- Soon Kai Hong
Logitech G435 Wireless Gaming Headset Review: Wireless Freedom Without Breaking The Bank
Logitech has been in the audio game for quite a long time now and most of which have been received with high praise. High-end offerings like the G Pro X Wireless has really been a hit with that professional yet minimalistic design or you can go full RGB and rock that style with the G733 which even includes a K/DA variant. But here comes the G435 that's really unlike anything before it especially when it comes to style and design. It might just be a hit or a miss depending on what you like, but at a price of just about 109 SGD or 79.99 USD, perhaps you wouldn't mind it that much?
Well, let's first start off with the design and build quality.
In all aspects, the design is quite the departure from what Logitech usually offers. It is still on the simpler and minimalist side of things but is now definitely much more fun looking especially more so depending on the color scheme that you choose. For our review unit, we have arguably the most distinct colorway out of the three available. Logitech calls this Blue and Raspberry and we can certainly see the semblance.
In fact, this gaming headset doesn't just appeal to the budget-oriented, but to kids as well, especially for this colorway. The overall size of the headset is smaller than most of the competition out there and on Logitech's website, they do state that the G435 is optimized for the comfort of younger players and those with smaller heads. We'll delve more into that later.
We daresay that if you're looking to use this headset in a slightly more professional setting, the Black and Neon Yellow or the Off-White and Lilac colorways will certainly fit much better and while they do look less funky, they will still retain the overall fun design.
In terms of the build quality, it's primarily made out of plastic which does make it feel cheap for lack of a better word. But conversely, an all plastic build does give it one huge advantage and that's weight. Weighing in at just 165 grams, the G435 is seriously light to the point that we could wear it for hours on end without any fatigue and at times, even forgot that it was there.
We would've liked extra padding on the headband however, for there is just a thin sheet of fabric adorning the entire length of it. In addition, the headband isn't even a full headband. The center portion is hollow and that means there isn't even any padding within the middle portion of it. The earcup cushions on the other hand are pretty good. It's mainly a mesh fabric here unlike most hybrid fabric leatherette types you see nowadays. This made it rather comfortable on your skin and has plenty of air to breath, which is quite an important aspect to consider here in Singapore. The clamping force was also within reason. Not too strong, but not too light either. Just about right.
In terms of audio, this is as common as most gaming headsets get.
You can expect a 40mm dynamic driver in each earcup which has a frequency response of 20Hz to 20KHz, an impedance of 45Ω and a sensitivity of 83.1dB SPL/mW. Interestingly enough, it has a max volume of <100dB but there's an optional limiter at <85dB. If you didn't know, the 85dB mark is quite important as that's the volume you would start to risk noise-induced hearing loss. We would say it's a nice touch especially if a kid is to use this. Granted, you will need to be listening to that volume for at least 8 hours or more to have any risk of damage to your hearing but considering gaming sessions nowadays and how a kid can be stuck to the screen for hours on end, it might not be too far-fetched per se.
But what can you expect with regards to the sound quality? Well in a nutshell, it is to be expected given the price. For generic and casual listening, it is decent enough to enjoy. In games, it is plenty of fun especially with gunfire and explosions and whatnot. To be more detailed however, the headset does emphasize a little more on the low-end and mids and while it can still retain a little on the highs, that is definitely not the focus on the tuning here. Isolation is also decent enough given the use of the fabric earpads, but your experience may differ depending on the size and shape of your ears and your head.
We listened to Stand By Me by Florence + The Machine and Hollow by Yosh from Survive Said The Prophet.
In Stand By Me, the clarity of the harp during the opening was clear and precise and vocals came off strong with enough punch while still remaining relatively clean. The only part which isn't as clean was when the electric bass came in to play. Just like most other gaming headsets, the bass isn't as overpowering but it does lack the punch that you might be expecting. Overall however, it was still a relatively enjoyable experience.
In Hollow by Yosh, the opening really does come off strong no less thanks to the combination of the bassy intro, the rapid drums and the constant highs of the guitar strings. Things get a little more chaotic when the vocals come into play, but everything is still pretty well balanced. Throughout the chorus, you'll mainly be treated to nice clean vocals. The only portion that was a little underwhelming was when it was purely instrumental. While you could hear most of everything that's going on, you can't really isolate and identify each and every instrument with ease. Though that's also partly because of the narrow soundstage.
Again, we have to reiterate. You'll still fairly enjoy your time listening to music and watching YouTube or Netflix or more on this headset, but this is definitely not the primary focus here.
Gaming is where it's at, so we fired up a couple of games to see what's what. Or rather to hear what's what? Anyways.
