Plantronics BackBeat FIT 305
THE FIT IS REFERRING TO YOUR EARS.
THIS REVIEWER TRADITIONALLY takes a hard pass at sport headphones. Perhaps it’s his misshapen melon and unconventional earholes, but more often than not, as soon as things start to get physical, sports ‘phones just fall out. Worse still is if he can get a snug fit while running, the tips offer little in the way of isolation, so the tunes are too flat and indistinct. BackBeat’s 305 breaks with tradition.
At only 14 grams — of what is essentially shoelace with musical tips — the 305 is unobtrusive, whether going for a run, workout or even doing weekly yardwork. Plantronics’ mushroom-esque “occlusive” eartips slot into the ears with ease, are super comfortable and, best of all, stay put. You’re not just getting a bassy tempo-keeper, as the 6mm drivers pack far more punch and range than their diminutive size would suggest. There’s a simple inline control unit on the right side featuring play/stop and volume, as well as housing the inbuilt mic and charge point, offering Siri, Google Now and Cortana compatibility. They’re also easy to keep clean thanks to their sweatproof coating; simply rinse them under cold water and they’re good-to-go.
The 305 comes in four colour variants — coral, lime, blue and black — and the highlight cleverly offers a visual indication of left and right, so there’s no fussing around looking for the L and R indicators. Plus, the woven cable features a reflective weave for some visibility at night. iPhone and Android users benefit from the Plantronics HUB and FIT app. The HUB has a handy ‘find my phone’ feature, which blasts an alert tone you can hone in on (the same can be done by playing Slayer’s ‘Raining Blood’ at recommended levels), while the FIT app lets you dig into your 305’s settings and tweak voice alert language, fine tune connection setting and keep the firmware up to date.