Description
Technical Details
Echo Buds
| Semi-in-ear design | Echo Buds are designed to gently rest in your ear with a barely there feeling instead of the fully wedged-in feeling of sealed buds with ear tips. The semi-in-ear design keeps you aware of your surroundings unlike earbuds with rubber eartips that seal your ear canal. No seal allows for unobstructed air flow and cooling ventilation for your ear canal. |
| Size | Earbud: 33.9 x 19.1 x 17.7 mm; Case: 23.4 x 51 x 51 mm
Amazon engineered Echo Buds & Charging Case to hold up against everyday life. The Echo Buds meet rigorous internal testing requirements such as accidental drops from ear height, sweat testing, IPX2 water resistance, and impact testing. The Charging Case has passed durability requirements such as multiple drops from waist height, impact testing, hinge cycling and over-extension, and scratch testing. |
| Weight | Earbud: 5.0g; Case: 36.0g. Actual size and weight may vary by manufacturing process. |
| Device compatibility | Echo Buds use a wifi or mobile data connection and the Alexa app for connectivity and other features. Carrier charges may apply. Please consult your carrier for information on any fees and limitations that apply to your plan. Alexa voice control is supported on Android 8.0, iOS 14, and Fire OS 7 or greater. However, please note that these smartphones are not compatible with Echo Buds for Alexa voice control. |
| Bluetooth connectivity | Bluetooth 5.2 Hands-Free Profile (HFP) support for calling, Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP) support for audio streaming, Audio/Video Remote Control Profile (AVRCP) for voice control of media sessions, Serial Port Profile for Bluetooth connectivity to Android phones and iPod Accessory Protocol for Bluetooth connectivity to iPhones. |
| Speakers/microphones | 12mm Driver + 2 mics + 1 Voice Accelerometer per earbud |
| Processor | SOC: Qualcomm S5 (QCC5171) Bluetooth System on Chip with integrated Audio Codec Case MCU: ST Micro (STM32G0B1CEU6N) |
| Accessibility features | The Alexa app and Alexa-enabled products include several features for customers with accessibility needs related to vision, hearing, mobility, and speech. Learn more about Alexa Accessibility. |
| Warranty and service | 1-year limited warranty and service included. Optional 1-year, 2-year, and 3-year extended warranties will be available for U.S. customers and sold separately. Use of Echo Buds is subject to these terms. |
| Included in the box | Echo Buds, charging case, 2 pairs of silicone earbud covers and Quick Start Guide. |
| Privacy features | Wake word technology, streaming indicator, mute button in the Alexa app, the ability to view and delete your voice recordings, and more. Visit the Alexa Privacy Hub to explore how Alexa and Echo devices are designed to protect your privacy. |
| Battery and power | Up to 5 hours music playback on a single charge with Hands-Free Alexa. Up to 6 hours music playback on a single charge without Hands-Free Alexa. Up to 20 hours total with the charging case.
Up to 2 hours music playback time with 15-minute quick charge. Up to 4 hours call time on a single charge. Up to 16 hours call time with the charging case. Actual battery life will vary depending on device settings, features utilized, environment, manufacturing variability, and other factors. Testing was conducted by Amazon in a lab environment with preproduction Echo Buds and charging case and a prerelease version of the Alexa app on both iPhone and Android phones. Learn more about Amazon’s battery life testing here. |
| IPX rating (water resistance) | IPX2 (earbuds only). Learn more about our test. |
That_GUY –
Like many who probably just got the item from the Prime Day sale, I figured I would take a chance on some sub-$40 buds. I’ve had the first-generation Echo Buds in the past and always used them for outside labor since they were more affordable and tended to fit in the ear better than my AirPods.Speaking in terms of comparing the buds to the previous generation, these are more in the style of AirPods instead of the traditional in-ear type experience (similar to Samsung).Versus Echobuds (previous generation)Not sound isolating, if you need that – get a different set.Sound just as good.Case much less annoying and takes up less of a footprint.Versus AirPodsThrough various promotions, I have three generations of AirPods – these fit just as well and probably slightly better than AirPods for me. They have a sleeve that goes over the top that helps them fit a little more snugly than AirPods. I have used these for a variety of functions, from casual use to exercise – the Echo Buds remain in my ear just as well.The sound is much better than AirPods and the Alexa app can adjust the EQ of the sound. The bass can actually be heard. I don’t think they sound as good as some other high end options, but for $50 or less – these are on the money.The battery life so far has been impressive. I use the headphones every day and have only charged them fully twice. These are charged by a USB-C cable and FYI it doesn’t come with a cable or charger, but you know you have one.Alexa integration – My music service is Youtube Premium and this actually works better with Youtube Premium than Siri. Alexa responds quicker than Siri in summoning and tends to be a little more helpful.Bud mounting – I thought I would hate the magnetic bud mounting system, but it has actually not gone wrong for me yet. I am curious how this will playout over long-term ownership, but it isn’t that bad. Also, dropping the AirPods usually means that I am searching on the ground/floor for where they shot out. These Echo Buds have not shot out when dropped on the floor.Find my Buds – I set this feature up, but haven’t really spent time with it. I am absolutely sure it can’t be worse than the AirPods version.Phone use – The people I regularly talk to and who can barely hear me seem to barely hear me with these buds as well. I assume this puts them on the same level as the AirPods. You will probably have a better time with calls on these than I do with my people. Let’s just blame them.Some complaints/negatives – The case isn’t always that easy to open one-handed. I know this is a minor gripe, but it seems like I am regularly in situations where one-handed operation would be helpful.You only have to use the Alexa app to initially set the device up. Some of ya’ll will hate that. I don’t mind that, but it would be nice to see the battery power without having to open a separate app. I guess, I’m just saying that convenient Apple popup when you open the case is a cool feature!The case is white and that design doesn’t make for readily available cases quite yet. This thing will be filthy by the time I actually begin looking for a case. The case also feels cheap compared to some other models.Connection – Connecting to the phone seems to have a slight delay. This isn’t a huge deal because I can spare the possible second or two of delay, but some might be annoyed by this. I also had some interesting stereo delay between the two buds while watching a Youtube video. This so far has been an isolated event.Summary – I wouldn’t pay $100 for these, but for $50 or less – these are fantastic. I can’t speak for the Android experience, but the IOS experience has been decent and I would gladly purchase a few of these versus going the AirPod route. There are some minor oddities, but nothing significant that would hamper the enjoyment of the device. The Echo Buds sound much better than the AirPods at a fraction of the price. There are some minor setbacks as far as connection delay, but not enough setbacks to warrant the increased cost.
