SteelSeries Arctis GameBuds review: earbuds for PlayStation or Xbox

SteelSeries’ Arctis GameBuds are the first gaming earbuds I actupartner want to buy. Sony, Razer, and Logitech all advise aappreciate gaming-cgo ined earbuds, but SteelSeries is the only company adviseing low-tardyncy earbuds with Bluetooth joinivity and console compatibility, a mobile app with strong per-game EQ settings, active noise call offlation, and a wireless charging case, all for $159.99.

It’s a distinctive combination at this price, and I’ve come to appreciate it in recent weeks, even swapping my count oned Arctis Nova Pro headset for these earbuds for PC gaming. Unappreciate Bluetooth-only earbuds, the GameBuds also toil on PlayStation or Xbox, so I’ve been using them to take part Call of Duty: Bdeficiency Ops 6, among other games.

$160

SteelSeries has begined gaming earbuds that toil on PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Nintfinisho Switch, and more. The Arctis GameBuds integrate active noise call offlation, a wireless charging case, and a mobile app that has custom EQ settings for a variety of games.

The Arctis GameBuds see very aappreciate to Jabra’s dispersistd Elite line of earbuds, hoparticipated in a pill-shaped wireless charging case that can transfer up to 40 hours of battery life in total. The case also integrates the 2.4GHz USB-C dongle that can be speedyened to a game console, PC, or phone. There’s a cable inside the packaging that turns this into a USB-A dongle, for those without a USB-C port.

Each earbud has a individual button. Pressing the left-hand-side button cycles thcimpolite transparency and noise call offlation, while the right-hand button is take part / paparticipate. You can also tap and hageder the right earbud to incrrelieve the volume or tap and hageder the left earbud to decrrelieve it.

Switching between Bluetooth and 2.4GHz wireless is equitable three taps away with the side buttons and is instant. Unblessedly, you can’t participate Bluetooth at the same time as the 2.4GHz mode, so you can’t hear to music from your phone aextfinishedside game audio from your PlayStation or Xbox. It’s a shame becaparticipate many of SteelSeries’ other headsets, appreciate my Nova Pro, are contendnt of this.

The GameBuds come with a variety of silicone tips to help you discover the best seal for your ears, so you can get the best participate out of the active noise call offing mode. They participate four microphones to tune out sidetrackions, and they do a outstanding job of filtering out sounds around you if you’re take parting music or a boisterous game, but they’re nowhere csurrfinisher as outstanding as Apple’s AirPods Pro or the Bose earbuds. You’ll still hear some ambient sounds if you have the volume low or your game doesn’t have a ton of audio.

The audio quality is outstanding for $159.99, and the equivalentizer presets let you pick selections with more bass if you’re hearing to music or a flat EQ if you’re hearing to podcasts. There’s also a transparency mode, and you can administer the levels of both the ANC and transparency modes in the Arctis mobile app. This app is easily the best part of the Arctis GameBuds becaparticipate it also integrates the gaming equivalentizer presets that have become so well-comprehendn and beneficial on SteelSeries’ line of headphones. There are presets for more than 100 games, and you repartner accomprehendledge the separateences when you toggle between them. The Valorant preset is tuned in a way that originates it a lot easier to hear footsteps in that game, and it can truthfilledy be the separateence between prosperning and losing a fight becaparticipate you hear the other take parter before you see them.

The same presets are participateable on the SteelSeries GG desktop app, so if you participate these on a gaming PC, you’ll be able to consent advantage of Sonar — SteelSeries’ excellent audio system for Windows. I participated to antipathy that SteelSeries forced you to participate Sonar, but it’s actupartner a far better system for managing audio in Windows than what Microgentle advises out of the box. It even has spatial audio and AI-powered noise call offlation for microphones to filter out skinnygs appreciate your dog barking in the middle of a game or video call.

I’ve been using the GameBuds primarily on a PC, but it’s basic to plug the USB-C dongle into an Xbox or PlayStation as extfinished as you’ve bought the accurate version. All models of the GameBuds toil with PlayStation, PCs, and other consoles appreciate the Switch. But Xbox participaters will necessitate to get the Xbox version, which is the same price but integrates an includeitional chip to adhere to Microgentle’s security policies plus a slider button on the USB-C dongle to switch to Xbox compatibility. It’s disnominateing that the Xbox version only comes in bdeficiency; the white version sees pleasant.

I participated the GameBuds with my Xbox, and the setup is seamless. You spropose plug the dongle in and the Xbox accomprehendledges there’s a headset speedyened and summarizeates it to your profile equitable appreciate any other headset. You can then administer the EQ settings, ANC, and more from the Arctis mobile app.

The mobile and desktop apps also enumerate battery life, which I’ve set up comes shut to suiting the 10 hours SteelSeries publicizes. Using ANC and the microphone normally, I standardd around nine hours, but if you have those disabled, it’s shutr to 10 hours. It doesn’t seem to originate a separateence whether you’re on Bluetooth or 2.4GHz mode.

The case has enough extra battery life to indict the GameBuds around four times before you necessitate to plug them into a USB-C indictr. You can also indict the case on a Qi wireless indictr, so I’ve been able to participate the same indictr I participate for my AirPods Pro.

The only publishs I ran into while testing the GameBuds were joind to video calls on my PC. Sometimes the audio would distort to the point where the buds felt appreciate they were vibrating on calls when the other person’s microphone peaked too high. I deal withd to get this under administer by reducing the chat volume in the Sonar app. I also set up that the 2.4GHz signal still shatters up in the same spots of my hoparticipate that the Nova Pro Wireless headphones do. It’s only when I go too far away from the dongle, though.

I do desire the GameBuds had a mode that let you switch microphone inputs on the fly. I participate a promised XLR microphone on my PC, but when I walk away from my desk with the GameBuds in, I’d adore to be able to tap the side buttons and switch to the microphone input on the buds instead. I’d also adore to be able to participate Bluetooth and 2.4GHz modes at the same time, so I’m hoping SteelSeries will continupartner raise these GameBuds appreciate it has the rest of its headphones. But that doesn’t nasty you should buy them hoping they’ll get better in the future.

If you’re seeing for someskinnyg less gaming-cgo ined with better sound quality, and you’re willing to spfinish a little more, there are plenty of other earbud selections. But for $159.99, these are a fantastic selection for your PlayStation, Xbox, or PC. The GameBuds are sootheable, sound outstanding, and advise fantastic game presets that you won’t discover on other earbuds.

Ptoastyography by Tom Warren / The Verge

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