The Pro+ looks superb with those different shades of grey (no pun intended) mixed together. The headband is fully padded
and extends on both sides in up to 12 increments to adjust to your head size.
The earcups don't fully rotate like the SENSE's, they just turn 90 degrees in one direction to fold flat and make the headset
easier to carry. The earcups though are a little flexible, pushing on and off the main headband by about 5 degrees as you can
see on the left earcup in the left image below.
Each earcup is completely round and very thickly padded to add to the comfort of wearing it. That design choice is
something to look out for when purchasing the Pro+ because larger and longer ears won't fit in. Compared to the V-Moda
Crossfade M-100 for example, the earcup is wider but shorter. This means that the Pro+ will likely be a mix of on-ear/over-
the-ear for people with longer ears.
The right side houses the power switch, a large call button, and a big black volume ring. Unlike the SENSE, the volume button
rotates instead of using a flick-like mechanism. You rotate it slowly to change the volume step-by-step, or you fully turn it
to cause more volume change. I love the feedback on this dial: it's smooth but still won't be triggered by mistake.
The left side is home to the ANC (Active Noise Canceling) switch, a big Play/Pause button, the NFC tag, and the same
rotating black ring for skipping and rewinding a track. However, this one follows the flick system: one flick up acts as Fast-
Forward and one flick back is Rewind.
Both earcups have additional controls and ports on the bottom. The right one has the OpenMic switch that lowers the
volume of the music and lets you listen to your surroundings through the 2 microphones without removing the headset. The
left one houses the MicroUSB port and the 3.5mm plug.
There are hidden LEDs on both earcups behind the metallic grill. These act as visual cues for power, pairing, connecting, and
battery life.
Features, Comfort, and Usability
As I mentioned at the top of this review, this is the first pair of headphones that I can even tolerate wearing for more than a
few minutes, and dare I say I do enjoy that too. I'm not dumping my small Sennheiser in-ear earphones anytime soon, but at
least I know that over-the-ear headphones can work for me, as opposed to the pressure of on-ear ones.
Sure, the earcups are round and thus shorter than other over-the-ear headsets, but they work fine most times. My only
complaint was when I put the BackBeat Pro+ on while wearing earrings… Searing pain. But then again, that was my mistake
for not remembering that earcups could push the dangling earrings into my skin.
And there's a lot more to enjoy about the BackBeat Pro+, not the least of which is the smorgasbord of features included. I
like having a headset where I don't keep wishing for a missing option. I connected the Pro+ to my iMac and my S7 Edge and I
didn't face any problem with the music stopping from the iMac when I got a call on my phone. Plus, since I'm using these at
work at my pharmacy, I don't have to worry about pausing and resuming the music each time a customer comes in. The
smart sensor just does it for me when I slide them down my neck then put them back on.
And the battery life is phenomenal to say the least. I didn't charge them when I got them and I've been listening for about an
hour each day in about 8 days. I even forgot them on Standby over the weekend. I still have 14 hours of battery life left.
That's astounding. Not to forget the versatility of using the 3.5mm cable whenever the battery runs out.
NFC pairing works like a charm, and like it should really. You forget about manual pairing and just tap your phone to the left
earcup to get the music or audio through. The USB dongle also worked flawlessly on my iMac. I only had to get into the Sound
preferences and pick it as an output device and I was good to go: it was pre-paired with my headset.
This kind of versatility allows you to take the BackBeat Pro+ with you and connect it to any computer by just plugging in the
adapter without worrying about Bluetooth antennas and finicky connections. My iMac for example has a stupid habit of not
automatically using a connected Bluetooth headset as a stereo sound device, but that issue is completely gone with the
dongle. No matter how many times I unplug it and replug it, when the dongle isn't used the iMac routes the sound through its
own speakers, but when it is the sound goes to it and thus the headset. No more messing with the Bluetooth menu each
time to select the Pro+ for sound.
The only real downer for me when it comes to the BackBeat Pro+'s usability is the size. They're huge and they don't fold that
well. Compared to the V-Moda Crossfade M-100 (as an example of over-the-ear headphones that fold), they're gigantic and
stay so even when you rotate the cups and fold them flat. The M-100, however, becomes much more compact and travel-
friendly.
Android App
Plantronics has a Hub application for its headsets that doesn't do much for stereo headphones (it's more geared toward
mono headsets), but that's still a little helpful. You can decide to show or hide a notification on your phone each time the
Pro+ is connected and keep an event history and log to make it easier to find your headset.
The latter is actually the most interesting feature of the app. It can play a striking sound to help you find your headset and it
keeps track of connections and events and appends locations to them so you can trace back the last time and place your
phone and headset were within range.
Sound Quality
This is what you're here to read about, right? The sound quality makes or breaks a headset, and in the case of the Pro+, it's a
mixed bag.
I am not an audiophile, I also wouldn't be able to tell the difference between distorted and non-distorted lows and mids and
highs. To me, the BackBeat Pro+ sounded mind-glowingly excellent. But I decided to pack them up and take them to a friend
of mine who specializes in audio equipment. His reaction was a lot less enthusiastic.
According to him, the Pro+ falls flat in terms of sound. There's distortion on higher volumes and there's lack of depth on both
