So like I said in the full review, the Razer Kaira Pro are a decent xbox wireless headset
that has very impressive build quality. And in general Razer has been knocking it out
the park when it comes to build quality regarding a lot of their other products. But today we’re
going to compare the Kaira Pro’s to the steel series Arctis 1 which has been my go
to gaming headset for a while now.
Regarding pricing the, the Acrtis 1’s retail for $100 where as the kaira pro’s retail
for $150. An 800 dogecoin difference. Now there’s also the standard Kaira’s which
don’t have bluetooth, a shorter battery life and no RGB. Now whether you decide to
go with the standard Kaira’s or the Kaira’s Pro there are still some very fundamental
and crucial differences between the kaira’s and the Arctis 1’s. But nonetheless if you
want to pick either of these two headsets up they’ll be linked down below.
Now first we’ve got to talk about build quality. Plainly said the Kaira Pro’s are
in a whole other league when it comes to build quality. This headset is using sturdier textured
plastics, these ear cups swivel much smoother, this exposed stainless headband looks more
premium and has a better click to it and in general the kaira’s feel way sturdier in
your hands. Where as with the Arctis 1’s this headset has decent build quality… but
it feels much flimsier when compared to the Kaira’s.
However when it comes to fit and comfort thats a whole other story. Now both of these headsets
have spacious ear pads that should have no problem accommodating most ear types. And
more both of these headsets have fabric ear pads, which means they’re way more breathable
than leatherette ear pads so both of these headsets are going to keep your ears nice
and cool even after long gaming sessions in summer nights. However the major fit difference
between these two headsets is their weight. The Kaira Pro’s weigh in at 330 which in
general is a little heavy for a pair of headphones. Where as the Arctis 1’s weigh in at 263
grams. So with the Arctis 1’s you actually forget that you’re wearing this headset
when you’re gaming where as with the Kaira’s not so much. So over all both of these headsets
fit well and they both have very spacious and breathable ear pads that are going to
keep your ears nice and cool… but personally I do prefer to wear the Acrtis 1’s cuase
of their lighter weight. But I can’t deny that the Razer’s simply out class the Acrtis
1’s when it comes to build quality.
But now lets talk about tech specs, when it comes to battery life the Arctis 1’s have
an advertised battery life of 20 hours. Where as the Kaira Pro’s have an advertised battery
life of 15 hours, but thats with their RGB turned on. But with their RBG turned off the
Kaira Pro’s have an advertised battery life of 20 hours. Now I don’t know about you
but I would much rather have a longer battery than have my Razer logo light up.
However when it comes to charging these headsets… the Arctis 1’s charge via a micro USB port
which is more convenient if you’re still using an Xbox One. But if you’re using an
Xbox Series then the Kaira’s are more convenient cause they charge via a USB C port.
Now when it comes to connectivity keep in mind both of these headsets work with either
the new Xbox Series X or Xbox Series S and they both work with the last ten Xbox one
x and Xbox One S. And when it comes to performance I ahem zero complaints, they both just connect
to your Xbox when you power them on, they don’t have any latency issues and they never
cut out.
However the kaira pro’s connect directly to your Xbox, there are no other transmitters
to plug in. Where as the Acrtis 1’s do have a transmitter which could be a good thing
for gamers that might have other consoles like lets say a playstation, switch, or you
can just plug this transmitter into your PC and just start playing.
However, the Kaira Pro’s do have bluetooth so if you want to use this headset as a normal
pair of headphones and listen to music or watch a video on you phone you can do that.
Where as with the Arctis 1’s you can use them with your phone but you gotta plug in
the transmitter which is just an accident waiting to happen. But more importantly with
the Kaira Pro’s you can actually play a game and listen to a podcast off your phone
at the same time. Which is something you just can’t do with the Arctis 1’s.
But one very important thing to keep in mind here is that the Kaira Pro’s don’t have
an audio jack. So if you’re in the middle of a game and your headset dies you’re not
going to be able to rush and plug them into your Xbox controller and at the very least
finish up your game. And I general this headset needs to be powered on to work. You can’t
use them passively. So you gotta make sure that this headset stays charged.
