iLuv's i202 and i903 Bluetooth headsets

The first thing you may have noticed about the iLuv i202 headphones up there is the lack of wires. Oh sure, they're Bluetooth 1.2 so there's no need to jack into your DAP. However, unlike all the other stereo-capable Bluetooth headphones we've seen, these lack any type of connectivity between the cans -- No little wire, no strap, nothing. So either they're being a bit devious with the product shots or we've got a first here. Nevertheless, they bring a nice looking design along with support for A2DP (stereo) and AVRCP (remote control) profiles on top of the handsfree and headset profiles to make 'em equally at home with your Bluetooth cellphone in and out of the car or for listening to your MP3 player. Yes, iPod too just as long as you don't mind lugging around the included iLuv Bluetooth transmitter. The i202 features a 200 hour standy time and will seamlessly switch between music and incoming calls with up to 13-hours of talk time or 14-hours of stereo audio before needing to pull a charge over the included USB power adapter. Each can weighs 51-grams with one sporting play/pause/skip/volume controls for AVRCP-equipped devices. $90 and shipping now. iLuv also has a set of i903 noise-canceling Bluetooth Headphones available with all the same features but 300 hours standby / 8 hours audio / 9 hours talk time. Yours for $100 -- picture after the break.

Update: We just received word from Wise Han, Director of R&D for jWIN (the OEM apparently), that the iLuv i202 cans are indeed wired. Sigh. They have also replaced the picture (now above) to avoid further confusion, and presumably, litigation.

[Via iLounge]

[Steve @ May 29th 2008 11:55AM]

I don't know what all the fuss is about concerning whether or not the i202 has cables between the speakers. You can see that it does in the picture above. They just whited out most of it.

[jai @ Sep 5th 2008 7:04AM]

i have bought i202 but unfortunatly i connected with pc but could not see the default passkey it was something like 45...... (8 digits)
can any one tell me what is it's default key.

i am unable to connect with my pc

please reply

[william @ Nov 10th 2006 9:22AM]

Do you have any pictures of the bluetooth transmitter? Is it one of those iPod shaped things, or will it easily plug in to any DAP (the PSP's 3.5mm jack is in a bad position for things like that).

[Tavo33 @ Nov 10th 2006 9:58AM]

I called their customer service department and even though on their website it shows the headset as being in stock, the lady said it won't be out until last week of November. Also, she didn't know if the headsets will be connected by a cable or not. I really hope this is not the case, if the headsets are completely separate as in the pictures, I'll PRE-ORDER them right away!!!

[Cameron @ Nov 10th 2006 10:17AM]

umm... mic? Because I don't seem to find mention of that on either the headsets in the pic, or their noise canceling headset.

[Steve @ May 29th 2008 11:51AM]

Cameron - I have an i903 set and it has a mic. I don't know about the i202.

[mitch @ Nov 10th 2006 10:06AM]

Ok, so in the first picture there is nothing connecting the two speakers, but in the second picture there is a headband. Is there something I am missing?

[Slim @ Nov 10th 2006 10:10AM]

Hey bud, they are 2 completely different products as stated in the paragraph above it

[Steve @ May 29th 2008 11:40AM]

Mitch - The first picture is the i202 model and the second picture is the i903 model.

[Kyle @ Nov 10th 2006 10:38AM]

Not sure if anyone else realized the quoted weight of 51g. I hope that is not a weight per headset because even the Motrola HS850 only weighs 19g, and I find that way too heavy.

[Naveed @ Nov 10th 2006 11:21AM]

i just want a small bluetooth transmiter that you can plug and pair of headphones into. and then design it so that it can take up any excess wire. and then of course have a mic on the transmiter for phone calls

[Naveed @ Nov 10th 2006 11:23AM]

plug ANY* pair of headphones ^

[crzyjamaican46 @ Nov 10th 2006 11:54AM]

we carry the model that came out before this one at all of our Sharper Image stores. The older models use a less expensive cloth and not the more expenive ruberdized ear phones but the sound quality is great. The company name is Pulsar but the product is almost the exact same. They must use the same OEM. It automatically pauses the music for an incoming call and pairing w/ most phones is a breeze. Volume and track controls are on the right earphone. the bluetooth transmitter is not iPod shapes or iPod specfic. it is a short line out cord to a very small circular disk so it should work with any product w/ a headphone out jack. The headphone fold inwards and those inconspicious prongs in the 2nd pic actually plug easily into the included charging staion. It works beautifully. We've carried these sorts of products for a while. We currently offer 3 bluetooth headphone models. http://www.sharperimage.com/us/en/catalog/product/sku__PL803

[Shannanegin @ Nov 10th 2006 1:37PM]

http://www.i-luv.com/iLuv/product_info.php?cPath=74&products_id=303&iLuvid=41ebe584e8fadbee2336eb44bced31f3

FYI: This photo on their site shows it's wired...

[John @ Nov 10th 2006 5:05PM]

not sure if anyone actually clicked on the read link but the pic at iLuv clearly shows the connecting cable between the cans as-well-as the bluetooth transmitter.

[Thomas Ricker @ Nov 10th 2006 2:50PM]

Cameron, they do include a microphone. It's a tiny hole on the side which is "barely noticeable" according to their director of R&D. You're right, there was no mention of it in the product sheet, at least not as of this morning.

Thomas

[toronado455 @ Nov 11th 2006 4:03PM]

Some of the pics (like from iLuv) show wires coming out of the cans. Other pics on review sites show them without any wires. So this is very confusing.

[Dan @ Dec 10th 2006 12:53PM]

I've been waiting for wireless headphones to be, well, wireless. They still have a wire connecting the two earpieces. Does anyone know of software that can acheive this with two ordinary mono earsets? Stereo sound is recorded in two channels, is it really so hard to write a driver to split the signals up and send left sound to one of two different bluetooth devices and right sound to the other?

[Raj @ May 16th 2007 11:50AM]

Like many people, I have been waiting for this product since I first saw an advertisement for it in MacAddict in August 2006. I immediately searched for it, but found it was still in development. Why advertise a product that is not available?
The product was delayed several times (I was told December, then February, then April, and finally it was released in May). Also the price jumped up 3 times on the company's website.
When I inquired on the delays, I was only told about the new anticipated release date, not any specific information on the cause of the delays.
The reasons seem clear. The Bluetooth dongle included emits some kind of interference when paired with the headset while the headset has noise-cancelling turned on. A buzz in the right ear occurs in this situation. It is fine with the noise cancelling off.
Secondly, while walking, the signal drops in and out frequently. While standing still there is no problems, but just a normal walking pace seems to be an issue. Furthermore, the dongle was in my shirt pocket--not far from the headset at all. When I put the dongle in my hand and held it near my hips, the signal dropouts were worse.

I recommend people wait until some kind of firmware revision is written. It's a great idea and has potential to be a great product, but at this point it is not ready for prime-time.

[Eric @ Jun 3rd 2007 2:58PM]

I also have a problem with buzzing in the right side when using noise cancellation with Bluetooth. This both with the tranmitter that came with the headphones as well as when pairing it directly to the bluetooth enabled LG8300. Turning off noise cancellation eliminates the buzz. When connected by wire, noise cancellation works fine. But then, what is the point of having Bluetooth headphones? I agree, not ready for prime time.