It’s a competitive world out there for the best cheap headphones — OneOdio should know, it’s contributed a fair few options. And with its most recent pair of budget blowers, it’s offered yet another fantastic-value headset with just a few rough edges.
The OneOdio Focus A1 Pro are the cheapest pair of headphones we’ve tested yet from the budget brand, and that’s really saying something. They cost just $35 or equivalent, undercutting the 4.5-star-rated OneOdio Focus A6. If you’re looking for a pair of headphones that’ll last you well, and really don’t want to spend much money, they’re a hit.
Last you they will, because they offer a battery life that reaches up to 70 hours, which is fantastic for the money. They’re also lightweight and easy to tote about, and these perks will likely be big draws to buyers on a budget.
My favorite element of the Focus A1 Pro is the audio quality: these headphones sound better than anything else I’ve tested under $50. That’s obviously a low bar, but the OneOdio easily clears it, with music sounding natural and bright with a decent sound stage.
When buying budget headphones, there’s always a big risk that you’re buying tat that’ll end up in landfill (or a box to take to your local recycling center) by the end of the month. I’m happy to report that the OneOdio certainly aren’t that… but they have a few issues too.
Lots of the weakest elements of the A1 Pro are things I’ve seen in other OneOdio headphones, such as the Focus A5 (which I only awarded three stars, in my review).
These new cans don’t have a tie-in smartphone app, and nor do they offer many of the features that an app would help open the door to. Most vitally, there’s no equalizer, which many consider an imperative feature for products such as this. The ANC performance is also weak, with the passive padding of the cups doing the lion’s share of the work in stopping surrounding sounds from distracting you. Now, we can easily argue that it would be churlish to expect these things for such a lowly fee, but it's my job to tell you what you'll be getting here if you click 'buy'.
I also found these cans a little uncomfortable to wear over longer periods of time, partly due to their rather tight clamping force, and partly because they sit somewhere between on-ears and over-ears. Your poor flappers are going to get a little crushed.
OneOdio Focus A1 Pro review: Price and release date
(Image credit: Future)
Released on January 20, 2026
Sells for $34.99 / £43.99 (roughly AU$85
On sale in UK and US, not Australia
You can pick up the Focus A1 Pro for $34.99 / £43.99 (roughly AU$85, but unlike many other cans from the company, they don’t yet seem to be on sale in Australia).
You think that makes them some of the cheapest headphones worth considering? Wait until you hear the actual price; within two weeks of the release date of January 23, I’d already found them discounted. Only by a couple of dollars or pounds, but it's still something, and OneOdio promises continued price cuts through the year.
The headphones were announced on January 20, 2026, and released shortly afterwards.
OneOdio Focus A1 Pro review: Specs
Drivers
40mm
Active noise cancellation
Yes
Battery life (ANC off)
70 hours
Weight
200g
Connectivity
Bluetooth 6.0
Frequency response
20Hz - 20kHz
Waterproofing
N/A
OneOdio Focus A1 Pro review: Features
(Image credit: Future)
70-hour battery life
ANC is resoundingly light-touch
No app
In what might come as a shock to headphone buyers in the year 2026, the Focus A1 Pro don’t have a smartphone app. Of all the features this rules out, an equalizer is the biggest: if you don’t like OneOdio’s mix, you'll have to lump it.
You do still get multipoint pairing, as well as a low-latency mode for gaming which is enabled by double-pressing the ANC button. But this department more than any other shows why the headphones are so cheap.
Talking of ANC, it’s not very good, but coupled with the natural passive noise cancellation of the ear cups, it’ll remove the top layer of annoying noise. When I was on public transport, I could still hear every screech of noisy rails or honk of nearby vehicles, but it was a little less onerous than normal.
(Image credit: Future)
I personally took to keeping the ANC off, though, and it was for battery reasons. With ANC off, you get 70 hours of listening time, which is solid stamina. For context, if you listened for about three hours and 20 minutes every day, you’d only have to charge every three weeks.
That figure drops substantially with ANC on; OneOdio’s figures alternate between quotes of 40 or 50 hours, and the truth is likely somewhere in between. I’d rather have the longer listening time than the scant improvements this particular ANC solution brings.
I was surprised to read that the OneOdio has Bluetooth 6.0; it’s rare among headphones I’ve tested recently in having this enhanced standard. Not once in testing did I have any connection issues.
Features score: 3.5/5
OneOdio Focus A1 Pro review: Design
(Image credit: Future)
Sustainable build
Comfortable to wear
Incredibly handy joystick controls
The Focus A1 Pro are, by and large, your standard headphones: big, black band with an ear cup at each end, that give you music. No-one was expecting OneOdio to reinvent the wheel for $35.
They weigh 200g, and while they have a few little design flourishes that differentiate them from your average budget cans (some curves and patterns in the appearance, for example), they do feel cheap. The build is plastic-heavy and some of the moving parts can wobble or creak a little bit.
You don’t get a carry case with the Focus, and I was a little scared to transport them in my bag, as they feel a tad fragile. They also have no IP rating. That said, during my testing month, they sustained no damage whatsoever.
(Image credit: Future)
I’ve so far refrained from classing these as over-ears or on-ears, as they sit haphazardly in the middle of both. Forget Goldilocks’ messaging, though, because it’s not ‘just right’ either. They sit a little weirdly on the head, for me.
The pads, while soft, crush your ears a little over time; this was noticeable when listening for longer sessions, as my ears would get a bit achey. The rather tight grip of the cans doesn’t help here either. I also never quite figured out exactly how to wear them, due to this over/on dilemma.
On the right cup, there are some touch controls (volume up and down, power, ANC; the basics) as well as the USB-C port. These don’t stick out too much, so finding them by touch can be tricky. It took a little while for pressing these to become easy and natural. There’s no 3.5mm jack for wired audio; these are wireless or nada.
Design score: 3.5/5
OneOdio Focus A1 Pro review: Sound quality
40mm driver
Crisp, natural audio
Max volume could be higher
(Image credit: Future)
I’ve been positive about the Focus A1 Pro and that’s not going to stop now, but let’s get one thing straight: these are budget cans, and when I say they’re ‘good’, I mean ‘for the price'.
OneOdio has kitted out the headphones with 40mm dynamic drivers using PET diaphragms; so far, so budget.
Unlike many other budget headphones, the brand hasn’t fallen into the ‘more bass is more gooder’ trap — there’s a fairly natural-sounding V shape with distinct trebles in vocals, and bass that’s as rounded as you can hope for at this price point. I was surprised when songs like Starlight by Slash and Miles Kennedy offered layered instrumentation and palpable timbre, as it’s not something I’d expect for the cost.
(Image credit: Future)
Naturally, the mids can fall through the cracks, so you can’t expect the whole band to show up. And when you get songs with lots going on, instruments blur together; Clarity by Vance Joy doesn’t quite live up to its title.
I’ve been constantly mentioning the price in this scene, and it’s to cover my back. Audiophiles won’t like these cans, as the mixing is messier than it would be on pricier options. But if you compare these to other offerings at the price, they’re nothing short of wonderful.
I would’ve liked to see the Focus A1 Pro manage a higher max volume, though. At full blast, the audio could mostly compete with a busy-ish road I was walking down, but Nigel Tufnel would malign the lack of any 11 to turn your music up to for that harder hit. Even when at home, anything below 50% volume was hard to hear.
Sound quality: 4/5
OneOdio Focus A1 Pro review: Value
(Image credit: Future)
Great sound for price
Some rivals may beat in certain departments
The OneOdio Focus A1 Pro are fantastic for the price. They sound far better than you’d expect from budget cans, and I’ve tested rivals for twice the price which don’t hold a candle.
That’s not even touching on the solid battery life, the hardy connection or the useful-for-gamers latency mode.
If you look hard enough, you can probably find rival cans with better ANC, a comfier fit or an equalizer, and I’d like the OneOdio even more if it offered these. But for the price, it’s hard to knock the Focus for its absences.
Value: 4.5/5
Should I buy the OneOdio Focus A1 Pro?
OneOdio Focus A1 Pro score card
Attributes
Notes
Rating
Features
There’s no app and ANC isn’t great, though the battery life and connection are solid.
3.5/5
Design
For cheap earbuds, they look better than most, but have a few rough edges (literally).
3.5/5
Sound quality
These cans sound great for the price, with clearer audio and neater sound spacing than you’d expect.
4/5
Value
If you’re on a budget, these can’t be beaten
4/5
Buy them if…
You're on a tight budget These headphones have been designed for people who don't want to pay for premium, or even mid-range, options.
Battery life is an important factor The 70-hour battery life is going to be handy for all kinds of use cases.View Deal
You need lightweight headphones Don't like a big helmet on your head? These are lighter than some alternatives I've tested.View Deal
Don’t buy them if…
You need something durable The OneOdio feels a little fragile, and I don't imagine they'll stand up to some rough-and-tumble use.
You need heavy-duty noise cancellation The ANC on these guys isn't fantastic, though it's better than nothing.
OneOdio Focus A1 Pro review: Also consider
OneOdio Focus A1 Pro
Soundpeats Cove Pro
OneOdio Focus A6
Drivers
40mm
40mm
40mm
Active noise cancellation
Yes
Yes
Yes
Battery life (ANC on)
70 hours
95 hours
75 hours
Weight
200g
251g
240g
Connectivity
Bluetooth 6.0
Bluetooth 6.0
Bluetooth 6.0
Waterproofing
NA
IPX4
NA
OneOdio Focus A6 These high-rated budget cans cost a touch more than the A1 Pro, but app access is the headline improvement. Read our full OneOdio Focus A6 review
Soundpeats Cove Pro These slightly pricier alternatives have a solid build and impressive feature set, though they don't sound as good. (Our review on the Cove Pro is currently in the pipeline; when we publish it, you'll be the first to know!)
How I tested the OneOdio Focus A1 Pro
Tested for 1 month
Tested at home, on walks, on public transport and the gym
(Image credit: Future)
I used the OneOdio Focus A1 Pro for the best part of a month before writing this review, so they got a lot of use.
For most of the test period, the headphones were paired with my Android smartphone, though I also used them alongside an Android tablets at several points.
Testing was done streaming music, watching TV shows and playing games. I tested the headphones in various interior settings, while out and about, and during gym sessions.
I've been tested audio gadgets for TechRadar for years, including several previous OneOdio headphones and earbuds.
For all that companies try to squirrel AI chatbots into every gadget possible, I’ve yet to see many buyers who genuinely want this kind of addition. In fact more often than not, the infiltration of artificial intelligence makes the tech worse — many companies are starting to realize this and take a step back. But there’s now a new victim of the AI war: the Skullcandy Method 540.
For context, let’s look at some earbuds that would have gotten onto our list of the best cheap earbuds if not for how competitive 2025 was. I’m talking about the Skullcandy Method 360, which were some of my favorite buds of the year: they fit great, sounded fun and were fairly affordable. The 540 are the updated model of 360, with Skullcandy apparently not taking a leaf from Microsoft’s naming playbook – don’t get your hopes up for a Method One and then Method Series X, then.
New models should, ostensibly, bring upgrades over the previous iterations. However the Skullcandy Method 540 have the same design, drivers and carry case design as the previous model. They’re incredibly similar buds, yet cost about 25% more.
So what’s actually new? Well, there are a few tiny tweaks here and there, but the flagship ‘feature’ is compatibility with Skull AI. This is Skullcandy’s AI assistant, built on Bragi AI which in turn is built on Open AI. So for all intents and purposes, you’re paying more for a built-in chat-bot…
…except that you’re not, because Skull AI is available as a separate subscription, which you have to pay for either monthly, at $4.99 / £4.99, or annually (at $49.99 / £49.99). Skull AI is one of the better AI chatbot names I've heard, but I'm not including an evaluation of the chatbot itself in this review: it’s very much a separate, optional product to the Method 540.
If you use AI chatbots, perhaps the Method 540 is worth considering, but the vast majority of buyers are going to wonder if there are any other spec improvements to justify that price bump, or if this is another case of AI implementation taking precedence over actual upgrades. Spoiler alert: it’s the latter.
The specs are identical – in fact, I copied and pasted the specs table from my 360 review to save time. In some cases, keeping things similar is great: the buds are comfortable and fit incredibly well, making them great for runners or gym-goers. In some cases, an upgrade was needed: I liked the Method 360’s sound, but budget buds have come on leaps and bounds in just one year, and the Method 540 aren’t as competitive.
Since I gave last year’s Skullcandy earbuds four stars, and these are basically the same thing, some might be wondering where half a star went. That was removed because the Method 360 was good for the price, and the 540 price hike makes them a less appealing prospect.
Given the increased cost, the lack of upgrades and the shoehorned AI mode, it’s just hard to get as enthused about the Method 540. And so it’s harder to recommend them, given how many low-cost rivals there are in 2026.
Skullcandy Method 540 ANC review: Specifications
Component
Value
Water resistant
IPX4
Battery life (quoted)
11 hours (earbuds), 29 hours (total)
Bluetooth type
Bluetooth 5.3
Weight
11g / Charging case: 72g
Driver
12mm
Skullcandy Method 540 ANC review: Price and availability
(Image credit: Future)
Announced in January 2026
RRP $149.99 / £129.99 (roughly AU$250)
Skull AI costs $4.99 monthly
The Skullcandy Method 540 ANC were unveiled on January 8, 2026, at the annual CES tech conference. That release falls only nine months after the release of the Method 360.
You can pick up the earbuds for $149.99 / £129.99 (roughly AU$250, though there’s no word on an Australian release just yet). That’s a notable price hike over the Method 360, which sold for $119 / £99 / AU$189, and are even cheaper now thanks to some discounts.
That retail price doesn’t even take into account the monthly cost of Skull AI. Access to this AI assistant costs $4.99 per month or $49.99 per year – regional pricing wasn’t available at the time of this review – but it’s worth noting that Skull AI is optional and starts with a 3-month free trial.
Skullcandy Method 540 ANC review: Design
FutureFuture
Chunky carry case
Incredibly reliable in-ear fit
Only black or white options
You know how wireless earbuds makers constantly one-up each other to make svelte little carry cases? Skullcandy didn’t miss the memo – it received it, laughed at it, screwed it up into a ball and threw it away. The Method 540 buds come in a tube, and you slide out the central column to reveal them.
The 360 used the same mechanism, although it’s a little thinner this time around: it measures 3.6 x 2.9 x 10.2 cm, and weighs 72g. At the time of writing, the buds only come in black or white, but Skullcandy often releases funky colors for its products, and hopefully it’ll follow for the 540.
This is not a convenient way to carry earbuds – the monolith doesn’t fit well in trouser pockets. But honestly, I don’t mind – I ended up just putting it in my jacket or bag instead. Perhaps I’ve grown used to these chunky cases from testing other such buds, or maybe petite carry cases are overrated. Plus, a magnetic mechanism makes sure it stays shut tight when not in use, a carry hook means you can attach them to your keys or bag, and unlike in the 360 the charging port is out in the open.
Evidence of how easily-bendable the hook is. (Image credit: Future)
My biggest annoyance with the old model remains, though: putting the buds in the case isn’t convenient, as you have to put them in, in a very particular fashion. It takes quite a bit of maneuvering and flipping to make sure they’re in right, and quite often I’d only realise I’d bungled the job when the case wouldn’t shut properly.
Skullcandy has trimmed the fat of its carry case, but it hasn’t touched the earbuds from the last-gen models – and it didn’t need to. Like the 360, the buds fit snugly and reliably, thanks in part to the grippy eartip material, but mostly due to the fins which wedge the buds into your ear. I went for runs with the buds and took them to the gym, and they never threatened to fall out.
They’re not that light, at 11g, or protected, with IPX4 (no protection against dust, only protected against splashes). But they’re not going to fall out into a puddle thanks to the lovely fit, so it doesn’t really matter.
Each bud has touch controls if you tap on their body, which generally felt okay to use, once I got used to tapping the right spot.
Design score: 3.5/5
Skullcandy Method 540 ANC review: Features
(Image credit: Future)
ANC is solid, not best-in-class
Battery life is above average: 11 hours from the buds/29 including the case
App misses some basic features
Technically, these buds are sold as the Skullcandy Method 540 ANC, and so naturally these buds have Active Noise Cancellation. It’s no more advanced than on the 360: pretty solid, but not best-in-class. Loud noises will cut above the silence, though the background hum of city life will get stripped away.
Stay-Aware falls into the trap that many transparency or surround-hearing modes do, in that it seemingly amplifies more than it strips. Thankfully, Skullcandy has included an Intensity slider in the app, so you can turn down its effects.
According to Skullcandy, the Method 540 lasts for 9 hours with ANC on, or 11 hours with it off, and I’d concur with those estimates. That goes up to 23 or 29 hours when factoring in the extra power offered by the case. And that's good, honestly – any earbuds capable of lasting over 7 hours with ANC on represent above-average stamina.
(Image credit: Future)
You’re required to download and use the Skull-iQ app in order to use the 540’s extra features – not the standard Skullcandy one, something I only discovered after downloading the wrong one. I made the exact same error with the 360, but if I say it now, hopefully I save a few of you from making the same mistake.
The app lets you toggle ANC modes, play with a 5-band equalizer, turn on low-latency mode, use the earbuds as a remote phone camera trigger, enable Spotify Tap or set up multipoint pairing. Oh, and the main menu has two separate options for Skull AI. Notably missing perks include the ability to customize touch controls, any kind of fit or listening tests or a find-my-earbuds feature. Any one of these would be a more useful addition than an AI chatbot, as would a more advanced equalizer, or extra presets beyond the three available.
During testing, I had a few temporary Bluetooth drop-outs, but they all resolved themselves quickly.
On paper, the Skullcandy Method 540 match their predecessors in terms of audio specs: 12mm drivers, tuning by Bose, and a total lack of support for any Bluetooth or high-res streaming codecs.
It’s fair to say I was complimentary of the 360’s sound, but I can’t quite say the same about the 540. Partly, it could be because my ears have been spoiled by some fantastic budget rivals in the last year. But there also seem to be tuning differences too.
Skullcandy has a reputation for offering bass-heavy products, something that’s levelled either as a criticism or high praise, depending on the listener. People who sit in the former camp probably haven’t read this far into the review. The Method 540, however, seem to buck this trend. Simply put, they're not all about that bass.
These buds are relatively and surprisingly neutral for Skullcandy products. Treble is more powerful, the low end is sensibly is pared-back, mids are… well, we can’t hope for miracles. This new face would be an interesting twist, except that it reveals that there’s not much else going on under the surface.
(Image credit: Future)
Songs sound a little flat, with nothing to replace the lost bass injection, to add a little energy into proceedings. And it sounds like the top was lopped off to the detriment of some treble frequencies and musical passages; hi-hats, guitar stings and vocal flourishes do sound compressed.
There’s a lack of a meaningful soundstage, so instruments are tripping over each other to be head. When you listen to songs like Wake Up by Arcade Fire, or All My Friends by The Revivalists, what should be an encompassing cacophony of noise sounds more like a music track being played from a phone. I checked out Atmosphere by Joy Division after it was featured in The History of Sound, and even in the remastered version, it sounded like Ian Curtis was playing every single instrument. What about some noughties rock, right in Skullcandy’s core demographic? The guitar riffs of Yellowcard’s Ocean Avenue sounded heavy and dull – even if the wall of sound of the chorus picked up the energy a little.
Saving the Method 540 is the app. I always listened on Bass Boost, which went some way in restoring the Skullcandy sound – these things have the capability for decent bass if you can coax it out. I also dabbled with the equalizer. Though it only has five bands, it lets you add a bit of needed chutzpah to music. And the max volume is still high, so you can rock out at max power.
Sound performance score: 3.5/5
Skullcandy Method 540 ANC review: Value
If you’ve been paying close attention, you’ll have noticed that the Skullcandy Method 540 earbuds don’t offer that many upgrades over the 360… well, other than the higher price, and optional chatbot.
Given that it’s basically the same product, but for about 25% more, the Method 540 don't feel like they offer great value for money. That’s doubly true given that the older buds have seen price cuts of around 30% off, depending on where you live.
Value score: 3/5
Skullcandy Method 540 ANC review: scorecard
Category
Comment
Score
Value
Their feature set and sound quality aren't quite justified by the price tag, especially with the 360 on the market.
3/5
Design
The tip and fin make the Skullcandy incredibly sturdy in the ear, though the case is pretty chunky.
3.5/5
Features
Above-average battery life and okay ANC are good, but there are a few missing features.
3.5/5
Sound
The sound lacks a little luster that was present in previous Method buds.
3.5/5
Skullcandy Method 540 ANC: Should I buy?
(Image credit: Future)
Buy them if...
You need a reliable in-ear fit These things won't fall out. Which makes them perfect for doing sit-ups in a gym, or running up hills.
You need solid battery life Battery life is always an important feature, and the Method 540 last longer than most others at this price, especially with ANC off.
You want an AI chatbot in your ear I didn't test Skull AI, but it's likely as reliable as other chatbots. Prepare for mounting costs, though.
Don't buy them if...
You can still find the Method 360 available Even if not on sale, the Method 360 are preferable. They're basically the same, but cost less.
You want a tiny carry case These aren't your easily-pocketable buds. They're not designed for trouser pockets.
Also consider
Component
Skullcandy Method 540 ANC
Skullcandy Method 360
Cambridge Audio Melomania A100
Water resistant
IPX4
IPX4
IPX5
Battery life (ANC off)
11 hours (earbuds), 29 hours (total)
11 hours (earbuds), 29 hours (total)
11 hours (buds); 39 hours (case)
Bluetooth type
Bluetooth 5.3
Bluetooth 5.3
Bluetooth 5.4
Weight
11g (buds) 72g (case)
11g (buds) 77g (case)
4.7g (buds) 38.7g (case)
Driver
12mm
12mm
10mm
Skullcandy Method 360 I've talked about them in this review almost as much as the 540. They're incredibly similar in terms of specs and design; a slightly different-shaped case, lack of AI, range of color options and lower price make this an even more tempting prospect. Read our full Skullcandy Method 360 review
Cambridge Audio Melomania A100 For the same price as the Method 540, you can get these five-star earbuds. They sound fantastic, have great ANC and last ages on a single charge. You don't mind that they look a little boring, do you? Read our full Cambridge Audio Melomania A100 review
How I tested
I used the Skullcandy Method 540 ANC for three weeks before writing this review.
The headphones were paired to a OnePlus phone for the entirety of the testing process. I listened to music from Spotify and Qobuz, played various games, conducted several video and voice calls, watched Netflix and listened to voice notes using them. Testing took place at home, while on runs, during cycling (Stay Aware mode, of course), at the gym, on various public transports, and on walks around different areas of my city.
I've been reviewing gadgets for TechRadar since 2019, including countless low-cost and mid-range headphones. That includes, of course, the Method 360 earbuds, as well as the Crusher 540 Active over-ears from Skullcandy.
After a two-year hiatus, Sony finally announced a new pair of flagship wireless earbuds. The WF-1000XM6 arrive on the scene as the replacements to the WF-1000XM5, and Sony is confident that these are its best earbuds to date.
So what’s new?
