You know the sage piece of wisdom that goes, "Skip the name-brand earbuds and just go with the first decently reviewed, super inexpensive pair you find on Amazon?" Well, these are those buds. At the time of this review, UGREEN's wireless solution costs $36. For that price, the quality and svelte form factor the HiTune X6s offer is pretty damned good.
Bottom line: UGREEN's HiTune X6s aren't going to destroy the best earbuds in battery or mic quality, but you could do a lot worse for such a low price.
For
- Strong value heightened by discounts
- Crisp, clear audio quality
- Sleek hardware design
Against
- Battery life isn't amazing
- Touch controls are a little finicky
UGREEN HiTune X6 ANC Earbuds: What I like
What I like about these buds is straightforward: They deliver crisp, rich sound that captures the rumbles of bass-y music and subtle intonations of the human voice. And furthermore, the mic quality isn't too shabby for the price. I've been asked whether I'm using a dedicated microphone while using these buds. People don't always believe me when I say these are $36 (the actual MSRP hovers around $56, but I've yet to see the discounts that bring it down to sub-$40 disappear).
With that said, some people mentioned they didn't notice a difference in quality between these buds and my laptop's built-in mic, and a few others noted audio sounded worse and "blown out." But the fact I got as many good remarks as I did on such cheap hardware is surprising.
I also like the earbuds' stylish form factor. You can get cheaper wireless earbuds on Amazon and eBay, but they mostly look cheap, bulky, and exceedingly plastic when shopping in the $10-20 range. UGREEN's buds, though, mark the intersection where fashion meets function and value. They're tiny, round, shiny, and gunmetal grey and jet black, a stylish color combo that'll go with virtually anything. The charging case shares this aesthetic and is conveniently shaped so as to not bring about undue bulk in your handbag, satchel, or purse.
Best of all: These buds play nice whether you're on a Windows PC or an Android device. Be it listening to music on my work laptop, chatting it up on Slack, or syncing the HiTune X6s with my phone for a jog around the neighborhood, they always did the job. In other words, you don't need one of the best wireless headsets for the office or a special pair of fitness-friendly buds if you have UGREEN gadgetry lying around.
UGREEN HiTune X6 ANC Earbuds: What I don't like
Dislikes are few given what UGREEN's offering for the price. One nitpick is that the battery isn't great. With active noise cancellation (ANC), you're looking at less than six hours of battery for these buds, and not much more if you turn ANC off. The charging case is supposed to enable 26 hours of battery life, but I can't confirm that claim. Either way, if you're looking for earbuds with the ultimate battery life, these aren't it, as even the advertised numbers aren't top tier.
My other dislike is one that applies to most wireless earbuds: The touch controls can be a minor pain to get used to. But really, UGREEN's faring as well as most of the competition in this department, so don't let this quibble deter you.
UGREEN HiTune X6 ANC Earbuds: The competition
As already stated, UGREEN's more or less in a class all its own here. It's better than the absolute cheapest options on Amazon that target the $10-20 price range, it kicks $200 Microsoft Surface earbuds to the curb in terms of value, and when you eliminate those two extremes, there isn't much else to stack it up against.
The closest comparison I can think of is the EKSA GT1 Cobra True Wireless Gaming Earbuds. Those buds have an MSRP of $80 but often dip down to a bit below $50. They have a cool TRON aesthetic and are perfectly fine, but they're a bit more expensive than UGREEN's option. If you want to pay a bit more for glowing blue lights, go ahead, but for anyone not overwhelmingly enamored with the black-and-blue aesthetic, UGREEN's got the winning offering.
UGREEN HiTune X6 ANC Earbuds: Should you buy?
You should buy this if ...
- You want killer wireless sound quality but are on a budget
- You demand not just good, but great value from your tech
- You yearn to balance style with fiscal solvency
You should not buy this if ...
- You have an unhealthy fixation on name-brand products
- You want the best mic quality and battery life in the wireless bud market
- You hate saving money
If the buds go back up to their MSRP of $55-ish, imagine knocking off half a point from my score since UGREEN's offering will no longer be a uniquely banger value and will more or less rival the EKSA GT1 Cobras mentioned above. But for $36, we are entering "don't overthink it, just add to cart and be done" territory.
Bottom line: If you can score them for $36 or below, these buds will very likely leave you surprised and pleased.
