Soundpeats Air3 Deluxe HS: What makes the Soundpeats Air3 Deluxe HS buds special is that they sound surprisingly good for open earbuds — they’re pretty close to what you get from Apple’s AirPods 3 for sound. On top of that, they support Sony’s LDAC audio codec for devices that offer it. Not too many cheap open earbuds have good sound, but these Soundpeats have good bass response and clarity. They’re also decent for making calls and have a low-latency gaming mode.
Sony WF-1000XM4: Released in 2021, Sony’s WF-1000XM4 earned a CNET Editors’ Choice Award. They’re still excellent earbuds, but Sony has now released the next-gen WF-1000XM5. They may be a good option if you find them at a good discount.
Beyerdynamic Free Byrd: Beyerdynamic may be late to the game, but it’s finally introduced its first true-wireless earbuds, which feature active noise canceling, up to 11 hours of battery life (with noise canceling off) and impressive sound quality. Read our Beyerdynamic Free Byrd review.
Master & Dynamic MW08: These buds may not fit everyone’s ear equally well, but they certainly have a distinct look, as well as excellent sound and a great listening experience if you can get a tight seal (I was able to get a secure fit with the largest tip). They deliver more of an audiophile sound profile, with smooth, well-balanced sound and well-defined bass.
Bang & Olufsen Beoplay EX: Bang & Olufsen’s $395 Beoplay EX buds are the company’s best true-wireless earbuds. They feature a comfortable, secure fit (except perhaps for those with really smaller ears), top-notch build quality, great sound, good noise canceling and improved voice-calling performance over B&O’s EQ buds, with three microphones in each earbud they help with reducing background noise while picking up your voice. They’re out of most people’s price range, but they’re arguably the best earbuds out there with stems and offer slightly superior sound to the AirPods Pro 2 with better clarity, deeper more powerful bass and richer, more accurate sound.
Sony LinkBuds: The LinkBuds are, in a sense, Sony’s answer to Apple’s standard AirPods. They don’t sound as good as Sony’s flagship WF-1000XM4 or the LinkBuds S noise-isolating earbuds, but they offer a discreet, innovative design and a more secure fit than the AirPods, as well as decent sound and very good voice-calling performance. Like the third-gen AirPods, their open design allows you to hear the outside world — that’s what the ring is all about. Read our Sony LinkBuds review.
JBL Live Free 2: Like the Live Pro 2, JBL’s new Live Free 2 buds are surprisingly good. With 11mm drivers, six microphones, oval tubes and oval silicon tips, they combine a comfortable fit along with strong noise canceling, very good sound quality and voice-calling performance. Features include multipoint Bluetooth pairing and wireless charging, and they’re rated for up to seven hours with IPX5 water resistance (splash-proof).
Our reviewer David Carnoy testing voice-calling performance on the noisy streets of New York.