Sony is bringing an updated version of its Integrated Processor V2, which now features 32-bit audio processing, up from the XM5’s 24-bit depth. Thanks to this change, Sony claims the XM6 offers improved clarity, dynamic range and detail.
WF-1000XM6 in black
The buds are equipped with 8.4mm dynamic drivers and get custom sound tuning from...
The all-new Sony WF-1000XM6 an impressive set of earbuds with a formidable set of features – especially formidable for tech journos such as me, who are obliged to stick within some sort of length limit for these reviews – but as Sony seeks to recapture class-leading greatness with its 1000X series lineup, I can't help but wonder whether at some point we'll reach a case of diminishing returns.
Here, for example, Sony once again provides us a smaller earpiece. It's 11% thinner but somehow contains a 1.5x larger antenna for better connection stability, an extra mic per bud to equal eight in total, and two processors. One of these is called the QN3E (to take care of the eight mics and facilitate a new auto ambient sound mode) and the other is the V2, to enable 32-bit audio support (with Sony's LDAC codec) using the new 8.4mm unique driver and introduce a new 10-band EQ tab with a 'Find your EQ' tech plus new 'gaming' EQ preset.
But how many mics per bud is enough to facilitate fantastic ANC? And how much do we need our earbuds to shrink before the listener decides enough is enough – because they're actually not sure it's made the product that much better?
But before I answer those questions, know that for sound quality alone, the Sony WF-1000XM6 are a very good set of earbuds.
Some of the best earbuds on the market then? Well, Sony has certainly sought to stuff these buds with every upgrade it can (and every feature you can possibly imagine) using its own proprietary technology.
But there's the rub; the company that brought us 360 Reality Audio with head-tracking would absolutely love for you to use it, but the format is no longer supported on nearly as many of the big music streaming sites as it used to be – Deezer dropped it in 2022; Tidal gave up its support for the 3D format in 2024.
And in terms of hi-res Bluetooth chops, LDAC is of little use to iPhone owners, although Sony's DSEE Extreme upscaler is here again and it does make Spotify streams sound a lot better.
So what's excellent about the WH-1000XM6, what's less so, and are they worth their refreshingly approachable asking fee? The design of the buds is now pill-shaped, and while the earpieces are thinner, the units are also taller with a little notch halfway up to help them fit.
Because they're slightly more raised from their charging nest and covered entirely in a matte plastic for better traction, they boast what Sony calls "easier pick up" from their case – and I can confirm that while I wasn't convinced about the overall fit in the ear, I didn't drop them while first grabbing them half as much as I did the older XM5.
Sadly, the active noise cancellation didn't live up to my expectations in real-world testing. That said, the battery life, at eight hours from the buds and up to 24 with the case – and yes, that is with noise cancellation deployed – isn't bad at all.
Do I love them? Having spent over two weeks with them, I like them a lot, and that new antenna does provide rock-solid connection that never falters. I also liked the new Background Music Effect perk much more than I thought I would – it's a great focus aid, allowing you to push the music back just slightly, so you can hear yourself think.
Also, Sony's Quick Attention feature, wherein you simply cover the left earbud to lower music and quickly filter in ambient sound around you, is a winner, although this isn't new for Sony – we've loved it on the Sony WH-1000XM6 and previous headphones too.
Ultimately for me though, the noise cancellation isn't the class-leading triumph it is billed as, and competing options such as the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds 2nd Gen (and Apple AirPods Pro 3, if you've got an Apple source device) are offering better access to spatial audio formats and that cocoon of silence noise-nixing you may prioritize.
Add in the Technics EAH-AZ100 as an alternative – offering triple device multipoint, clearer calls and a more comfortable fit – and ultimately, while the WF-1000XM6 are talented and capable earbuds in many respects, there are other buds I would still nudge you to reach for, at this level.
(Image credit: Future)
Sony WF-1000XM6 review: Price and release date
Released on February 12, 2026
Priced $329 / £250 / AU$499.95
Available in Black or Platinum Silver
Thankfully, Sony's kept a lid on price increases here here. The older flagship Sony WF-1000XM5 launched in July 2023 for $299.99 / £259 / AU$499, so the WF-1000XM6 are only slightly more expensive in the US, and are actually cheaper in the UK.
That said, Sony's hand has been somewhat forced, because Apple's AirPods Pro 3 came with a $249 / £219 / AU$429 price tag when they hit shelves back on September 19, 2025 – ie. cheaper or the same as the AirPods Pro 2's $249 / £249 / AU$399 price tag in the UK and US (although in Australia, they did come with a more expensive launch price).
Other direct competition at this level? The closest rivals are most pressingly the aforementioned AirPods Pro 3, followed by premium offerings such as the Technics EAH-AZ100, which are $299 / £259 / AU$478 or the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) for $299 / £299 / AU$450. I might even mention the Bowers & Wilkins Pi8 although those are a fair bit pricier, at $399 / £349 / AU$599.
So as you can probably deduce, Sony has actually gone in quite aggressive with the asking fee here.
(Image credit: Future)
Sony WF-1000XM6 review: Specs
Drivers
8.4mm dynamic with 'soft edge, hard center'
Active noise cancellation
Yes
Battery life
8 hours (buds, ANC on); 24 hours (case)
Weight
6.5g per bud
Connectivity
Bluetooth with LE Audio and LDAC; USB-C and wireless charging
Waterproofing
IPX4
Sony WF-1000XM5 in the center, with WF-C710N on the left; WF-1000XM5 on the right (Image credit: Future)
Sony WF-1000XM6 review: Features
10-band EQ tab with 'Find My EQ' and new Gaming preset
DSEE Extreme upscaler, LDAC, LE Audio and 360 Reality Audio
Background Music Effect is surprisingly useful
…but the noise cancellation isn't the smash-hit it's billed as
Sony has once again stuffed these earbuds with all the perks and extras it knows, but a lot of them will be a case of "Yes, we know about that – what's new?" to fans of Sony's WF-1000XM lineup.
So what is new? The 10-band EQ tab (it used to be limited to five) is one upgrade, plus a specific Gaming EQ preset. Sony's more recent Sound Connect app is also newly used with the flagship lineup (this used to be the Sony Headphones app, until October 2024) but Sound Connect was already around for the budget-friendly Sony WF-C710N, which landed April 2025 – so anyone who owns those will be familiar with the 'Find My EQ' tab.
If you're not one of them, I can tell you that it's still good here: you tap on various sound profile bubbles and the software continues to supply more, based on your preferred listening choices, until it presents a personalized profile you can save as a preset.
But again, it's something that is also available in much cheaper Sony earbuds. It's also not a hearing test, as such (there are no diminishing tones to engage with; no analysis of your hearing and curation of a truly unique profile with augmented tones for you) and while you may not want a full hearing test, it's worth stating that competing options I've mentioned do offer it, for similar money. And if you're hoping for a huge app overhaul from the older Headphones app, you won't get it sadly.
For me, this companion app isn't the most intuitive. For example, the home screen is essentially a list of tabs – you can assign elements to be placed at the top of this, from the depths of the device settings, although for me this sometimes just further complicates things – but along the bottom are four smaller tabs labelled 'My Device' (the one you're brought to upon launching it); 'Scene', which attempts to work out what you're doing physically and also suggests profiles that can be deployed at specific times, such as 'Gym' or 'Commute Home', if you feel you need them; 'Discover' for your listening history (Sony likes to offer logs and 'badges' for listening) plus the option to deploy a gentler Safe Listening experience; and lastly, 'Menu'.
Now, you'd think 'Menu' is where all the good stuff lives, but this is basically just a home for the support bot, a 'Help' function, backups and 'About this app' info.
This means that what you need to do in order to get to any tweakable features is to scroll down to a small tab at the bottom of the 'My Device' toggle labelled 'Device Settings' and from there into the minutiae of customization tabs.
It just feels like a lot of taps. It also presents many chances for newbies to venture down the wrong route, to a dead end, and then wonder how to get back to what I like to call 'that long list I had before'. A reshuffle of the app might be sensible, to bring the user more quickly to the perks they actually want to find quickly.
(Image credit: Sony)
At the top of these Device Settings is 'Noise Canceling/Ambient Sound', but although Ambient Sound has a manual incremental 20-step slider, a 'sensitivity setting' which can be either Standard, High or Low, an auto toggle, and an option to toggle on Voice passthrough (to filter in voices while still suppressing noise), your actual noise cancellation options are still just 'on' or 'off', which feels a little disappointing, especially given the extra mic per-bud onboard here.
Sony hasn't listed a figure for the noise-nixing power in decibels, but the company is keen to tell us that the WF-1000XM6 are the "best noise-cancelling" earbuds it's ever released.
Sadly, I need to manage your expectations here, because although certain sounds are indeed dulled when I deploy ANC, when I switch to the AirPods Pro 3 and it's a different level. Want that bubble of silence feeling where the noise drops and extraneous sounds simply melt away? The kind of ANC that makes you genuinely surprised at how noisy your immediate surroundings have become, when you remove them? Sadly, the Sonys are fairly good, but they're not that good – Bose and Apple both have them beat.
Call handling? This is also a bit of a let down – and not just because it's been so hyped by Sony in these new buds. Although Sony couldn't wait to extol the talents of the new mic on each bud, the new wind-nixing structure around them, plus a new AI algorithm with beamforming and bone conduction sensors to aid with both ANC and call-handling on those four mics per earpiece… in practice, callers said I sounded "muffled" when using them for voice calls, especially when compared to my regular Technics EAH-AZ100.
While I'm on the comparison, Sony's answer to Technics' excellent Sidetone tech, to amplify your own voice in calls, is an on/off toggle called 'Capture Voice' in the app, but I couldn't detect much difference either way when trying to use it. And because I had to really screw the earpieces quite far into my ears to get a secure fit (more on this later), I think I would have benefitted from more of a boost here.
(Image credit: Sony)
All of this aside, a lot of things are really enjoyable about the WF-1000XM6 – and Background Music Effect is top of the list. To find it, you have to scroll down that thin tab at the bottom of the 'My Device' tab, labelled Device settings > Sound Quality/Volume > Listening Mode > Background Music – see what I mean about decent features being somewhat hidden away?
Only then will you be able to select from 'My room', 'Living room' or 'Cafe', which spreads and pushes your music just a little further away from your ears each time. I thought it'd be gimmicky; I was wrong. If you're someone who sometimes turns the TV on just for a bit of background noise to focus, or simply can't concentrate if lyrics are too prominent in your ears, say, this feature is for you.
I also like that the on-ear controls are now fully customizable, once you've delved into Device settings > Controls > Change the touch sensor function > Custom. The one caveat is that if you set a long-press of the left earbud to be volume decrease (which is always my preference) you lose Quick Attention, which is one of my favorite Sony-specific earbuds features because it's so useful – if someone starts talking to you or there's been an announcement about the late arrival of your train, say, simply press and hold the left bud and music is pushed low while ambient passthrough is boosted.
Other pleasing notable mentions go to the app's ability to corral my Apple Music subscription to the fold so I can see some playback information in the My Device tab, the 'Optimal Earbud Tips' wearer test (it's quite strict, you know) and the option to prioritize either a stable connection or audio quality. And I should probably mention that thanks to that bigger antenna, I never once experienced any dropouts in connection with this iteration (which was an issue with the older Sony WF-1000XM5 when I reviewed them, initially).
I've also long been a fan of Sony's DSEE Extreme upscaler, which takes your lossier music streams and does remarkable things to add detail and nuance. Here, it is very well implemented; I had to check more than once that I hadn't switched over from Spotify to one of the more audiophile-friendly streaming platforms, and that is something I don't say lightly.
There's also multipoint to two devices and Auto Switch, for handing off the audio from your buds to your Sony Linkbuds Speaker when you come home – but that's the only Sony speaker currently supported, so is pretty niche as an option.
