Review on TCL SOCL300BT Wireless Bluetooth In-Ear Earbud Headphones with Noise Isolation, Extra-Long 17-Hour Playback Battery, Built-in Mic - Ocean Blue by Dorian Bharadwaj

I bought these headphones based on The Verge article "These $15 TCL headphones have no right to sound as good as they do" and I generally agree with them. Over the years I've bought many headphones in the $10-$60 price range in an endless search for the perfect low-cost pair of headphones. Most of the time you usually get what you pay for. If they told me these are $40 headphones, I would believe it just because of the sound quality. Construction is cheap so don't expect anything premium. They're fine and there's no sign of them falling apart or breaking anytime soon, but the materials and construction aren't what you'd get in a more expensive pair. At first glance they look cheap. But how do they really sound? How would you describe it? They are very balanced. Most headphones are strong at some frequencies and weak at others, causing you to miss certain instruments in your music, but they're the same across the board. Bass response is surprisingly strong, but overdone. The only two areas I can notice is that the highs drop off at very, very high frequencies, but that's common with almost all budget headphones. I can say that the highs are actually better than many headphones. Second, I can detect a little distortion in the music from time to time. I don't notice it and it doesn't bother me either, but I do notice that the sound isn't as "clear" as with good headphones. Result? I sincerely think they could be my daily wired headphone driver. I prefer cheap headphones in case they break, get lost or get washed. I like to put it in my pocket and always have it handy. They sound better than Apple Earpods and Airpods (I have Airpods too). But when I'm just listening to music through the cable, they sound great and they're only $10! I have ordered two more pairs for my family and as spares.