Urbanz Vibe Headphones

Well, people (mainly men !!!) always say that size doesn't matter but that doesn't seem to be true for headphones. Size-wise, they seem to have gone full circle. I can just about remember the really chunky, heavy headphones from the end of the seventies ... then in the 80's the (what seemed at the time) tiny lightweight spongy headphones that used to attach to the original cassette-playing Sony Walkmans (how old is this making me feel ?!) ... then we had the tiny earbuds that go with mp3 players in the 90's and noughties. Well, judging by the teens and twenty-somethings I see every day on the bus - you know, the ones who are so cool they wear their baseball caps sideways or just perched on the very tops of their heads ! - big headphones are back at the top of the fashion stakes these days.


I have to say I'm secretly quite pleased about this "new" fashion. I could never really get on with the tiny earbuds because for some reason they always fall out of my ears with no warning - not a cool look when you're in amongst the "so trendy it hurts" teens and twenty-somethings ! You can see them almost want to snigger and say "You're too old to have an MP3 player if you can't even keep the earphones in your ears" !


And for kids, especially my own, it always worried me putting loud music right inside their ears - I'm sure it must do more damage than the headphones that stay well on the outside of their ears. And at least parents have a very small chance of being heard when yelling at their offspring to come down for dinner if ther earphones aren't totally blocking their earholes !!



The Urbanz (so cool it's spelt with a z !!) Vibe Headphones are designed with kids in mind, but they can also be worn by adults - I'm sure I won't look any less cool than with a pair of earbuds falling out of my ears as I walk down the street so I tried them out ! They come in pink or blue so are really visually appealing to teens and pre-teens. They even have a cute cartoon-type drawing on the speaker parts. Fed up of hearing the annoyingly repetitive Nintendo DS game music and sound effects, I asked Sophie to see if they would fit on her console and I was overjoyed to see that they do !



Sophie, aged 8, says : "They're really good when we have to be quiet because we can listen to whatever we want and it doesn't do loads of noise. It also means that when your little sister is trying to annoy you, it blocks out the sound of her whining and being annoying ! Also I can listen to the music and the sound effects when I'm playing on my Nintendo DS which is good because usually I have to turn the sound off so it doesn't annoy mum and dad !"

Juliette, aged 4, says : "They're pretty and gorgeous and they make the music go in my head !"

They're really soft and squishy and the padding makes them extremely comfortable to wear. The sliding size-adjusters allow for a number of sizes so anyone, even someone with a huge head, could wear them quite easily ! They block out the sound very effectively for anyone in the vicinity - Sophie can play her Nintendo DS while sitting next to Juliette on the settee watching Cbeebies and neither of them can hear the other one, although she has been warned to keep it at a reasonable level that won't blow her brains out or make her deaf !

The website lists the features as : Volume control - super bass - light weight comfort fit and colour coded cable with 3.5mm gold jack. 1 year warranty with your purchase PLUS Register at www.urbanz.co.uk for FREE lifetime warranty.

They're pretty cheap too at £14.99, especially if they come with a lifetime guarantee (although I'm sure there's lots of small print so check out the conditions !). Definitely worth it for a bit of peace and quiet !

star rating : 4.5/5

RRP : £14.99