Spatial audio? Ah. Yes, it's technically here, because you can have 360 Reality Audio – if you can find any content presented in the Sony-made format, given that Tidal and Deezer both dropped support a little while ago…
Features score: 4 / 5
(Image credit: Future)
Sony WF-1000XM6 review: Sound quality
Crisp bass that neither bloats nor overstates itself
Plenty of texture through upper mids
Beaten for dynamic nuance and detail across the frequencies
Switching all sound profiles to 'standard', with a neutral EQ and making sure I've selected the connection profile that prioritizes audio quality (rather than a stable Bluetooth connection) in the Sony WF-1000XM6, I cue up Sevdaliza's Mad Woman. The clock chimes in the opening of the song simmer beautifully initially, with razor-sharp leading edges of notes from the buds. And that note goes all the way down to the abyss without issue too, which is more than can be said for entry-level (and even most mid-range) earbuds.
I'm just missing an extra ounce of build and intentional distortion through the belly of the note that I know to be there – and it's confirmed when I switch to the Technics EAH-AZ100, which have no trouble revealing it.
If you've heard Harry Styles' new track Aperture, it's a similar idea; the timing ticks along beautifully and the Sony buds never shy away from a bass drop, but I can't help but notice when they gloss over a marginal inflection or pop within a gloriously imperfect synth note – because that wants to be remembered as such, and the buds aren't quite recreating it perfectly.
I'm being hypercritical, of course. The sound here is very good indeed – in fact, in instrumental works such as Nicholas Gunn's Campfire there's an expansive and emotive soundstage wherein each musical strand is held together in a cohesive and rewarding mix.
Human breath feels three-dimensional and, for want of a better word, real. It's just that when the flute comes in, I'm missing an iota of excitement as the soundstage builds in intensity and the shaker comes in.
That said, I'll caveat all of this with one potential reason: I did struggle to get the Sony WF-1000XM6 to fit perfectly, even after a week with them… but that's for the next section. If you can achieve a secure fit and seal, I do think there'd be very little in it between them and the best-sounding earbuds in their class.
Sound quality: 4 / 5
(Image credit: Future)
Sony WF-1000XM6 review: Design
On-ear controls are reliable and the headshell is grippy
Divisive fit and ear-tip material – although plenty of tips are provided
Case magnets feel a little weak
Sony has once again reworked the shape of its earbuds and I have to say that the company's commitment to tweaking and amending the fit in the pursuit of excellence is commendable. These earbuds are 11% thinner than the older model and are very much pill-shaped from above, but they are taller.
That means – and there's no pretty way to say this – they stick out of your ears a little more (as well as from their taller case), and there's a little notch or nub halfway up the housing, to nestle into your outer ear.
Far from being disappointing to me, this initially quite bulbous-looking fit can work very well (see the 'concha fit' style pioneered by the aforementioned Technics EAH-AZ100), however, in this thinner shape, I found that getting a secure fit did involve a fairly rigorous push and twist into the ear, to get them to 'lock in', as it were.
I worry that in the pursuit of a positive 'they're smaller!' goal, Sony hasn't quite achieved the aim of a better fit – although fit is a very personal thing.
FutureFutureFutureFuture
I eventually achieved the best fit using the 'S'-sized small tips (not the XS, which is unusual for me), backed up by Sony's in-app ear-tip fit test tech, but after several hours of listening, the lower part of my antihelix and on to my antitragus did ache a little.
I also think there's a small chance that the shape of these buds affects the efficacy of the noise cancellation – their thinness perhaps means they didn't fill my outer ear fully, quite where they should? It's hard to know for sure, but as someone who's testing more buds than I can count, it felt a little off.
One good aspect of the taller buds, along with the fact that there's no shiny plastic involved in the design, is that I never once dropped an earbud while getting them out of the case, and that is a comment often levelled at the older XM5 buds.
The ear-tips are again memory foam in style, and while I like them a lot and found them very easy to switch out (particularly thanks to the little colored bands on the bottom, so you don't mix them up), unlike silicone options you do need to give them a moment to re-form if you inadvertently squish them while fitting.
The case is much more angular and a little taller, but maintains a USB-C charger and reset button on the back (it'll also charge wirelessly) plus a solo green LED light on the front. It can charge wirelessly too.
My only point on the case is the magnets that snap the case lid shut; given the extra height and bulk on the top, it feels as if they could be stronger. I did an initial drop-test and it did stay shut, but I didn't feel as confident of this happening consistently as I have with other class-leading buds.
In terms of battery life, their claim of eight hours from the buds with ANC and 24 from the case equals that of the AirPods Pro 3, which means it's good – but this is a standard rather than outstanding figure. In testing, I got a little less from them, at seven hours before they needed charging – but my testing does often involve boosting the volume above 50% and scrolling through features and profiles.
Design score: 4 / 5
(Image credit: Future)
Sony WF-1000XM6 review: value
Stuffed full of features and far from the most expensive buds around
…but the ANC isn't class leading, and spatial audio might be hard to access
Do you want the best noise-cancelling earbuds on the market for noise-blocking power? If so, the WF-1000XM6 are not my first choice – but that's not at the top of everyone's list, and doesn't mean you should discount them.
For sound, there's plenty to celebrate. These earbuds offer an expansive and pleasing soundstage with neutrality and plenty of options to further tweak the sound to your liking. If pushed, I could've used a little more energy and oomph to allow for an extra ounce of dynamic nuance, but it's my job to nitpick and I maintain that for sound, they're still bang on the money. Buy them, and you won't be disappointed in the WF-1000XM6 sonically.
But do you want device- and streaming-service agnostic spatial audio profiles with dynamic head-tracking? That's more of an issue sadly, since 360 Reality Audio isn't what it once was (Deezer and Tidal no longer support the format) and as such, you might feel you're missing out – where options such as the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) do offer that, in various guises and in conjunction with tweakable ANC.
Value: 4 / 5
(Image credit: Future)
Should I buy the Sony WF-1000XM6 review?
Attributes
Notes
Rating
Features
Stuffed to the gills with perks, but the ANC isn't class-leading – and spatial audio is hard to come by
4/5
Sound quality
Neutrality and faithfulness in spades, but they could use just a little oomph injection at times
4/5
Design
The tweaked taller shape may work for you, or it may not, but they do well in most areas
4/5
Value
Plenty to celebrate and competitively priced, but there are a few compromises you need to make
4/5
(Image credit: Future)
Buy them if…
You really need a good quick attention feature I've tried literally scores of wireless earbuds that claim to offer an effective way to quickly hear external sounds without the faff of removing your buds or fully going into a transparency mode. I maintain that Sony's Speak to Chat (simply speak, and the music pauses and ambient sound filters in) and Quick Attention (cover the left bud for the same thing) features are the best in the business.
You want a rock-solid connection Thanks to that larger antenna, I never once had Bluetooth connectivity dropouts using these earbuds in any situation, and you can prioritize the connection stability over audio quality – well done, Sony.
You're fed up of dropping your buds on the floor Often grab your buds a hurry? Sony's worked hard to make sure there's enough traction on the earpieces and within the design of the case so that you won't lose a bud underfoot as you try to pluck them out of their battery nests, and it really works.
Don’t buy them if…
You want the absolute best noise cancellation around It pains me to say this, because I really did want Sony to challenge the likes of Bose and Apple here. Sadly, in my tests it didn't quite match up to what was promised.
You need them for super long-haul flights The battery life is far from bad here, but it hasn't been upgraded from the older set. And compared to direct rivals it can be bettered – the Technics EAH-AZ100 lasted over an hour longer, in my tests.
You want easy-to-find head-tracked spatial audio At the time of writing, you can still get 360 Reality Audio on Amazon Music Unlimited, but it's safe to say that support for this Sony tech is on the wane.
Sony WF-1000XM6 review: Also consider
Sony WF-1000XM6
Apple AirPods Pro 3
Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen)
Technics EAH-AZ100
Price
$329 / £250 / AU$TBC
$249 / £219 / AU$429
$299 / £299 / AU$450
$299 / £259 / AU$478 (approx.)
Drivers
'Unique' 8.4mm dynamic with 'soft edge, hard center'
'Custom high-excursion' Apple driver with new multiport acoustic architecture
Apple AirPods Pro 3 No LDAC, but these will take your heart-rate, offer a pretty comprehensive hearing test and (provided you've got an iPhone) translate various languages for you. Also, the ANC is some of the most effective I've ever heard, and Dolby Atmos head-tracked spatial audio is excellent. iPhone owner? You'll be hard pushed to beat these… Read my in-depth AirPods Pro 3 review for the full scoop.
Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) This is the better pick over the XM6 for device- and streamer-agnostic immersive audio profiles, wonderful noise cancellation, and a colorful look (if you like). Some wearers may find the buds a touch big (though they're secure and fit excellently), but if profiles that combine bubble-of-silence ANC as a backdrop for wonderful spatial audio experiences sounds like your bag, you've found the best buy in the business. See our full Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) review for more. View Deal
Technics EAH-AZ100 An option with slightly better stamina that also offers slightly better sound quality – and just costs slightly more. You'll still get LDAC higher-resolution Bluetooth support if you've got a device that supports it, but here, you also get multi-point to three brand-agnostic devices (rather than the standard two) and for me, the fit is also just that bit better. And Technics' sidetone tech (to better hear your own voice in calls) makes them the better bet for call handling. Get the full picture in our Technics EAH-AZ100 review.
(Image credit: Future)
How I tested the Sony WF-1000XM6
Tested for two weeks
Tested at home, on a plane, on long train journeys, and while running (occasionally in the rain)
I used the Sony WF-1000XM6 for two weeks to complete this review. My testing process involved listening to new music on Tidal, Qobuz and Apple Music as well as podcasts and plus streamed TV shows from my Apple iPhone 15 Pro (I'm catching up on Married at First Sight UK, please don't judge me) on long train journeys to and from London. I also paired simultaneously to my MacBook Pro and both connections were easy and solid.
I listened at home, on a quiet train, on admittedly half-hearted runs in the constant UK rain, and I even taught myself to make natural soy wax candles from YouTube videos with the WF-1000XM6.
I've been testing audio products full-time since 2019, firstly at TechRadar's sister publication What Hi-Fi? as a staff writer, then as senior writer and now audio editor here at TechRadar.
My background as a professional dancer means I never tire of listening to music, and my still-insatiable need to move to what I'm hearing is what drives me to search for faithful timing, neutrality, precision, clarity, energy, and good old fashioned fun in recorded audio.
Usually, when I review a product with a brand-new feature, I use that function for about a week before the novelty wears off. The Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro may not be the best earbuds I’ve ever tested, but I’ve been using its key selling point constantly over the testing period, and that at least says something.
Are they a pair of open earbuds? Or are they a pair of standard workout headphones? Yes and yes – these new hearables from Anker’s audio-visual sub-brand Soundcore do both. The bud’s body is adjustable in relation to its loop: you can have them as standard sports buds, or raise the bud somewhat so it’s further out of your ear. Ta-da, you have open earbuds.
In theory, you get the best of both worlds. Put them in open-ear mode and you enjoy your listening while still hearing what’s going on around you. Flick them into standard mode and you can hear your music with no distractions from outside, thanks in part to ANC turning on.
When I first reported on the buds, I guessed that they could be the best fitness earbuds of the year – it’s safe to say I was cautiously optimistic about them. The function is useful: I’d run along a busy road in open mode and close it when I reached a quieter park, or keep it open when cycling to the gym and close it when I got there.
A home-run, then? Not quite – these are the first earbuds I’ve ever seen trying out a form factor like this, and myriad teething problems plague the buds. I don’t think they are the best fitness headphones of the year any more, but it’s still a valiant effort.
