As we look around us these days, everyone is using earbuds, and gradually their users are increasing. When I bought my first pair of earbuds, I got confused a lot because it was my first time buying earbuds.
And, at that time I was thinking one thing if someone had told me all these things to consider before buying earbuds, I would have been able to get the perfect earbuds without any confusion. But the opposite happened, and I bought the wrong earbuds which did not fit me.
I wanted earbuds that could give me a smooth calling experience and run for a long time in signal charging. But, the earbuds I got had an extra louder sound and bass that made the calling experience worse and battery backup was also not up to the mark.
Well, now after a long time of using different kinds of earbuds, I help you get the perfect pair of earbuds for you. So, if you are thinking of having new earbuds and don’t want to make a mistake which I did, I am telling you about the 8 things to know before buying earbuds. Make sure you checkmark every point mentioned here so that you can get the perfect pair of earbuds for your use.
1. Shortlist Earbuds in Your Budget
Before you go to buy earbuds, decide your budget first and then think about other things to consider when buying earbuds. Now that you have a set budget, you need to shortlist a few pairs of earbuds that come in your budget.
The advantage of short-listing earbuds according to budget will be that you will not have to be greedy for the most expensive earbuds and will not look for cheaper ones while seeing options there. If you don’t do this, then you will end up being confused and waste a lot of your time.
Once you have the list of earbuds in your budget, you should start checking other important things like company name, battery power, sound quality, comfort, and other things.
Moreover, you should keep one thing in mind while making a budget; Don’t hyper-maximize your budget, as the market has various options in every budget segment. Also, I would suggest, don’t go for cheaper than 1000 INR, because under this price range, you will rarely find a good pair of earbuds.
2. Brand Name
Regardless of which product or category you are searching in, the brand name matters a lot. If you are spending money on earbuds, then never think of buying earbuds from a company that has no legacy in the category. I have seen many people who buy earbuds of an unpopular brand in the greed of low price and then face problems in using them.
While I was searching for earbuds, I experienced that many popular earbuds companies have their earbuds in the market in every budget segment. So, do some research and find out brands, which have good customer experience and better reviews. You can go for the earbuds from brands that are already established in the smartphone market like Apple, Samsung, OnePlus, Realme, Oppo, etc.
Well, apart from these, many other brands are quite famous in the earbuds market and offer good enough products. Some of these names are; Boat, Sony, MiVi, JBL, pTron, etc.
3. Power Backup & Charging Option
Power backup is another important thing to know before buying earbuds. This was my blunder that I didn’t check the playback time of my earbuds, and it irritated me the most. While looking for earbuds, you should consider earbuds that have a powerful battery and last longer than other earbuds in its segment.
Many earbuds give playback time of up to 48 to 50 hours on a single charge. So, the pair of earbuds that you choose should have a good playback time that should, at least, last for one day continuously on a single charge.
Secondly, your earbuds should have a fast charging speed that can charge your buds’ case in minimum time. Additionally, make sure the earbuds case has the Types-C charging port, which is compatible with most of the chargers out there.
4. Sound Quality and Bass
Here comes the thing that matters the most than any other thing in earbuds. Ultimately, the sound is one of the reasons why are you buying earbuds. Different earbuds have different sound types; some earbuds give you a balanced sound whereas others focus on more dynamic audio.
So, it’s up to you to decide which type of sound you want to have in your earbuds. Some people need high volume and more bass sound, and some people, like me, who use earbuds mostly for calling purposes, need earbuds with less bass and clear sound.
Additionally, if you are someone who is buying earbuds for an ultimate music listening experience, you should check if the earbuds you are buying have the sound equalizer feature or not.
5. Fitting and Comfort in Ears
Often earbuds are good in other features like battery life, price, and sound quality but, they do not comfortably fit in ears. And, this is the thing that may irritate you a lot if your earbuds will not fit properly in your ears. Without a proper fitting, earbuds can fall out while jogging or doing any work.
The comfort of earbuds is another one of the important things to know before buying earbuds. It may also turn out to be a frustrating experience to use such earbuds.
So, you should prefer earbuds that can fit well in your ears and are lightweight so that you can have a pleasant experience while using earbuds. The best way to check the comfort and fitting of earbuds is either to go to the offline stores and check or read the reviews related to the comfort of earbuds.
6. Water and Sweat Resistance
Earbuds you are buying must have this feature because it is essential for anyone who uses earbuds while in the gym. If you are someone who will use earbuds while working out in the gym, or anywhere else where there are chances of earbuds getting wet, then you should look for earbuds that have this feature.
To make sure if the earbuds have this feature or not, you can refer to the IP rating of the earbuds. For an idea, you should look for earbuds, which have IPX4 ratings or higher.
7. ANC (Active Noise Cancellation) Feature
It is a feature that cancels outer noise while having earbuds in your ears. This is an essential feature in earbuds because it enhances your experience of listening to songs and talking over call.
However, earlier this feature was available in premium earbuds but, thanks to the evolving technology, it has started coming in budget earbuds as well. So, do one thing, check out your all shortlisted earbuds if ANS is there or not.
8. Reviews and Ratings
Last but not least, here comes the thing that can conclude the question of what to check when buying earbuds. Not only for earbuds but even for any type of product, this is the way to check if the product is good or not. So, you should always read real customer reviews and ratings before buying a new pair of earbuds.
In my case, when I first time bought a new pair of earbuds, I just believed in word of mouth and bought a pair of earbuds that one of my friends suggested but I didn’t check out the reviews of those earbuds. After that, I realized that I made a mistake.
You can check the reviews of your shortlisted earbuds on various online marketplaces. If the earbuds have 4+ ratings on platforms like Amazon and Flipkart, you can consider that a good pair to be bought. By checking the reviews and ratings, you can skip to check all the above-mentioned things to know before buying earbuds.
A Few Last Words
Because of the multiple options, choosing the right pair of earbuds for an individual is a difficult task. You need to understand the importance of the factors that I mentioned above in the article. Whether it is battery life, the sound quality, or the brand of earbuds, all these things must know before buying earbuds.
Meanwhile, you can’t claim any pair of earbuds as the best option with only one good feature. Like, earbuds may come with the best sound but lack battery life and comfort in the ears. So, you should choose for the earbuds that have the combination of all the features.
