Steelbird SBA-1 HF Helmet Review

Steelbird is one of the oldest helmet brands in India. It has a good share of customers, and market share in India. They understand the Indian buyers more than any of the international brands. After years of selling a range of helmets, the company realiszed that there’s a market for a helmet that can be connected to a phone. With rising disposable income and the thirst of being connected to the world all the time, the SBA-1 HF could make everyone’s life a bit easy. 

The Steelbird SBA-1 HF (where HF stands for hands-free) is a full-face helmet that is equipped with two speakers and an AUX cable. This AUX cable which has its own cover, can be connected to any phone with AUX input. Once it’s done, the rider will be able to do two things – listen to music and attend incoming as well as outgoing calls. The incoming calls can be attended by using the button placed on the left side of the helmet. 

The company claims that the microphone has a noise cancelling feature, to avoid static as well as traffic sounds. However, the speakers don’t have that so that the rider is aware of the surrounding noises like horn.

Honestly, this helmet works pretty efficiently. It’s quite easy to receive calls during the ride. The button doesn’t feel hard, and it’s easy to press it even while wearing gloves. The sound quality during both the times – while listening to music as well during calls, is quite decent. It could have been better for sure, and we think future models will see some improvement. 

The quality of AUX wire is actually quite good. It feels as if it’s built to last. But there’s one big disappointment with this helmet – the AUX wire itself. It dangles around the body, and while riding, it has proven to be a distraction. It isn’t so bothersome while riding in cities where the average speed is less, but out on the highway, due to the wind, the wire dangles quite a lot. In order to avoid this, the wire can be routed through the riding jacket or t-shirt. 

The overall fit of the helmet is decent. There are options to go upto 580mm and 600mm padding size. The ventilation system works well. There are two modulators present in case the air flow needs to be stopped during winters. Our test unit had a dark visor, which is too dark, however. I ended up testing the helmet using the clear visor, even during sunny days. 

The Steelbird SBA-1 HF is priced at Rs 2589. For this price, it’s decent value for money. The helmet is ISI approved and available in many colours. If you are looking for a decent entry-level helmet and are really tight on budget, you can check out this Steelbird helmet. It is practical, usable and looks fine too. The dangling wire is a bit of a pain, yes, but there are workarounds. Steelbird should introduce a Bluetooth-enabled full face helmet in the near future in order to take care of the AUX wire issue. 

Photography by Kaustubh Gandhi