Technologies

Google Pixel Buds 2A Review: A Sound Choice for Pixel Users

The $129 Pixel Buds 2A don’t seem to vary much from Google’s flagship Pixel Buds Pro 2, but there are some key differences. Are they a good deal?

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Written by David Carnoy

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David Carnoy Executive Editor / Reviews

Executive Editor David Carnoy has been a leading member of CNET’s Reviews team since 2000. He covers the gamut of gadgets and is a notable reviewer of mobile accessories and portable audio products, including headphones and speakers. He’s also an e-reader and e-publishing expert as well as the author of the novels Knife Music, The Big Exit and Lucidity. All the titles are available as Kindle, iBooks, Kobo e-books and audiobooks.

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Google Pixel Buds 2A

$129 at Google

Pros

Lightweight design with comfortable, secure fit
$100 less (list price) than Pixel Buds Pro 2, they feature the same strong sound quality and look the same in your ears
Smaller charging case with solid build quality and a replaceable battery
Decent noise canceling

Cons

Not everybody will get a tight seal with the included ear tips
Missing some features found in the Pixel Buds Pro 2 and performance is a step behind
Though mostly appealing, they don’t necessarily rise above the competition in this price range

Like Samsung’s “fan-edition” FE products, Google’s A series models are more budget-friendly, leaving off a few features and a premium design element or two while not delivering quite the performance.

Case in point: Google’s Pixel Buds 2A ($129, £129, AU$239), which are essentially a “light” version of Google’s excellent flagship Pixel Buds Pro 2 ($229). They look pretty similar to their step-up sibling and serve up very similar sound quality, but they look and feel a tad cheaper and don’t offer the same noise-canceling or voice-calling performance.

Many people may find the trade-offs are worth the savings, but I can’t tell you that the Pixel Buds 2A, while appealing earbuds overall, truly rise above the competition in this price range.

Read more: Best Wireless Earbuds of 2025

Google says the Pixel Buds 2A’s design was “inspired” by the Pixel Buds Pro 2’s design, and at first glance, I had a tough time figuring out what’s different about them.

While the Pixel Buds 2A are also powered by Google’s Tensor A1 chip, they’re missing a microphone in each bud (they have two mics per bud while the Buds Pro 2 have three). The Buds 2A also leave out wireless charging, a voice accelerometer, head tracking for spatial audio and a ringtone speaker in the case for Find My Device. They do add the ability to replace the battery in their charging case — and that new charging case is smaller than the Pixel Buds Pro 2’s case.

Though the Buds 2A weigh exactly the same as the Buds Pro 2 (4.7 grams) and also have 11mm drivers, their battery life is rated for an hour less — seven hours instead of eight with noise canceling on. They also feature Silent Seal 1.5 for noise canceling instead of Silent Seal 2.0, which presumably means their noise canceling isn’t quite as good.

Here’s a full list of the differences between the two earbuds that I found.

How the Google Pixel Buds 2A are different from the Pixel Buds Pro 2

Two microphones per bud instead of three
No wireless charging (there is a ringtone speaker in the case for Find Hub)
No voice accelerometer to help detect when you’re talking
No Conversation Detection feature that automatically lowers volume when you speak and activates transparency mode so you can have a conversation
No motion-detecting accelerometer and gyroscope (no head tracking for spatial audio)
Silent Seal 1.5 for noise canceling instead of Silent Seal 2.0
Up to seven hours of battery life instead of eight (with noise canceling on)
The charging case is about 20% smaller, weighing 47.6 grams (with earbuds inside) instead of 65 grams
Made out of 41% recycled materials instead of 24%

Similar fit and same eartips as the Pixel Buds Pro 2

The two models fit similarly, with a stability wing on each bud and a twist-to-fit design. The buds are lightweight and compact, and should fit most ears well. But I did have some trouble getting a tight seal with the Buds Pro 2’s included eartips (I ended up using my own tips), and the same thing happened with the Buds 2A.

The shape of the included eartips is a little too conical for my ears, and the lack of a good seal affected both sound quality and noise-canceling performance.

Since I review a lot of earbuds, I have dozens of eartips sitting around, and I was able to find a set that got me a tight seal. I should point out that the post or nozzle on the buds is pretty wide, so only a limited number of eartips from my collection fit on the buds. But once I got the right tips on, the buds stayed in my ears securely, and I was able to run with them without a problem. They’re IP54 splash-proof and dust-resistant.

Pixel Buds 2A’s sound is a strong point

To my ears, the sound quality of the Pixel Buds 2A and Pixel Buds Pro 2 seems very similar, which should be the case since they both have the same 11mm drivers, the same redesigned acoustic chamber for improved treble performance and the same Tensor A1 chip.

I’ve been using Spotify’s new “lossless” audio streaming quality for playback and was generally impressed with the sound quality. The sound is relatively open and well-balanced, with the bass and treble accentuated only slightly, while the mids are only a touch recessed. (You can tweak the profile with a five-band equalizer in the Pixel Buds app.) The buds sound pretty dynamic, with good energy in the bass and some sizzle in the treble.

