Here at What Gadget, we have reviewed a number of gaming headphones from the likes of Edifier, JBL, Master & Dynamic and most recently the Razer Kaira Pro. This review is our second review from Razer in which we have been reviewing the Kraken BT Hello Kitty & Friends edition which is available for £88 and available from the Razer website, from the What Gadget Store and Amazon.
First Impressions
The Razer Kraken BT Hello Kitty & Friends headphones are designed for young children who love Hello Kitty, love music and gaming and if you check out the below video loves to Meow as seen on many TikTok videos with girls wearing headphones with cat ears on and these videos started to tend. ( Before you ask am not doing a Meow video on TikTok).
Since the videos trended online gaming company Razer released the Kraken BT Hello Kitty & Friends edition which pairs the gaming brand Razer and cartoon Hello Kitty which is very big in Japan & The US together. Razer has also used the Hello Kitty brand to create a number of other gaming accessories such as a gaming chair, mouse and mousepad.
Unboxing
The Unboxing experience with a Kraken BT was a little disappointing I expected a few more accessories or maybe even a headphone case to keep your headphones safe when not in use. All you had was the headphones, user guide and Micro USB to USB-A charge cable. I was surprised Razer decided on using the micro-USB over the more popular USB-C charge cable it’s not a game-changer just surprising.
Design
The headphones are a wireless pair of over-ear Bluetooth headphones that are lightweight at only 298g with an adjustable headband, a circumaural ear cup design and plush leatherette foam ear cushions.
The Kraken BT Hello Kitty & Friends edition comes with 2 triangular ears that are curved at the top and the band also has a pink ribbon just like Hello kitty.
The headphones cups are pink in colour with an image of Hello Kitty in the centre of each cup. When the headphones are powered up the face of Hello Kitty lights up.
Moving to the headband you have the Razer logo and pink stars just above the earcup and in the centre, in between the ears you have “Hello Kitty & Friends” written on the crown of the headphone band.
On the underneath of the band printed on the cushioned padding is a picture of all the characters in Hello Kitty & Friends.
Controls
The controls are all on the left cup. On the left cup from bottom to top is the micro-USB cup, volume wheel, power button and LED status indicator.
Razer has kept the controls simple considering the target audience this is aimed for. The power button is actually a multifunction button yes you have the power on/off by holding the button for 4 seconds, press the button just the once and it will allow you to play/pause your music or allow you to accept or end a call if using these to make/take a phone call. If you press the multifunction button for 2 seconds it will launch your phone’s voice assistant such as Siri or Google Assistant.
The button also allows you to skip or go back to a previous track by either a double or triple press and for those who use these for gaming to activate the gaming you need to triple press and hold for 2 seconds to use the gaming mode which offers a lower latency giving you real-time audio feedback. When activated you will hear a voice telling you it’s activated.
Learning the controls will take a few days and I did find instead of activating the voice assistant I would switch the headphones off but you will soon master this.
Comfort/Audio Quality
The Kraken BT appears to be very comfortable with the use of plush leatherette foam ear cushions and cushioned headbands. This will allow you to get around six to seven hours of use without having to take them off perfect for listening to music or gaming sessions. Razer suggests stretching the headset a little to minimise headband stress. This worked quite well and does minimise clamping pressure.
The Razer Kraken BT does fail to provide a proper seal around the ear and as a result, this does impact the sound quality the lack of seal makes the headphones airy and the highs and mids sound echoey as a result. The listening experience will improve if you push the cups towards your ears and will improve the sound quality. The annoying thing is you might have to keep pushing the cups to keep that improved audio quality.
The sound quality is provided by 40mm drivers which offer a basic listening experience for gamers. The casual gamer will enjoy them which the Kraken BT Hello Kitty & Friends version has been designed for. So audiophiles keep shopping these are not for you. If you are a fan of bass this will also all disappoint when on factory settings. However, if you use the Razer App you can customise the settings and switch to enhanced bass will give you a bit of a better experience.
Connectivity
The Kraken BT is connected using Bluetooth 5.0 and can be connected to your PC, laptop, phone or gaming console. Pairing to any of these devices is a simple process and the connection was stable all the time we were playing games.
The Bluetooth 5.0 also allows you to answer calls due to 2x internal beam forming microphones. When we tested the call quality there was zero disruption when making a call but the headphones lacked clarity and your voice will come out softer.
Verdict
The Kracken BT Hello Kitty & Friends edition is designed for young girls from the age of 8 who enjoy playing games but also like listening to music but are not looking for the audio quality an audiophile will enjoy. The design of the headphones is a big win for those who love Hello Kitty. They still feel like gaming headphones but with a younger feel.
The headphones are fairly comfortable considering the cushioned earcups and reduced headphone clamping force. The functions on these headphones are quite basic and easy to use. The only thing you can complain about is the audio quality is a little limited and it’s not massive on the bass. This can be improved using the Razer App. Apart from that, it ticks a lot of boxes for who they are targeted and the collaboration with Sanrio means you get gaming headphones with that Hello Kitty style.
Product Rating:
Design: 5.0 out of 5.0 stars5.0
Comfort/Fit: 4.0 out of 5.0 stars
Audio Quality: 3.0 out of 5.0 stars
Connectivity: 5.0 out of 5.0 stars5.0
Value For Money: 4.0 out of 5.0 stars
Overall Rating: 4.2 out of 5.0 stars – 4.2 Stars
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