Skullcandy Indy True Wireless In-Ear Earbuds - Black

I purchased these primarily to use for phone calls at work and to listen to music and podcasts when I'm mowing my yard. These are the second pair of wireless bluetooth ear buds that I've tried, and I've been highly pleased. The other pair, off-brand, did not have a good mic, and many people said it was difficult to hear me. With these, I've consistently received positive feedback that everyone could hear me well.I've seen some feedback that the pairing process was difficult. I struggled a little at first too, and the instructions that come with the product are lacking. However, their website has very clear instructions, and after pairing them the first time, I've had no issues since. Now, they automatically pair with my phone as soon as I take them out of the charging case, and I've never had an issue with the individual buds getting out of sync with each other.The fit has been great as well. I went with the standard rubber ear pieces that were on them when they arrived, and they come with a couple other size options as well. They also come with a "removable stability ear gel," but I removed them. I found that they were less secure in my ear with those on. With them off, they have been very secure and have not ever fallen out unexpectedly. They're also very comfortable and do not hurt my ears after extended use.I have listened to music with them, and it sounds find to me. However, I don't have any experience evaluating sound quality and won't pretend to tell you how I think they perform on treble, bass, etc.. Functionally, they work, and that's enough for me.

I decided that it was time for me to get some wireless earbuds, and rather than go with Apple’s popular (and expensive) AirPods, I decided to stick with Skullcandy, whose earbuds I’ve been using for years in place of the basic Apple ones. They didn’t let me down! The sound quality is good (though I’m no audio technician), and they fit me perfectly once I switched to the larger ear gels. I really like the stability gels they include with these, as I’ve always struggled with earbuds of any brand feeling loose fitting, but these fit nice and secure.Battery life hasn’t been an issue for me, and the Bluetooth range is great for my needs. I really enjoy the touch controls built into the earbuds, and they’re pretty easy to get the hang of. It’s nice that I can still pause my music, turn the volume up or down, and skip songs while my phone is in another room (or just in my pocket).Honestly, just the simple fact of not having to deal with the wires that are part of basic earbuds was probably the biggest thing for me. I’d been dealing with them for years and had gotten used to dealing with the hassle, but going wireless is so much nicer. I can just take them out and pop them in their case in a matter of seconds, which makes wrapping up wired earbuds feel like a rather long experience in comparison. I guess this is a bonus of pretty much any pair of wireless earbuds, but it’s still a difference that I think is hard to appreciate until you’ve experienced it.

Firstly, I cannot speak to the long term reliability / function of these earbuds as I have only been using them for about a week at the time of writing this review. Regardless, these have impressed me enough to write this review. I purchased these to hold me over until Bose releases the Soundsport 500s in 2020, but after using these for the last week, I'm not sure I'll be buying them anymore. I'll start with the cons first.CONS:1. In-ear tips only. Granted this is the most popular style today, but I hate in-ear earbuds as a general rule. With the small tips that were included, I find these to be tolerable, but not particularly comfortable. YMMV.2. Case size, I appreciate these are larger than the air pods and sound MUCH better, but while the case is reasonable, it is probably 2.5 times larger than the air pods case which I see as the golden standard for wireless earbud charging cases. Also, the magnetic closure on this case is kind of weak, I would have preferred a more solid feeling closure with stronger magnets. That said, it has not yet opened by accident.3. Finally, the left earbud will periodically disconnect from the right for a split second, probably once or twice every 10-20 minutes. It is annoying, but not bad enough for me to consider replacing them. If this gets worse though, I will replace them as it is only bearable as is because of the relatively low frequency and short duration of these disconnects.PROS:1. Amazing price; i mean 70 bucks vs. 150+ for pretty much every other pair that can even come close to the sound quality and battery life these have.2. Fantastic sound quality; I've been using a pair of Bose Soundsports for the last year (the wired bluetooth version) and these are only slightly lower in the sound quality. They do have a less bass heavy profile than the bose though, so although I think the bass is still pretty good, these are not the best option if you like lots of bass.3. Responsive and intuitive touch controls. I am not generally a fan of removing physical button, but these work very well. One note though, if you use google assistant or alexa (I don't) these cannot be used to initiate voice commands.4. Good mic and phone call quality.5. Excellent Bluetooth range; I can easily use these between my upstairs bedroom and the downstairs kitchen without losing connection.Overall, assuming these hold up long term, I will probably continue to use these for as long as they function. If they fail I will update this review, but for now, buy them and you will not be disappointed.