Early Verdict
The bass-heavy sound might not be to everyone’s tastes, but if you’ve been looking for a cheap pair of true wireless earbuds then these might be just the ones for you.
Pros
- +
Snug fit
- +
Simple controls
Cons
- -
No volume controls
- -
Bass-heavy sound
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By now you’re probably sick of hearing about true wireless headphones, but the Philips Bass+ True Wireless are nevertheless still worth your attention.
The headline feature here is price. At just €130 (around $155 / £120 / AU$195) these are much cheaper than many of the other true wireless earbuds currently on the market.
They don’t have the premium sound or features of their competitors, but their price means that they’re the perfect entry point if you’re hankering after cutting the final cord in your audio experience.
Good budget feel
Although the controls on the pre-production sample that we tested hadn’t been fully implemented, we were told that the right earbud’s button is set to act as a play, pause, and track skip control, while the left earbud will be reserved for pairing and turning the headphones on and off.
It’s unfortunate to not see volume or touch control like that seen on the B&O Beoplay E8 earphones, but at this price some sacrifices have to be made.
Thankfully one of the sacrifices that Philips has stood firm on is battery life. At 6 hours, these earbuds will happily outlast most of the competition, and they come with a carrying case that offers another six hours still.
Play some music and the Bass+ True Wireless do a good job of living up to their name. These things go heavy on the bass, with a throbbing sound that will leave you in no doubt as to the tempo of the song you’re listening to.
There’s a fine line between a chunky sound and one that’s overladen with bass, and in our brief listening session the Bass+ True Wireless did feel like they were straying over. The rest of the track got lost in the mix as a result, and we wouldn’t want to use these headphones for a more refined listening session.
Nevertheless, if you want a pair to take to the gym with you, then the sound quality offered by the Philips Bass+ True Wireless makes them a good budget pick.
Early verdict
Their sound quality won’t blow your socks off, but at this price it’s difficult to ask for much more.
Functionally the Bass+ True Wireless are nevertheless impressive, with simple, intuitive controls and a beastly battery life.
We look forward to putting these headphones through their paces when we get them in for full review.
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