I’m going into this with a disclaimer: I am not an audiophile. I don’t search for the highest quality products that deliver the most crisp, smooth sound or whatever. I am simply speaking as a lover of music who has gone through several pairs of headphones and earbuds throughout the years. With that out of the way, let’s get started.
Long story short, these are great earbuds for the price. Solid construction, stability when in the ear, and simple design. Bottom line, if you are looking for a pair of budget earbuds that still retain excellent quality in design, go for these. Some things I found wrong with the earbuds; The control apparatus lies on the right side only, which causes the wire to be pulled more to that side, which is more of a pet peeve of mine. There is also some skips or breaks in the music, some scratching at times like the earbuds are being interrupted by electricity. I’m not sure if that’s something with the dry air causing small shocks or what, but it’s there. The last thing, and my biggest gripe so far, is the sound quality. It was not what I was expecting from Anker, who I had heard good things about. I realize that I’m paying 30 dollars for the earbuds, but for comparison, I had a pair of <20 dollar pair of Senso earbuds which had a richer quality and deeper bass. On the flip side, they were no where near the build quality that these headphones are. Now, to go into more detail about the pros and cons
Pros
* Really solid build quality. I cannot stress this enough, for 30 dollars, this build blows my mind. The earbuds feel heavy and solid, as does the volume control, and the magnets are a nice bonus. It allows me to store them nicely out of the way by sticking them on something metal when I go to bed, and keep them around my neck when I’m out and about
* Price. These are a steal for 30 dollars. Nothing more to be said
* Fit inside the ear. Throughout my life, earbuds have NEVER ever stayed comfortably in my left ear. Starting with the original iPod earbuds, and cycling through several iterations of skullcandy, more apple earbuds, even getting some custom made, they have never fit inside my left ear. They would always fall out after a few minutes. These are the first in a long line of unsuccessful attempts to actually stay in my ears. The earbuds came with several different buds that actually stick in your ear, along with the different sizes of the part that fits in the shape of your ear. I tried them out, and finding the right ones, decided to test them out by doing some jumping jacks, pushups, etc. They stayed in no problem, and after a couple of sweaty workouts, they have still stayed in just fine.
Cons
* There is really only one con that I have, and that is sound quality. Going into purchasing these, I had heard good things about Anker. My friend, who is in fact an audiophile, had told me about Anker, suggested I should give them a try. Buying and receiving these headphones, I was a little disappointed in the sound quality. When listening to music, I like to have a rich sound and a deep bass. In comparison, the sub-15 dollar pair of Senso headphones provided this for me. The sound was much ether compared to the Anker earbuds. With the Ankers, I have to turn them up fairly loud to be able to achieve that richer sound, to the point where I feel the volume may be too loud for listening to over longer periods of time. I’m not sure if this is a problem with specifically my earbuds, or a common thing with every pair, but it’s noticeable for someone who isn’t an audiophile
Conclusion
Buy these headphones, simple as that. They are a very good cross between price, quality, and user interface. They are simple, sleek, and have solid construction, perfect for working out, commuting to and from work or school, or just wearing around the home. If you care about audio quality more than I do, I would suggest trying out a more expensive pair. I trust Anker puts the same care of quality in their more expensive products as they do in these, and the only reason I’m not giving 4/5 stars is because of the audio quality
UPDATE 3/5/2018
This is an update because I need to change my rating. After I posted my review, Anker contacted me expressing their wishes to provide the best experience for me as a customer. They took my main concerns of the Slim+, that being the audio quality and the offset weight due to the control stick connected to the cord, and offered to send me a pair of headphones that they felt remedied these problems. They sent me the NB10 Sports earbuds for free, which I won't be doing a review on. From my few hours using them, they are on par with the quality has displayed with their products, and they did indeed have deeper bass, as well as a more secure fit thanks to the lack of a control stick on one side.
I'm bumping my review up another star, not because the Slim+ earbuds magically fixed themselves, but more so due to Anker's wonderful customer service. They were polite in their communication, professional, and made me feel like they cared about my experience. If you are considering buying earbuds, or any product in general, from Anker, I would say go for it. You're either going to find the product that you like, or if you don't, you'll have access to kind and professional customer service. Bottom line, Anker's products and customer service are definitely worth recieving.
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| Customer Rating | (7168) | (2700) | (6407) | (264) | (3288) |
| Price | Unavailable | $32.99 | $49.99 | $29.95 | $25.99 |
| Shipping | — | FREE Shipping. Details | FREE Shipping. Details | FREE Shipping. Details | FREE Shipping. Details |
| Sold By | — | SoundPEATS Audio | AnkerDirect | PHOTOTECH | Nanami Direct |
| Color | Black | Black | Black | — | Black with red |
| Fit Type | In-Ear | In-Ear | In-Ear | In-Ear | In-Ear |
| Item Dimensions | 34 x 19 x 12 inches | — | 6.89 x 5.37 x 1.26 inches | 7.44 x 6.54 x 4.33 inches | 8.2 x 5.9 x 0.8 inches |
| Item Weight | 0.48 ounces | — | 1.12 ounces | 2.40 ounces | 0.64 ounces |
| Special Feature | USB connectivity, sports-and-exercise, wireless, Lightweight, water-resistant | Microphone Included, Noise Reductioin, Magnetic Earphones, IPX6-Rated, Qualcomm aptX-HD | Fast Charging, Foldable, Microphone Included, Waterproof | MIC AND CONTROL, MAGNETIC | Upgraded Bluetooth 5.0 technology,Fast and Stable connection,Built-in Microphone for hands-free phone calls,Noise cancelling headsets, IPX7 waterproof and sweatproof,Long battery life for workout,sports,gym,Magnetic light weight earbuds |
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They feel great in the ear. Long lasting battery life.
