Built to battle anywhere on any platform: But do they deliver?
- Developer: Turtle beach
- Type: Headset
- Release Date: 15/03/2019
- Platforms: Xbox One, Mac, Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4
- Price: £24.99
- Supplied by: Turtle Beach
The all-new Turtle Beach® Battle Buds™ in-ear gaming headset is built to battle on any platform, anywhere you play! From road trips with Nintendo Switch™ to Battle Royales on Xbox One or PS4 at home to mobile gaming on your daily commute, Battle Buds are the perfect mix of in-ear comfort and great sound. Built to be heard loud and clear with a removable high-sensitivity boom microphone or inline microphone when you’re on the go. Play for hours in complete comfort and in complete control with a multi-function inline controller featuring master volume control, microphone mute and a multi-function button for supporting devices.
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Headset
Battle Buds In-Ear Gaming Headset
Microphone
Removable Microphone
Parts
Carrying Pouch, Ear Bud Tips (three sizes), Stabilizer Wings (three sizes)
Guide
Quick Start Guide
Sticker
Turtle Beach Sticker
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Audio Connection
All Devices: 3.5mm
Speaker Frequency Response
20Hz – 20kHz
Speaker Size
10mm with Neodymium Magnets
Inline Controls
Master Volume Wheel, Mic Mute and Multifunction Button (on supported devices)
Microphone Design
Removable Unidirectional Microphone and Built-In Inline Microphone
Headphone Design
In-Ear
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Turtle Beach have gone and done it again, another place in the market spotted and another product delivered for all our gaming needs.
The Battle Buds have been built more specifically for battle royale games and from the depth of sounds it’s clear from the off that they are well suited for the genre. Whilst I avoid battle royale games my 2 kids play them A LOT. They both used them on various devices and had no complaints of any sort – they were clear and delivered a good audio quality compared to the more expensive headsets. They were more than happy using the battle buds and not once did they fall out. This was a personal concern of mine because, as you can see from the images, they are quite large compared to other headsets however they sat firmly in the ear and were extremely comfortable, even for hours at a time.
From my personal use I switched them to my mobile phone and tried them on my PC as well. I could not fault the comfort and with interchangeable ear tips and stabilizers anyone should be able to enjoy the best fit for their ears. Unfortunately this is where the praise ends. I was not expecting great quality in comparison to the excellent other products from Turtle beach, as they are only 10mm Neodymium magnets so they will never get close to the 50mm quality their other headsets produce. The problem is for audio they were nowhere near the quality of other in ear headsets I own. Tinny and distorted sounds from just over three-quarters volume left me unusually disappointed in a Turtle Beach product, something that is very rare in comparison to the rest of their product line-up.
Putting the price point into context, for just £24.99 I can’t really complain but I’d at least expect better clarity at high volumes on an in-ear headset mainly due to the potential locations they may be used. Buses, trains and cars where loads of background noise will be around you means they need to deliver a good quality at high volume, because despite the good fit you can still hear the environment around you.
The microphone quality is excellent though: I joined a party and didn’t tell anyone it was a new headset to review, and no one knew I was on a different mic. With it’s flexible boom microphone it made adjustment easy and coupled with the quality it’s a win-win.
SUMMARY
Delivering a quality product for just £24.99 is never going to be easy, but they have a solid build, interchangeable tips, excellent mic and are comfortable to wear, and whilst they don’t provide the best audio, it’s still good for the price point and they fit the bill for their use and place in the market.
