Nostalgic design at the price of high quality

Earbuds are a dime a dozen nowadays, with seemingly limitless choices spanning from primary budget earbuds to high-end expensive models. Regardless of all of the totally different variations on the market, they do not range a lot when it comes to seems to be. The Acefast Crystal (2) T8 earbuds supply one thing a bit extra distinctive with a retro design. It harkens again to the times when all of the cool children had see-through tech merchandise, just like the iMac G3 and the clear landline telephones. I used to be by no means a type of cool children, although, so maybe I lastly have my probability with these earbuds.

The Crystal T8 falls into the budget side of the earbud lineup, coming in proper round $50 at most retailers. As you’ll anticipate for funds headphones, there are compromises. They lack any noise cancelation, for instance. However regardless of these anticipated lacking options, are they nonetheless price choosing up? I have been testing them for a number of weeks to reply simply that.

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Worth, availability, and specs

The Acefast Crystal (2) T8 earbuds can be found from the Acefast web site, Amazon, and Walmart. The total worth is $99.99 on the Acefast web site, although they’re on sale on the time of writing. The value at Amazon is just $49.99, and Walmart is cheaper at $48.90. These earbuds can be found in black, white, inexperienced, blue, pink, or purple.

What I appreciated concerning the Acefast Crystal (2) T8

Immediate nostalgia

The very first thing that struck me concerning the Acefast Crystal (2) T8 was the retro design. It instantly made me consider the Tamagotchi I had as a child (sure, I am courting myself). Much more so due to the silicone case and lanyard that comes with the earbuds. It introduced me again to my childhood and tickled all these good, nostalgic emotions.

The clear case seems to be nice and is available in many various colours to suit your character and elegance. However the very best half concerning the case is what Acefast calls the 3D Embossed Energy Show. An LED gentle on the entrance reveals the exact energy degree of the case together with the person battery ranges of every earbud. Sadly, it solely lights up once you take the earbuds out of the case, put them again in, or are charging the case. It’s helpful for rapidly checking the battery left earlier than going out for a stroll, however a button to test the battery degree with out fussing with the earbuds would have been good.

Talking of battery, Acefast guarantees seven hours of music playback at 70% quantity. Moreover, the case for these earbuds capabilities as a 480mAh charging case, providing 30 hours of music time. I have been in a position to get proper round these actual numbers and have solely wanted to cost the case as soon as. I are inclined to hear at a lot decrease quantity ranges more often than not since these are fairly loud earbuds, and 30% quantity is greater than a lot inside my home.

The Crystal (2) T8 case would not function any buttons or controls, however the earbuds supply intuitive contact controls. You possibly can change the quantity, pause and play your audio, skip to the following observe, and reply or reject calls. They use Bluetooth 5.3 for connectivity, and pairing is quick and straightforward proper out of the field.

What I did not like concerning the Acefast Crystal (2) T8

Middling options and high quality

Shopping for funds earbuds is at all times a little bit of a threat on the subject of sound high quality. One thing has to provide to maintain the value low, and certainly, the sound high quality is missing within the Acefast Crystal (2) T8 earbuds. There is no bass to talk of, and the sound lacks depth and element for music. It is robust to make out particular person devices when listening to extremely layered songs. There’s loads of treble, however that turns into fairly harsh once you flip the quantity up.

For podcasts, voices come by way of a bit skinny. It is a lot clear, so you will don’t have any bother listening to the speaker, nevertheless it lacks depth and heat in comparison with different earbuds. Sadly, there is no noise cancellation within the Crystal (2) T8 earbuds, so you will not have the ability to tune out surrounding noise, which might make it tough to listen to when out on this planet.

It is also disappointing to search out that there is no companion app for these earbuds. The inventory sound profile is what you will be caught with in consequence, with possibility to regulate ranges. Whereas this is not overly shocking given the funds worth, there are many funds headphones that supply an app with customizable EQ settings.

Lastly, everybody’s ears are totally different, however these earbuds do not match mine very effectively. They arrive with 4 totally different ear tip sizes, however even with the biggest ones, the earbuds aren’t overly cosy in my ears. In consequence, I would not need to do any kind of vigorous exercise with them. They do supply an IPX4 ranking, although, so they may deal with sweat, in concept.

The poor match implies that I am incessantly fidgeting with them to get higher sound high quality as they slowly work their method misplaced. I additionally are inclined to activate the contact controls when adjusting them in my ears, that means I incessantly by accident pause my music or modify the quantity, which is moderately annoying.

Must you purchase the Acefast Crystal (2) T8?

As with every funds headphones, the query of whether or not you should purchase them is not all that easy. If you do not need to spend so much on headphones and are searching for a pair of earbuds with a singular, retro look, then sure, completely decide up the Acefast Crystal (2) T8 earbuds.

Nonetheless, if you happen to care about something greater than the old-school styling, I might suggest passing. That is very true in case you are hoping for good sound high quality or a cosy match for exercises. There are many different choices proper across the similar worth that supply much more options and high quality. For instance, the CMF Buds by Nothing are even cheaper than these however supply an epic quantity of bass compared, lively noise cancelation, and an app with customizable EQ settings.