Take, for example, the design. The buds aren’t that far from your ear when in open mode, so don’t let in nearly as much sound as rivals. But due to having AirPods-style tip-less ends, the Aerofits aren’t fully in your ear when in ANC mode, and so don’t actually cancel that much sound.
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(Image credit: Future)
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(Image credit: Future)
The loop material is also quite flimsy, so the buds wobble a lot, and the buttons are hard to press when in ANC mode (but, admittedly, very easy in open mode).
You need to play around in the settings to get the best of the Aerofit 2 Pro too. The default EQ preset, Soundcore Signature, goes for a misshapen V-shaped sound profile which sounds pretty wonky; go into the equalization menu straight away. The Intelligent Noise Cancellation feature also gets in the way, by messing with your sound constantly; turn this off too.
You probably wouldn’t be buying adjustable buds like this if you weren’t okay with some tweaking, though; just know that you’ll have to be doing it quite a bit.
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro review: Specifications
Component
Value
Water resistant
IP55
Battery life
7 hours (earbuds), 34 hours (total)
Bluetooth type
Bluetooth 6.1
Weight
11g / Charging case: 109g
Driver
11.8mm
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro review: Price and availability
(Image credit: Future)
Released on January 6, 2026
Priced at $179.99 / £179.99 (roughly AU$350)
Paying a premium for the novelty
Anker unveiled the Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro at CES 2026 in the first week of the year, and put them on sale immediately after. Perfect for your new year’s fitness resolution.
The earbuds cost $179.99 / £179.99 (roughly AU$350, but they don’t seem to have joined Soundcore’s line-up in Australia). That’s the official price, but mere weeks after release, I’ve seen them discounted by $30 in the US and £10 in the UK.
As open earbuds go, that price is on the higher side of things, but you’re paying to be the first to test this novel kind of tech.
It’s a little higher than the launch price of the first Aerofit Pro, but that device plummeted in price over two years, and we could see the new model drop to similar lows over time.
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro review: Design
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(Image credit: Future)
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(Image credit: Future)
Easy to switch between open- and closed-ear fit
Weak loop and heavy earpiece affect wear
IP55 protection, comes in black, white or purple
I’ve already described the Aerofit 2 Pro’s transforming gimmick; but how does it work? Basically, the sports loop connects to the driver housing via a connector that can be moved around five different settings; each one results in a different angle for the earpiece to sit at, relative to your ear. At the furthest extent, said headshell sits right in your ear, and at the opposite extent it’s hovering high above it. The first two are ANC (in-ear) mode, the latter two open mode, and the middle one is something in between.
I was skeptical about this, but functionally it works really well. Quickly I became adept at opening or closing the buds while they were in my ear, and in no time I was doing so without breaking my stride while on a run. Unfortunately, basically everything about this design (other than the ease of switching) poses problems.
The key one problem is the loop, made out of a thin silicone which just isn’t rigid enough to hold the earbuds in place. When I was running or working out with the buds, I often found that the battery-bearing counterweights would wobble. It was especially noticeable when in ANC mode. They never fell out, but it was an annoying sensation.
This is exacerbated by the buds’ weight. At 11g each, they’re the heaviest than any other open earbuds I remember testing.
(Image credit: Future)
The tip-less design brings with it another problem: the sound leakage on these things, especially in open mode, is significant. Your gym peers will definitely hear what you’re listening to.
Each bud has a button. No, not a sensor or an area you tap and pray something happened: an honest-to-God area that you press in and hear a satisfying ‘click’. Lovely. It’s really easy and simple to use when the bud is in open mode, however when in ANC mode, I found that the pressure needed to press the button instead just pushed it into my ear.
Now that I’m complaining about things: the material used for the end of the bud is a dirt magnet. When it’s in the case or ear it’s fine, but when I put the buds in my pocket or dropped them on the floor, they quickly picked up fluff and particles that were quite hard to clean off. That’s all to say: excuse the review images, I tried my best.
This section is already far too long, but let’s briefly touch on the case. It’s certainly on the big side, even for sports-hook earbuds, and it weighs 109g (including the buds). It has some neat touches: an LED bar gives you an indication of how much charge you have left, and the case also facilitates wireless charging.
Design score: 3.5/5
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro review: Features
(Image credit: Future)
Little noise is cancelled due to design and the ANC algorithm
Battery life is 7 / 34 hours with ANC on
Several app features including handy EQ presets
Why have I been calling one form of the Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro ‘ANC mode’? That’ll be because when you’re at these extensions, noise cancellation will turn on, ostensibly stopping as much surrounding sound as possible from entering your ears. An anti-open-ear mode, so to speak.
However, the Aerofit run into the same problem as the Apple AirPods 4 with ANC: there’s no rubbery ear tip to create a natural sound-blocking seal, and so the noise cancellation is fighting an impossibly steep uphill battle from the outset. It doesn’t win the battle, and it’s very easy to hear surrounding sounds in this mode – I can hear myself typing this sentence over fairly loud music. It’s not a totally lost cause, and sounds are made quieter, but there’s little meaningful difference between open mode and ANC mode.
ANC mode may do more harm than it’s worth, though, because of Soundcore’s adjustable ANC. This is designed to automatically adjust noise cancellation and many earbuds have similar modes, but on the Soundcore, it had too dramatic an effect on the sound. Frequently, I’d hear dramatic shifts in listening volume or sound profile, and sometimes the volume wouldn’t be able to go very high to compensate for the ANC. On my first run with the buds, I was frustrated with how quiet the max volume was – until I realized it was the noise cancellation running amok. Thankfully this mode can be turned off.
(Image credit: Future)
Soundcore puts the battery life of the buds at 7 hours in open-ear mode and 5 hours with ANC turned on. My testing suggests these figures could be a little conservative, so I’m not going to knock the buds like I normally would with 5-hour listening time buds.
The Soundcore app brings a few extra features to the earbuds. These include the ability to customize what the touch controls do, a low-latency and a Spatial Audio mode, an equalizer and the ability to make ANC toggling manual instead of automatic.
The equalizer has a healthy selection of presets, most of which make meaningful adjustments to the sound, and there’s also an eight-band custom option too. I particularly like the Volume Booster preset, which doesn’t exactly sound fantastic, but it gives the buds that extra ‘oomph’ that you need with open buds when venturing somewhere noisy.
Pairing the buds to my phone was quick and easy, however I did have the occasional stuttering and connection dropping problems during testing.
Features score: 3/5
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro review: Sound performance
(Image credit: Future)
Single 10.8mm driver
Music sounds lifeless
Lovely, high max volume
There’s a custom-built 11.8mm driver in each of the Aerofits. Their most impressive feature, though, may be the support for Bluetooth 6.1, which is more advanced than most smartphones you’d be pairing the buds with. That pairs with Hi-Res Audio Wireless certification and a support for LDAC.
When I first started listening to the Aerofit 2 Pro, I was in a quiet home and listening on ANC mode, and I was impressed by a few aspects. There’s decent spacing between instruments, and enough detail to hear the timbre of instruments. Lovely, and unexpected for fitness earbuds like these. However I made the critical mistake of listening to the Soundcore Signature EQ preset for much of my testing period.
This doesn’t sound great: it elevates treble, mutes bass and drops mids almost entirely, like V-shaped sound profile with a lop-sided ‘V’. Uncle Kracker’s In A Little While had distorted guitar that sounded like a fan with a scrap of paper stuck in it, while the chorus of Five More Minutes by The War and Treaty sounded like a duet between vocals and a lawnmower. And treble was far too prominent: Don McCloskey’s First In Flight was constantly jump-scaring me with brass stings.
However, jumping into the EQ preset menu let me salvage my listening experience; I’d recommend buyers to switch straight to ‘Balanced’, or one of the genre-based EQs if you only listen to one kind of music. Balanced levels out that ‘V’ into much more of a flat line, so you can enjoy the high-quality audio without any line or instrument being overwritten.
Max volume for the buds is pretty loud, especially on Volume Booster, but the auto-ANC mode can put a pretty significant upper limit; turn this off.
Sound performance score: 4/5
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro review: Value
(Image credit: Future)
Novelty form factor aside, the Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro go for quite a high price, compared to other open earbuds you’d be considering. These aren’t a budget option by any stretch of the imagination – I’d go so far as to call them premium, given that relatively few options exist above the $/£200 threshold.
All considered, it feels a little hard to recommend them for the price – you’re paying for the privilege of testing a new form factor of headphone, not for an especially competitive feature set or sound quality. You're not being ripped off exactly, but it's not a competitive price.
If you can find the Aerofit 2 Pro discounted, though, they’d be well worth considering. They don’t even need an especially meaty price cut; the minor discount already available is a good start.
Value score: 3.5/5
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro review: scorecard
Category
Comment
Score
Value
The Aerofit's price matches some premium alternatives.
3.5/5
Design
The two-in-one design and switching works well; some other elements don't.
3.5/5
Features
The ANC doesn't work too well and the battery life isn't fantastic, although the app brings some nice additions.
3/5
Sound
Play around with the settings enough, and you can get detailed, expansive audio that'll surprise you compared to other fitness buds.
4/5
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro: Should I buy?
(Image credit: Future)
Buy them if...
The 2-in-1 gimmick appeals Think you want buds that switch between open and standard sports earbuds? You won't be disappointed by how Anker does it.
You want treble-first sound The Aerofit aren't bassy buds, and they'll appeal to people who prefer hearing lyrics, spoken words or guitar solos.
You appreciate wireless charging We don't see wireless charging available on many earbuds cases, especially sports-specific ones. If you like the feature, the Aerofit have you covered.
Don't buy them if...
You have noise that needs cancelling Even in ANC mode, the noise cancellation of the Aerofit isn't competitive.
You won't use the 2-in-1 design You're paying a premium for the novel form factor of the Aerofit. If you don't think you'll use it enough, other options will give you more value for money.
Also consider
Component
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro
Shokz OpenFit 2+
Huawei FreeArc
Water resistant
IP55
IP55
IP57
Battery life
7 hours (earbuds), 34 hours (total)
11 hours (earbuds), 48 hours (total)
7 hours (earbuds), 23 hours (total)
Bluetooth type
Bluetooth 6.1
Bluetooth 5.4
Bluetooth 5.2
Weight
11g / Charging case: 109g
9.4g / Charging case: 56g
8.9g / Charging case: 67g
Driver
11.8mm
17.3mm
17mm x 12mm
Shokz OpenFit 2+
Our favorite open earbuds right now come from Shokz, and they offer the full package: a stable fit, great sound quality and a solid feature set. Best of all, they either match or undercut the Soundcore depending on where you live.
Want an affordable alternative? The Huawei FreeArc cost half the price of the Soundcore, and have fantastic sound. The case is small and the buds fit well.
I tested the Anker Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro for just over two weeks in order to write this review. During this time, they were paired with my Android smartphone.
In that time, I used the Soundcore on runs, at the gym and on cylces. But because of their dual-purpose design, also treated them as my everyday headphones in that time, so I listened at home, on public transport, and on walks around my neighborhood. Most of the testing was done on Spotify, YouTube and Prime Video's apps.
I've tested plenty of open earbuds for TechRadar over the last few years, as the audio segment has emerged, as well as countless other earbuds and headphones.
Usually, when I review a product with a brand-new feature, I use that function for about a week before the novelty wears off. The Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro may not be the best earbuds I’ve ever tested, but I’ve been using its key selling point constantly over the testing period, and that at least says something.
Are they a pair of open earbuds? Or are they a pair of standard workout headphones? Yes and yes – these new hearables from Anker’s audio-visual sub-brand Soundcore do both. The bud’s body is adjustable in relation to its loop: you can have them as standard sports buds, or raise the bud somewhat so it’s further out of your ear. Ta-da, you have open earbuds.
