After leaving one pair of AirPods in an Uber, and having another pair stolen, I told myself I’d never get AirPods again.

In fact, such was my disdain towards London’s thieves and scammers – who target AirPods as they’re high value and easy to get rid off – I decided I wouldn’t buy any Apple headphones again.

From summer 2024 to March 2026, I didn’t even contemplate going back down that road – it would have inevitably led to another pair on Find My iPhone lost mode.

Instead, I went for over-ear headphones, aware that the likelihood of some sneaky f**ker deciding to swipe them would probably be lower.

For a while, I went for cheap and cheerful headphones. I owned a pair of JBL Tune headphones from 2024 to mid-2025, followed by Belkin SoundForm headphones, both around the £50 mark.

I didn’t expect anything drastic based on the price point – and there was nothing drastic about them. They were ordinary Bluetooth headphones that played music like any other.

The tricky part always seemed to be configuring the Bluetooth to be findable by new devices – which would be a lot easier with a strategically placed button that makes itself known as a connectivity tool. 

But both headphones suffered the same fate – I sat on them and broke one side of the hinges – leaving them swiveling round aimlessly like a desk chair.

Prior to the breakage, I was beginning to feel worn out of over-ear headphones anyway.

They often ruin my hair on placement and removal, along with outfits, as you can’t wear hats over headphones – while sunglasses became awkward to balance on my head.

I knew I wouldn’t be getting over-ear headphones again – but hadn’t a clue what I wanted.

Taking a ponder on Argos though, I realised there were wireless earbud versions of Beats by Dre on clearance, with competitive prices.

A tempting discount

The Beats Solo Buds, which typically retail for about £90, were on sale for £59 – in my mind that was already justifiable. A recognisable brand marked up less than £60? Hell yes. 

But again, with that price-point I didn’t expect much. After waltzing to click-and-collect and claiming my new Beats, I was left wondering how much better (or worse) my listening experience would be.

Well I have that answer for you now, following a week of heavy use. The answer is – bloody spectacular. 

Beats Solo Buds may be limp in price, but do not compromise sound quality at all. These are BOOMING.

They don’t require you to look for a setting or a button to set them to noise cancelling – they ARE noise cancelling. Simply connect, put them in your ears and play music – that’s all you need to do.

“You don’t set them to noise cancelling, they ARE noise cancelling”

It beats the faffing around I was doing with equalizers just to make my JBL headphones sound like what they promised on the box. Everything sounds better with the Solo Buds – techno house, drum and bass, dubstep, grime, UK rap, R&B, pop, indie, rock – THE LOT.

My only criticism would be that maybe they’re too loud… there’s no gradual build to that either – ¾ of volume is enough to burst your ear drum. 

The play/pause button is also a tad sensitive considering they come with rubber-ended buds (which I haven’t used since I owned Skullcandy’s). 

They can be awkward to get and keep in your ear for this reason, and if I’m on a call when this happens, it means I accidentally end up muting while adjusting, which can get annoying.

“Everything sounds better with the Solo Buds”

But when you get your positioning correct, it feels like you’re in a recording studio – you can hear the added and raw elements of a track’s production through the buds. Seriously.

In terms of manufacturing, my one other complaint would be making the battery level more accessible to the owner without having to open your phone and go into settings.

The case could also do with an accessible battery status – to avoid leaving your home with dead buds. But for the price and sound quality, I’m willing to overlook those minor defects. 

And iPhone users are in luck, because Beats were bought out by Apple for $3billion back in 2014, meaning the Beats Solo Buds are optimised for iOS.

This means, no silly side apps to regulate or control them – and on top of that, you can customise them in settings in the same way you can with AirPods, and they show up in Find My iPhone.

Beats Solo Buds are probably not worth throwing your current headphones out for (if they’re any good), but if you’re experiencing poor sound or have completely broken headphones currently, GET THESE NOW.

Hurry though, I was lucky to get mine. They are selling out fast.

4/5*