Here at Android Headlines, we love games. So much so that we want to enjoy them in the best possible way. With today’s modern mobile gaming getting ever more elite and closing the gap between console quality gaming and mobile, games are becoming even more complex and in depth, and offering up and complete sensory experience and not just good graphics. Many recent games have immersive stories to tell, intense background music, and just overall great audio to go along with the game. To best experience all that some of today’s mobile and tablet games have to offer, it’s recommended that you play with a set of headphones. That’s where the SteelSeries Siberia Elite come in. If you want to game proper, why not do it with a proper gaming headset? Today we’ll be going over just how well the SteelSeries Siberia Elite works, as well as it’s features and comfort, and all the little extras that come along for the ride.
First lets start with the design since the just about everything begins with the visual side of things. The overall look of the SteelSeries Siberia Elite leaves nothing to be desired, it has a premium quality look about it but isn’t too overstated. The band that connects both earpieces is made up of pliable metal with a brushed silver finish,(you can also get them in white) which makes them simplistic yet elegant and fairly lightweight compared to some other gaming headsets. SteelSeries has added in just a tad bit of flashiness here, giving you spectrum lighting on the outsides of the earcups, and a tiny white led light on the mic that turns on and off when you toggle the power for the mic. For my personal rating I would give the design a 9 out of 10. The overall design is sleek, but not too overbearing.
When it comes to functionality, the Siberia Elite has a whole lot of love to give. Not only is it compatible with multiple platforms, but best of all it supports Android, so you can plug it into your smartphone or tablet’s 3.5mm audio jack and play games with true excellent quality audio. The cord for the Siberia Elite is made up of a flat tangle resistant wire, so there no worry about getting it all jumbled up if you decide to take these with you on the go. The plug for the headset is a micro USB, which attaches and detaches to the multiple different connectors included to allow for use with your platform of choice, but for the purpose of this review, most notably the 3.5mm audio connection. If you’re playing a game on your tablet that supports voice chat like Shadowgun Deadzone, you can take advantage of the retractable mic that hides itself away snugly inside the left ear when not in use, and pull it out when you’re ready to talk with friends or opponents.
The coolest part though, is how the headset manages audio. Both the audio management and the mic toggle are embedded into the ears, in the form of dials making this headset even that much more compact, leaving your cord free of any volume switches or mic toggles, which makes the cord more lightweight as well. The left ear supports the dial for the mic toggle. A quick twist forward turns the mic on, while a twist backwards turns the mic back off. For the volume management, the dial is built into the ear on the right, with a twist forward to increase the volume and twist backward to decrease it.
When it comes to sound quality, the Siberia Elite can hold its own and quite frankly is the best for audio that I’ve had the pleasure to experience. Although this isn’t an Android supported feature, it comes with a USB driver connection to plug the headset in, giving it Dolby Digital Surround sound that is top tier. Like I said, this isn’t a feature you can use on Android devices since you can’t plug in the USB driver, but it’s a great feature nonetheless, especially if you game on PC as well. When using the 3.5mm audio connector for use with my tablet(I played Deus Ex: The Fall with it), the sound quality is still better than anything else I have used, even without the Dolby Digital Surround. Lastly, the headset is extremely comfortable to wear for hours on end, which is harder to do than most people realize. The cushions are so ridiculously soft, you’ll feel like your ears are resting against tempurpedic pillows. Did I mention the cushions are noise cancelling? Cause they are, which is perfect for hearing every aspect of the game you’re playing, or for blocking out that annoying roommate. Overall, the SteelSeries Siberia Elite is a fantastic gaming headset for Android as well as other platforms, and if you take your gaming and audio seriously and don’t mind forking out a little more money, you couldn’t find a better headset for the price. Speaking of price, you’ll be looking at dropping about $199 for these whether you order from SteelSeries themselves or Amazon. You can order them in black or white. The white ones are completely white, including the band, while the black ones have the silver band you see here. You can get your own pair from Amazon in either black or white.