CS:GO was the first game we tired and honestly? It was a great experience. Everything was well-balanced and you could definitely hear the footsteps of incoming enemies with pretty accurate positional tracking and the sound effects of gunfire and explosion definitely made the experience much more alive. Now it's not going to rumble you or anything like that but that might in turn be better in such a competitive game like CS:GO.
The next game we tried was Genshin Impact. For this specific title, it was a little mixed. In terms of overall gameplay, it was fine. The sound effects from animations such as swinging your sword, using your elemental skills and your ultimate, they all sounded great and on point. Combine that with the battle music that plays in the background, and the overall experience was fairly enjoyable. The mixed feelings come only when you're simply traversing the world and out of combat and you want to fully immerse yourself in the music that's unique from place to place, region to region within the game. Perhaps because most of the tracks were mastered with a full sized orchestra, you do find it a little lacking. We can't really explain what is it exactly, but it's things like the clarity of the flutes, the subtle nuance of the erhu and guzheng amongst many other things. It just feels a little lacking. But with that said, it is still an enjoyable experience, no doubt about that.
But the main reason you would want to get a headset is probably because of the inclusion of a microphone. After all, if you really want to enjoy music, you would grab a proper pair of headphones and have a dedicated microphone instead.
The G435 employs a dual beamforming microphone design with a frequency response of 100Hz to 8KHz. In simpler terms, it is a virtual boom arm. In essence, instead of having a physical boom arm with a microphone attached at the end, the microphones that are built into the left earcup feature a specific pickup pattern that will focus on the area where a normal boom arm would usually be. What this promises is microphone quality as good as a with a boom arm, but without it.
In practice however? It doesn't really perform as great as a proper boom arm but it is definitely not too bad at all.
It sounds good enough, especially if you're just going to use this over Discord or Teamspeak while gaming. Your voice will come off pretty clear and it doesn't pick up too much background noise as long you're in a reasonably quiet environment like your own room or perhaps at the office.
Here's a microphone sample for you all to have a listen.
Now this next point might be a pro or a con depending on how you see things. To set the record, we see it a as pro.
For a start, this particular headset from Logitech does not support Logitech G Hub for any further customization or control. Everything you would like to do with the headset has to be done on the headset itself, physically. The left earcup is where you'll find all the controls. The power button, volume up and down, mic mute button as well as the USB-C port for charging. Here's a table detailing the steps you have to do for any of the functions available on the headset.
As we've mentioned, we personally find the lack of a application to support it as a pro. This is ultimately an entry level wireless headset and it is literally plug and play, zero fuss. At this price, we aren't really expecting some of the higher-end features from Logitech here either. It is what it is, you get what you get and in that regard, it performs decently enough and easy enough.
In terms of connectivity, this is where it falls short slightly. There are two ways of connecting the G435 to a device of your choice. Through the Lightspeed dongle or via Bluetooth. The dongle should be your main method of connectivity as it offers the best experience. Our main use case was definitely the PC. But you can connect to your PlayStation 4 or 5 and your docked Nintendo Switch as well. Unfortunately, you won't be able to use this with your Xbox Series S or X console. Microsoft being Microsoft. If you choose to go with Bluetooth, you can easily connect to your smartphone, Nintendo Switch in handheld mode and more. Basically anything that supports audio over Bluetooth. In addition, the headset does support AAC so iOS users can get access to slightly better quality audio.
But here's the downside, there is no support for multipoint connectivity via Bluetooth. Unlike other offerings out there, you won't be able to connect to two devices at a time. So if you were intending to have one headset to rule them all, this isn't it chief.
To redeem itself a little however, battery life is pretty good. Logitech does claim up to 18 hours on a single charge and charging it up to full was relatively fast enough in our experience. In practice, it did last up to 18 hours and a little more. As long your gaming sessions aren't too long, this should last you a good few days of gaming.
So ultimately, how is the Logitech G435?
If you're looking for an entry level wireless gaming headset that can do almost pretty much everything, while being really light on your head and you don't mind the slightly more funky design and colors, this is quite the value. In fact, you will constantly find this on sale at roughly 89 SGD or 59.99 USD quite easily and at that price, this is seriously hard to beat given what it is capable of.
In essence, the Logitech G435 Lightspeed Wireless Gaming Headset is a jack of all trades, master of none.
However we do have to again mention, some of its shortcomings.
The lack of multipoint connectivity, the fact that the overall design is slightly smaller so it might not fit you well, the overall cheap feeling plastic design and lack thereof of materials and such. As long you're fine with all that, it is a decent wireless gaming headset through and through.
You get what you pay for. Wireless freedom without breaking the bank.