M. Symonds
Product Description
I had tried a few wireless earbuds and original Slims were my favorite. It had a strong connection and the sound quality was really good. There's a lot I want to say about the original Slim but I'll save that for the appropriate review.Anyhow, when the Slim+ launched, I got curious about what was upgraded and had to try it out. To be honest, if you already have and like the Slim, there isn't much of an upgrade. Here are the differences I see after a few weeks of use:1. As others have stated, the cord is longer. Slim is 21" from bud to bud while the Slim+ is 24". The distance from the right bud to the controller is identical on both. This extra length would definitely come in handy for some people with thicker necks2. The little tab that covers the micro USB charge port can actually be pulled out and rotated on the Slim+. On the Slim, the tab could not be pulled out nor rotated so my charge cord would actually fold the tab backward causing it to crease a little. This made me worry about it's waterproofing although I've not had any problems yet. Also, on the Slim+ the tab that covers the port actually is longer and appears to further cover the exposed micro USB contacts. Not sure if this really helps but it's sure a welcome attention to detail!3. On the Slim+, there's a "Slim+" printed or engraved just above the charge port whereas the Slim has no markings.4. Sound quality is about the same on both buds. I can't tell them apart. I'm using a Note Edge, 2 different HP ENVY laptops, and an Acer S7 and the sound is generally identical to my non-audiophile ears. Actually, I don't know how to check if I'm using aptX or not so if someone can give me some pointers, that'd help. The reason I put this as a "difference" is because it feels to me like the Slim+ actually LOWERS the volume when ambient noise is high. I work in a place where they have a LOT of ambient noise (trucks, forklifts, etc). While the design of both the Slim and the Slim+ do identical jobs at blocking out ambient sound, when I turn on the music the Slim just feels louder than the Slim+. However, when I'm at home, both sound the same regardless of what volume I have at the source. Not sure if this is even a function of these earbuds but it's something I definitely notice!5. Aside from sound "quality" on the Slim+ there is a little blipping sound every minute or so. It kind of reminds me of those pulse-dial phones from back in the day or if there's some dust of a scratch on your vinyl record. This does not happen on the Slim at all and it's not that big of a deal when I'm at work or when I'm listening to my tunes LOUD but it's something I should note when comparing these 2 models.6. The Slim comes with a little cloth sleeve to store your earbuds while the Slim+ comes with a nice zippered case.So all in all, I'm rating this a 2 star because while its a good product with some noticeable upgrades from the previous model, I still feel the original Slim might be a better choice for the money.Update 12-20-2017I have been contacted by Anker and they offered a refund for my unit. To be honest, I'm not dissatisfied enough to want a refund as even with the blipping/skipping I mentioned, the Slim/Slim+ blows away the TaoTronics earbuds in sound quality and has a much stronger connection than the TaoTronics and the Phaisers. While the Phaisers (especially the 760) pumps out richer sound than the Slims, they have a pretty short range to them so I tend to reach for the Slim for most activities. I asked them to verify if my unit is a defect before I decide anything and will update this as things develop.Update 1/4/18I got the replacement unit a week or so ago and this new Slim+ definitely "skips" less than the first Slim+. Major kudos to Anker for helping me through this! I still feel the volume is a shade lower than the Slim and hence not a notable "upgrade" but I would definitely recommend this to anyone who has never had bluetooth earbuds before. Upping to 4 stars.Update 11/11/18Ok, it has been almost a year and I've been wearing these to work every day. Today, they somehow came off my neck, fell to the floor, and I ended up running over them with my forklift! The left bud was caved in, the ear piece was dangling just by the speaker wires, and the battery within looked distorted. After I got home, I used some pliers to bend the bud back to a circular shape, snapped the ear piece back in and viola! It still works!Now, I know about lithium batteries and I'm not about to try to charge a smashed battery. I just wanted to say that these were a great pair of earbuds. By now I've come to realize that the blipping/skipping I mentioned above is actually interference from other wireless devices around me. There is nothing Anker can do to fix that.Anyhow, I just came back to update the info and change the score to the 5 stars the Anker Slim+ deserves!
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Top reviews from the United States
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For the price: Good quality, elegant design, audio quality could use a little boost UPDATE 3/5/2018 Customer service is stellar
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 20, 2018Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 6, 2018
Top reviews from other countries
Will
Amazing value at this price - good sound, comfortable and good functionality
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on March 30, 2018
James
Bargain quality Bluetooth headset
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on May 15, 2018
James
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on May 15, 2018
The packaging is excellent quality and gives you a bit of confidence before you’ve even opened it. A full range of ear blades and cups to fit all ears (mine are big and I use the biggest of each). The fit is perfect for me, almost totally excluding external noise, even the loud music playing in the gym! If I did want to hear outside noises I would use a smaller size cup.
Very easy to pair to iPhone 8, didn’t read instructions just guessed. Nice power up and down sounds from the earphones as well as when you connect via BT.
Controls easy to use when you get used to it. There’s distinction between the more prominent central play/power button. Volume and skip track controls work as expected with iPhone.
Magnetic backs are great for packing away or storing round your neck. The clip and cable tidy addons also work really well to keep the cable close to your neck and not bounce around reducing that annoying deep vibration you can get on rubber in-ear buds.
Comfortable enough to wear for over an hour's workout, half of which was on the running machine.
Carry case is nice and compact with a large sturdy clip.
Volume is definitely loud enough, base is adequate when rammed properly in to your ear, and although not the best audio quality it’s fine for working out. Music and speech are easily discernible.
Can’t think of any criticism really. I bought for £25 but they’re on for under £19 now and a total bargain. Buy them.
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Mrs Susan J James
Excellent headphones
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on April 5, 2018
