Most products out there aren’t perfect,
far from it, but many have redeeming qualities that will make up for
a lot of bad things about them. Every once in a while though I’ll get
a product that is just downright bad and doesn’t even come close to
doing what it’s supposed to do. Our ratings system here is a bit
different than other sites, even if a product gets a perfect 5 out of
5, that doesn’t mean it’s perfect and flawless with no issues, it
just means that it does what it’s advertised to do and/or exceeds the
expectations of the product. It’s one that is worth buying as it
performs as it should and it’s a quality product.
Today I’ve got a quick review for you
of a product that I could only describe as horrible. Our friends over
at GearZap have sent me over a pair of portable speakers for review
and I’m guessing they’re regretting it now. These speakers are USB
powered and meant to be used with your laptop or netbook and they
sound terrible, just full of static and crackling sounds. With one of
my netbooks when I plug them in my netbook turns off! It’s not the
netbook, I’ve used other portable speakers and many other devices
with it with no issues, it’s the speakers themselves that have a
problem somewhere. So read on if you want to, but you don’t have to
as it’s not even worth the read!
Product
Name: Trust
SoundForce USB Powered Portable Speakers Reviewed
Author: Kristofer
Brozio
Sponsor: GearZap
Tech
Specs,Features or the Basic Info:
Trust
SoundForce USB Powered Portable Speakers
If you’re tired of the sound
coming from your integrated netbook or laptop speakers then this is
the perfect solution. Powered by the USB port on your notebook, the
Trust SoundForce Portable Speakers will enhance your audio pleasure.
Product Features
* Portable stereo speaker set –
ideal for notebook use
* USB powered – no wall power
needed
* Use it anywhere you like,
even outside your home or office
* No standby power consumption
to help saving our environment
* Easy accessible power button
and volume control at the front
Price: about $17 US dollars
A
Better Look at Things:
The speakers come in a small box
and they’re wrapped in bubble wrap for protection. Included in the
box is a brief user manual.
The speakers are black in color
and the right one has power and volume controls on the front. They
have a cloth covering over the front of them.
Here’s views from the side and
back:
They are powered by you USB port
and connect to the standard headphone jack to get the sound.
The speakers are lightweight and
they seem fairly well made, and I like black it goes with most
everything..
Installation,
Testing and Comparison:
So
let’s see, here are the speakers hooked up to my OCZ
Neutrino netbook:
You’ll notice it’s not powered on,
that’s because as soon as I plug the speakers into my USB port the
netbook turns off.
It’s not the netbook itself I know
that, I’ve used many accessories with it, including other portable
speakers and I’ve never had an issue like this.
So
for fun I grabbed my Acer
Aspire One D250 and tried these speakers with it. Now they did work with my Aspire
One, but they sounded just horrible.
I really couldn’t hear them over
the non-stop static and crackling coming from them. I thought maybe
there was interference from the netbook itself somehow so I moved
them as far as the cords would allow and nothing changed. So I can’t
really even tell how they sound as they just wouldn’t even work
correctly for me.
I even tried them with my Asus Eee
PC 900a, and I got the same thing, nonstop static and crackling
sounds…
Summary
and Comments:
It occurs to me we don’t have a
zero out of five score… maybe I should make one huh?
Anyway, these are just bad, maybe
I got a bad set, that happens. As is though, all I can say is stay
away from these particular speakers.
On a side note I did ask GearZap
about them and told them of the issues and that it was going to be a
bad review if I reviewed this particular product they sent me. They
said go ahead and post it and didn’t offer to replace the speakers if
they were defective, and they also didn’t mention anything about
anyone else having these problems either.
So I gave them a chance to replace
the defective product, it’s only fair I think, it happens that some
products are defective, and I’d rather not review one that is
defective but oh well…
DragonSteelMods gives the Trust
SoundForce USB Powered Portable Speakers a 1 out of 5 score.
Pros:
+Seem well made
+Look good
+Small and portable
Cons:
-Horrible sound
-Doesn’t work with all netbooks
correctly
-Constant static and crackling
from the speakers
-Turns me netbook off
review# 638
Disclosure: This product was given to DragonSteelMods for review by the company
for review purposes only, and is not considered by us as payment for
the review, we do not, never have, and never will, accept payment
from companies to review their products.
To
learn more about our review policy, testing methods and ratings
please see this page.