Ferox means "fierce" in Latin. It's the name given to Razer's latest set of speakers, which also happens to be highly portable. The Ferox uses a highly compact design with hidden drivers that spring out when activated. The speakers use a clever use of technology to generate powerful omnidirectional sound. They also have their own built-in battery, so you can use them while on the move. But will such tiny speakers be able to deliver audio quality that would be up to Razer's high standards? Read on to find out.
Design
The Razer Ferox is by far the coolest set of portable speakers we have seen. When closed, they are incredibly tiny and each speaker can sit in the palm of your hand. On top, you will see the Razer logo, the sides are matte finished and the bottoms have rubber grip along with a port for connecting the speaker cable. Inside each of these speakers is a driver, a resonance chamber, amplifier and a battery.
Design
The Razer Ferox is by far the coolest set of portable speakers we have seen. When closed, they are incredibly tiny and each speaker can sit in the palm of your hand. On top, you will see the Razer logo, the sides are matte finished and the bottoms have rubber grip along with a port for connecting the speaker cable. Inside each of these speakers is a driver, a resonance chamber, amplifier and a battery.
To activate the speakers, you have to press on top of them, which activates a spring loaded mechanism and reveals the driver hidden beneath. The driver is pointed upwards but thanks to an inverted cone place right above it, the sound is dispersed sideways and out through the metal grille. Hidden below each speaker is a resonance chamber which helps amplify the sound from the small speakers.
Underneath each speaker is a cool blue ring surrounding the base. The light turns on when the speakers are connected to a cable and open. If the speakers are charging, the lights blink. If the battery is running low, the lights turn red. Unfortunately, you cannot switch them off if they bother you or if you want to save some power.
The speaker cable has a USB port and a 3.5mm headphone jack at one end and two mini USB ports on the other end. The USB cable can be plugged into your computer for charging, although Razer doesn't provide a USB charger, so if you don't have a computer around when the battery dies, you are out of luck. The mini USB ports on the other ends go to each of the speakers. They provide the speakers with power as well as sound signal.
Razer also provides a handy pouch, for carrying the speakers and the cable.
Performance
We tested the speakers with multiple sound sources, which included a mobile phone, a laptop and a PC sound card. We also tested them with music, movies as well as gaming.
The first thing that you will notice about the sound is that there is very little bass in it, not surprising considering the size of the speakers although we hoped Razer would have performed some of its technical voodoo on them to make them magically sound more powerful, the way Bose does. The other thing we noticed was that the mid-range was exceptionally powerful and clear. In fact it was a bit too clear and dominated the sound. The high-end was reasonably clear and loud.
We tested the speakers with multiple sound sources, which included a mobile phone, a laptop and a PC sound card. We also tested them with music, movies as well as gaming.
The first thing that you will notice about the sound is that there is very little bass in it, not surprising considering the size of the speakers although we hoped Razer would have performed some of its technical voodoo on them to make them magically sound more powerful, the way Bose does. The other thing we noticed was that the mid-range was exceptionally powerful and clear. In fact it was a bit too clear and dominated the sound. The high-end was reasonably clear and loud.
Because of this particular sound signature, the audio quality of the Ferox wasn't particularly suited for music. Unless you are an undemanding user, the Ferox would sound a bit nasal to you and the lack of bass does not help much. If you are an undemanding user though, we wonder why you spent so much on these speakers in the first place.
The lack of bass was obvious when we tried some movies on these speakers. However, the mid-range was the saving grace and it helped the Ferox deliver the dialogues with aplomb. However, we got the best performance out of them while gaming, which is not a surprise as Razer primarily focuses on gaming accessories. While playing NFS: Shift, the sound of the roaring engines sounded surprisingly powerful and authentic. Even when playing the multiplayer demo of Crysis 2, the sound of guns and team mates sounded very well. It was as though the tiny speakers suddenly enlarged when we started playing games, delivering an astonishingly full bodied sound.
The best part about the speaker design is that it projects sound in every direction. This helps the speakers project an amazingly wide soundstage. If you close your eyes, it would be hard to tell where the speakers are located, provided you are playing the right content.
Verdict
The Razer Ferox is priced at Rs. 3,999 (MRP) but you may be able to get it at a lesser price. The Ferox is an amazingly tiny set of speakers that delivers a rather big sound. But the problem with it is that the sound is more suited for gaming than music, which is what most people would want to buy it for. If it is gaming that you would use it for, wouldn't it make sense to invest in a bigger set of speakers? And if you want to use it on the move, wouldn't it make more sense to invest in a pair of headphones? As such, although the Ferox is quite a nice set of speakers, it is also completely useless for most people.
