Review on Soundcore by Anker Life A1 True Wireless Earbuds: Customized Sound, 35H Playtime, Wireless Charging, IPX7 Waterproof, Button Control by William Stevenson

I bought these because I wanted a headphone that was compact and therefore comfortable under a stocking cap. I bought these based on trust in the Anker brand and generally good reviews. I'm struggling between a 3 or 4 star rating. If I were to rate just the sound quality, comfort and battery life, it would be 5 stars hands down. They sound great, they fit my ears really well (they come with the widest range of ear tips and winglets I've seen). They're comfortable under a stocking cap, and since they have a real button instead of a touch sensor, I can activate them with gloves on. Phone calls are excellent too, even when cycling I can hear clearly without any wind noise, which has been an issue with other headphones I've used in the past. My biggest complaint is the control system. This is really bad, I'm not sure what the designer was thinking. Since volume up and down (which I rarely do) requires a single button press on both earbuds, pausing requires a double click. To skip forward a track, double-click the LEFT earcup, which is totally counter-intuitive. There is no way to jump back. The voice assistant is a long press on any earbud, and the equalizer cycle is a triple click on any of them. I'm sure I'd eventually get used to it if it was the only pair I use, but it's not, which is why I keep changing the volume when trying to stop or skipping forward when trying to jump back. If the control circuit doesn't work As for you, this is a five-star pair of headphones from TWS that I sincerely recommend. If you're like me and don't think you'll like the control scheme, feel free to skip them. If they weren't so great I would have sent them back because of that. Update 7/2/21: Wavering between 3 and 4 stars, I originally gave it 3 stars because I really didn't like the control scheme. I still don't like the handling but I'm adding a fourth star because Anker reached out to me to offer a refund. Excellent customer service.