These $20 Earbuds Punch Above Their Price When It Comes to Battery Life and Comfort

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Consider this your pitch for a pair of second earbuds. If you’re like us, you have your go-to pair of wireless earbuds, which you likely use for listening to music playlists or podcasts. But if you’re like us, you also have a secondary pair of earbuds, which can be used at the office (say, for taking calls); for workouts (when you don’t want to sweat out your pricey buds); or for travel (if you want something reliable that you won’t stress over if accidentally lost or left behind).

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The best buds we’ve tested recently are the JLab GO Air POP True Wireless Earbuds, on sale now at Target. Available on sale for just $19.99 (regularly $25+), these wireless buds deliver a ton of features for their price point. They’re also among the best-reviewed earbuds online, with more than 70% of users giving them a full, five-star rating, from more than 5,000 verified reviews.

jlab go air pop earbuds
jlab go air pop earbuds

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The JLab GO Air POP earbuds deliver loud, punchy sound, with three custom EQ settings to choose from. While they won’t get you the same deep bass and detail as Bose earbuds, we found the JLabs to be perfectly adequate for everyday listening, with music coming through crisp and clear. For a commute or workout, they more than meet the standard.

Speaking of workouts, these JLab earbuds are rated IP55 to be fully sweat-proof, dust-proof and water-resistant. While we don’t recommend using these buds in the pool, they can survive accidental splashes of water or getting caught in the rain without issue. The sweat-proof coating also makes them super easy to clean and wipe down.

We took these earbuds out for a run and they were surprisingly comfortable. JLab says the GO Air POP buds are 15% smaller and 40% lighter than the original GO Air model, and we immediately noticed how much better the new earbuds stayed put in our ears. The inclusion of three different-sized gel tips also helped us customize a more secure fit.

Built-in microphones let you use these earbuds for taking calls, while the Bluetooth 5.0 standard makes pairing quick and hassle-free. Get eight hours of battery life on a single charge, and up to 32 hours of playtime with the included wireless charging case. That’s more than enough for most flights, which make these a good pair of earbuds for travel too (for reference, AirPods typically only get 5-6 hours of runtime).

Looking for a good earbuds deal? You can’t do better than the JLab GO Air POP, on sale now for just $19.99 at Target. They may start off as your backup buds, but we have a feeling you’ll be using these more than you think. Choose from six colors online. See full details here.

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