Where as the Arctis 1 does have an audio jack. So if this headset dies on you mid game or
if you just don’t have time to charge them up cause your friends are telling you to get
on now you can just use them with a wired connection and unlike the Kaira’s they work
passively. So overall connectivity wise the Arctis 1’s are much more robust. You can
use them with multiple consoles and you PC right out of the box, and if they were to
die on you you can always just use them with a wired connection.
Where as with the Kaira Pro’s this is a headset that you mainly gotta use with an
Xbox and you gotta make sure that they stays charged. However they do have Bluetooth so
you can game with this headset and listen to a podcast at the same time. Which is great
for people who might like to play sandbox or open world games.
But now lets talk about sound, over all both of these headsets sound good. They both get
more than loud enough, they both have good clarity, distortion isn’t a problem and
they both have good physicality to their bass. However if you’re a competitive player that
plays a lot of FPS’s I do prefer the Acrtis 1’s cause it has dynamic range compression.
What dynamic range compression does it that it reduces the volume of loud sounds and amplifies
the volume of quite sounds. Meaning that if you’re playing some shooter for me lets
say apex and you have this headset at a higher volume so that you can listen for those foot
steps and other nuanced sounds… if you get caught in a gun fight youre not going to go
deaf from all of those gun shots cause the Dynamic range comparison will lower the volume
of those gun shots. Which is great.
Where as with the Kaira Pro’s if you’re playing with them at a higher volume listening
for those foot steps if you get caught in a gun fight you are going to go deaf cause
their gun shoots are super loud. So if you don’t want to go deaf then you are going
to have to lower their volume. But if you lower their volume too much than it might
be a little harder listening for those foot steps or other nuanced sounds.
So even though the Kaira Pro’s sounds great if you’re a competitive FPS player personally
I do recommend the Arctis 1’s cause of their dynamic range compression, cuase you are going
to get a slightly competitive advantage. Or at the very least you’re not going to get
deaf if you’re caught in a close quarter gun fight.
Now both of these headsets also have customizable EQ’s and you can have different EQ settings
for different games. However if you want to mess around with the EQ settings on the Acrtis
1’s you gotta do so from your computer. So there is a bit of trial and error when
you’re trying to adjust the Arctis 1 cause you gotta move the receiver from your Xbox
to you computer and back until you get the set up that you ultimately like.
Where as with the Kaira’s its app can be found on the Xbox itself. So you can mess
around with your EQ settings and switch between different gaming profiles for different games
on the fly.
But finally here’s the microphone test. Now keep in mind you can adjust how both of
these microphones sounds but for this test we’re using these microphones with their
stock eq’s. Now over all the Razer’s sound clear and natural.
Where as the Arctis 1 sounds little more amplified and artificial. But personally I kinda prefer
the more artificial sound cuase I feel me voice is easier to hear.
But more importantly, the Arctis 1 does do a little bit of a better job blocking out
ambient noise. Cuase if I were to stay quite… you do hear some background noise… but not
as much as the Kaira’s
Where as with the Kaira’s, they don’t block out at much noise as the Arctis 1…
so if you’re playing in a hot summer night with the AC unit turned on you’ll might
be a little of a distraction for your teammates.
But with all that being said, both of these headsets are great. But when it comes to choosing
between the Arctis 1 and Kaira Pro’s… personally I feel the Arctis 1’s are the
more robust choice. From a functionally standpoint you can use them with more than just your
Xbox, you can easily swap between any of your consoles thanks to their transmitter. And
if this headset were to die on you mid game then you can still just use them with a wired
connection and use them passively.
From a sound quality standpoint, if you’re a competitive FPS player than you’ll definitely
want to go with the Arctis 1 cuase of its dynamic range compression. You’re going
to be able to use this headset at a higher volume to listen for those nuanced sounds
that will help you track your oppentes, but youre not going to go deaf from super loud
gun shots.
And then there’s their fit, I personally prefer to wear the Arctis 1’s cause of their
lighter weight… But I can’t deny that the Kaira Pro’s have far better build quality
than the Arctis 1, so that feel way more premium. They also have USB C charging which is great
if you’ve got an Xbox series X or Xbox Series S… and if you’re someone that likes to
play more open world games than being able to play your game and listen to a podcast
at the same time is pretty great.