IFA 2014: Samsung Gear VR headset will give you Note 4-powered virtual reality

And it doesn't look (too) ridiculous

The Samsung Gear VR has been officially announced, and as expected it's a virtual reality headset accessory that uses the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 as its display.

As one of this year's more out-there announcements, the Gear VR is a virtual reality headset onto which you attach your phone.

The Samsung Gear VR is designed for use with the Galaxy Note 4. The phone clips onto the front of the Gear VR headset, providing the display that would otherwise add substantially to the cost of the thing.

What the Samsung Gear VR does provide are the lenses that make the screen seem like it's further than a half-inch away from your corneas.

Predictably enough, given your eye effectively gets half of the Note 4's screen to itself, the Gear VR is able to deliver stereoscopic 3D, which is where independent images are delivered to each eye.

Samsung has managed to snag itself 'powered by Oculus' status for the Gear VR, which means that it uses software produced by the guys over at Oculus VR. Exactly what this will get buyers longer-term remains to be seen, though.

Whether a cheap way to find VR nirvana or a naff phone accessory, the Samsung Gear VR does offer a pretty compelling excuse for the ridiculously high pixel density of QHD phones.

Because, let's be honest, to tell the difference normally you'd have to get so close you risk making your eyes explode.

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Mad Catz F.R.E.Q. M Wireless Mobile Gaming Headset

Pros Powerful bass. Lots of connection options. Comfortable. Long battery life.

Cons Expensive. Highly sculpted sound profile isn't as good for music as it is for games. Multi-purpose button is easy to accidentally tap. Bottom Line The Mad Catz F.R.E.Q. M Wireless headset lets you listen to your games and media almost any way you want—if you can get past the price tag.

By Will Greenwald The Mad Catz F.R.E.Q. M Wireless tries to do everything, and it generally succeeds. This $199.99 headset is part of Mad Catz' GameSmart line of mobile device-focused gaming accessories, but it's more than just headset for smartphones and tablets. Besides Bluetooth with aptX support, it can function as a wired device through a 3.5mm or USB cable, offering ways to connect to any device you might have. It's packed full of features and flexibility, but its sound quality doesn't quite hit the levels you can get from similarly priced dedicated Bluetooth headphones like the Editors' Choice Supertooth Freedom or non-Bluetooth wireless gaming headsets like the Skullcandy PLYR 1.

Design
Like most of Mad Catz' gaming devices, the F.R.E.Q. M Wireless is colorful and stylized, with a glossy, candy shell-like plastic body available in red, black, or white. The headband and outsides of the earcups sport the headset's primary color, while the round earpads, the hinged joints between the headband and the earcups, and the small padded cushion on the underside of the headband are black or white. The F.R.E.Q. M Wireless is comfortable to wear without being bulky, even if the fit is a bit snug. The hinges on the earcups both pivot and bend inward, letting the headset fold up neatly for carrying in the included padded mesh pouch.

The outsides of the earcups are shiny and angular, with casings shaped vaguely like Mad Catz' R.A.T. gaming mice. They're differently and irregularly shaped compared with the circular earpads they hold, which along with the big hex bolts on the hinges give the headset a stylish cyberpunk look.

All connections and controls sit on the outside of the right earcup. A large button that takes up most of the earcup's area sports the Mad Catz logo and serves as the standard multi-use Play/Pause/Call control. The button's easy to tap accidentally, especially when folding up the headset and putting it in a bag. Two smaller sets of buttons flank the large one above and below, offering volume controls, track navigation, and microphone muting. Full-fledged Track Forward/Back and Volume Up/Down buttons are welcome and not often found on Bluetooth headphones, and it's nice to see a full selection of physical controls that don't require multiple, timed taps to get the job done. A 3.5mm port and micro USB port sit on the back edge of the right earcup, between the two rows of buttons.

Features and Connectivity
Mad Catz' free A.P.P. app for Android and iOS offers some useful controls and information about the connected headset. It can switch between Speech, Game, Music, or Movie equalizer settings or turn off the equalizer entirely, and can toggle the microphone on and off. It also has a very handy battery meter that shows how charged the headset is and how much time is left on it. Mad Catz estimates the F.R.E.Q. M Wireless can last approximately 24 hours playing music at medium volume, but that number will obviously go down as you crank the headphones up. With regular use at high volume and connection to multiple devices (the headset can maintain two connections at a time), I found the battery life to be closer to a still-impressive 12 hours.

The F.R.E.Q. M Wireless is primarily a Bluetooth headset, but it can work as a wired headset with or without power. It can connect to your mobile device with the included 3.5mm audio cable to work passively in what Mad Catz calls Flight Mode, or connect to your computer through a USB connection, serving as its own digital-to-analog converter (DAC).

Performance
While it's billed as a gaming headset, the F.R.E.Q. M Wireless also works as a pair of Bluetooth or wired headphones. It does an admirable job playing music, but it doesn't quite reach the clarity or response offered by dedicated, non-gaming Bluetooth headphones in the same price range. It handled our standard bass test track, The Knife's "Silent Shout," very well, though it did brush up against distortion at maximum (and borderline unsafe) volume levels. The bass response is powerful enough to rattle the ears, but I heard just a hint of crackle when the bass synth hits kicked in. Fortunately, it went away completely by reducing the volume a little bit.

The F.R.E.Q. M Wireless handles non-thumpy music fairly capably, as well. I listened to Ninja Sex Party's "Everybody Shut Up" and "Attitude City" through a Bluetooth connection on my computer, and the funky synth of both tracks sounded full without muddying Danny "Sexbang" Avidan's dulcet vocals. Miles Davis's much less synth-heavy "So What" didn't fare nearly as well, though, with the piano lacking enough definition and brightness. The texture of the recording itself lost its warmth or clarity, turning the scratchy analog sound into a steady hiss. This isn't a headset for audiophiles or fans of very subtle mixes at all. 

So music performance isn't quite on par with music-oriented Bluetooth headphones in the same price range, or high-end, non-Bluetooth gaming headsets like the Skullcandy PLYR 1 or its older, more expensive brother, the Astro Gaming A50. Instead, the audio profile is very clearly tweaked towards gamers, with notable sculpting in both low-end and high-end to make games and music sound more exciting. Even the equalizer presets, which are only available through the A.P.P. app, change the headset's sound in ways that will make audiophiles cringe, like pulling up the midrange and high-end and completely dropping out the bass for the Voice preset. For music, the Music equalizer setting offers the best general performance, but it's still sculpted heavily enough to give even my forgiving ears pause. It sounds very good, but not particularly accurate to any given track's mix.

Because the earcups are relatively small and don't completely cover the ear, the F.R.E.Q. M Wireless can bleed sound outwards if you play games or music too loud. It's not an issue for your listening experience, but it can be disruptive if you're using them in a relatively quiet place around other people.

I played Team Fortress 2 with the F.R.E.Q. M Wireless, and the small, collapsible headphones sounded full and powerful while I fought through the Asteroid beta map. Explosions were forceful and punchy, and the music and atmospheric dialogue was clear. The headphones are strictly stereo, and there aren't any audio processing effects to produce positional imaging, like many dedicated PC gaming headsets offer.

I paired the F.R.E.Q. M Wireless to my PlayStation Vita PCH-2000 without any problem and played both Persona 4 and Persona 2: Innocent Sin. The games' soundtracks came through loud and clear, though both funky, atmospheric games obviously emphasize dialogue and music more than explosions.

Conclusion
The Mad Catz F.R.E.Q. M Wireless is an audio Swiss army knife that's aimed at gamers, but capable in multiple roles. It sounds very good for a gaming headset, but for its price its sound profile isn't particularly balanced or friendly to audiophiles. If you spend most of your time on front of a PC or HDTV when gaming, a Skullcandy PLYR 1 might be more up your alley, or the best-in-class Astro Gaming A50 if you can afford the even higher price tag. If you mainly want a good set of headphones to listen to music wirelessly on the go, the Supertooth Freedom offers a more comfortable fit and superior sound. If you're the type of hardcore gamer that lands between those categories, and wants to be able to go wireless both on the go and at home across multiple devices, the F.R.E.Q. M Wireless is an ideal headset.

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Polk 4 Shot Xbox One Gaming Headset

Pros Comfortable. Elegant design. Strong, clear bass. Comes with Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter.

Cons Expensive. Sculpted, bass-heavy sound profile is light on the high-end. Microphone is finicky. Bottom Line The Polk 4 Shot Xbox One Gaming Headset looks and feels good and can double as a smartphone headset, but you can find a better deal by purchasing dedicated headphones and a separate adapter.

By Will Greenwald

The Microsoft Xbox One doesn't work with many headsets out of the box. In fact, without the Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter, it only works with the included monaural headset and its special connector that plugs into the Xbox One gamepad. Polk Audio offers its own Xbox One headset in the form of the 4 Shot, which includes the aforementioned adapter. It's a well-designed, comfortable headset that can easily work with any smartphone or tablet, but it suffers from a very bass-heavy sound profile, a funky microphone, and a rather high $159.95 price tag. With the $25 Xbox One headset adapter available separately, there are just too many solid alternatives from both the audio enthusiast and gaming ends of the spectrum in the same price range. The Marshall Monitor headphones and the Plantronics RIG headset, are just two examples.

Design
The headset is remarkably sleek for an over-ear pair not primarily focused on portable use. No clunky boom mics or gaudy colors are in sight. The outside of each cup is covered in glossy black plastic with a flat gray stripe and an embossed Polk logo. The arms are a matte black plastic, extending into a leatherette-covered steel headband. Polk offers two more, slightly flashier versions: white earcups with brass highlights and a black headband, and gray earcups with blue highlights and a white headband.

The leatherette of the headband and the leather-like insides of the earcups are padded and feel comfortable on the head, without being mushy or risking getting too hot from long periods of use. The earcups are mounted on arms that extend over their corners, letting them adjust easily by pivoting up and down to fit the shape of the user's head. The cups can also turn 90 degrees to sit flat for storage, though the arms don't fold and no carrying case is included.

The left earcup holds a hidden microphone that pops out of the bottom edge. Instead of a boom mic that extends near the mouth, it's a simple wedge of plastic that rests under the earcup and disappears when not in use. It's a functional and unobtrusive design element, like the rest of the decidedly elegant headset.  The bottom edge of the right earcup holds a 3.5mm port for either of the included two four-foot cables. The gaming cable is a simple audio cable with no button or microphone, intended for use with the bundled Xbox One Wireless Headset Adapter. The other cable has an in-line one-button remote and microphone for use with a mobile device.

Connecting the Headset
Plugging in the cable with the in-line remote and microphone disables the mic built into the headset itself. You can use the headset mic with a mobile device by using the non-remote-equipped cable, but this resulted in a much lower recording level than my Google Nexus 5's own on-board microphone. The headset mic seems to be designed specifically for game systems (and even more specifically the Xbox One), and isn't suited for phone calls. 

The headset comes with Microsoft's Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter, which you can purchase separately for $24.99. Like the wired headset that comes with the system, the adapter plugs into the bottom of the Xbox One gamepad, into a port that looks vaguely like a micro USB port. The adapter is a small plastic trapezoid with five buttons on the face for adjusting game/voice chat balance and overall volume, and for muting the microphone. A 3.5mm port sits on the underside, to which you can connect the 4 Shot (or any other 3.5mm-using headset).

Performance and Microphone
The headset mic is fairly functional, but suffers from an issue that Polk claims it's aware of and is working to fix with a software update: The mic is so close to the driver in the left earcup that it tends to pick up audio from whatever game you're playing, in addition to your voice. Polk says this is not an issue with the hardware. For now, be prepared to mix game volume way down and chat volume way up if you want your voice to come through your game.

As pure headphones, the 4 Shot has a very sculpted, bass-heavy sound that doesn't quite offer the level of performance and balance that similarly priced, non-gaming headphone pairs like the Marshall Monitor and Sennheiser HD 280 Pro (which lacks a microphone) can produce. It handles low end very well, just as a gaming headset should; it reproduced both the bass synth notes and the heavy kick drum hits in The Knife's "Silent Shout" with strong presence and no distortion at maximum (and unsafe) volume levels. For very thumpy, bass-heavy tracks, the 4 Shot indeed sounds excellent.

However, outside of songs built from the ground up to shake the listener, the 4 Shot is hit-or-miss depending on the track's mix and just how prominent the bass is. For example, The Rolling Stones' "Gimme Shelter" has a very clear and warm opening that here gets eclipsed by the song's usually forgettable bass line as soon as it kicks in. The plinky notes of the opening guitar usually cut through every other aspect of the song before the vocals, but the 4 Shot's emphasis on the bass blunts what should be a crisp edge to the guitar sound. Blue Oyster Cult's "Godzilla" fares a bit better, since the entire song revolves around its iconic bass riff, but both that and the kick drum drown out the rest of the percussion. It's clear the 4 Shot is built for video game audio and action-packed sound effects, and not a remotely flat response for accurate music listening. It by no means sounds bad, but the weak high-end makes it seem far less appealing as your go-to pair of headphones.

Conclusion
The Polk 4 Shot is a very well-designed gaming headset that sounds fantastic when you're playing games on the Xbox One. However, its microphone is finicky and its general audio quality outside of games doesn't justify its $160 price tag. Considering its included adapter is available separately for $25 and can work with any phone headset or headphone pair with a 3.5mm connector, the 4 Shot isn't a particularly compelling package. If you can spend slightly more, the Editors' Choice Marshall Monitor offers excellent all-around audio performance and, with its in-line microphone, can work easily with the Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter for a much more flexible listening experience. The Plantronics RIG is another solid candidate for use with the adapter, and its boom mic is much more functional than the 4 Shot's. And if you want a really inexpensive option, the Tritton Kama offers solid performance (though not nearly as good as the aforementioned headsets and headphones) for just $30.

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Microsoft Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter

Pros Works with any headphones or headset with a 3.5mm connection. Functional buttons.

Cons Only necessary because Microsoft designed the Xbox One without a built-in headset port or Bluetooth. Bottom Line The Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter lets you connect your own headphones or headset to your Xbox One gamepad.

By Will Greenwald

The Microsoft Xbox One already comes with a headset, but it's not a particularly good one. It's monaural and feels flimsy. Unfortunately, you can't just plug your own headset into the Xbox One gamepad like you can the included headset, and without Bluetooth you can't use a wireless headset easily. Microsoft has a solution to that: the Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter. It's a chunk of plastic that plugs into the bottom of your Xbox One gamepad, and lets you use any headset or headphone pair with a 3.5mm connection. It's simple, inexpensive, and functional, standing alongside the Xbox One Media Remote as another excellent first-party Xbox One accessory. Of course, it's notable that the Sony PlayStation 4's controller has a 3.5mm jack built into it without the need for an adapter. 

Design
The adapter is a small black plastic trapezoid that plugs into the bottom of the Xbox One controller, like the headset that comes with the system. Instead of a connected cable going directly to a headset, the underside has a 3.5mm port for connecting your own wired headset, like the Polk 4 Shot (review coming soon), which includes the adapter as part of the package.

The front of the adapter holds five buttons. Two adjust the balance between game and chat audio, two control the volume, and one mutes the headset's microphone. The Xbox One's included headset just has three buttons on the connector, for adjusting volume and muting the mic. The game and chat balance buttons are new, and a welcome adjustment for players who want to hear more of the game or more of their teammates.

Performance
The adapter worked perfectly with both the Polk 4 Shot, a headset designed for the Xbox One and which includes the adapter in the package, and a pair of Sony MDR-1R headphones with a cable with inline microphone. In both cases, game audio came through, I could mute the microphone from the controller, and I had no problem adjusting volume and chat/game audio levels.

If the included monaural headset that comes with the Xbox One isn't enough for you, and you don't want to use the Kinect for voice chat or recording commentary on game footage, the Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter is a must-have accessory. It does exactly what it says it does: lets you use any headset with a 3.5mm connector with the Xbox One gamepad. It's yet another first-party Xbox One add-on, like the Xbox One Media Remote, that's well-designed, functional, and affordable.

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Polk 4 Shot Xbox One Gaming Headset

Pros Comfortable. Elegant design. Strong, clear bass. Comes with Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter.

Cons Expensive. Sculpted, bass-heavy sound profile is light on the high-end. Microphone is finicky. Bottom Line The Polk 4 Shot Xbox One Gaming Headset looks and feels good and can double as a smartphone headset, but you can find a better deal by purchasing dedicated headphones and a separate adapter.

By Will Greenwald

The Microsoft Xbox One doesn't work with many headsets out of the box. In fact, without the Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter, it only works with the included monaural headset and its special connector that plugs into the Xbox One gamepad. Polk Audio offers its own Xbox One headset in the form of the 4 Shot, which includes the aforementioned adapter. It's a well-designed, comfortable headset that can easily work with any smartphone or tablet, but it suffers from a very bass-heavy sound profile, a funky microphone, and a rather high $159.95 price tag. With the $25 Xbox One headset adapter available separately, there are just too many solid alternatives from both the audio enthusiast and gaming ends of the spectrum in the same price range. The Marshall Monitor headphones and the Plantronics RIG headset, are just two examples.

Design
The headset is remarkably sleek for an over-ear pair not primarily focused on portable use. No clunky boom mics or gaudy colors are in sight. The outside of each cup is covered in glossy black plastic with a flat gray stripe and an embossed Polk logo. The arms are a matte black plastic, extending into a leatherette-covered steel headband. Polk offers two more, slightly flashier versions: white earcups with brass highlights and a black headband, and gray earcups with blue highlights and a white headband.

The leatherette of the headband and the leather-like insides of the earcups are padded and feel comfortable on the head, without being mushy or risking getting too hot from long periods of use. The earcups are mounted on arms that extend over their corners, letting them adjust easily by pivoting up and down to fit the shape of the user's head. The cups can also turn 90 degrees to sit flat for storage, though the arms don't fold and no carrying case is included.

The left earcup holds a hidden microphone that pops out of the bottom edge. Instead of a boom mic that extends near the mouth, it's a simple wedge of plastic that rests under the earcup and disappears when not in use. It's a functional and unobtrusive design element, like the rest of the decidedly elegant headset.  The bottom edge of the right earcup holds a 3.5mm port for either of the included two four-foot cables. The gaming cable is a simple audio cable with no button or microphone, intended for use with the bundled Xbox One Wireless Headset Adapter. The other cable has an in-line one-button remote and microphone for use with a mobile device.

Connecting the Headset
Plugging in the cable with the in-line remote and microphone disables the mic built into the headset itself. You can use the headset mic with a mobile device by using the non-remote-equipped cable, but this resulted in a much lower recording level than my Google Nexus 5's own on-board microphone. The headset mic seems to be designed specifically for game systems (and even more specifically the Xbox One), and isn't suited for phone calls. 

The headset comes with Microsoft's Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter, which you can purchase separately for $24.99. Like the wired headset that comes with the system, the adapter plugs into the bottom of the Xbox One gamepad, into a port that looks vaguely like a micro USB port. The adapter is a small plastic trapezoid with five buttons on the face for adjusting game/voice chat balance and overall volume, and for muting the microphone. A 3.5mm port sits on the underside, to which you can connect the 4 Shot (or any other 3.5mm-using headset).

Performance and Microphone
The headset mic is fairly functional, but suffers from an issue that Polk claims it's aware of and is working to fix with a software update: The mic is so close to the driver in the left earcup that it tends to pick up audio from whatever game you're playing, in addition to your voice. Polk says this is not an issue with the hardware. For now, be prepared to mix game volume way down and chat volume way up if you want your voice to come through your game.

As pure headphones, the 4 Shot has a very sculpted, bass-heavy sound that doesn't quite offer the level of performance and balance that similarly priced, non-gaming headphone pairs like the Marshall Monitor and Sennheiser HD 280 Pro (which lacks a microphone) can produce. It handles low end very well, just as a gaming headset should; it reproduced both the bass synth notes and the heavy kick drum hits in The Knife's "Silent Shout" with strong presence and no distortion at maximum (and unsafe) volume levels. For very thumpy, bass-heavy tracks, the 4 Shot indeed sounds excellent.

However, outside of songs built from the ground up to shake the listener, the 4 Shot is hit-or-miss depending on the track's mix and just how prominent the bass is. For example, The Rolling Stones' "Gimme Shelter" has a very clear and warm opening that here gets eclipsed by the song's usually forgettable bass line as soon as it kicks in. The plinky notes of the opening guitar usually cut through every other aspect of the song before the vocals, but the 4 Shot's emphasis on the bass blunts what should be a crisp edge to the guitar sound. Blue Oyster Cult's "Godzilla" fares a bit better, since the entire song revolves around its iconic bass riff, but both that and the kick drum drown out the rest of the percussion. It's clear the 4 Shot is built for video game audio and action-packed sound effects, and not a remotely flat response for accurate music listening. It by no means sounds bad, but the weak high-end makes it seem far less appealing as your go-to pair of headphones.

Conclusion
The Polk 4 Shot is a very well-designed gaming headset that sounds fantastic when you're playing games on the Xbox One. However, its microphone is finicky and its general audio quality outside of games doesn't justify its $160 price tag. Considering its included adapter is available separately for $25 and can work with any phone headset or headphone pair with a 3.5mm connector, the 4 Shot isn't a particularly compelling package. If you can spend slightly more, the Editors' Choice Marshall Monitor offers excellent all-around audio performance and, with its in-line microphone, can work easily with the Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter for a much more flexible listening experience. The Plantronics RIG is another solid candidate for use with the adapter, and its boom mic is much more functional than the 4 Shot's. And if you want a really inexpensive option, the Tritton Kama offers solid performance (though not nearly as good as the aforementioned headsets and headphones) for just $30.

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