Boat Rockerz 330 Wireless Neckband Review: Yay or Nay?

The local brand Boat has been growing in popularity in the budget audio category over the past few years. And, the Rockerz 330 neckband is a recent addition to their wireless audio portfolio. In addition to good audio quality at an affordable price, this product boasts of close to 30 hours of battery backup, fast charging and more. Time to put those claims to test!

The build quality of the Boat Rockerz 330 is pretty good for the price class, though not exceptional. Realme products offer a bit more finesse in this department. The product is quite light, and the soft, rubberized neckband sits comfortably on the neck without any skin irritation even after extended use. The medium sized ear tips provided good passive noise isolation in my case, and there is a smaller and larger pair in the bundle in case medium doesn't feel right. The earbuds fit snugly thanks to the silicone tips, and the fins provide a reassuring grip, especially when you take this neckband along for a jog or to the gym. Speaking of workouts, these earphones are IPX5 rated moisture resistant, and can easily withstand more than a few drops of sweat or a bit of a drizzle.

There are three buttons on the inline control pod, and the key press is just right. The volume control is placed on the inner side, while the multifunction button with the company logo is located at the back. The buttons are easy to access, however, the placement of volume up and down key is reversed. Volume up is located below the volume down button, and you often end up lowering the volume when looking to increase it, and vice versa. These three buttons let you control all the key functions ranging from volume control, play/pause, skipping to next/previous track, answering/ending/rejecting calls etc. Each earbud is fitted with a 10mm dynamic driver. The back of the buds have magnetic tips, but unlike neckbands from OnePlus, OPPO or Realme, they do not act as an on/off switch when separated or stuck. Their sole purpose is to keep the buds together when not in use and nothing more. These earphones support SBC and AAC codecs over Bluetooth 5.0. They do not support Qualcomm's aptX codecs, but not many earphones at this price-point do.

Pairing this Boat neckband with a smartphone is a simple and standard process. All you need to do is keep the multifunction key pressed for a few seconds to get it into pairing mode, find the neckband in the list of Bluetooth devices on the phone and pair them. The Rockerz 330 supports dual pairing too; in simple words, it can connect to two devices simultaneously. Wireless range is as advertised with the neckband retaining a strong connection up to 10 meters without any obstruction in between the source device and the neckband, and about half of that with a concrete wall in between. These numbers are perfectly acceptable.

The sound output of this wireless neckband is noticeably different on SBC and AAC codecs. That is highly unusual, and while it is unintentional on the company's part, it leads to something really interesting that I will touch upon shortly. To begin with, these earphones are sufficiently loud even at 50% volume level. However, the sound starts to distort at high volume upwards of 75%. But in most cases, you won't need to push the loudness that high. With AAC codecs enabled in the Bluetooth settings, the Boat Rockerz 330 produces a bass heavy sound. While a lot of users like extra bass, there is too much emphasis on it here, which in turn impacts the midrange frequencies. There is noticeable auditory masking in the mids with certain instruments and vocal clarity getting compromised. The highs are reasonably sharp without sounding sibilant, but the bass still dominates, making the output sound a bit soft and with low details. The soundstage is decently broad for the segment. Technically speaking, AAC codecs are supposed to be superior to SBC. But switching off AAC on this neckband (and automatically switching to SBC) significantly improves the sound quality. There is a noticeable reduction in bass, and as a result, more clarity in the midrange spectrum. The highs sound just right too. There is still ample warmth in the sound but the overall output feels a lot more balanced. Now, sound quality can be subjective and a matter of individual taste. If you like the sound profile on SBC, great! But if you feel the bass is inadequate, you can simply switch AAC on from the Bluetooth settings. Thus, unintentionally, you get two sound profiles here that can cater to two different tastes.

Call quality: The call quality on this neckband is quite impressive with both parties perfectly audible to each other. Even when outdoors, it suppresses most of the ambient noise with very little seeping through, but not enough to negatively impact the conversation. This is quite impressive for a budget neckband. Strangely, the company hasn't bothered to highlight this aspect of the product. Battery life: The battery backup of the Rockerz 330 is one of its key selling points, and it does not disappoint. The earphones managed to last close to 25 hours at approximately three hours of music playback and 10 minutes of calling per day. You get a USB-C port here, which is good to see, and it supports fast charging too. The neckband can be fully charged in less than 45 minutes. If it's out of juice and you are in a hurry, just 10 minutes of charging can give you roughly eight hours of play time. Yes, the company mentions 10 hours, but even eight is good enough for a budget neckband.

The Boat Rockerz 330 sells for Rs. 1,499 with a one year warranty. It often drops to Rs. 1,299 in online sales and other promotions. It would make sense for the company to permanently price it at Rs. 1,299, which it incidentally launched at. Once you get closer to Rs. 1,500, the competition gets stiffer. For instance, the year old Boat Rockerz 335, which is pretty much the Rockerz 330 with support for Qualcomm's aptX codecs and a magnetic on/off switch, sells for Rs. 1,599, making it a better choice over the 330 if both sport a similar price-tag. You also have the newly launched Realme Buds Wireless 2 Neo for a similar price that flaunts a better design, has customizable sound and other tweaks through the companion app, but the battery backup is not as stellar. Neither of these earphones will disappoint you, but if seriously long battery life is what you seek under Rs. 1,500, the Boat Rockerz 330 is your best bet.