Distributor turned device maker True Blue Voice launched its range of Bluetooth headsets in both stereo and mono mode last year in India and since then the products have become really popular because they are priced just right. True Blue Voice has yet again launched a new line of Bluetooth headsets of which we have the TBV S18 headset for review today. Talk about unconventional designs-the TBV S18 features a unique design which has so far never been used by any headset manufacturer in India. But design is not all there is.
With the advent of multimedia cellphones and smartphones the interest in stereo Bluetooth headsets has increased multifold. Stereo Bluetooth headsets offer all the functionality required by a user to make calls and listen to music while on the move. So let’s check out the TBV S18 headset.
Design
As we earlier said, TBV S18 has the most unconventional design for a stereo Bluetooth headset. It features a retractable folding spring-like bridge between the two earpieces that makes the device easy to store and carry around; While the same design opens up to become the neckband for the headset, providing a snug fit for the user’s ears.
The headset is black all over. The outer casing or shell of the earpieces is casted in glossy black and there is a rubberized ring accented with a glossy button at the center of the shell. The earpieces come with soft foam caps that protect the delicate internals from dust and sweat, which makes the headset comfortable for users to wear for long durations.
The controls are very simple and are placed on the right earpiece. TBV S18 has a five button design with the power/play button in the centre, surrounded by volume control and media control keys.
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Features
True Blue Voice S18 stereo headset uses Quick Pair technology that ensures that the user does not need to provide any passwords or other inputs to connect the device to the mobile phone.
Along with this it also features A2DP v1.2 and AVRCP1.0 profile support to communicate with your phone for multimedia playback and control. With A2DP (Advanced 2 Way Data) connectivity the smartphone can stream music and podcasts to the headset. The headset also has a proprietary micro USB port that is used to charge the device with the supplied charger.
S18 comes with a 230 mAh lithium polymer battery pack that gives it up to 10 hours of music playback time or 11 hours of talk time.
Performance
Users have to keep the centre-most button pressed to switch the device on and the same key when pressed for longer will start blinking blue and red alternately, which indicates pairing mode. Pairing a device takes about 5 seconds after the pairing mode is turned on in both devices. Once paired, the headset reconnects to the paired device each time it finds the Bluetooth of that device on.
The key placement on the right is good as most people are right handed. To pick a call, the centre button needs to be pressed just once and the same button can be pressed again to disconnect the call. Volume and rewind/forward keys take a little getting used to because of their placement and you generally end up pressing the skip button while increasing the volume.
The earpieces aren’t of the best quality, but are certainly not bad and there is no distortion even at full volume. We loved music playback through this headset and found the volume sufficiently loud. Call quality is reasonably good, but you will start getting the best from it in no time.
There is no separate microphone for noise cancellation, though the headset uses software noise leveling technology to filter noise from voice. The system works on the device to reduce ambient noise to a great extent, but does not offer complete noise cancellation.
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Conclusion
True Blue Voice S18 stereo Bluetooth headset comes with a decent set of features and good performance, and with a price tag of Rs 1,799 it makes perfect sense for music lovers to buy this headset. 
S18 offers good sound quality and decent battery life and is good to look at too. The headset comes with two years’ warranty, which is the best the industry is offering right now.