Back Bay Audio Mini Wireless Earbuds for Small Ears, Award-Winning Sound

[UPDATED Jan 27 2025] Very late updating, but that only makes this more relevant. Back Bay addressed my previous problems with the earbuds in April of 2024. Since then I've used them daily without any issues. My only fear now is that they are almost a year old and might begin to fail. I love these earbuds and am not looking forward to the day that they stop working. Superior audio quality. Excellent mic, and stable connectivity. Everything one could hope for in earbuds. Despite the issues I had with my original purchase, I have upped my rating to 5 stars from 3 because these are without a doubt a 10 star product, but Amazon allows for only 5. [UPDATED April 24, 2024] Back Bay has addressed both malfunctions: the right earbud and the charging case. They quickly sent replacements for both, which I have received. I'm back to normal. Everything functioning properly again. If there is no repetition of the problems and the earbuds continue to function properly, I would consider this a glitch that was dealt with quickly and fairly and bump up my review at least a couple stars. Despite this setback, these are amazing to listen through and they are comfortable to wear for longer periods. Although I would rather not have had the experience of needing it, I'm happy to report that Back Bay's customer service is responsive, fast, and effective. They got me back up and running within a week. I'm grateful for that. [UPDATED April 13, 2024] It's been two months since I'd purchased these. I've used them daily. They've never been dropped or physically damaged in any way. I don't wear them outdoors. I use them as monitors beneath a pair of 30db noise reduction earmuffs when I'm playing drums in my studio. I use them because in conjunction with the earmuffs they allow me to hear the sound source, music or metronome, clearly at very low volume. This works much better than any of the "pro" level purpose built headphones I own and no longer use for this reason. So why the update? I was in the middle of a session recently when suddenly there was no sound from the right earbud. I did the necessary troubleshooting, followed the steps to reset them (multiple times), cleaned them (which I do anyway), but nothing brought the sound back. It was during this same time period I'd noticed the charging case wasn't fully charging. After ten hours charging it was still showing three solid lights with the fourth blinking continually. In other words only 50-75% charge, if it's accurate. I am outside of the return window, so Amazon sent over to Back Bay support. Back Bay contacted me much quicker than I had expected via email and had me redo all of the steps I had taken previously. When that failed they notified me that they were shipping me a replacement right earbud. There was no mention of the charging case. I reminded them again via email about the charging case problem and am awaiting a reply on that. I don't understand why they didn't address it along with the earbud, as without a properly functioning charging case the risk is either not being able to charge the earbuds or electrically damaging them. Either of which would render them useless. To wrap it up, I'm really disappointed about the two problems occurring so quickly after purchase. As, I'm sure anybody would be. I'm also disappointed that they didn't address both problems. If it were my company I would have. There's no logical reason to have ignored the charging case issue. They never acknowledged or said a word about it. Never acknowledged I'd sent them a short video showing the charging indicators blinking at was then the 12 hour period. They focused solely on the earbud. I don't understand it. Maybe their agent didn't fully read our correspondence, overlooking the charging case problem. I'll post an update when/if they get back to me and share if and how this is resolved. [ORIGINAL] I've used these daily for exactly one month today. I intentionally waited to review these to be sure I was going to get past any of the issues I'd read in other reviews, which seemed to take place in the first two to three weeks. We'll, I'm past all of that. I've only had one issue, which led to me starting the return process after one week. The earbuds kept disconnecting and reconnecting from one of my devices, which was something I'd read complaints about. But I decided to hold off on the return and I'm glad that I did. I still have that same problem, BUT as it turns out, it is only with that one particular device. I use the earbuds with three different devices and that problem has never occurred with any of the others. The device I have the problem with (a TV) is the one I used it with the least, so I believe the problem is with the TV's bluetooth stability and not the earbuds. Now onto the sound quality. Shockingly good! The sound reproduction and balance that can be achieved between highs, mid, and lows is truly impressive. No need to compensate for poor sound spectrum quality by nudging up the volume and d potentially damaging your ears by doing so. For the record, I'm not easily impressed when it comes to audio quality. All the phones in my studio are high end AKG's, my walking around phones have been and still are Bose QC's, which I always version up. Bose 901's in the living room, etc...Although some might argue there's better quality everything out there (brand loyalty and subjective tastes being what they are), one can't argue that I'm used to listening through garbage. That being said, these earbuds are a better cost to value purchase than much pricier offerings from the major brands, including Bose and Beats. Having compared to both, I feel I can say that with confidence.

