Amazon Echo Buds (2023) Review: A new Cheaper Purpose!
Retail Price: $49.99
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The 2023 Amazon Echo Buds have a lot going for them. With a much lower price point than the first generation, these new ear buds are essentially serving a different purpose than the original. No, they’re not by any means earth shattering or designed to stand out in a competitive sea of earbuds. But they’ve done a pretty good job of performing at what they’re advertised to do, and are compatible with Alexa features. Let’s take a closer look.
compact and comfortable
The Echo Buds feature a small white plastic carrying case with the Amazon logo stamped on the bottom. The carrying case charges via USB-C cable (you can purchase the variant that comes with a cable for about $10 more) and has a Bluetooth pairing button and LED indicator light. The charging case conveniently features three colors for notifications: green when the battery level is higher than 50%, yellow when it’s under 50%, and red when the battery needs charging. The buds themselves are a matte black color with various silicone tips for in-ear comfort. What makes these earbuds comfortable is that they’re semi in-ear, making it great for hearing your surroundings while still being immersed in whatever it is you’re listening to. I’ve found these earbuds to be comfortable for long-term use and I actually really enjoy meditating with them because they feel so light in the ear canals.
The Echo Buds are compact in size and great for travel. The rectangular carrying case is a simple design that we’ve seen time and time again, but has great portability and fits in my backpack and purse without issues. These earbuds are also sweat resistant and while I have yet to workout with these I can’t really imagine them slipping out unless you’re exerting quite a bit of sweat and exercise. That being said, I think these should mostly be used for commute and travel earbuds instead of sports earphones.
decent sound quality
The market for those purchasing Echo Buds are more likely the masses who are looking for a decent quality pair of earbuds that they can use for various settings that they won’t necessarily feel bad about if they happen to disappear on a long-haul flight or lose in a gym locker.
There’s a recurring theme that I see when it comes to the 2023 Echo Buds. These earbuds are nothing out of this world and in fact, if you’re a particular audiophile or need to have accessories that stand out in a crowd, you’re probably looking in the wrong place. The market for those purchasing Echo Buds are more likely the masses who are looking for a decent quality pair of earbuds that they can use for various settings that they won’t necessarily feel bad about if they happen to disappear on a long-haul flight or lose in a gym locker. The sound quality of the Echo Buds reflects just that. Audio is loud and clear with 12mm drivers but the bass doesn’t thump a whole ton and some acoustic music can sound a little better tinkered with different settings. Nevertheless, the Echo Buds get the job done and have two microphones that offer clear communication if you’re using Bluetooth or on a Zoom call.
What I really appreciated with the Echo Buds was the ability to simultaneously connect to two devices at a time. This meant that I could be on my laptop wrapping up a phone call and then return to Spotify with ease. This is typically my preferred setup when traveling because having a music player loaded on my work laptop sometimes lags my device and I prefer controlling my audio through my phone anyway.
usable features that work well
I’ve realized that no matter how many touch features an earbud has, there’s really only a handful of settings that I end up using. The majority of these are your usual pause, play, call, and forward/back track. Amazon gets this right and you can control your settings with either side of your earbud or both at the same time. The touch functions have been helpful but I’ve noticed they are a little more finicky than other brands I’ve tried sometimes, depending on the part of the earbud canal I’m tapping.
What stands out the most about the Echo Buds is (of course) its ability to connect to Amazon Alexa. If you’re a heavy Alexa user, these earbuds may very well be a no brainer. You can set reminders, make calls and ask it to play music all with your voice. In order to do so, you will need to install the Alexa app on your iPhone or Android device and login, but once you’re setup, everything is seamless. If you have a smart home that is Alexa-enabled, this makes it easy to do things like adjust the thermostat as you head home from work, or turn on certain lights and settings ahead of your arrival.
excellent battery life
The Amazon Echo Buds have fantastic battery life. They advertise and live up to 5 hours of music playback time and about 20 hours with the charging case. There’s also a quick charge feature that gets up to 2 hours of listening time on a 15 minute charge. I’ve used my Echo Buds intermittently in meetings throughout the day and then listen to music and meditate with them outside of work and they’ve held up quite well.
final thoughts
The Amazon Echo Buds retail for about $50 and will most likely go on sale with Prime Day and other sales. For this price range, it’s hard to go wrong with these. You get the Amazon household name quality with additional features like Alexa for a competitive price. On top of that, there’s really nothing inherently bad about the Echo Buds - sound quality is solid, battery life is great, and overall fit and comfort perform up to expectations. These are great stocking stuffers or gifts for those who want a backup pair of earbuds or those with younger children. You won’t be particularly blown out of the water with its features, but it does its job well at a solid enough value.
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Lida
Always the number cruncher, the former narrative journalist turned data scientist, can’t help but find herself bursting with excitement with each new generation of tech gadgets. After all, predicting future trends is Lida’s forte. Any gadget that survives Lida’s torturous, adult working woman itinerary of over 700 notifications a day deserves praise!