Google Pixel Buds A-Series Review

The Google Pixel Buds A-Series are an average set of earbuds at a below-average price point, making them an ok option if budget is your top priority.

Performance Comparison

Sound Quality

A panel of our expert listeners tested these earbuds with an extensive, curated playlist before describing and rating their experience. In the end, we found that the Google Pixel Buds sound dull and unimpressive. While nothing stood out as particularly unbalanced, nothing sounded great either. Overall, these earbuds maintain decent clarity at all volumes with reasonable sound quality, but they lack richness and depth, especially in the mid to high-mid frequency ranges.

Harmonies pop, drums feel punchy, and the bass is rich in songs like “Hypotheticals” by Lake Street Dive. However, when listening to hip-hop like “Want That Old Thing Back” by Notorious B.I.G., the bass feels underwhelming, especially at 2:02.

The mid and treble ranges are where these buds struggle most. Songs like “Fallin'” by Alicia Keys feel subdued, lacking a fully developed range of texture at 0:54 when Keys hits her signature treble notes. While these buds maintain clarity across all genres, nothing feels exciting or exceptional.

Soundstage

Earbuds give us a sense of where music is situated in a three-dimensional space, a feature that's known as their soundstage. Earbuds with the most advanced tech feel like they originate from the world beyond your ears — this is known as a soundstage.

These earbuds fit and seal well inside your ear, which improves the overall sound. Despite their solid fit, the experience doesn't feel as engaging as we'd hoped. With these buds, you're still aware of your surroundings, which keeps you from escaping into the music. Their soundstage is decent, with some dimension and space, but these earbuds are not a top pick for those looking for an immersive listening experience.

We then tested the sound quality of the Google Pixel Buds A-Series by setting them up in our testing rig and playing a range of frequencies through them, measuring their frequency response. We then compared that data to our GearLab House Curve and scored them based on how closely they followed it. The Pixel Buds A-Series did not shine in this test, and only managed to match up with our preference curve around the high mids — other than that, it deviated quite a bit, especially in the treble and lower bass ranges. All told, the overall listening experience of the Pixel Buds A-Series is fine but not exceptional or exciting.

User Experience

We tested our general experience of the Google Pixel Buds A-Series by first feeling how they fit across a myriad of differing ear shapes. Then, we tested their stability during physical activity, and finally, we scored their app function, customizability, and overall ease of use.

Comfort

The Pixel Buds A-Series were very lightweight and unobtrusive for all ear sizes and shapes that we tested. Overall, we found that these earbuds could be enjoyed for hours in any ear shape without noticing them, which is all you can ask for when trying to find that Goldilocks fit.

Stability

They also passed our activity test with flying colors, staying very well seated and comfortable during mountain bike rides and even handstands. Rest assured, these are great earbuds if physical activity is a top priority for you.

Customization

While these earbuds will pair with an Apple device seamlessly via Bluetooth, you need an Android device in order to change any settings, making them hard to recommend for any Apple users. The Android app does have some customizability, allowing for bass eq adjustment, but no other frequency band can be customized. Overall, the Pixel Buds A-Series provides a decent, comfortable experience for the Android user who doesn't need top-of-the-line performance from their earbuds.

Connectivity

Fresh out of the box, we found that pairing the Pixel Buds A-Series is easy, even with an iPhone (although you do lose out on some adjustability features mentioned below if you're not using an Android). However, we experienced some weirdness while casually listening. We had a few intermittent connection issues, where sound would drop in and out, but we could not reproduce it at will, and thus, the buds lost a few points here. To augment our in-house testing, we also gathered feedback from 1-star Amazon user reviews, keeping track of any that had negative feedback about connectivity. In our analysis, the A-Series earbuds had an issue rate of 0.55%, which is less than average, so you might have better luck than us, especially if you are on an Android operating system.

Noise Cancellation

The Google Pixel Buds A-Series do not have active noise cancellation (ANC), but we ran them through our noise cancelling tests anyway to see how well they can passively block out background noise. We set them up securely in our testing rig, played various background noises, and measured how much of that noise bled through.

As expected, these buds don't block out much no matter how well they're sealed in an ear, making them not a great option if you plan on using them in busy environments.

In our listening tests, we had to crank the buds up quite high to abate any background noise, and even then, we weren't able to completely stop the noise bleed. The takeaway here is that these buds are not for noisy environments, and if you plan on using them at home or in quieter environments, they perform ok.

Battery Life

To test the battery life of the Google Pixel Buds A-Series, we set them to a control volume (the decibel level we set all our earbuds to for this test) and let them play until they died. Their performance was pretty lackluster overall, but on par with other wireless earbuds at this price point.

The manufacturer claims the Pixel Buds A-Series can last up to 5 hours, and we saw a max playback of 4 hours and 30 minutes in our testing. Notably, you can charge these buds up to four times via their case before the case will need charging, netting you a total of 18 hours of (interrupted) playback. These do not have wireless charging, but you can throw them in the case for a 15-minute quick charge to net you 3 hours of playback time. Overall, if you don't plan on using these for extended periods, they're an ok option for the price.

Call Quality

We stress tested the Google Pixel Buds A-Series call quality ability by setting them up in our testing rig and playing a variety of increasingly intense background noises while recording their microphone.

Under the stress of Subway noise, the microphone struggled a bit, especially with higher-pitched voices, cutting in and out. That said, many calls with other earbuds on the Subway were unintelligible, and these are far better in comparison.

In an office setting, both voices sound clear. We could hear a bit of typing, but the rest of the background noise is harder to hear.

In a quiet room, the Google Pixel Buds A-Series sounded clear with little to no distortion.

Ultimately, these earbuds isolate voices well, and we wouldn't deter you from purchasing them based on their call quality, but there are better options if you need crystal clear calls in loud places.

Should You Buy the Google Pixel Buds A-Series?

The word “average” sums up the Google Pixel Buds A-Series well. For an affordable price, these earbuds perform decently across the board. If you're locked into the Android ecosystem and want comfortable earbuds, ok sound, and you don't plan on using them in noisy environments, these are an decent option. These are for the Android user who doesn't want to pay a premium for high-tech features and isn't fussy when it comes to their earbuds.

What Other Earbuds Should You Consider?

At this price point, the obvious Apple competitors are the Apple AirPods 2 and the Apple AirPods 3, which have worse scores (at higher prices) than the Pixel Bud A-Series but function well within the Apple ecosystem. Apple users may still find the Pixel Buds to be a better overall option here. The most direct competition with the Pixel Buds A-Series are the Jaybird Vista 2 buds, which have notably better sound quality and battery life but perform similarly and are nearly the same price.