I thought the Pixel Buds 2A could sound slightly more refined and accurate, but they’re not boring to listen to, and their sound should appeal to most people. Also, I mostly avoided any listening fatigue over longer listening sessions.

That said, when I compared their sound to that of Samsung’s Galaxy Buds 3 FE, which retail for $150, I slightly preferred the sound of the latter. Their sound is slightly cleaner, smoother and more even-keeled — and slightly mellower overall. The Galaxy Buds 3 FE have a single 11mm dynamic driver, while the step-up Galaxy Buds 3 Pro have a 10.5mm dynamic driver paired with a 6.5mm planar magnetic. Samsung’s done a good job tuning the Buds 3 FE.

While some people faulted the Pixel Buds Pro 2 for not supporting so-called high-resolution audio codecs like Sony’s LDAC and Qualcomm’s aptX Adaptive or Lossless (LDAC is more widely supported by Android phones), and the Pixel Buds 2A don’t support those codecs either, I don’t think it’s a big deal. We’re not exactly dealing with high-end equipment here that might allow you to hear a difference. Some people may feel differently, but I think the AAC codec is just fine.

Noise canceling is good, but not top-notch

As I said earlier, if you don’t get a tight seal, noise-canceling performance will be affected. We have a major HVAC unit running in our offices, pumping out air conditioning, and the Pixel Buds Pro 2 were able to almost completely muffle the unit’s sound. The Pixel Buds 2A also did a good job muffling the low rumble of the unit, but I definitely noticed that the Pixel Buds 2A didn’t reduce as much of the noise. The same was true outdoors on the streets of New York, with a wider range of frequencies.

There wasn’t a huge difference between the Buds 2A and Bud Pro 2, but the Buds Pro 2 were a little more effective at muffling the sound around me. I used the same eartips with both buds.

Particularly in the streets of New York, the noise-muffling capabilities of the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) and Apple AirPods Pro 3 were a level up from both the Buds 2 Pro and Buds 2A in their noise canceling.

The AirPods Pro 3’s transparency mode is also a tad more natural-sounding and the current gold standard for transparency. But Pixel Buds 2A’s transparency mode is respectable.

Voice-calling performance falls a little short

Apparently, having one less microphone and no voice accelerometer to help detect when you’re talking does have an impact on voice-calling performance. From my torture tests in the noisy streets of New York, it doesn’t appear to be as good as what you get with the Pixel Buds Pro 2, though it should be noted that to get optimal voice-calling performance, you need to use one of the newer Pixel phones to take advantage of the Super Wideband and Clear Calling features.

Callers did tell me that traffic noise was basically eliminated, but they could hear people’s voices in the background, and my voice warbled occasionally. They could also hear some wind noise, even though the microphones have a mesh covering them that’s supposed to help cut down wind noise.

Final thoughts on the Google Pixel Buds 2A

Aside from my inability to get a tight seal from the included earbuds, I don’t have any major gripes with the Pixel Buds 2A. I liked how they sounded and felt in my ears once I got some tips that fit. While they look and feel a tad cheaper than the Pixel Buds Pro 2 and are missing some of those buds’ features, they look very similar and have a smaller charging case with a replaceable battery and slightly larger stability wings that should help you get a secure fit. They also have Google’s hands-free Gemini voice assistant, stereo spatial audio and multipoint Bluetooth pairing.

How good a value they end up being will largely depend on their street price. The Pixel Buds Pro 2 list for $229 but generally sell for around $190 and are currently $169 for Prime Day. They seem to have followed the street pricing of Apple’s AirPods Pro 2, since they were essentially Google’s answer to the AirPods Pro 2 when they shipped in September 2024. (It’s unclear when the newer AirPods Pro 3’s price will dip below $200.)

Given the past pricing history of Google earbuds, including the previous Pixel Buds A-Series, which didn’t have active noise canceling and were listed for $100 but typically sold for around $80 or less, one would look to buy the Pixel Buds 2A at closer to $100.

While they don’t clearly rise above the competition in this price range, and I slightly prefer Samsung’s Galaxy Buds 3 FE, they’re mostly appealing earbuds for Android users — and Pixel users in particular — that will be even more enticing when they’re $20 to $30 less.

Google Pixel Buds 2A key specs

IP54 dust-resistant and splash proof (case is IPX4 splash proof)
Weight: 4.7 grams per bud
Bluetooth 5.4
Google Tensor A1
Custom-designed 11mm dynamic speaker driver
Active noise cancellation with Silent Seal 1.5
Transparency mode
Active in-ear pressure relief
Bluetooth Super Wideband
Battery life: Up to 7 hours with noise canceling on, with an additional 20 hours in the case
Battery in charging case is replaceable
Clear Calling
Wind-blocking mesh covers
Two microphones per bud
Hands-free Gemini voice assistant
Capacitive touch (tap) sensors for music, calls and voice-assistant controls
IR proximity sensor for in-ear detection to play and pause automatically
Hall Effect sensor for case open and close detection
Ringtone speaker in the case for Find Hub
USB-C charging
Colors: iris (purple) and hazel (black)
Price: $129, £129, AU$239

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Turkey maintains significant commercial ties with Tehran, importing Iranian natural gas and exporting manufactured goods south.

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India

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