LifeisXbox’s EPOS GTW 270 Hybrid review | A lot has changed throughout the years for Xbox gamers, I myself see a big change in my way of playing games. That has nothing to do with me getting older but because Microsoft is more open with ways of playing games. I regularly play a game on my Xbox Series X and continue to play it on the road with cloud gaming. This seamless way of playing on different devices is a brand-new opportunity for many hardware companies to bring out new devices. The product we’re discussing today isn’t a great example of that as it isn’t specifically created for cloud gaming but these comfortable earbuds are a perfect solution for having good audio while on the train or any other location you might want to play. There is one huge negative thing to say though, you can’t get it to work with Xbox One or Xbox Series X|S consoles. So be aware that this review is only based on playing Xbox games with Cloud gaming, playing games on Nintendo Switch and listening to Spotify, and following series on my smartphone. Again, the EPOS GTW 270 Hybrid does not work with Xbox consoles.
Do I even have them in my ears?
There is a lot I can say about the gaming earbuds from EPOS but the biggest positive is how comfortable it is. The first thing you’ll have to find out is which of the four sizes of silicone ear tips you’ll want to use. That is a rather important step as choosing the right one will block out sounds from outside sources, or to say it in technical terms noise isolating. Everyone’s ears are different, so having different size options was a smart thing to include. For short or long sessions the earbuds never got uncomfortable, they sit spot-on in your ears as if they were uniquely created for me. They are super lightweight too, despite metal parts that look fantastic to the eyes.
Don’t I look damn pretty?
The earbuds will get the attention of others and not for flashy reasons. Lots of gaming headsets or products scream for attention with unnecessary gimmicks but the EPOS GTW 270 Hybrid is a beautifully created product. A natural beauty, it doesn’t need make-up to stand out. They come with metal sides and the EPOs logo and have a rather plain but effective design. It comes with a black charging case and the earbuds attach magnetically. The case is in fact a small power bank as the earbuds can charge without having to be plugged into a wall socket.
That brings me to another important part of a wireless headset, battery life. One single charge of the earbuds lasts around five hours, I personally found that mark to be closer to four hours. The charging case can store up to 20 hours of playing time, so you’ll easily have enough juice for most gaming occasions. For its expensive price, I was expecting to have a quick charging option. For someone as me who takes the train for three hours a day that earbuds battery life is over pretty fast. One thing I did notice is that the earbuds are very sensitive with tempature changes, maybe that’s why I didn’t reach those advertised five hours of battery life. Dealing with 0°C or lower that battery life is far below four hours, but that’s something that every headset has to deal with and not a mechanical fault from EPOS.
How is the sound quality?
We’re over 500 words and I haven’t even started to write about the most important part. How is the sound quality from the EPOS GTW 270 Hybrid? Sorry if this part gets a bit too technical, considering the price I wasn’t entirely convinced about the quality. Clarity is excellent but it is far from sounding natural. Having good clarity benefits voices and footsteps in videogames, which is definitely a positive. Things take a wrong turn with the increased boost bass, even with tinkering with sound settings it stays very overly present. For earbuds the volume can be put very loud, I tested a few cheaper similar devices and that’s one thing I noticed immediately. Compared to headphones of the same price it is still an unfair fight, but it makes sense that this type of product can’t have the same sound quality as regular over ear headphones. Also important to say is that the earbuds have a lag-free performance, not a small thing to overlook while playing videogames.
There is a few more things I wish to write about the EPOS GTW 270 Hybrid. I’m glad that the earbuds stay comfortably in my ears even while doing some games like Just Dance. It can be used in (light) rain too, the earbuds are awesome to use while running out in the wild! Pairing the earbuds is pretty easy and can be done by Bluetooth or the USB-C dongle that is included. Quick switching between devices is possible, as the earbuds have multipoint support. Just don’t forget to update your device if you decide to purchase it with the EPOS gaming suite app, as most features require an update. Another useful feature is aptX, resulting in a much higher audio quality for Android users.
Conclusion!
We have a pretty big elephant in the room as the device simply doesn’t work with Xbox consoles. A large part of our readers might find that a dealbreaker. As primarily an Xbox gamer I highly agree with that but for Nintendo Switch owners this is a highly recommended product. The EPOS GTW 270 Hybrid is still something useful for Xbox gamers though, as cloud gaming is becoming more and more popular. Even non-gamers that listen to music or watch Netflix on a tablet, laptop, or smartphone the earbuds are extremely comfortable and much better than anything else I tried in the earbuds market. Not everyone wants to wear a headphone, so these wireless earbuds are an option to consider.
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