Amazon Echo Buds True Wireless 2019 (1st generation) Headphones Review

The Amazon Echo Buds (1st generation) are very small truly wireless in-ear headphones that don't protrude much out of the ear. They look sleek with an all-black design that's a mix of matte and glossy plastic. The back of each earbud is glossy and houses their touch-sensitive controls.

The Amazon Echo Buds (1st generation) are decently comfortable for truly wireless in-ear headphones. They're lightweight and aren't too bulky, so they don't put too much pressure on the inside of your ear. Unfortunately, they enter the ear canal pretty deep, and those who don't like the fit of in-ears likely will find these uncomfortable. On the upside, they come with three different tip sizes, as well as three sizes of stability fins to help you get a comfortable and secure fit. If you want a pair of truly wireless headphones that are much more comfortable, check out the Google Pixel Buds 2020 Truly Wireless.

The Amazon Echo Buds (1st generation)'s touch-sensitive controls are mediocre. The controls are all customizable through the Amazon Alexa app, which is nice, but they only allow for a double-tap and a long press on each ear, so you can't set many commands. Unfortunately, there's no option for volume control; you can set the four touch controls to play/pause, skip track forward or back, ANR or passthrough control, microphone mute, and your choice of Alexa or Google Assistant. The app is compatible with both Android and iOS. If you want headphones with better controls, the TOZO NC2 Truly Wireless are truly wireless in-ears that have volume controls.

Like most in-ear headphones, these buds are small and don't trap much heat inside the ears, making them a good option for sports as you shouldn't sweat more than usual while wearing them.

These truly wireless in-ear headphones are very small and can easily be tossed into a pocket or bag. Unfortunately, their case is a bit on the larger side and may be too large to fit in some pockets, especially if you wear tighter pants.

The charging case is larger than a lot of other truly wireless headphones. While it should fit in most pant pockets, those who wear tighter pants may have a tougher time. Luckily, the larger case size is likely since it holds five additional charges, which is very good.

Note: Some people have mentioned having issues charging the earbuds in the case when the stability fins are attached, though we didn't notice this while testing our unit.

These headphones are made out of dense plastic and feel quite well-built and solid. They should be able to withstand a few accidental drops or bumps without sustaining too much damage and are even rated IPX4 for water resistance, though we don't currently test for this. The case feels decently well-made as well, with a solid-feeling hinge that shouldn't cause any problems. Since it's a charging case, you shouldn't get it wet, but it should be able to handle a few drops without getting damaged.

The Amazon Echo Buds (1st generation) are stable in-ear headphones that are a good option for most sports. They don't move much in the ear and even come with optional stability fins which makes them feel even more stable. These headphones should have no problem keeping up with you during even fairly strenuous workouts.

• Amazon Echo Buds (1st generation) headphones
• Earbud tips (x3 sizes)
• Stability fin sleeves (x3 sizes)
• Charging case
• Micro-USB charging cable
• Manuals

These buds have a decently well-balanced sound profile that should lend itself to a wide variety of music genres. It's worth noting that the IR sensor on these headphones didn't recognize our dummy head properly, which may explain the slight variation in low-bass from the right earbud. Overall, these headphones will sound fairly neutral, though they may lack a bit of kick from bass guitar and drums.

Due to the IR sensor not recognizing our test rig, we were only able to test these headphones once, and therefore were unable to test their frequency response consistency.

The bass accuracy is great. While they're slightly overemphasized in the low and mid-bass ranges, they're flat with no peaks or dips. There's a dip in high-bass, however, which may make the bass sound thin. The uneven result from the right earbud in low-bass is likely due to testing difficulties.

The Amazon Echo Buds (1st generation)'s mid accuracy is excellent. They remain mostly flat throughout almost the entire range, meaning that leads and vocals should sound present and well-balanced.

The treble accuracy is alright. They have a slight overemphasis in low-treble and some noticeable peaks and dips in the mid-treble and high-treble ranges. This means that cymbals and sibilants (S and T sounds) may sound harsh and piercing.

The Amazon Echo Buds (1st generation)'s peaks and dips performance is okay. While they're fairly well-balanced overall, the large peak in mid-treble makes some higher frequency sounds like cymbals and sibilants (S and T sounds) harsh and piercing. The small dip in high-bass may also dampen the bass sounds produced by instruments.