First of all, these are SO cute! The color I chose is one of my favorites, and they’re surprisingly comfortable. They stay securely in my ears without popping out, and the sound quality is amazing! They’re also super affordable, and honestly, I don’t see a reason to spend more on a name-brand pair when you get everything you need right here. Definitely worth the buy!

Pros and things I liked: I opened the package and found these buds to look and feel high end. The charging station is metal and heavier than many other cases that I've had, but not too heavy. This is not a negative but I'm thinking if you dropped it, your ear buds would stay unharmed and it might not break. I ordered the champagne color which was beautiful. Once they are in the ears they are practically not noticible. They fit in my ear fine, and they come with an array of silicone buds for any ear canal size which makes these very versatile. This is really a huge bonus of these buds. Easy to change out the silicone buds. They canceled noise easily and I barely heard my phone ring that it was not paired to and sitting on the table next to me. The value for the money seems to be amazing as they feel like a much more expensive brand. I tested them on a full charge on my computer, 1 phone, 1 tablet and Smart TV. They paired effortlessly an the battery life was great, and I didn't need to recharge them after a full day of use. They don't seem to put a drain on my phone battery. All in all these sounded wonderful and clear. The bass boost was not that noticible but it is there and they did not sound cheap and tinny. I'm unable to hear anything outside of the ear buds when anything is playing. Movie Mode seemed to correct all delays and lip synchronization. I'll probably put it on even just with music. The voice assistant brought up Google and Perplexity AI on my phone display. I didn't test that feature any further, but will do a voice call as well. Calling someone, they could hear me loud and clear and I could hear them. If I walk away from my paired phone, it says - "disconnected" so I know I've left my phone elsewhere. This is good actually since I have a habit of doing that when I have ear buds in. Cons: They made for sm aller ears, but seem big anyway. The bud itself is plastic with metalic outside that is visible when you are wearing it. When I first tested I had inserted them into my ears wrong. They should be comfortable, if they aren't twist them to get a more comfortable. Learning how to use them required long tap holds of longest 5 seconds. There is one mode that requires 4 short taps. It was a bit hard to get the hang of the taps and holds and I had made a copy from the back of the box so I could remember because I intended on taking them on a road trip. They didn't respond as easily as I had hoped they would so I had to do extra taps in the beginning due to user error, but all the features worked on 4 separate devices. They are a little bigger than I'm used to...but comfortable. Cons: They made for sm aller ears, but seem big anyway. The bud itself is plastic with metalic outside that is visible when you are wearing it. When I first tested I had inserted them into my ears wrong. They should be comfortable, if they aren't twist them to get a more comfortable. Learning how to use them required long tap holds of longest 5 seconds. There is one mode that requires 4 short taps. It was a bit hard to get the hang of the taps and holds and I had made a copy from the back of the box so I could remember because I intended on taking them on a road trip. They didn't respond as easily as I had hoped they would so I had to do extra taps in the beginning due to user error, but all the features worked on 4 separate devices. The technology in these may be older as I've seen reviews back to 2022. Summary: I like them - ear buds haven't progressed a lot over the years. I'm not willing to fork over the money for Sony or Bose etc. This is as close as I can get.

