Full Pixel Buds review Almost 1 year later.

[eric002]

I literally just spend an hour on tech support chat trying to diagnose and reset the buds. This was really frustrating. I have to keep using them for a bit and report back to them.

Oh, believe me, I understand your frustration completely, unfortunately! That is a really frustrating. Definitely keep on testing out the battery of your buds for the next couple of days, then update me. Lets see what happens.

 

[mfriedman79]

Just had an hour and half zoom meeting. Both buds were at 100% when I took them out of the case. This below is when the meeting was over.

I am not totally surprised by those numbers. The buds have always had an uneven drain that I thought was attributed to the first bud that is pulled out of case and makes the primary link to the phone. In the case of a call (zoom or traditional) the buds go into "headset" mode and not "headphones" where it has to fire-up the MIC and earpiece and noise cancelling (background noise) hardware which impacts battery life. The one with with the most drain was probably handling the MIC functionality for the call. They are also only spec'd for 2.5 hours of phone call time so a 1.5 hour call is about 60% of the battery life which is in line with that screenshot.


On a totally unrelated to the quote note, I have had mine for about a year now and have had minimal dropout issues. I have found these are super durable too as I just recently made the mistake of forgetting them in a pair of shorts before the wash. Went through a full wash and dry cycle and still work and sound the same. I am guessing the battery life may take a hit from the heat of the dry cycle, but I was sure when I noticed what happened that I was going to be looking for a new set of buds.

 

[eric002]

I am not totally surprised by those numbers. The buds have always had an uneven drain that I thought was attributed to the first bud that is pulled out of case and makes the primary link to the phone. In the case of a call (zoom or traditional) the buds go into "headset" mode and not "headphones" where it has to fire-up the MIC and earpiece and noise cancelling (background noise) hardware which impacts battery life. The one with with the most drain was probably handling the MIC functionality for the call. They are also only spec'd for 2.5 hours of phone call time so a 1.5 hour call is about 60% of the battery life which is in line with that screenshot.


On a totally unrelated to the quote note, I have had mine for about a year now and have had minimal dropout issues. I have found these are super durable too as I just recently made the mistake of forgetting them in a pair of shorts before the wash. Went through a full wash and dry cycle and still work and sound the same. I am guessing the battery life may take a hit from the heat of the dry cycle, but I was sure when I noticed what happened that I was going to be looking for a new set of buds.

I agree with you. I have heard from Google Pixel Buds support forums that the bud that does the MIC handling during a phone call, drains battery faster. also, if you use Google Assistant way more often, that'll also drain the battery faster as well. My buds have similar battery drain, which isn't un-expected. Mine are doing absolutely fine overall as well. I've unfortunately dropped mine a couple of times and scratched them. They are very durable though, and continue working 100% of the time!

 

[HyperM3]

On a totally unrelated to the quote note, I have had mine for about a year now and have had minimal dropout issues. I have found these are super durable too as I just recently made the mistake of forgetting them in a pair of shorts before the wash. Went through a full wash and dry cycle and still work and sound the same. I am guessing the battery life may take a hit from the heat of the dry cycle, but I was sure when I noticed what happened that I was going to be looking for a new set of buds.

I have to say, I have never had one drop out either and I use these pretty much every day. Havent noticed any extra battery drain since I reset them after the first signs of this issue. Also, they charge stupid quick when put back in the case. Very happy with this tech purchase!

 

[poseign]

I'm jealous you you guys that don't have drop outs.

My set are perfectly fine, so long as I am sitting, standing , or walking at a slow pace. If I'm running or jogging, out mowing the lawn, it's an absolute crapshoot on how long they will stay connected before they go crazy and start breaking up. They have frustrated me so badly that I nearly threw them in the bushes while mowing a couple days ago. When they work they are fantastic, but a set of buds that refuse to stay connected to my phone through 50% of the tasks I use them for is pretty lame and I wouldn't make the purchase again.

 

[eric002]

I'm jealous you you guys that don't have drop outs.

My set are perfectly fine, so long as I am sitting, standing , or walking at a slow pace. If I'm running or jogging, out mowing the lawn, it's an absolute crapshoot on how long they will stay connected before they go crazy and start breaking up. They have frustrated me so badly that I nearly threw them in the bushes while mowing a couple days ago. When they work they are fantastic, but a set of buds that refuse to stay connected to my phone through 50% of the tasks I use them for is pretty lame and I wouldn't make the purchase again.

I'm very sorry to hear that. For me, sometimes at the gym, one of my buds will cut out and stop working. I just deal with it because most of the time, if I'm patient with it, the bud will start working again. That's the most that I can say regarding my Pixel Buds. It can get annoying sometimes. I've just learned to live with it quite honestly.

 

[Morty2264]

Thank you for your review! I had the Pixel Buds that were actually headphones with a jack, back when I had my Pixel 2. I really loved using them. Sounds like your buds work well with fitness activities too! Maybe if there's a sale in Pixel Buds, I'll check them out!