In theory, you get the best of both worlds. Put them in open-ear mode and you enjoy your listening while still hearing what’s going on around you. Flick them into standard mode and you can hear your music with no distractions from outside, thanks in part to ANC turning on.
When I first reported on the buds, I guessed that they could be the best fitness earbuds of the year – it’s safe to say I was cautiously optimistic about them. The function is useful: I’d run along a busy road in open mode and close it when I reached a quieter park, or keep it open when cycling to the gym and close it when I got there.
A home-run, then? Not quite – these are the first earbuds I’ve ever seen trying out a form factor like this, and myriad teething problems plague the buds. I don’t think they are the best fitness headphones of the year any more, but it’s still a valiant effort.
Take, for example, the design. The buds aren’t that far from your ear when in open mode, so don’t let in nearly as much sound as rivals. But due to having AirPods-style tip-less ends, the Aerofits aren’t fully in your ear when in ANC mode, and so don’t actually cancel that much sound.
Image 1 of 2
(Image credit: Future)
Image 2 of 2
(Image credit: Future)
The loop material is also quite flimsy, so the buds wobble a lot, and the buttons are hard to press when in ANC mode (but, admittedly, very easy in open mode).
You need to play around in the settings to get the best of the Aerofit 2 Pro too. The default EQ preset, Soundcore Signature, goes for a misshapen V-shaped sound profile which sounds pretty wonky; go into the equalization menu straight away. The Intelligent Noise Cancellation feature also gets in the way, by messing with your sound constantly; turn this off too.
You probably wouldn’t be buying adjustable buds like this if you weren’t okay with some tweaking, though; just know that you’ll have to be doing it quite a bit.
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro review: Specifications
Component
Value
Water resistant
IP55
Battery life
7 hours (earbuds), 34 hours (total)
Bluetooth type
Bluetooth 6.1
Weight
11g / Charging case: 109g
Driver
11.8mm
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro review: Price and availability
(Image credit: Future)
Released on January 6, 2026
Priced at $179.99 / £179.99 (roughly AU$350)
Paying a premium for the novelty
Anker unveiled the Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro at CES 2026 in the first week of the year, and put them on sale immediately after. Perfect for your new year’s fitness resolution.
The earbuds cost $179.99 / £179.99 (roughly AU$350, but they don’t seem to have joined Soundcore’s line-up in Australia). That’s the official price, but mere weeks after release, I’ve seen them discounted by $30 in the US and £10 in the UK.
As open earbuds go, that price is on the higher side of things, but you’re paying to be the first to test this novel kind of tech.
It’s a little higher than the launch price of the first Aerofit Pro, but that device plummeted in price over two years, and we could see the new model drop to similar lows over time.
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro review: Design
Image 1 of 2
(Image credit: Future)
Image 2 of 2
(Image credit: Future)
Easy to switch between open- and closed-ear fit
Weak loop and heavy earpiece affect wear
IP55 protection, comes in black, white or purple
I’ve already described the Aerofit 2 Pro’s transforming gimmick; but how does it work? Basically, the sports loop connects to the driver housing via a connector that can be moved around five different settings; each one results in a different angle for the earpiece to sit at, relative to your ear. At the furthest extent, said headshell sits right in your ear, and at the opposite extent it’s hovering high above it. The first two are ANC (in-ear) mode, the latter two open mode, and the middle one is something in between.
I was skeptical about this, but functionally it works really well. Quickly I became adept at opening or closing the buds while they were in my ear, and in no time I was doing so without breaking my stride while on a run. Unfortunately, basically everything about this design (other than the ease of switching) poses problems.
The key one problem is the loop, made out of a thin silicone which just isn’t rigid enough to hold the earbuds in place. When I was running or working out with the buds, I often found that the battery-bearing counterweights would wobble. It was especially noticeable when in ANC mode. They never fell out, but it was an annoying sensation.
This is exacerbated by the buds’ weight. At 11g each, they’re the heaviest than any other open earbuds I remember testing.
(Image credit: Future)
The tip-less design brings with it another problem: the sound leakage on these things, especially in open mode, is significant. Your gym peers will definitely hear what you’re listening to.
Each bud has a button. No, not a sensor or an area you tap and pray something happened: an honest-to-God area that you press in and hear a satisfying ‘click’. Lovely. It’s really easy and simple to use when the bud is in open mode, however when in ANC mode, I found that the pressure needed to press the button instead just pushed it into my ear.
Now that I’m complaining about things: the material used for the end of the bud is a dirt magnet. When it’s in the case or ear it’s fine, but when I put the buds in my pocket or dropped them on the floor, they quickly picked up fluff and particles that were quite hard to clean off. That’s all to say: excuse the review images, I tried my best.
This section is already far too long, but let’s briefly touch on the case. It’s certainly on the big side, even for sports-hook earbuds, and it weighs 109g (including the buds). It has some neat touches: an LED bar gives you an indication of how much charge you have left, and the case also facilitates wireless charging.
Design score: 3.5/5
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro review: Features
(Image credit: Future)
Little noise is cancelled due to design and the ANC algorithm
Battery life is 7 / 34 hours with ANC on
Several app features including handy EQ presets
Why have I been calling one form of the Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro ‘ANC mode’? That’ll be because when you’re at these extensions, noise cancellation will turn on, ostensibly stopping as much surrounding sound as possible from entering your ears. An anti-open-ear mode, so to speak.
However, the Aerofit run into the same problem as the Apple AirPods 4 with ANC: there’s no rubbery ear tip to create a natural sound-blocking seal, and so the noise cancellation is fighting an impossibly steep uphill battle from the outset. It doesn’t win the battle, and it’s very easy to hear surrounding sounds in this mode – I can hear myself typing this sentence over fairly loud music. It’s not a totally lost cause, and sounds are made quieter, but there’s little meaningful difference between open mode and ANC mode.
ANC mode may do more harm than it’s worth, though, because of Soundcore’s adjustable ANC. This is designed to automatically adjust noise cancellation and many earbuds have similar modes, but on the Soundcore, it had too dramatic an effect on the sound. Frequently, I’d hear dramatic shifts in listening volume or sound profile, and sometimes the volume wouldn’t be able to go very high to compensate for the ANC. On my first run with the buds, I was frustrated with how quiet the max volume was – until I realized it was the noise cancellation running amok. Thankfully this mode can be turned off.
(Image credit: Future)
Soundcore puts the battery life of the buds at 7 hours in open-ear mode and 5 hours with ANC turned on. My testing suggests these figures could be a little conservative, so I’m not going to knock the buds like I normally would with 5-hour listening time buds.
The Soundcore app brings a few extra features to the earbuds. These include the ability to customize what the touch controls do, a low-latency and a Spatial Audio mode, an equalizer and the ability to make ANC toggling manual instead of automatic.
The equalizer has a healthy selection of presets, most of which make meaningful adjustments to the sound, and there’s also an eight-band custom option too. I particularly like the Volume Booster preset, which doesn’t exactly sound fantastic, but it gives the buds that extra ‘oomph’ that you need with open buds when venturing somewhere noisy.
Pairing the buds to my phone was quick and easy, however I did have the occasional stuttering and connection dropping problems during testing.
Features score: 3/5
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro review: Sound performance
(Image credit: Future)
Single 10.8mm driver
Music sounds lifeless
Lovely, high max volume
There’s a custom-built 11.8mm driver in each of the Aerofits. Their most impressive feature, though, may be the support for Bluetooth 6.1, which is more advanced than most smartphones you’d be pairing the buds with. That pairs with Hi-Res Audio Wireless certification and a support for LDAC.
When I first started listening to the Aerofit 2 Pro, I was in a quiet home and listening on ANC mode, and I was impressed by a few aspects. There’s decent spacing between instruments, and enough detail to hear the timbre of instruments. Lovely, and unexpected for fitness earbuds like these. However I made the critical mistake of listening to the Soundcore Signature EQ preset for much of my testing period.
This doesn’t sound great: it elevates treble, mutes bass and drops mids almost entirely, like V-shaped sound profile with a lop-sided ‘V’. Uncle Kracker’s In A Little While had distorted guitar that sounded like a fan with a scrap of paper stuck in it, while the chorus of Five More Minutes by The War and Treaty sounded like a duet between vocals and a lawnmower. And treble was far too prominent: Don McCloskey’s First In Flight was constantly jump-scaring me with brass stings.
However, jumping into the EQ preset menu let me salvage my listening experience; I’d recommend buyers to switch straight to ‘Balanced’, or one of the genre-based EQs if you only listen to one kind of music. Balanced levels out that ‘V’ into much more of a flat line, so you can enjoy the high-quality audio without any line or instrument being overwritten.
Max volume for the buds is pretty loud, especially on Volume Booster, but the auto-ANC mode can put a pretty significant upper limit; turn this off.
Sound performance score: 4/5
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro review: Value
(Image credit: Future)
Novelty form factor aside, the Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro go for quite a high price, compared to other open earbuds you’d be considering. These aren’t a budget option by any stretch of the imagination – I’d go so far as to call them premium, given that relatively few options exist above the $/£200 threshold.
All considered, it feels a little hard to recommend them for the price – you’re paying for the privilege of testing a new form factor of headphone, not for an especially competitive feature set or sound quality. You're not being ripped off exactly, but it's not a competitive price.
If you can find the Aerofit 2 Pro discounted, though, they’d be well worth considering. They don’t even need an especially meaty price cut; the minor discount already available is a good start.
Value score: 3.5/5
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro review: scorecard
Category
Comment
Score
Value
The Aerofit's price matches some premium alternatives.
3.5/5
Design
The two-in-one design and switching works well; some other elements don't.
3.5/5
Features
The ANC doesn't work too well and the battery life isn't fantastic, although the app brings some nice additions.
3/5
Sound
Play around with the settings enough, and you can get detailed, expansive audio that'll surprise you compared to other fitness buds.
4/5
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro: Should I buy?
(Image credit: Future)
Buy them if...
The 2-in-1 gimmick appeals Think you want buds that switch between open and standard sports earbuds? You won't be disappointed by how Anker does it.
You want treble-first sound The Aerofit aren't bassy buds, and they'll appeal to people who prefer hearing lyrics, spoken words or guitar solos.
You appreciate wireless charging We don't see wireless charging available on many earbuds cases, especially sports-specific ones. If you like the feature, the Aerofit have you covered.
Don't buy them if...
You have noise that needs cancelling Even in ANC mode, the noise cancellation of the Aerofit isn't competitive.
You won't use the 2-in-1 design You're paying a premium for the novel form factor of the Aerofit. If you don't think you'll use it enough, other options will give you more value for money.
Also consider
Component
Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro
Shokz OpenFit 2+
Huawei FreeArc
Water resistant
IP55
IP55
IP57
Battery life
7 hours (earbuds), 34 hours (total)
11 hours (earbuds), 48 hours (total)
7 hours (earbuds), 23 hours (total)
Bluetooth type
Bluetooth 6.1
Bluetooth 5.4
Bluetooth 5.2
Weight
11g / Charging case: 109g
9.4g / Charging case: 56g
8.9g / Charging case: 67g
Driver
11.8mm
17.3mm
17mm x 12mm
Shokz OpenFit 2+
Our favorite open earbuds right now come from Shokz, and they offer the full package: a stable fit, great sound quality and a solid feature set. Best of all, they either match or undercut the Soundcore depending on where you live.
Want an affordable alternative? The Huawei FreeArc cost half the price of the Soundcore, and have fantastic sound. The case is small and the buds fit well.
