Earbuds go by many different names, including earphones, in-ear headphones, in-ear monitors or simply buds. They also come in all shapes and sizes and can be both wired or wireless, with some variations. Probably the most widely known (and worn) earbuds are the AirPods, which Apple launched in 2016.
Compared to over-ear and on-ear headphones, they offer a more compact, lightweight design that’s easier to set up and store. Earbuds are often cheaper too (usually), and have better stability. Being small does have its disadvantages - namely with sound quality, which can’t match wired headphones - but every music lover should own at least one pair all the same.
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Hearing aid mode is excellent, but a few cosmetic options would be nice – and it's an issue Beats already fixed.
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My pick of the best earbuds for those with a smaller ear canal, tragus or concha, however much you're able to spend.
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Updated The best budget wireless earbuds you can buy today, with options from Sony, Nothing, EarFun, JLab and more.
Missed Black Friday? It's OK, Sony's best noise-cancelling earbuds are £26 cheaper than they've ever been with this code – run!
Deploy this special John Lewis code (sign-up required, but it's free) to nab WF-1000XM5 for less than £150 – quick!
I thought the Apple AirPods Pro 2 were perfect – LG proved me wrong
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Activo Q1 are the inexpensive wired earbuds made for our favorite budget hi-res audio player
The Activo P1 hi-res audio player stunned us for value when it arrived in July, and now it's got a set of IEMs designed for it.
Nothing Ear (open) review: One issue upsets Nothing’s first-draft open-ear headphones
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