPhone users benefit from this, it is not as important on Android phones. Samsung has its own Scalable codec, first introduced in Galaxy Buds. Its purpose is to be adaptive so that data rates and connection speeds don't affect what you're listening to. It is designed only for Samsung headphones, so it is not adopted by other brands like Sony's LDAC. It also has variable data rates, although it is not yet widely adopted.

The selection of TWSs today is enormous. At a glance I can name 10-12 models, well there are dozens, if not hundreds (including Chinese "nooname")

Should I buy wireless headphones?

Here everyone decides for himself. I personally, anyone who is choosing a new model of headphones, I advise to choose wireless headphones.. The sound quality in them is not worse than in wired ones. Especially when you listen to music not in perfect silence, but, for example, in the subway.

This is where comfort of use and not having to wrap yourself in wires comes in first. The person I'm advising may not be planning to buy TWS, but even the over-the-ear models are supposed to be comfortable, and if you're buying them to listen to music on the go, buy the wireless models and don't bother with them.

Read More: