Nowadays, Wireless Stereo Earphones are all the rage for a good reason: completely devoid of any wires, they're very convenient to use. You take them out, insert them into your ears and are off. However, some users, myself included, still prefer wireless headphones based on the so-called neckband design. Here, the wire that connects the earpieces loops through a thick, easily bendable band you put around your neck. Personally, I find this approach more practical compared to the TWS design because I don't have to worry about losing or stepping on an earpiece. It also saves me from walking around with a bulge caused by the not-so-tiny carrying/charging cradle. Today I will offer a review of a neckband design Earphones - UIISII BN90 Lite In-ear Wireless Earphones for you.
For a bit of a hint, let's take a look at those all important Technical Specifications shall we.
Packaging & Contents
The UIISII BN90 Lite are packed inside a black box whose front and back show off the headphones and features/specifications.
The BN90 Lite comes with a manual, four pairs of eartips, and a micro-USB charging cable.
A Closer Look
The UIISII BN90 Lite are based on a neckband design. The earpieces are connected by a wire which loops through a thick, bendable silicone band. The UIISII BN90 Lite carry an IPX5 rating for water and swear resistance. They can safely be worn when working out or when it's raining.
UIISII stayed true to their dual driver design. The UiiSii BN90 Lite have 2 separate High Quality Dynamic drivers (per ear!) Of 6 mm in size. They provide a very high frequency range (20Hz - 20,000Hz). We'll examine this design more closely in the performance section of this review.
The earpiece casings are for the most part made out of a metal alloy, which makes them very sturdy. Even though I only used these headphones for about a week, I have no reason to believe they won't last for years to come. During my time with them, they didn't show any signs of wear and tear. Unfortunately the ear pieces aren't equipped with strong magnets to snap together and stay that way.
The controls are on the left side of the neckband. The power button is used to turn the headphones on and off. They're fully functional, but the buttons on a small in-line module are hard to press.
The USB charging port is hidden behind a small plastic flap.
Performance
The band comfortably sits around your neck, and the earpieces are either in your ears or resting on your chest. The earbuds are small, which makes them also really small. In combination with the comfortable eartips, the UiiSii BN90 Lite are very comfortable! You can barely feel them into your ears. During my street tests, the BN90 Lite did a good job of blocking out surrounding noise.The first impression I've got when I started listening to the UiiSii BN90 Lite is that these earphones produce a bright sound. There is a strong emphasizes on the higher midrange/lower treble. The bass is accurate but thin. I would prefer to have a stronger bass present. I accuracy of the bass is and punchy, but unfortunately thin. The sound is missing a bit body.In the mids, the BN90 Lite delivers a surprisingly good performance. Vocals sound intimate and lifelike, with a solid vein of fidelity running through any lyrical content. There may still be an iota of compression at play here, but that's to be expected from a true wireless earphone at this price point. Instrumentation doesn't suffer much, either, with relatively strong tonal accuracy. On tracks like Nappy Holidays by Nappy Roots, this wealth of fidelity comes across in spades, leading to a very even-keeled but engaging listening experience. Regardless of your music tastes, this midrange holds up across pretty much any genre, whether you're bumping jazz, bluegrass, or k-pop. Smooth and just slightly rolled-off, the high end handles vocals and instrumentation equally well. Not too harsh or uncomfortable, this sound might miss some detail in the very high highs. As a result, tracks like TLC's Sleigh Ride and Kanye's Christmas In Harlem feel buttery but still contrasting enough to draw you in. An added bonus of this sound is its application for pop, electronica, and any vocal-heavy tracks. Soundstage feels fairly competent, for a true wireless in-ear headphone. There's a little depth, and enough of it to help separate some instruments. However, the sense of space still seems to suffer from this design. While not optimal, it's still acceptable and probably actually pretty good compared to other true wireless earphones at this price.
As for the wireless connection, the BN90 Lite rely on Bluetooth 5.0 to connect to your phone, tablet, or desktop. The pairing process with my Pixel 4 XL was as smooth as I could have asked for, and I'm able to leave my phone at one end of my apartment and walk around freely without any playback disruptions. There's also minimal audio delay when using the earbuds to watch videos, even without Qualcomm's aptX codec. The UIISII BN90 Lite are equipped with a 135 mAh rechargeable lithium battery. Exact battery life will highly depend on a couple of factors: listening volume, whether you're using active noise canceling, and which Bluetooth codec is being used. In fact, the latter seems to have the biggest impact on overall battery life. During my time with the UIISII BN90 Lite I got 12 hours of playtime. Volume was usually set to 80%-90%, and I used the headphones for music listening (Spotify) and phone calls.
Final Thoughts
First and foremost, they're well made, look nice, and are very comfortable to wear. The silicone neckband is soft and very bendable, so you'll soon forget you're wearing it. The supplied silicone ear tips fit nicely, and there are several pairs/sizes to choose from. Anyone should be able to find a pair that fully seals the ear canal(s) without causing discomfort. Some additional form of in-ear stabilization is absent, but I don't see this as a problem. I never had these headphones fall out, even while using them in a gym, and use them in a gym you will because they're IPX5-certified- sweat and rain can't harm these. The sound quality and build quality the UiiSii BN90 Lite delivers for this price, makes them absolutely a great deal. Most of the earphones in the price range are a trade-off in sound, design or build quality. The UiiSii BN90 Lite is able to deliver a detailed bright sound, unfortunately the bass is a bit lacking, which provides the sound less body. Most listeners will love the solid mids and smooth highs. Their wireless performance is pretty much flawless as the built-in Bluetooth 5.0 chip establishes the connection quickly and holds it firmly without any drops or interruptions. Compared to other neckband-style in-ear wireless headphones in the $40 price bracket, the battery of the UIISII BN90 Lite lasts longer, oftentimes 12 hours. The controls could be better- they're fully functional, but the buttons on a small in-line module are hard to press.
Without a doubt, they exceeded all of our expectations in this price category. Essentially, they're the low-risk, high-reward pair of buds that you should take a chance on.