The search for the perfect earbuds will always be a challenge for some. It’s all about the look, the feel, and of course, the audio quality. As someone who is an avid music lover, I’m always on the hunt for something that is not only going to give me the best bang for my buck, but also has outstanding audio quality that will stand the test of time while being very durable. I’ve been a consistent user of the Pixel Buds lineup of earbuds for a few years now, and I’ve never had any issues with them. Time and time again, Google hits it out of the park with their wearable tech, from smartwatches to earbuds; they have not dropped the ball at all until now.
With the latest release of the Google Pixel Buds Pro 2, I ran into some issues right out of the gate, which ultimately left me feeling a bit disappointed about the build quality of this year’s version of the Pixel Buds.
I have been a day one Google Pixel user, and I’ve truly enjoyed every single device and wearable that has been released. The Google ecosystem is very user-friendly and when it comes to swapping in and out devices, especially when you are upgrading to a new device, this process has been seamless. With the Google Pixel Buds Pro 2 (2025), this remains true, to a point. Out of the box, connecting to your smartphone or device was incredibly simple.
My current daily driver is the Google Pixel 10 Pro, and connecting the Pixel Buds Pro 2 to this device was as simple as opening the Buds’ charging case. This year, the Google Pixel Buds Pro 2 comes in Moonstone, Porcelain, Peony and Hazel. I’ve always enjoyed how the buds complement the colour of the flagship devices. This is very beneficial if you’re someone who likes to accessorize your tech with your outfits. In the box, you’re also given extra earcaps to ensure that these buds will fit in your ears; they come in extra small, small, and large.
If you’re someone who commutes or is always on the go, picking up these earbuds could be beneficial as they have a total listening time of up to 30 hours. The charging case is also wireless, so depending on what your day-to-day looks like, you can potentially extend this further with a fully charged case. One feature I truly enjoyed about these earbuds was the active noise cancelling. I travel a lot, so when I’m on an airplane or taking the train, I do not ever want to hear other conversations around me.
Once this is activated, I was impressed by how well the silent seal 2.0 technology cancelled out almost all background noise while not making me feel like my equilibrium was off, like some noise-cancelling devices I’ve tried in the past. This year, you are getting the updated Google Tensor A1 chip as well as access to Gemini Live, not only to assist you hands-free, but Google has mentioned that they are working to get this working in active, noisy spaces.
Taking this a little bit further, I don’t think this is talked about enough: the full integration of Gemini Live with the Google Pixel Buds Pro 2 is simply astonishing. Being able to brainstorm ideas, add to your grocery list or even schedule events into your Google Calendar while just speaking out loud to Gemini is such a great quality of life feature. As mentioned, as I’m on the go often, I don’t want to always be on my phone all the time, so being able to speak to Gemini and tell it my plans for an upcoming event I was planning and have it take down my notes perfectly was a big win for me.
“…the full integration of Gemini Live with the Google Pixel Buds Pro 2 is simply astonishing.”
Now, let’s talk about connectivity. This was honestly very strange, and I’m not entirely sure what happened between last year’s version of the Google Pixel Buds Pro 2 and this year, but I had major issues not only connecting to my smartphones but also other devices like my laptop, tablet, as well as my desktop computer. Not only this, but I was also having issues connecting to a device and having consistent audio quality.
An example of this was when I went to Fan Expo in Toronto wearing these earbuds as I wanted to test out the ANC in a big area. I took them out and put them on, and as soon as I put the earbuds into my ear, something was extremely off. The bitrate was very poor, and it felt like I had left my phone 200 meters away from where I was standing, even though it was just in my pocket. These issues persisted not only inside the conference hall, but also outside in the streets when I was walking around. This was very frustrating, as for a premium pair of earbuds, this should not be happening.
At first, I thought that maybe the battery wasn’t fully charged, but when I checked the status of the earbuds and the case, they were both at 100%. From there, I thought that this could have just been interference due to the area that I was in, but throughout my testing period, this would happen fairly frequently. Whether I was at the park, in the mall, or just walking my dog, these connectivity issues were happening off and on to the point that I just went back to using my last year’s model of these earbuds.
Some people could consider this a deal breaker, and rightfully so; it very well could be. It happened at least three to four times in a seven-day period. I’m really hoping that there will be an upcoming update that could fix these issues When the Pixel Buds Pro 2 were working they were a top candidate for some of the best ear buds in the market, but with the inconsistent connectivity, for the time being, I’d have to say this would be a very hard sell for someone who is looking to upgrade.
Given their considerable potential, I am really disappointed to see the Google Pixel Buds Pro 2 in this current state. While the features I loved, such as Gemini Live and the impressive battery life, represent significant upgrades over last year’s model, the consistent and ongoing connectivity issues diminish their overall value. This is very disheartening because with a price of $299 CAD, I strongly advise folks who are in the market for new earbuds to consider alternative options until these issues are resolved.
Investing in a premium device that does not function reliably is not an optimal choice, especially when more affordable and dependable alternatives are available in the current market.
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