Thank you, that is indeed the one decent comparison I've been able to find. It omits a few devices of interest however.

Can anyone recommend a good article comparing the sound quality of current smartphones?   Google isn't helping much, & neither is this 236-page thread, started in 2013, composed mainly of minutia concerning individual devices.

The latest iOS update has generally wrecked Apple's stock podcast app, which has one nice feature: it lets you search for podcast guests. I also use one other podcast app, called Casts. It was highly recommended by several websites, but it doesn't allow searching for guests' names. I'm less...

  But dude, I thought it was treble that was more likely to cause fatigue? That's what I read in the dialogues on the Head-Fi, anyway.

During my phase of buying every $200-$300 earphone that achieved much acclaim, I found myself keeping a $30 Sennheiser-branded earphone with me for use with streaming video. These had a much warmer and more bass-heavy sound than the triple-armature phones I preferred for music, and I found they...

As the Kindle has surpassed all competitors in the area of screen quality, I'm optimistic that the audio may be strong as well.   I suppose I'll just have to take some earphones to a Best Buy later this week and hear for myself.

I was about to start this thread myself. There are so many professional reviews that praise the hardware, and I know the screen is superior to the iPad Air's--but no one comments on the sound quality via earphones. I'm particularly curious if the volume is sufficient, or it low as with the Nexus 7.

Has anyone found Android 4.4.2 improves the volume issue?

Out of curiosity, what's behind the apparently persistent low volume of Nexus devices? I could barely watch Netflix on my Nexus 7 when in public--couldn't hear dialogue.   I swore off Google products after my experience with the 7, but the 5 is so attractive as hardware. This is real...

Has anyone compared the sound quality of the Air vs the iPhone 5s?

  Have any technology writers of any reputation expressed this opinion--or is it something that has only flourished on this groupthink-plagued web forum? 

The thread is now about the thread, rather than its subject. So the thread has become useless.   I am well aware of the following points that have unnecessarily been made:   1. One can block out noise by using music. The thread did not ask about this. Furthermore, everyone knows that music...

  What prevents it from being true?    Lower price? Consensus among message board users?

I listened to both the P3 and the P5 in an Apple Store today and the P3 was obviously better.

No.   Yes, they're cheap.   Thank you for the post.

I listened to these in an Apple store today and was shocked. I've been skeptical of this brand in the past (all looks?), but the quality seemed the best of any small headphone I've ever tried. I may have liked the sound signature better than any I've encountered since the UE TF10.   And in a...

Quote:     No, I do not think I need medical treatment. I think we are in an era when people are coping very poorly with their use and abuse of public space. There is plenty of writing about this. Some of us still enjoy activities which require mental focus.   I do sometimes think...

jaddie, if you don't mind, I'd prefer to hear from people who (a.) have experience or information bearing on the thread's topic and (b.) can read. Thanks.

Quote:   I explained clearly why using my music collection to mask noise is unacceptable to me.   "External hearing protectors"--you're suggesting I wear a large headpiece, in public settings. Yeah, I don't think so.   The invasive noise is any noise. As I've written, I want to...

But surely a central motive of "audiophilia" is to keeps one's favorite music alive to oneself in the way that it inevitably was when one first discovered it.   I don't think using it as sonic wallpaper facilitates that.   I would ideally like a switch, on the side of my neck, that I...

I'm so easily annoyed by others' noise that I've seriously fantasized about being deaf.   I'd happily pay a few hundred dollars for custom plugs if they were the equal of perfectly-inserted foams.

Most (if not all) of the custom earplugs I read about are intended to reduce noise levels while allowing you to still hear accurately. I'm not interested in that. I'm wondering what will block out sound, and hence distractions, most completely.    I've tried several brands of foam earplugs...

I'd had mine for only a few months, but the durability is said to be unparalleled. Opticians will often twist and abuse them before the prospective customer to demonstrate how they always return to their original shape.   The cost, I'm afraid, is between $495 and $550 in America. Color and...

Try a frame like Lindberg's Corona. The temples have about the same diameter as the metal in a thick paperclip, and are very, very flexible.

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