I’d consider myself a casual+ gamer. I play most of my games on my Nintendo Switch, which typically involves me running around Hyrule to save Princess Zelda.
I am also, however, a supreme lover of music and am always looking for new ways to experience sound. Recently, I was sent a pair of Steelseries Arctis Gamebuds
I loved it. I could go back to the app and select a new EQ to best suit the world of Zelda (despite there being no Zelda presets just yet). Color me impressed.
One of my favorite things about these earbuds is that they give me the ability to easily switch between using them with my phone or my gaming console of choice. As long as the adapter is plugged in and on, I can switch back and forth by clicking the right earbud three times (it’s not a touch surface but a clickable button).
Also: These Beyerdynamic earbuds delivered glorious sound for any kind of music I played
All of a sudden, I could enjoy a vastly improved sound for my Switch without having to go through the Bluetooth setup on the console.
ZDNET’s buying advice
Here’s the thing about headphones with gimmicks: they can be very niche. If you’re not a gamer and you’re looking for a pair of earbuds to use with your phone, I’d say you should pass on these (primarily because if you like to customize your EQ, there are much easier devices to use).
If, however, you do switch between games on your phone and don’t want to use a separate pair of earbuds for each, these are a boon, and at only $159, a no-brainer. On top of all this, the Artcis Gamebuds