Amazon Echo Buds 2: Alexa, this time yes

The division of amazon-hardware aims to create attractive, affordable and specially designed products to be the gateway to the real deal: the online content ecosystem that they have been building for years. Products like the Fire or the well-known Kindle are two classic examples to which new devices do not stop joining, as the protagonists of our analysis.

The Amazon Echo Buds reach their second generation much improvedmaintaining a competitive price level and positioning itself as a fantastic option for those who have Alexa integrated into their daily lives.

The surprises with the new Echo Buds start even before you turn them on. Two years are an eternity in our sector and the engineers have achieved reduce chassis size by 40%. The result is smaller, much more comfortable headphones that, now yes, they can compete with anyone in their price range.

In addition to the design change, the new headphones integrate a shorter head that makes it easier to rest in the ear and a ventilation slot to reduce hearing pressure. As you know, heNoise cancellation requires a perfect fit of the headphones so it is essential that they are not only comfortable in any anatomy, but that they stay in place without having to move. During the start-up process, the software guides you to achieve an optimal fit.

At this point a recommendation: headphones they are very personal devices and a design or shape that may be very comfortable for some people may be torture for others. On the other hand, it is very important to think about where we are going to use them. Some very good headphones for home may not be the most appropriate for sports, for example. The best? If we can, try before you buy.

The Amazon Echo Buds 2 are controlled by touch. Single tap to pause and play, two taps to go forward, three taps to go back, and press to activate cancel. The latter is very practical for when they speak to us and we want to interact without having to take off our headphones (in the office or while teleworking at home, for example).

Amazon Echo Buds 2, technical characteristics

• Earpiece: 20.0 x 19.1 x 19.1mm. 5.7g
• Charger case: 66.8 x 28.6 x 39.1 mm.
• Bluetooth Realtek RTL8763C on chip with integrated audio codec, NXP digital signal processor.
• 5.7mm dynamic driver speakers.
• 3 microphones per headset (2 external + 1 internal).
• IPX4 protection (headphones only).
• Proximity, touch, Hall effect and accelerometer sensors.
• Up to 5 hours of music with cancellation activated (up to 15 with case).
• Includes headphones, charger, 4 pairs of adapters, 2 fins, USB cable, and getting started guide.

A great alternative to interact with the headphones and your applications without touching anything is Alexa. The integration is good as long as we use simple commands, but enough for this usage scenario. Of course also it is possible to use them with assistants such as Siri or Google Assistantbut we lose one of the added values ​​that these Echo Buds offer compared to other competitors.

Audio approved. Noticeable in cancellation.

The value for money is important when evaluating any product, but in the case of headphones, it becomes a capital aspect. Every 100 euros more that we invest in audio represents an improvement in quality that not all of us can appreciate nor does it make sense depending on the context – even if you have ever seen someone with headphones of more than 1,000 euros on the subway -.

These Amazon Echo Buds 2 offer adequate quality for their price and the public they are aimed at. Do not expect support for high fidelity audio or spatial sound, but expect a clean and crisp sound in your lists of Spotify, YouTube or your streaming service. streaming habitual.

Compared to the previous model, the improvement is remarkable and is especially noticeable when increasing the volume in a song. The sound is amplified, but it doesn’t change, there are no weird artifacts or artificial equalizations but flat and natural audio. Work has been done, and it shows, especially in the mids and bass (very regular in the first iteration) and the result is a very correct device to enjoy both music and movies or video games.

If you have some experience with audio or want to easily improve performance it’s worth playing around with. equalizer. In my tests I have lowered a couple of points to the mids and highs (the basses are better adjusted, from my point of view) with a pretty good result, so I encourage you to try with some songs that you know very well to leave it to your taste.

The noise cancellation system It has sorprised me for good. Although there are no more settings than on or off, the algorithm does its job very well in scenarios as complicated as a phone call on public transport. As with other solutions of this type, it works much better with monotonous sounds and repetitive noises. In a context such as a busy cafe, a walk down a busy street or a car trip they offer a great performance that makes a difference compared to the previous model and, of course, compared to any alternative without ANC. We are not at the level of AirPods Pro but it is fair to recognize that it is not its price range either.

In terms of autonomy there are no big surprises but the room for maneuver is small and the “box-charger” system is a fantastic solution for normal use. In my tests I have reached 4.5 hours without having to put the headphones in the box. Altogether, we can have up to 12-14 hours of music with the two additional charges it offers. By the way, Amazon sent us the version with wireless charging for review: a comfortable addition that works as expected but adds 20 euros to the cost of the device.

Conclusions

The improvements implemented in the second generation of the Amazon Echo Buds allow it to compete without problems in the price range of the 100 euros (at the time of publishing this analysis are reduced to 79.99 euros). They offer correct sound quality, a very good cancellation system, they are well built and comfortable.

The added value they offer to stand out from the competition is their perfect integration – it could not be otherwise – with the Alexa ecosystem. This means that it will be the users of Amazon services and their assistant who will be able to get the most out of the peripheral.

Until not long ago you had to choose between cheap headphones, wireless headphones or headphones with good noise cancellation. Products like these Amazon Echo Buds 2 have all that in a quality device more than enough for most. A good choice within its price range that is worth considering, especially if you are part of the Amazon universe.