3SIXT BT Studio True Wireless in-ears

BABY BOOMERS BOUGHT ON A BARGAIN-BIN BUDGET.

AS TRUE WIRELESS headphones lose their novelty status and become mainstream, we’re starting to see the field fill out with some decent and affordable headphones, although the tech is yet to surmount some of its teething problems.

The 3SIXT Studio Earbuds retail for a rather competitive $130, so it’s a pleasant surprise to hear some really compelling audio being pumped out of these bantam beauties. The sound is clear and punchy with a generally well-balanced frequency profile, although the slightly boosted bass can boom and distort at loud volumes. The pieces themselves are comfortable to wear, sitting firm and snug, and where similar button designs have resulted in uncomfortable pressure when pressed, we found these clickers to be inoffensive.

The Studio buds run on a three-hour battery, but you’ll be able to juice them up an extra five times on the go via the charging case. While three hours doesn’t seem impressive, the true wireless competition rarely lasts longer than this, often relying on the charging case to take them the extra distance, and five additional charges is a decent offering. The case is surprisingly solid and compact, but doesn’t quite attain ‘comfortably pocketable’ status.

The one major drawback of the 3SIXT Studio Earbuds is shared to some extent with every true wireless earbud we’ve come across, and that’s the connectivity. While it fares a little better than some of its peers, you will still experience drop-outs in certain situations — walking from a closed-in environment to an open space, for instance.

Despite this, the 3SIXT Studio are an incredibly capable pair of headphones, and with an asking price this reasonable, they’re a perfect introduction to the true wireless world.