I tested the Anker Soundcore Aerofit 2 Pro for just over two weeks in order to write this review. During this time, they were paired with my Android smartphone.
In that time, I used the Soundcore on runs, at the gym and on cylces. But because of their dual-purpose design, also treated them as my everyday headphones in that time, so I listened at home, on public transport, and on walks around my neighborhood. Most of the testing was done on Spotify, YouTube and Prime Video's apps.
I've tested plenty of open earbuds for TechRadar over the last few years, as the audio segment has emerged, as well as countless other earbuds and headphones.
If you’re looking for an ultra-cheap pair of noise cancelling headphones, the Tribit QuietPlus 81 appear to be a very tempting option indeed. With a list price of just $49.99 / £49.99 (about AU$75), they pack a lot in – ANC, a ton of playtime, and a neat, foldable design. But are they really worth checking out?
Well, in a lot of ways, these headphones are impressive. Above all, I was blown away by their ultra-long battery life. You get 70 hours with ANC on, and a whopping 110 hours with ANC off. That means you’ll barely have to charge these cans, ideal if you’re someone that’s on the go quite a bit… or are just forgetful like I am.
Like the best headphones around, these also have pretty extensive EQ options. There are a range of genre and situation-specific presets, but you can also set your own with the included 10-band equalizer. This means that you can create the sound that works best for you – an important inclusion, given that these headphones do not sound great out of the box.
Yes, I understand that these are incredibly cheap, and I didn’t have big expectations for these headphones, sonically speaking. But still, I think there are better-sounding options in the budget category – more on those in the ‘Also consider’ section. But essentially, these cans just lack the clarity, dynamism, and detail that others offer.
When listening to Black Eye by Allie X, synth beat intro lacked the razor-sharp delivery that makes it so impactful. The drum machine that follows sounds pretty deep, but also quite bloated, leaving the track devoid of its intense, energetic character. With the standard ‘Music’ tuning, instruments in the treble range are concealed, but even with a custom setup, I wasn’t able to get the expressive sound I was chasing.
Moving over to 12 O.C Riddim by M-High – a track that’s great for testing the low-end capabilities of headphones – and the picture was fairly mixed. High-pitched percussion in the build up again lacked the vibrancy and edge I was looking for, and although the headphones could reach down to the track’s dark depths, bass wasn’t agile or clean enough for a truly immersive listen.
Just generally, these headphones lack the refined sound you’d expect from a budget model like the 1More Sonoflow Pro HQ51. With a custom EQ, you can get adequate sound when listening at mid-volumes, just don’t expect to get anything out of the ordinary for $50 / £50 headphones.
(Image credit: Future)
Let’s get onto another crucial area and discuss ANC. So, these headphones can be used in normal mode, transparency mode (for enhanced awareness), and with noise cancelling on. I spent most of my time testing the headphones with ANC on, and in honesty, it was about as good as I’d expected.
When working in the office, I could still hear chatter and typing with volume set to 70%. On walks, traffic noise was still pretty prominent too, as was the sound of passerbys talking. Sure, these dampen surrounding sounds decently enough, but they’re unlikely to impress on the noise cancelling front.
One feature that interested me on these headphones, though, was their ability to trigger transparency mode in an instant. You can simply hold down on the right earcup, and hear your surroundings – as seen on the excellent Sony WH-1000XM6. Is this the most responsive? No – the feature doesn’t activate instantly as it would on the XM6. But still, it’s fairly effective, and a worthwhile inclusion.
More generally though, controls on the QuietPlus are pretty poor. After a firmware update, I was able to access ‘customizable touch controls’, but I couldn’t set playback control to the right ear cup… that’s limited to physical button controls. These buttons are black on black, and are slightly hard to read – and the volume controls being bound to one small-sized button is very impractical.
Touch controls themself are fairly responsive, but all they can do is activate XBass mode – which doesn’t sound good – or summon a voice assistant. I personally would’ve preferred standard touch controls to play, pause, or skip music – as seen on a model like the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen).
There are a few other features to explore, like a lower-latency game mode, wired listening via a 3.5mm slot, and hearing protection. You can find just about everything you need in the Tribit app, although this is a pretty rudimentary piece of software – something I flagged in my review of the Tribit PocketGo.
In terms of design, these headphones are hit and miss. They’re foldable, which makes them pleasingly compact, and their adjustable headband makes them easy to fit. One thing that's not too well-designed is the packaging. The box says these headphones offer "ULTRA LONG BATT" and "SMOOTH TALKING"... that's one way to make a first impression.
Anyway, in spite of their use of ‘protein leather cushioning and memory foam’, I found the QuietPlus 81 to be a little uncomfortable for extended use. To me, they’re a little tight-feeling, and padding on the headband feels a little thin. Looks-wise, however, these headphones are solid. They don’t look ultra plasticky, and the earcups have a rounded look, which is fairly appealing.
In the end, then, would I recommend the Tribit QuietPlus 81 headphones? Unfortunately, the answer is no. There are certainly some commendable qualities on offer here, like that brilliant battery life and ten-band equalizer. But sonically, these fail to beat out rivals in their price category. Combine that with some unremarkable ANC and features, and I’d say you’re better off putting that $50 / £50 towards a pair of the best cheap headphones instead.
(Image credit: Future)
Tribit QuietPlus 81 review: specs
Drivers
40mm dynamic
Active noise cancellation
Yes
Battery life
70 hours ANC on; 110 hours ANC off
Weight
283g
Connectivity
Bluetooth 6.0, 3.5mm
Frequency range
20Hz-20kHz
(Image credit: Future)
Tribit QuietPlus 81 review: price and release date
$49.99 / £49.99 (about AU$75)
Launched in December 2025
The Tribit QuietPlus 81 headphones were released in December 2025, and are available via Tribit’s website directly, or over on Amazon. They have a list price of $49.99 / £49.99 (about AU$75), which plants them firmly in the budget category.
(Image credit: Future)
Should I buy the Tribit QuietPlus 81?
Attributes
Notes
Rating
Features
Excellent battery life, but unremarkable ANC and clunky app.
3/5
Sound quality
Can get pretty deep, but audio is pretty muddy and lacks dynamism.
2.5/5
Design
Not particularly comfortable, poor controls, but decent looking.
2/5
Value
Cheap, but quality doesn’t match up to other budget rivals.
3/5
Buy them if...
You want ANC for less The Tribit QuietPlus 81 provide active noise cancelling capabilities for less than $50 / £50. Sure, it’s not the most amazing ANC around, but these headphones will still dampen noise from your surroundings decently.
You want headphones with a whole lot of battery life With 110 hours of battery life with ANC off and 70 hours with it on, the Tribit QuietPlus 81 supply a whole lot of playtime. That’s more than the majority of budget rivals, and makes them ideal for those who don’t want to charge their headphones all too often.
Don't buy them if...
You want some comfy cans In my experience, the QuietPlus 81 weren’t very comfortable. There’s not much padding on the adjustable headband, and they were a slightly tight fit, meaning they’re not ideal for longer listening sessions. If you want some seriously comfortable headphones, my top recommendation would be the Anker Soundcore Space One Pro.
You’re looking for good sound quality The underwhelming audio of the Tribit QuietPlus 81 is one of their key flaws, and sees them lag behind some of the budget-friendly competition. If you want better audio at a still-low price, I’d recommend one of the options down below.
Tribit QuietPlus 81 review: also consider
Tribit QuietPlus 81
1More Sonoflow Pro HQ51
OneOdio Focus A6
Price
$49.99 / £49.99 (about AU$75)
$89 / £99 / AU$130
$55 / £55 (about AU$110)
Drivers
40mm dynamic
40mm dynamic
40mm composite
Active noise cancellation
Yes
Yes
Yes
Battery life
70 hours ANC on; 110 hours ANC off
65 hours ANC on; 100 hours ANC off
75 hours ANC off; 40 hours ANC on
Weight
283g
246g
240g
Connectivity
Bluetooth 6.0, 3.5mm
Bluetooth 5.4, 3.5mm
Bluetooth 6.0, USB-C audio passthrough
Frequency range
20Hz-20kHz
20Hz-40kHz
20Hz-40kHz
1More Sonoflow Pro HQ51 The 1More Sonoflow Pro HQ51 remain as the top budget pick in our guide to the best noise-cancelling headphones, and for good reason. With genuinely good ANC, seriously impressive audio, and plenty of playtime, they feel like the ultimate cheap pair of headphones. They’re often on sale for less than their already phenomenally low list price, and I’d certainly recommend them over these Tribit cans. Read our full 1More Sonoflow Pro HQ51 review.
OneOdio Focus A6 These ultra-cheap headphones really impressed us with their comfy fit and quality build, their exhaustive suite of features, and their genuinely good sound quality. You really can’t do much better than this for cans sitting around the $50 / £50 mark, so these are well-worth checking out. Read our full OneOdio Focus A6 review.
How I tested the Tribit QuietPlus 81
(Image credit: Future)
Tested for one week
Used in the office and while on walks
Predominantly tested using Tidal
I spent one week testing the Tribit QuietPlus 81, during which time I took them just about everywhere I went. Whether I was on a walk, working in the office, or doing chores at home, I made sure to have the headphones at hand – allowing me to test the quality of their ANC in a wide range of settings.
When listening to music, I predominantly made use of Tidal, but I did dip into Spotify from time to time as well. As always, I commenced my testing by running through the TechRadar testing playlist, which features songs from a wide range of genres, but I also tuned into a heap of tracks from my personal music library.
On top of that, I made use of the various features on the QuietPlus 81, messing around with the customizable controls, ANC modes, and custom equalizer. More generally, I’ve been a Reviews Writer here at TechRadar for almost two years, during which time I’ve tested a whole lot of headphones, including premium releases like the Sennheiser HDB 630 and budget alternatives like the Baseus Bowie 30 Max.
Google’s audio department has had something of a tough go of it – our list of the best earbuds seems far, far out of reach, with buds (or Buds) after buds that fail to impress. After the brand netted only three stars in our Google Pixel Buds Pro 2 review, and again only three stars from the Google Pixel Buds A, it’s finally managed to release a pair of true wireless earbuds that aren’t disappointing… if only because our expectations were quite low.
The Google Pixel Buds 2a are a more affordable alternative to the Pro 2, and a significant upgrade on the original A-series buds, bringing features which – if we’re being honest – the previous buds really should already have offered. However, though Google has managed to make a pair of earbuds that are finally pretty OK, the company hasn't managed to make buds that are especially competitive in the grand scheme of things.
Let’s start with a positive: like the past Pixel Buds, these are nice lightweight earbuds that don’t weigh your ears or your pocket down. The fit isn’t reliable though, partly because stem-less earbuds don’t lend themselves well to stability, partly because the tip material doesn’t offer much friction and partly because Google’s eartip fit test invariably failed to work.
Upgrades over the Pixel Buds A bring the 2a up to speed with industry trends: they have noise cancellation finally, and a greatly-improved battery life than the 1a’s embarrassing figure. But the feature list is still svelte: the EQ doesn’t offer much control over your sound, you can’t control your music from the buds, and the ANC is very light-touch.
The sound quality is, for lack of a better word, sloppy. The tuning is just all over the place, with audio parts tripping over themselves and frequent peaking. Individual lines can be detailed and clear but they don’t sit together well at all; an orchestra of the world’s best musicians can still sound poor if led by a hapless conductor.
I’m used to mid-range earbuds sounding cheap and cheerful, sometimes sacrificing audio precision and clarity for a fun, energetic or distinguished sound. Google has seemingly decided to go the other way, and has in doing so, learnt why none of the other manufacturers did so.
