Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Introduction I do my best to keep my expectations in check when judging the sound coming out of these buds. I paid ~$160 and for that price and lower, I could get me a good pair of headphones from companies that focus purely on audiophile products like Sennheiser or HIFIMAN that will sound much more accurate and be overall much, much more enjoyable. However, these are in-ears, that are bluetooth. This is going to clearly not going to give you the true audiophile, reference-quality experience that over-ears can provide you. So if that's what you're seeking, Anker has not yet achieved that in this form factor. Sound The whole "10 grammy guys approved these" could be misleading. You might expect (and I certainly had hopes) that behind all the PR jargon of being so studio quality that they would at least sound as neutral as possible. The description says the drivers in these things provide "stunning power," and honestly, yeah they're pretty dang powerful when it comes to the low-end. Ear rattling at high volumes, and still too overpowering at lower volumes. The bass itself doesn't fall victim to distorting, but I find it too forward and wide, and a tad too much of the details in the mids and highs become lost in songs with heavy bass. It does have a benefit of making songs with lower levels of bass exciting to listen to though. You could also find these enjoyable if you happen to be a basshead and you need wireless buds. Not off to a good start there, but there's actually a lot potential in these if Anker actually tries to grab the growing mobile audiophile market by the taint. Again, these are truly wireless in-ears so I'm not expecting much. Definitely on the bright side (hehe), these things got some pretty smooth highs and I think the mids are just... nice. Not too forward nor recessed for my tastes, and it's got a good amount of detail to it. Soundstage is the one thing that really impressed me on these buds. There's surprisingly a good amount of width for this form factor. Same opinion on the imaging as well, since it wasn't hard to tell the positioning of the instruments and different sounds in songs I've listened to. I mainly used these for music rather than calls, but as someone who doesn't call a lot, it's still noticeable that my calls were clear and any outside noise is reduced acceptably. By now, you can get a sense that these buds are not too shabby in the audio department. Maybe too pricy, but not too shabby. Depending on your ears, you could find these to be a lot of fun to listen to. I certainly never thought I hated the sound coming out of these. Comfort My ears usually hates the fit of in-ears. These fit fine out of the box. There are a good amount of sizes for the tips and wings so I'm sure you'll most likely get them deep in there with the proper size. I usually bust a move when the music is playing and they don't fall out. I keep them in for probably an hour max each time for whatever activities I use them for, and they have yet to cause any pain. They protrude out of your ears in a not-so-attractive way though. Looking at myself in the mirror, they look like earplugs that aren't completely in my ear. At least they're smaller than I expected! Practicality The earbuds hold a good charge and so does the case itself. I'm actually really thankful the case is compatible with wireless charging since it doesn't seem to be a common feature with earbud cases at the moment, even with the more expensive alternatives. It's a surprisingly nice quality-of-life feature that saves me the hassle of reaching for a cable. Packaging I feel like they could ship me these buds in broken glass and toilet paper and I wouldn't care. But if you're on the search to add another one to your ever growing packaging collection, I like the material of the outer packaging. The box is colorful, has a good weight, and it's bigger than it needs to be, Conclusion For my total paid of $161.61, they're not bad. If you're looking for something that just sounds casually good and you're on the move, these will 99% get the job done with satisfaction for you. They sound substantially better than Airpods and they're not far off in price. Held a better connection for me in comparison as well. If you want something closer to the dream of reference grade wireless buds or you're trying to find a compact option to mix songs on the go, these aren't going to be it. Although I might be spoiled by headphones, these in-ears got me thinking that there's enough soundstage and imaging for bluetooth earbuds to eventually become a acceptable replacement for them. If Anker put some more time tuning the sound on these, they could dominate. But, I could probably say that with any of the numerous companies jumping on this TWS headset market right now. Until then, wait for a sale.