The Amazon Echo Buds (1st generation)'s imaging is great. The group delay is below the audibility threshold, and the slight variance in low-bass is likely due to our testing difficulties and won't be audible to most people. The L/R drivers of our unit were also well-matched and didn't produce any gaps in the stereo image. Note that these results are only valid for our unit and yours may perform differently.

Like most in-ear headphones, the Amazon Echo Buds (1st generation)'s soundstage is terrible. This is because activating the resonances of the pinna (outer-ear) is one of the key factors in creating a speaker-like and out-of-head soundstage, and the design of in-ears bypasses the pinna completely. Also, because of their closed-back design, their soundstage will be less open than that of open-back headphones.

The weight harmonic distortion is decent. While most frequencies fall just within acceptable limits, the peak in mid-treble may cause those frequencies to sound harsh and impure. There's also no big jump under heavier loads, which is great.

Update 05/28/2021: Due to user error, we reported the wrong codec. We tested these headphones using SBC codec as the Amazon Echo Buds don't support aptX. We have updated our review to reflect this change.

These are the settings used to test these headphones. Our results are only valid in this configuration.

Update 06/01/2021: We originally reported that these headphones have active noise cancelling (ANC). However, they use Bose's active noise reduction (ANR) technology. Unfortunately, there isn't a lot of information available regarding the differences between both technologies. It's been reported that the Amazon Echo Buds' ANR performance target is set by Amazon and not Bose. Bose's ANC technology is also exclusive to their own products. That said, we still consider ANR as noise cancelling technology, but have updated our text to make this distinction more clear. The scoring of this test and our results haven't changed.

The Amazon Echo Buds' noise isolation is excellent. These headphones have Bose's active noise reduction (ANR) technology, and while this helps block out a bit of extra noise in the bass range (where engine rumbles sit). It's worth noting that these headphones block most ambient noise passively, even without ANR turned on. Overall, however, they block a good amount in all frequency ranges, making them a good choice for commuting or using at the office.

The Amazon Echo Buds (1st generation)'s leakage performance is outstanding. They leak almost no sound, so you don't have to worry about bothering other people with what you're listening to. However, blasting your music in very quiet environments like a library still isn't recommended.

The microphone's recording quality is disappointing. Speech recorded or transmitted with this microphone will sound muffled and lacking in detail.

Like most Bluetooth headphones, the microphone's noise handling is mediocre. While the person on the other end of the line will hear you clearly in quiet environments, they'll likely have a harder time in loud environments, like a busy street or subway station. Take a look at the Anker Soundcore Life A2 NC Truly Wireless if you want truly wireless headphones with a mic that better isolates your voice from background noise.

The battery performance is decent. They get just over 5 hours of battery life off a single charge, which is decent for truly wireless headphones, but means they won't last a full work day without needing a recharge. Luckily, their case provides 5 additional charges, which is very good. They advertise being able to get 2 hours of playtime from a 15-minute charge, meaning if you take a small break, they should last you the rest of the day. They also auto-pause when removed from your ears, which should help conserve battery life, though unfortunately this cannot be turned off.

The Amazon Echo Buds (1st generation)'s dedicated app is good. It allows you to customize the headphones' control scheme, adjust the amount of passthrough, and even gives you access to a basic 3-band graphic EQ. The app works for both Android and iOS and also has a tip fit test to help you find the right size silicone tip.

Like all truly wireless headphones, the Amazon Echo Buds (1st generation) are Bluetooth-only. Unfortunately, they don't support NFC or multi-device pairing, so you'll have to reconnect them when you switch between devices. Their latency is also very high at almost half a second, which will likely cause an audio sync issue when watching videos. They don't have another mode like that of the JLab Audio JBuds Air ANC Truly Wireless that can lower their latency either.

These headphones are Bluetooth-only.

The headphones are Bluetooth-only and can't be used wired. They come with a 3.3-foot micro-USB cable for charging their case.

These buds are Bluetooth-only and aren't compatible with PS4. They will connect to Bluetooth-enabled PCs, though we don't recommend them for gaming due to their very high latency.

The Amazon Echo Buds (1st generation) are Bluetooth-only and aren't compatible with Xbox One.

These buds have a charging case that provides an additional five charges. It charges via micro-USB and, like all truly wireless headphones, has no other inputs.