Dudios Dubuds wireless earbuds (Hardware)
Official GBAtemp Review
Product Information:
- Official Store: http://www.dudios.com/index.php/product/index/id/45.html
Dudios is no stranger to the audio game, having been offering mid to high end earphones since 2018. They primarily operate in true wireless stereo, or TWS, earphones. Today we’re taking a look at their latest product, the Dudios Dubuds. The Dubuds are a bit on the higher end in terms of price for Dudios products, retailing for $49.99. Are they worth the price tag? Let’s start by diving into the tech specs!
Tech Specs
- Bluetooth Version: 5.0
- Bluetooth Chipset: RTL8763BFP
- Maximum Working Range: 10m (without obstacle)
- Talk Time: About 3.5 hours
- Earbud Charging Time: About 1.5 Hours
- Case Charging Time: About 3 hours
- Charging Case Recharge Earbuds: 20 Times
- Earbud Dimension(L*W*H) 43.5*21.7*17mm
- Audio Driver: 14.2mm Larger Diameter Drivers
In terms of product quality, the Dubuds are made from a hard plastic that, somehow, feels both cheap and durable at the same time. The earbuds themselves are lightweight, and feel cheaply made. Yet they also feel durable enough when handling them that I’m never afraid that they’re going to break. It’s a weird combination that’s difficult to explain, but it does keep the earbuds lightweight and easy to use. The case, meanwhile, feels very durable and has already survived being dropped a couple of times, with nothing but a single scuff mark to show for it. Both the case and the earbuds are colored a sleek, matte black that’s very appealing, and doesn’t stand out as opposed to some other wireless earbuds I’ve seen. The Dubuds are half in-ear earbuds, and thus don’t have any silicone tips included as you won’t need them. Some may see this as a complaint, but I found that they stayed snugly rested in place while going about my daily life no matter when I used them, whether I was sitting, walking, or actively doing household chores.
Arguably the biggest question when it comes to any type of headphones or earbuds, is how do they sound? The 14.2mm drivers offer a really good blend, with some solid mids and a deep bass that doesn’t overpower. Likewise, the vocals come through very clearly without being overpowering. Everything just feels balanced, and offers a really great listening experience. It’s admittedly not the greatest listening experience I’ve ever had, but these earbuds do the job, and do it well. Especially when you consider the $50 price tag, making these some really solid earbuds at a relatively affordable price.
While you can, obviously, control everything from your phone, the Dubuds also offer touch controls on the earbuds. You control it through tapping, with each tap sequence offering a different feature:
- 1 Tap: Raise or lower volume, depending on which earbud you tap. Raise on right, lower on left
- 2 Taps: Pause/Play, answer/hang up for calls
- 3 Taps: Activate voice assistant
- Skip a song by holding on the right earbud for 1.5s, restart a song by holding the left for 1.5s
The touch features work fine, though it did take some getting used to the sensitivity required in using them. Quick taps don’t register well, but firm and evenly spaced taps register without issue. I also noticed if I was laying down and an earbud touched the surface in just the right position, that would activate the touch controls and I would deal with either my volume changing, or my song skipping depending on how long I was laying down. Not only that, while the touch controls are nice to have in a pinch, I found myself controlling everything I needed on the phone half the time anyway. It’s just so much more convenient and doesn’t require me to input a specific sequence of tapping to do what I want. That said, I’m glad the touch controls are there, and they do come in handy if I walk away from my phone, or if I just can’t be bothered to take it out of my pocket.
Battery life is, obviously, one of the biggest contributors to the success or failure of a set of wireless earbuds, and it’s also where the Dubuds shine in my opinion. Dudios touts that the Dubuds can get four hours of playtime off of a single charge, which is augmented by the charging case. The case offers an astounding 70 hours of playtime to the Dubuds, charging the earbuds from 0-100% in about an hour and a half. The charging case can do this about 20 times before it’ll need to get plugged in again. The length of time you can get off of the earbuds combined with the amount of charging capability inside the case really is great. I’ve only had the earbuds die on me once from running out of juice, when I was actively testing the four hour claim. Outside of that, the battery life within the earbuds offers more than enough for standard use throughout the day, and the large battery in the charging case has kept me from having to plug it into the wall once since I’ve gotten it.
When you do need to plug the case in for recharge, it’s plugged in via USB-C. The Dubuds come equipped with a USB-C to USB-A cord so you can plug it in to a wall adapter to charge. The case serves a dual feature though, being available as a power bank that you can also use to charge your phone. This is a cool option, but I personally couldn’t use it. I have an iPhone XS, and whenever I tried to plug in my phone’s USB-A to Lightning cord, I was unable to get it to charge. I tested the feature with my wife’s Google Pixel 3, using the included cord, and it worked flawlessly. So the feature works, and I never tested the iPhone with a Lightning to USB-C adapter, so I wasn’t able to make use of it.
Verdict
- Excellent battery life
- Balanced, clean audio
- Lightweight, comfortable earbuds
- On ear controls nice to have
- Feels cheap despite durability
- Charging case battery bank works selectively
- On ear controls vary in sensitivity, and just aren't as convenient as controlling with the phone
