Google Pixel Buds A-Series – Wireless Earbuds, Clearly White

Product Information

The Pixel Buds just aren't a great option because you can't update the firmware when needed unless you have an Android device, you can't access Siri, and the sound quality falls short compared to the competition.

Before charging, please be sure you read and follow the safety information about charging Google Pixel Buds here or in the "Be Safe" guide included with your Google Pixel Buds. The charging case has a USB-C connection, and I was surprised to discover it also has a magnet, meaning it won’t get yanked off your PC tower by the cable, and you can hang your niece’s artwork on the fridge with it.It feels like Google has done you a favor by trimming excess weight, though I wouldn’t drop the case from great heights. As released in June 2021, the A-Series was available initially in Clearly White and Dark Olive (green) colors; in October 2022, a Charcoal (dark grey) color was added.

Audio also sounds flatter than AirPods Pro, though I'm not an audio expert — these are just differences I noticed in my use with them. Thanks to some new tuning, the Google Pixel Buds Series-A have much better bass response, which makes them a real step up in terms of sound quality from the Google Pixel Buds 2. I discovered this when I first started using the Pixel Buds because I was experiencing some hiccups in the audio — the solution I found online required firmware updates, but iOS users are out of luck. While the Buds don’t feature any sort of active noise cancellation, they do have one trick up their sleeve that many other earbuds don’t – and that’s the ability to raise the volume based on how much ambient noise is in the background.The buds hold enough power for up to five hours of listening time (or, heaven forbid, two and a half hours’ talk time), and the case has enough juice for up to four charges, giving around 24 hours of charge all-in. Google has designed the A-Series to keep you aware of your surroundings rather than isolated from them. The flexible silicone stabiliser wing presses against the inside of your ear to keep the buds in place, even when running. It’s clear that isolation is not a priority of the A-Series, but then again, it never really was on any model of the Pixel series.

Firmware updates after its initial release have added several features to the Pixel Buds Pro, including a five-band equalizer (Oct 2022) [59] and a scheduled update for spatial audio with head tracking (Jan 2023). These buds do it for you, turning up the volume of your audio as your environment gets louder and turning things down as it gets quieter.Each sonic strand is easily and comfortably followed right through to the breathy sax at the end of the track, and we find ourselves eager to listen to more.