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Credit: Illustration by Ian Moore and product image courtesy of Amazon.
Google had an event last month to announce several AI features and products coming down the pipeline. One of those products is the new Pixel Buds Pro 2, which you can preorder for $229 and receive a $30 Amazon gift card ahead of their Sept. 26 release date. As is often the case, when a newer version is released, the older ones get discounts. So now, the 2021 Google Pixel Buds A-Series have dropped to $64 (originally $99) after a 35% discount, making them even more budget-friendly than they already were.
Like with their Pixel “a” series cellphones, which are also discounted right now, the Google Pixel Buds A-Series are the more affordable budget versions. For $64, they offer very good value for the money, especially if you’re in the Google ecosystem.
The Google Pixel Buds A-Series got an “excellent” review from PCMag for their balanced sound, hands-free Google Assistant voice control, and comfortable fit. The caveats they mentioned were that their bass doesn’t get very strong and they don’t support wireless charging. If those aren’t dealbreakers for you, you can get some solid headphones for a budget price.
These are in-canal earbuds, so you will get some kind of noise reduction from outside, but they are not active noise-cancelling (ANC), an understandable cut to make them more affordable. They have an “adaptive sound” feature, which adjusts the volume based on your surroundings (you can turn that off if you want to). When it comes to battery life, you can get up to five hours, with an additional 24 hours with the charging case. They have an IPX4 rating, so they’re resistant to water and sweat, but you shouldn’t submerge them underwater or get anything in the charging case wet.