At the end of the day, myriad tweaks and improvements over Google’s lackluster previous offerings make these slightly easier to recommend, but they still pale in comparison to many other options available. That’s still true, just to a lesser degree, if you manage to pick them up for a discounted price. All that being said, if you’re offered them as a pre-order or bundle package with a Google Pixel phone, you could do worse.
Google Pixel Buds 2a review: Price and release date
(Image credit: Future)
Announced and released on August 20, 2025
Launched for $129.99 / £129 / AU$239
Seen discounts since release
The Google Pixel Buds 2a were announced on August 20, 2025, almost two years to the day after the release of the Buds Pro 2.
You can buy the buds for $129.99 / £129 / AU$239, although they’re the kind of buds that you’re just as likely to receive as a bundle or pre-order gift for something like the Google Pixel 10.
That’s a mid-range price, higher than the $99 / £99.99 (around AU$130) first-gen A-series buds, but more affordable than the $229 / £219 / AU$379 original asking price of the Buds Pro 2 (in theory – they’ve dropped in price quite a bit since their 2024 launch).
It’s also, unfortunately for Google, a cost which puts the buds slap-bang in the middle of a really competitive price point. The buds don’t have much to endear them against the competition… except perhaps price cuts, as I easily found them for $99 / £99 / AU$198 just months after testing (no, not on Black Friday, during a period devoid of sales).
Google Pixel Buds 2a review: Specs
Drivers
11mm
Active noise cancellation
Yes
Battery life (ANC off)
7 hours (buds) 20 hours (case)
Weight
4.7g (buds) 47g (case)
Connectivity
Bluetooth 5.4
Waterproofing
IP54
Google Pixel Buds 2a review: Features
(Image credit: Future)
ANC is here, but it's subtle
7/20 hour battery life (ANC on)
Not all of the features work well
A new addition Google has granted the Pixel Buds 2a, over their predecessors at least, is the introduction of Active Noise Cancellation or ANC. Now, your buds will detect sounds around you and strip them out as much as possible. Better late than never, I suppose.
The ANC here is nothing to write home about. It’s present, removing some of the major annoyances from environmental or nearby sounds, but there are plenty of other earbuds (even at this price point) that do a better job of keeping things quiet. The ambient mode is a little better; this feature allows select noises to bypass ANC, so you can hear people talking to you or important beepings (time to unpack the dishwasher). This mode tends to be hit-or-miss at what it allows through, but I found few faults when testing the Buds 2a.
In terms of battery life, the buds hit the average I expect from in-ear buds: 7 hours of listening with ANC on or 10 hours with it turned off, with my own listening matching Google’s predictions. That’s fine, but a nice upgrade from previous Google buds with their lacklustre lives. The charging case brings the total to 20 or 27 hours respectively, which is perhaps a little lower than on most rival buds I’ve tested, but enough for several full recharges.
(Image credit: Future)
Like all good earbuds (read: all earbuds), there’s a phone app you can use to get some extra functionality. It’s called Pixel Buds, although you don’t need it to listen to music if you don’t want it. I wouldn’t blame you either; I spent the first week of my testing time without it, and when I eventually installed it, it didn’t really change the experience.
You can use the app to toggle ANC mode, turn touch controls on or off (but not change what they do; toggling ANC or awakening Gemini are the only two options), find your buds if you’ve lost them, update the buds’ firmware, set up multi-point connection and turn in-ear play detection on and off. So far, the standard array of features.
Pixel Buds offers an equalizer, with a five-band custom mode or a small range of presets. It’s some degree of control over your sound, but not a nuanced one. This option also offers an eartip seal check, so you can figure out which size of eartip to use, but I tried this about 10 times over the course of a week and not once did it work successfully. Every single time, it told me it failed, and that I needed to be somewhere quiet – even if I was home alone in the middle of the night. One time, in the wee hours, I even held my breath so my breathing wouldn’t disrupt it. It still failed.
There’s one feature I do like: there’s a hearing wellness test, which is useful for people who worry they’re listening to music too loud, as it tells you your music volume in dB. Even if you don’t think about that kind of thing, it’s useful to know, just in case you are damaging your ears unknowingly.
Features score: 3.5/5
Google Pixel Buds 2a review: Design
(Image credit: Future)
Lightweight buds
Problems with fit
Two color options, IP54
The Google Pixel Buds 2a are some of the smallest earbuds I’ve ever tested. They’re in-ear buds with no stem, weighing 4.7g each, and it’s easy to forget they’re in your ear when you’re listening to music.
That is, when they stay in. Despite the small fin to help the buds wedge in your ear, I found the fit a little unreliable, and they’d sometimes slip when I was walking or running. In theory the earbud fit test should help me ensure that isn’t the case, but you’ve already read about how well it worked out.
There are touch controls if you press and hold the buds, and they’re easy enough to trigger, but they can only be mapped to toggle ANC or enable your smart assistant. You can’t play or pause your music, toggle the volume or, from what Google’s app suggests, answer a call. These are all fundamental functions of other buds’ gesture controls, and I simply can’t understand why they’re not in place here.
(Image credit: Future)
The pebble-shaped case is small and light too, weighing 47.6g. It’s a no-fuss case and it’s easy to remove the buds, though returning them isn’t always as simple: it’s fairly easy to put the wrong bud in each ingress, and only realise your mistake when the case doesn’t shut fully.
You can pick up the buds in two colors: Iris or Hazel, as Google calls them, or violet or black as they actually are. The color choice affects the buds and inner section of the case, though the outer shell itself will always be a white cream. The case picks up scuffs easily, and I was constantly wiping marks off the case after a brief stint in my pocket.
The buds have an IP54 protection against dust ingress and splashes of water, and the case has an IPX4 rating. According to Google, the buds were made with “at least” 41% recycled materials, including the entirety of the buds and charging case magnets, solder paste and battery.
Design score: 4/5
Google Pixel Buds 2a review: Sound quality
11mm driver
No Bluetooth codec supported
Sound lacks sparkle
(Image credit: Future)
Google has packed custom-made 11mm drivers into the Pixel Buds 2a; it hasn’t confirmed if these are the exact same drivers as in the Buds Pro 2, but the size is the same. I did most of my listening on the default EQ mode, simply because the presets didn’t seem to actually change the sound all that much.
On first listening, it sounds like the Pixel Buds 2a have it all: clear treble, solid bass and hearty mids. But the more I used the buds, the more I got the impression that something about the tuning was a little off. The elements don’t sit alongside each other well, and there’s an inconsistency to the sound.
In Seventeen Going Under by Sam Fender, as soon as the bass comes in it drowns out the acoustic guitar accompaniment; it’s not very well-defined or handled bass either, sounding too rumbly. Some parts of songs lack energy; the hook that begins Spector’s Chevy Thunder is too shrill and frail, while the guitar accompaniment is bounced down into a distorted mush; somehow in this song, the bass is barely audible.
There are times when the audio quality was enjoyable, especially when there was only one musical line, but that didn’t stay true when more instruments came in. In Vampire Weekend’s A-Punk, the introduction offers clear and detailed music but as more instruments come in, the overall package sounds worse. I also noticed consistent peaking and distorting, for certain instruments (I barely remember what a hi-hat is supposed to sound like after testing the 2a) and when the timbre became too complex.
So it sounds like the issue is with tuning across the frequencies, and not the technical specs, with audio sounding relatively detailed. There’s Bluetooth 5.4 for connectivity, but Google’s online specs sheet makes no mention of support for any advanced Bluetooth codecs.
Sound quality: 3.5/5
Google Pixel Buds 2a review: Value
(Image credit: Future)
Decent value at full price
Better value on sale
Great value as bundled gift
At their standard price, the Google Pixel Buds 2a are decent value: you get what you pay for, with a nice small body and fine audio quality for a mid-range price.
They’re not fantastic value though, and other buds for the same price can offer you more energetic audio, a fuller complement of features and a more reliable fit.
However, if you buy the Pixel Buds at the reduced cost, that changes… a little bit. They’re still not the most competitive buds even at the lower price, but they’re definitely better value for money.
Value: 3.5/5
Should I buy the Google Pixel Buds 2a?
(Image credit: Future)
Google Pixel Buds 2a score card
Attributes
Notes
Rating
Features
They have most of the features you'd hope for, but none of them wow.
3.5/5
Design
The lightweight build is great, though a reliable fit would be appreciated.
4/5
Sound quality
It's detailed sound, but it lacks energy and is woefully under-refined.
3.5/5
Value
You can do better for the price, even if you pick the Buds 2a up at their reduced price.
3.5/5
Buy them if…
You need petite earbuds for your bijou ears Both the case and the buds of the Pixel Buds 2a are svelte, fitting in your pocket and ear without a complaint.
They're included with a Pixel phone If you've found the Pixel Buds 2a because you can get them in a deal with a Google smartphone, then it's a package worth taking.
Don’t buy them if…
You like to customize your tunes The Pixel Buds 2a's equalizer just doesn't give you the flexibility to tweak your music, that rivals do.
You need industrial-strength noise cancellation Google's ANC doesn't match many rivals, and you don't need to spend any more to lose a lot more annoying background noise.
Google Pixel Buds 2a review: Also consider
Google Pixel Buds 2a
OnePlus Buds 4
Sony WF-C710N
Google Pixel Buds Pro 2
Drivers
11mm
11mm + 6mm
5mm
11mm
Active noise cancellation
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Battery life
7 hours (buds) 20 hours (case)
11 hours (buds) 45 hours (case)
8.5 hours (buds) 30 hours total (with case)
8 hours (buds) 30 hours (case)
Weight
4.7g (buds) 47.6g (case)
4.73g (buds) 40g (case)
5.2g (buds) 38g (case)
4.7g (buds) 65g (case)
Connectivity
Bluetooth 5.4
Bluetooth 5.4
Bluetooth 5.3
Bluetooth 5.4
Waterproofing
IP54
IP55
IPX4
IP54
Sony WF-C710N Sony's fantastic earbuds are cheaper than the Pixel Buds, while offering a similar design and feature set. They also have great noise cancellation and come in a funkier array of colors. See our full Sony WF-C710N review
OnePlus Buds 4 For the same price as the 2a, you can buy another smartphone tie-in buds. The OnePlus Buds have great ANC and a bassy sound, so if you like stem-toting earbuds they're a great choice. See our full OnePlus Buds 4 review
How I tested the Google Pixel Buds 2a
Tested for one month
Tested at home, at the gym, on runs and on walks
I tested the Google Pixel Buds 2a for just shy of four weeks, before submitting this review.
The earbuds were paired to my Android phone for the duration of the testing period, and I used them for a variety of tasks including streaming music, watching videos, gaming and taking calls.
I used the buds when at home, when going for walks or using public transport, when at the gym and while on runs.
I've been testing audio products for TechRadar for many years now, including a variety of other mid-range earbuds.
Over two years since launching its first over-ear headphones, Fairphone has a new version of its Fairbuds XL. The second-generation Fairbuds XL bring an updated design and new drivers, though the modular aspect remains.
Fairbuds XL Gen 2
The new 40mm dynamic drivers are backwards compatible with the original Fairbuds XL, meaning users with the older model can also enjoy the updated drivers and sound tuning. Fairphone will sell the left driver assembly for €61.95 and the right one for €39.95. But it’s not just the drivers, all of the key components on the new Fairbuds XL are...
Over two years since launching its first over-ear headphones, Fairphone has a new version of its Fairbuds XL. The second-generation Fairbuds XL bring an updated design and new drivers, though the modular aspect remains.
Fairbuds XL Gen 2
The new 40mm dynamic drivers are backwards compatible with the original Fairbuds XL, meaning users with the older model can also enjoy the updated drivers and sound tuning. Fairphone will sell the left driver assembly for €61.95 and the right one for €39.95. But it’s not just the drivers, all of the key components on the new Fairbuds XL are...
