Cheap AirPods may sound like a contradiction in terms, but there are plenty of good and affordable alternatives available. We present you the best options!
Cheap alternatives to the AirPods
The AirPods 3 are not cheap at € 168. If you also want active noise cancellation, you will end up with the AirPods Pro 2, which are a lot more expensive at € 239. There are of course plenty of cheap AirPods alternatives, but what are your best options?
To help you with this, we have selected two options for you without active noise cancellation and two with. Finally, we will also tell you which ‘AirPods’ you should have if you really want to spend as cheaply as possible.
Keep in mind that you will miss out on features such as quickly switching between different (Apple) devices you are connected to. As do features such as spatial audio. For those options you have to rely on Apple’s AirPods.
The best options with active noise cancelling
Active noise cancellation is popular, so you have a lot of choice in that regard. Here are our affordable favorites:
Beats Studio Buds Wireless
For every Apple user, the Beats Studio Buds Wireless are the most logical choice. Beats is from Apple and that means that they work excellently with your iPhone, iPad and Mac. This way you can activate Siri hands-free and enjoy the spacious Spatial Audio. This is not possible with the other earbuds on this list.
Because the Studio Buds do not have an Apple chip on board, you will still miss some functions. This way, the earbuds, like the rest, do not automatically switch when you continue on another device. If you want this, you will end up with the more expensive Beats Fit Pro, or the real AirPods Pro 2 of course. You get the earphones for approx 150 euros at Coolblue:
Nothing Ear (2)
The Nothing Ear (2) are stylish earplugs with active noise cancelling and transparent stems that show the inside. So you can just see the speakers and microphones. Both the earphones and the box are transparent, but at the same time dust and water resistant.
The sound quality is good, especially if you adjust it to your own preferences via the equalizer in the app. Also the active one noise cancelling is very useful. The app includes a fit test for the silicone tips and you can easily set what exactly the buttons in the stems do. It is also possible to adjust the active noise cancellation even further to suit your ears. For these earphones you only place 130 euros down, check them out here:
The best options without active noise cancelling
Earplugs without active noise cancelling are a bit harder to find these days, but they are certainly still there. And why would you pay more for a function if you don’t use it anyway? Earphones without noise cancellation are a lot cheaper. We recommend these cheap AirPods alternatives:
Sony WF-C500N
Sony’s WF-C500N are lightweight and fit comfortably in your ears, even during long listening sessions. In addition, they deliver good sound quality and a fairly long battery life of ten hours. If you charge them in the case, they can last another ten hours.
There is a built-in microphone, so making telephone calls is no problem. The Sony WF-C500N cannot filter out ambient noise. These earplugs are a little older, but you don’t hear anything. The successor (WF-C700N) does have active noise cancellation, but you also pay more for that. You only pay for these earphones 55 euros if you order them now!
Jabra Elite 3
The Jabra Elite 3 is comparable to the Sony WF-C500N in several respects. They both have no active ones noise cancellingbut they do have a microphone for making telephone calls, and they are almost the same price.
The earplugs last an average of seven hours. With the included storage case you can fully charge them three more times, which increases the total battery life to about 28 hours. Charging for ten minutes is enough for three hours of listening to music. You now get the earphones for only 59 euros:
Cheap AirPods from Apple
Do you want real AirPods from Apple, then it is an option to opt for a refurbished copy of an older version. If you really want active noise cancellation, you will automatically end up with the first version of the AirPods Pro. You don’t need it active noise cancellingthen we recommend the cheaper AirPods 2.
Apple AirPods deals
Compare all Apple AirPods prices
When you want to spend as little as possible
For an amount of only 11.99 euros you can buy the Silvercrest Bluetooth earbuds at Lidl. They deliver sound quality that cannot of course be compared to that of real AirPods. But maybe you only listen to podcasts and lose an earbud every now and then. Then suddenly it’s not such a bad choice.
The cheap AirPods from Lidl offer a battery life of about 4.5 hours, but with the charging case you can fully charge them three to four times. You can also control music directly via the earbuds.
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