Yellowman1 –
I honestly think anyone that gives these earbuds 1 or 2 stars is just being a hater or trying to promote another product under the guise of writing a review (this product, like every other product out there, is not 100% perfect for everyone, but it sure isn’t a 1 or 2 star product, if you are honest to yourself). I use Android phones (4 of them actually, S22 Ultra, Pixel 4a 5G, Motorola Styus 5G and Revvl 6 Pro 5G) but I use Apple Airpods 3 as my go to earbuds…, why?, because they are the only open earbuds design with good sound, good microphones, lightweight comfortable design that sit best in my ear lobes without having to push anything into my ear canals and feel all that pressure in my head. Are the Airpods 3 perfect? No, but they are the best out there (at least for me), until Amazon released these earbuds. If you are an Android user that wants an open ear design but don’t want to shell out $140 to get good sound, good speakers and mic, lightweight (but not as lightweight as the Airpods 3 I confess) comfortable earbuds, you cannot go wrong with these earbuds.Pros:Music – Apart from the price (these are really inexpensive for what they deliver), these earbuds actually have better bass and deeper sound quality than the Airpods 3, if that’s how you like your music. The Airpods 3 have clearer voice / audio but the background musical instruments are thinner and lighter, so not rich enough (at least in my ears when compared to these earbuds). I will point out though that the quality of the music you hear (strangely) is probably going to be affected by the device you are using. The same song played richer, deeper, and clearer on my S22 Ultra, while the Motorola Stylus over-enhanced the bass and made the voice in the music come across sounding washed out (the Revvl 6 Pro and Pixel 4a also sounded different playing the same song). All the songs sounded the same when I listened to them through the Airpods 3.Battery Life – So far, the battery life on these are great. They charge pretty fast and last me more than 2 days before I have to charge again, and that’s with moderate /medium use.Fit – These earbuds, like the Apple Airpods, are not going to fit everyone (with or without the rubber coverings). Unlike in-ear earbuds (which really only fit based on the tightness of the rubber you have inserted into your ear canals) these earbuds sit on ears (not deep in it) and because of that (depending on the shape and size of your ears) they may sit perfectly well, they may need the rubbers to sit well, or they may never sit well, regardless of what you do to them. I found they fitted well for me without the rubbers on them. They are a little heavier than the Airpods 3, but if you’ve never worn or use the Airpods 3 daily you wouldn’t know this and the Amazon earbuds would be perfectly as light as you feel them to be.Connections – These earbuds seamlessly connected to all of my devices (including FireTV stick 4k) and seamlessly transition from one device to another (like watching TV through the FireTV stick and a call comes in, it connects easily and once the call is over, I am back to the FireTV stick). And they did connect faster to my devices unlike my Airpods 3 that sometimes do not connect to my phones until after a few minutes now and then.Con:Alexa App – The primary con I have with this is the requirement of needing to use the Alexa app before you can even connect the earbuds to your device for the first time. It would be bearable if it was just a case of downloading the app and then using it simply for firmware updates or equalizer settings (like the Soundcore or AKG apps do…, Yes I do have those earbuds and headphones also), or just be like the Airpods 3 that’s just straight bluetooth connection (no app needed, but then you don’t get any firmware update either). I don’t use the Alexa app for anything (apart from setting up Amazon devices) so I found it totally unnecessary and absolutely too intrusive that I had to give the app all those permissions in order to just connect a pair of earbuds to my phones. That is my only major gripe with the device.Apart from the Alexa app issue, I would definitely recommend this item to any Android device user that wants open ear design earbuds and doesn’t want to rob the bank in order to get a very very good one.