Review: Edifier GM3 Wireless Gaming Earphones
3 min read
Edifier GM3
RM 229
Pros
- Decent build quality
- Unique bass experience
- Detachable microphone
- Excellent voice quality
- Good battery life
Cons
- Huge earpiece
Mobile gaming has been on the rise and the removal of 3.5mm audio jack from smartphones means that wireless gaming audio is something we will be seeing more and more in the coming future. That said, Edifier has stepped up their game and sent us their answer to the “3.5mm audio jack apocalypse” with the Edifier GM3 Bluetooth gaming earphones.
Edifier GM3 Specifications
| Driver Unit | 10 mm full-range drivers 10 mm ultra-low frequency vibration driver unit |
| Bluetooth | Bluetooth 5.0 |
| Profiles | HFP, HSP, A2DP, AVRCP |
| Battery | 185 mAh; 12 hours |
| Frequency Response | 20 – 20 000 Hz |
| Sound Pressure Level | 94 dB |
| Nominal Impedance | 16 Ohm |
| Weight | 15.6 grams |
What’s in the box
- Edifier GM3
- Detachable microphone
- micro USB cable
- Replacement wingtips and ear tips
- Cloth carrying bag
- Paper documentation
User Experience
My first impression with the Edifier GM3 is the massive earpiece it comes with. There’s a good reason behind such design, to accommodate a second ultra-low frequency driver for bass, a vibrating type of driver at that. Yes, you read it right. The secondary driver will vibrate *ever slightly to increase the immersive-ness of the audio experience. Its effect is prominent in Game mode which can be enabled by double-pressing the side button on the inline-controller.
While I can’t really tell if the earpiece is actually vibrating or not, like those vibrating earphones in the market, at least the bass *feels* punchier than any in-ear earphones I have ever tried. Yes, they sound rather artificial but those are rather good at interpreting bass or game sound effect into action. So bass heads should really get their hands on a pair of GM3.
As for those who were curious about the audio latency especially in gaming, sadly Bluetooth wireless gaming still will have latency up to 500 milliseconds. Unless phones and headphones picking up aptX LL streaming codec, else we won’t be solving this issue anytime. Nasi Lemak Tech has a brilliant article about Bluetooth audio delay.
Besides that, we’re not going to ignore the fact that we are now getting LEDs on our wireless earphones, sans the ability to do RGB stuff. Of course, leaving the LEDs turned on will reduce the battery life, from 12 hours to 9 hours, which is somewhere around 25% reduction.
The detachable microphone is connected via the 2.5mm audio jack on the left earpiece and it has LED as well. Instead of showing the microphone’s status, the lighting here serves as an aesthetic purpose only. On that side note, the microphone has reasonably good recording quality for gaming communication purposes.
The inline controller is a massive block that hangs on your right earpiece and we have another battery block on the right side. I mean you gonna need all those battery cells to power all those drivers and LED lights.
Final Words
For casual gamers who are looking for a wireless solution in mobile gaming, the Edifier GM3 offers a full package with clear audio quality as well as a better microphone for team communications. If you want to look cool while streaming your gameplay, it has LED lighting albeit just in red colour. Last by not least, at the price tag of RM229, this is probably the most affordable wireless gaming earphones available locally.
