Buzz
DESIGN
Apple was the first company to introduce the true wireless earbud design, and although their initial products had inferior sound compared to other in-ear headphones, they popularized that design. Consequently, many other manufacturers have adopted their own designs. The stem allows manufacturers to incorporate more hardware into a well-balanced in-ear headphone without looking like Frankenstein's monster.
The truly wireless in-ear headphones Skullcandy Indy ANC follows the original design from Apple (and many other companies today) but with their twist – a fin at the earbud tip for comfort and security. Oh, and did I mention they come in black or pink?
Each earbud cushion has a touch-sensitive button on the side that can be used for MULTIPLE functions – imagine remembering a large number of button press combinations and long presses to use them. Luckily, there's an app for some of these functions. The app has the basics along with the 'Personal Sound' setting where it checks your hearing in each ear to adjust the sound to your ear's sensitivity.
Each earbud also comes with Tile, and although they're not the only headphones with this capability, they're the first ones I've used with it. Each individual earbud cushion is connected to Tile, but not the case. You'll be able to create sounds for the headphones through the Tile app but not the case. If one earbud is misplaced, you'll be able to find it using Tile.
The earbuds come with a carrying case and are IPX4 water and sweat resistant, so they can be used anywhere (except swimming pools and shower heads) and you don't have to worry about your sweat or rain ruining them.
COMFORT AND FIT
I've never been able to get earbuds with this many body types to always be comfortable in my ears. Nevertheless, my ears have responded well to their fit with the Skullcandy Indy ANC over-ear headphones. The 'fins' they have at the earbud tip unlike any I've seen on other in-ear headphones, but it works well, if not better than others. Other fins have a shovel-shaped design to fit the cartilage of the ear, but these fins have a small, simple fin right above the ear canal. It not only provides a snug fit but also extremely comfortable.
SOUND QUALITY
Fair or not, I compared Skullcandy Indy ANC to my true wireless ANC headphones – Bose QC Earbuds. As expected, the Indys don't have as clear sound or bass as Bose but they're smaller and cheaper devices. ANC is also not quite on par with Bose's earbuds but darn it, they're close (and at $259 versus $400, they pack a punch fitting their price). Ultimately, though, Skullcandy Indy ANC headphones are great in their own right.
Excellent sound although lacking a bit in the lower end – like almost all true wireless earbuds. ANC is still good enough to block out any annoying background noise and easily switch to ambient mode (hear background noise) using the app or by pressing the button on the earbud after pressing and holding for two seconds.
These headphones can also be used in solo mode if you need to completely hear your surroundings with one earbud being used while the other one stays inside the case and closed.
Skullcandy offers three different EQ settings that can be selected by once again using the complex button press sequence on the earbud. These EQ settings are not customizable and ultimately I only left it on the music setting because I liked that sound the best.
BATTERY LIFE
Skullcandy claims you'll get over 5 hours of playback in the earbuds with an additional 14 hours in the case, with ANC, that's a feat (this extends to over 9 and 23 hours when ANC is turned off). After testing, I have no reason to doubt this at all. I've been able to easily push them to that level and even had a good chunk of my listening time not listening to music but instead streaming lighter sports broadcasts (not noisy). Of course, if you need more battery life, turn off ANC – they still seal your ears so can isolate noise instead if you want to extend battery life.
The charging case is much smaller than Bose or Sony's products and charges via USB-C, so it'll charge quickly if you need a quick juice-up. Fast charging technology will provide over 1.5 hours of playback with ANC on and over two hours with ANC off with just 10 minutes of charging. The charging case has four LED lights on it with each light indicating the remaining charge level in the case is 25%.
SHOULD YOU BUY THEM?
As I sit down and ponder whether you should buy them or not, it's hard to find a reason why not. They don't have the best sound available in true wireless earbuds but with only sound superior to them, you'd have to pay for better quality sound. Bose's QC headphones sound better and have better ANC but are priced about 1.5 times higher than Skullcandy Indy ANC headphones.
The price isn't the cheapest either but at $250, they're very much worth it. They're definitely a much better fit and sound than headphones under $150. I'm really not sure I've used true wireless headphones that are more comfortable and simultaneously feel safer than these.
