It may not be quite as shocking a move as when Apple opted to purchase Beats Electronics for $3 billion just a couple of months ago, but any new Samsung device is bound to garner some attention.
In this instance, we actually have Samsung moving into an entirely brand new sector – personal audio. In what certainly seems like a fairly transparent effort to rival arch-nemesis Apple on yet another frontier, the Level range is Samsung’s first ever line of headphones and earphones.
The pièce de résistance is undoubtedly the Level Over. Coming in at a rather steep £299.99, the Level Over is, as you may have guessed, a fully over-ear model. It’s also wireless, with noise-cancellation and touch panel control. If you choose to use them with your Samsung Galaxy smartphone you can both pair them via NFC, and then use S-Voice commands without having to reach for your device.
The Level On is nearly exactly the same as the Level Over, barring two key differences. It’s a little smaller, meaning it sits on your ears rather than over them (see what they did there?) and it’s also wired. To make up for the downsizing, it’s priced significantly cheaper at £169.99.
Both the Over and the On are available in a rather appealing white and tan, or the standard, sleek all-black.
There’s also the Level In – no prizes for guessing what it is. Yep, it’s the in-ear baby brother of the other two devices in the range. There’s not much else to say here, as it appears to be a fairly run-of-the-mill in-ear piece of kit. No special features, but you can control volume and playback via a small remote on the cable and you can choose the earbuds that are right for you with several interchangeable sets bundled along with it. The Level In is available in black and white, too.
In case you hadn’t noticed, all three of these Level accessories have a Beats rival to directly counter them – the Beats Studio, Beats Solo and Powerbeats respectively. The Samsung alternatives are slightly cheaper, but then again Beats products have always sat comfortably above the market average. Until we get our hands on some of the Level range we’ve really got no way of telling if they’re worth the price tag or not.
What do you think? Would you take a gamble on a rookie effort from Samsung and hope that the quality matches the price, or do you reckon that a company as experienced as Samsung is more than capable of bettering Beats?
Source
