Google’s latest Pixel Buds headphones have been given the “pro” treatment, with better sound, noise cancellation, multi-point Bluetooth and a more comfortable design meant to rival Apple’s AirPods Pro but for Android users .
The Pixel Buds Pro cost £179 ($199 / A$299), sitting above the company’s £100 Pixel Buds A-Series as Google’s new top model. They will work with any standard Bluetooth device, including computers and iPhones, but have special features designed for Android.
They’re bigger than the A-series headphones, but they’re just as low and cute looking and don’t stick out too much from the ear. A smooth plastic cap with a subtle “G” branding is all people see when it’s in the ear.
The thicker, stemless body of the Buds Pro is designed to fit the shell of the ear without pressing on any delicate parts. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian
The earbuds are held in place with a traditional silicone tip, three sizes of which are included in the box. They feel secure and comfortable to wear even for extended periods without the “plugged in” feeling of some similar models, but the lack of a stabilizing wing makes them less suitable for exercise.
The color cap is touch-sensitive for a very effective set of gesture controls. Tap once to pause or play, double and triple to skip tracks, or press and hold to turn noise cancellation on or off. Swipe back and forth to control the volume too, which is very welcome. Music stops when you take out an earbud and resumes when you put it back in.
The pebble-shaped case fully charges via Qi wireless or USB-C in 70 minutes. Its smooth white plastic feels nice, but picks up marks and discoloration easily. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian
The Buds Pro last up to seven hours of noise-canceling playback, which is longer than many rivals. They magnetically attach to a flip-up battery case, which can easily be carried in your pocket and can recharge the headphones just under three times for a total of 20 hours of playback. A quick five-minute charge of the headphones adds an hour of listening time.
Specifications
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Connectivity: Bluetooth 5, SBC, AAC
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Battery life: seven hours (ANC) plus up to 20 hours with case
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Case dimensions and weight: 63.2 x 50 x 25 mm; 50g
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Headphone dimensions and weight: 23.7 x 22 x 22.3 mm; 6.2g each
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Water resistance: IPX4 earphones (splashes); IPX2 case
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Driver size: 11mm
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Charging from the box: USB-C, Qi wireless
Good sound and noise cancellation
The Pixel Buds Pro’s 11mm drivers produce big sound with plenty of detail and punchy bass. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian
The Buds Pro are Google’s best-sounding headphones yet. They produce very clear audio with excellent tonal separation even on complex tracks. The bass is precise and punchy, reaching the deepest notes, the mids are rounded and the highs are quite detailed, sounding great in most genres of music.
They are quite serious and can sound a bit too clean on some tracks, without some raw grunge energy, but I think most will enjoy them. Volume EQ boosts low and mid tones for better balance at lower volumes. Google promises to add a full equalizer and spatial audio for immersive movie surround sound through updates later this year.
Overall, these are excellent headphones that step up from everyday listening, falling well short of the best from Sennheiser and Sony.
Noise cancellation is equally capable, reducing most low-end noise, road and fan noise, and matching the performance of Apple’s AirPods Pro. They’re not as capable as Sony’s best, they struggle more with higher tones such as keyboard clicks, but overall they’re very good. They suffer a bit from wind noise and their ambient awareness mode is good, but not as natural as the best.
Finally, call quality was very good, sounding natural and clear even in noisy environments, although some background street noise crept into the call.
Connectivity and configuration
The Pixel Buds Android app handles settings and updates, shows the battery level on the earbuds and case, and other bits. However, the app is not available for iPhones or iPads. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian
The Buds Pro are standard Bluetooth 5 headphones, supporting standard SBC and AAC audio formats and Google’s Fast Pair with Android. They can be used in mono, which is useful for calls, and support seamless switching between paired devices. They support multipoint to connect to two devices simultaneously, such as a phone for calls and a laptop for music.
They have Google’s new automatic audio switching system that connects the Buds Pro to any of your Android phones or tablets that take a call or play media. It doesn’t work with PC, Mac or other devices, so multipoint is generally more useful.
Google Assistant
Press and hold the “G” logo or say “Ok Google” to invoke the voice assistant, but only on an Android phone. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian
Google Assistant is another advanced feature that only works with Android. Press and hold one earbud or use the activation phrase “Hey Google” to have it read your notifications or messages, send replies, control music playback, adjust the volume, give you directions from Google Maps, real-time translations with Google Translate and other tasks.
sustainability
Google doesn’t give an expected life for the battery, but it should last more than 500 full charge cycles with at least 80% of its original capacity. Like most wireless earbuds, the Pixel Buds Pro are non-repairable, making them disposable.
The box contains recycled rare earth elements. The company publishes environmental impact reports for some of its products, but not the headphones. Will recycle old devices for free.
price
The Google Pixel Buds Pro cost £179 ($199 / A$299) in a choice of colours.
In comparison, the Sony WF-1000XM4 cost £199, Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 3 £219.99, Beats Fit Pro £199, Apple AirPods Pro £239, Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro £149, Jabra Elite 7 Pro £199, Bose QC Earbuds cost £209.95 and Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 £99.
verdict
With the Pixel Buds Pro, Google has finally nailed Bluetooth headphones.
They’re comfortable, sound great and have solid noise cancellation, and the battery lasts a good seven hours. The controls are excellent, as is the pocket case. They have useful features like multi-point connectivity for more than one device at a time and good call quality.
While some flashier features are limited to Android (I wouldn’t recommend buying them if you don’t primarily use an Android phone), the basics work equally well with computers and iPhones if you have a mix of devices.
The best sound quality and noise canceling beats the best, but for everyday headphones, the Pixel Buds Pro are excellent and undercut the best rivals on price too.
You can’t repair the headphones or replace the battery, which makes them disposable and loses a star.
Pros: Great sound, effective noise cancellation, long battery life, very comfortable, good case, great controls, Fast Pair, multi-point, Google Assistant features on Android.
Cons: No high-quality Bluetooth audio formats, no cross-platform setup app, waiting for updates for EQ and spatial audio, box marks easily, no stabilizer wings for exercise, non-repairable.
Magnets ensure the headphones fit in the right place in the case and the lid closes with a satisfying click. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian