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ReviewsHeadphonesAmazon’s New Echo Buds Are Annoyingly Good for the Price
Amazon is trying its hand at earbuds again after stumbling out of the gate with its first pair of Echo Buds in 2019. The improvements, I’m mildly irritated to say, are good. Amazon’s hardware is all over the place: Its Kindle lineup is excellent but still sports microUSB ports, its smart displays are very good … Continued
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ReviewsHeadphonesThese Headphones Offer Solid Active Noise Cancellation for Those on a Budget
Urbanista isn’t a household name. Founded in Sweden, the company makes low-cost, high-design headphones for folks who don’t want to spend a few hundred dollars on options from Apple, Bose, or Beats. Their latest product, the Miami, is a pair of active noise-canceling headphones with 50-hour battery life and a tempting price tag. These are not … Continued
By John Biggs -
ReviewsHeadphonesI Wish These Bose Open Earbuds Weren’t So Damn Thick and Heavy
I’m pro-open ear headphones for outdoor exercise. Bikers, cars, unsupervised children on scooters—they’ve all been hazardous to my health while running. So even though I had reservations about the Bose Sport Open Earbuds, I was eager to give them a go. Open-ear audio has been around for awhile in the form of bone conduction headphones, … Continued
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ReviewsHeadphonesMarshall’s First Wireless Earbuds Have More Style Than Substance
There are few brands as synonymous with rock and roll as Marshall, whose amps are as iconic as a Fender guitar. The company has parlayed its recognizable name into a line of consumer audio goods, including headphones and wireless speakers, but the Mode II is its first pair of truly wireless earbuds. The buds sound … Continued
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ReviewsHeadphonesThese Cheap Noise-Canceling Earbuds Give AirPods Pro a Run for Their Money
In a world in which Apple is now selling $549 headphones, and the major players like Bose are sure to follow suit with equally pricey devices, it’s refreshing to find a pair of earbuds that offer solid noise cancellation, excellent design, and a great price. The Liberty Air 2 Pros from Anker sub-brand Soundcore cost … Continued
By John Biggs -
ReviewsHeadphonesKlipsch Paired Fantastic Wireless Earbuds with Another Weird Charging Case
Klipsch’s first foray into wireless earbuds, its T5 True Wireless, paired a set of decent-sounding buds with a stainless steel charging case inspired by Zippo lighters. It was a fun way to differentiate the brand, and for round two Klipsch has gotten even more creative. But the charging case for its new T5 II True … Continued
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ReviewsHeadphonesI Love The New Bose Frames Even If I Look Like an Absolute Jabroni
I liked the original Bose Frames. They were stylish sunglasses that featured audio-based augmented reality, which actually seemed like a clever workaround for the technological challenges of smart glasses. But alas, Bose AR wasn’t meant to be. Last summer, the company shuttered that division and as a result, Bose Frames went from being audio AR … Continued
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ReviewsHeadphonesGalaxy Buds Pro Review: Samsung’s Real Answer to the AirPods Pro
It’s been less than six months since Samsung released its last pair of wireless earbuds. But now there’s the Galaxy Buds Pro. By switching over to a more traditional design, keeping built-in ANC, and slapping on a price tag of $200, Samsung has finally created a worthy and more affordable competitor to Apple’s $250 AirPods … Continued
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ReviewsHeadphonesThese Ultralight Carbon Fiber Headphones Are Perfect for Traveling Again, Whenever That Might Be
Carbon fiber, the high-tech material that now makes up everything from car hoods to iPhone cases, is light and strong. When Bowers & Wilkins designed a Carbon Edition of its PX7 headphones, the goal was to create a pair of headphones that were rugged and streamlined with solid audio quality. They pulled it off. B&W … Continued
By John Biggs -
ReviewsHeadphonesThey’re Too Big!
The Bose QuietComfort earbuds slip into my ears relatively easily. They connect to my phone, and the moment they do, that pleasing Bose brand of silence washes over me. I can’t hear the fridge’s compressor or the steady hum of my server—only silence. Then, because the Bose QuietComforts are pretty large, one pops out of … Continued
By Alex Cranz -
ReviewsHeadphonesI’ll Just Say It: Jabra’s New ANC Earbuds Are Better Than AirPods Pro
Jabra’s Elite lineup of Bluetooth earbuds have been a favorite of mine for years. But as the competition has become more intense and earbuds are packing in more features for less, Jabra was missing one big thing: active noise cancellation. The $230 Elite 85t with ANC is here, and after using these earbuds for a … Continued
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ReviewsHeadphonesSkullcandy’s Incredibly Cheap Wire-Free Earbuds Sound a Lot Better Than You’d Expect
Released to coincide with the news that the iPhone 12 line would no longer ship with headphones, Apple’s new $50 Beats Flex are the cheapest wireless earbuds the company sells—but they’re not completely wireless, and they’re not that cheap. Skullcandy’s new Jib True wireless earbuds easily best Beats with a truly wireless design, a $30 … Continued
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ReviewsHeadphonesThe Beats Flex Are the Best Cheap Bluetooth Earbuds You Can Buy
Cheap Bluetooth earbuds are usually very shitty. You have to make trade-offs for the lower price tag, which means that, depending on the earbuds, you end up sacrificing battery life, audio quality, or Bluetooth performance. But after nearly a week of using the $50 Beats Flex, I can’t find a single downside. These earbuds are … Continued
