We haven’t been bowled over by Skullcandy's headphones yet – most we’ve seen have failed to deliver in the sound department – but the company says it's becoming more and more focused on performance. The Grinds, launched today from £40, have been designed to offer both "comfort and quality".
“Most people see us as a lifestyle company; now I’d say we are more of a performance company”, says Category Manager Steve McMahon.
That’s not to say design or features have been sidestepped. Typically for the brand, the Grinds are available in a plethora of colours – four (black, blue and white, as well a snazzier yellow and black combination attracting a £10 premium) available now, with an additional six including gold, cream and purple available from July.
The brushed metal headband has a faux leather cover and sliding adjustment mechanism, while the ear cups are plastic, and the foam ear pads are covered by synthetic leather. Inside sit Skullcandy’s custom REX40 drivers.
The cable is also detachable, but instead of featuring an in-line remote, a microphone and single button have been integrated into the left ear cup allowing you to take phone calls and control music playback more 'naturally'. Skullcandy calls this neat feature 'TechTap', saying it's more convenient than fumbling for a wire and lifting a cable to your mouth to speak during calls.
The American brand is also looking to add Bluetooth functionality to the headphone's spec sheet next year, though we’d imagine this upgrade would bump up the price.