I will start out by saying that I am not an audiophile. I can't (to my knowledge) hear all of the tones and the highs and lows that make for a spectacular set of ear buds. When I set out to get a new set, I wanted a set that would have good sound, fit my ears nicely, pair easily with my phone, and block out the noise around me. I will admit, that my last set was a pair of Air Pods that I had had for a number of years. I really like them, especially how the case fit nicely into my pocket. I love being able to control them by tapping on the Air Pods themselves to pause and play. I did not like that there was no noise canceling and lack of a tight fit into my ears, which made them unusable for things like mowing the lawn. I also could not use them while laying down on a weight bench. I finally had to replace them as the battery would not carry much of a charge any longer, and they were seeming to flake out and losing connectivity intermittently. I have seriously contemplated getting a set of Air Pods Pros before settling on this set. With that being said, here are some of the pros and cons with the Back Bay Tempos that I have noticed in a week's worth of use. Pros: - Easy to connect to my iPhone 12. Immediately connects when I start to pull them out of the case. - So far the battery life seems to be really good. I will put this to the test when I go on a long car ride. - Really good volume. With my Air Pods, I would frequently have to crank the volume all the way up to have the sound that I wanted, and frequently got warnings from my Iphone to turn down the volume. With these, the volume is just above half way most of the time. - Case fit in my pocket. The shape isn't as nice as the Air Pod case, but this case form factor is nice and small and doesn't feel bulky in my pocket. It is a really nice aluminum case that has a high quality feel to it. - Fit in my ear. These fit snugly into my ear, and don't stick out. They fit almost completely into the concha of my ear which is really nice. I haven't run with them yet, but I have exercised and laying down on a weight bench does not dislodge them. Cons: - The fit is almost too tight. They do not have active noise cancelling, but the passive noise cancelling is pretty good. When I have them in and my wife wants to talk to me, I can't hear anything she is saying while the music or book is playing. When I pause the playback, I still struggle to hear her and have to usually take one out to carry on a conversation. This may be good for some people, but for me it is a bit intrusive to have to take them out so frequently, something that I didn't have to do with my first generation Air Pods. - Controls aren't as responsive as the Air Pods. If I double tap too quickly, it won't always pause/play immediately. Sometimes I have to repeat the action. I also have noticed that if I don't tap directly on the body of the bud, it won't respond. If I tap on the edge the first time, it won't sense the touch. - Can be a little difficult to get out of the case. Just about every time I try to take them out of the case, they slip the first time and pop back in. They have a pretty good magnetic hold in the case. There just isn't much to grab onto when pulling them out. - Occasionally the sound quickly fades and then comes back, almost like it is skipping. Not sure when and why this happens. I noticed this a couple of times when I was plugging and unplugging my phone's charging cable. I really don't miss any of my audiobook, but the sound cuts out for a split second and then reconnects. Other times I can listen for a couple of hours without it happening at all. - Connecting to the phone function of my phone. I'm sure that this is just something to do with my phone setup, but each time I have tried to make a call with these, I have to click the Back Bay Tempo's on my phone. It isn't an automatic connection like my Air Pods. I will play with the settings and see if I can get this to automatically connect when I receive or make a call. Overall, I have been very pleased with these so far, especially for the price. I will update this review as I use these over the next months.

First off, I love the color! Mint green is my fave! They come in a cute slim case that feels solid. They're a little smaller than other ear buds I've had, so they don't get irritating after a while, I can wear them for hours. They were really easy to connect to my phone, and connect automatically now. They charged up quick, I've used them almost a solid 10 hours and it seems like the battery is still full! And finally, the sound quality is much better than I expected! The sound is crystal clear and music hits just right, phone calls are clear, and people say they can't tell I'm talking on ear buds. Can't beat the quality at such a good price!

UPDATE: I don’t know if I have been very unlucky or if this is just a common issue with these buds, but after maybe 2 weeks of use, my right bud lost almost all of its volume. I did all the troubleshooting, nothing worked, and while customer service was great (they sent me two replacement sets for free as I had the same problem with each set), I no longer felt they were worth the effort in the end. These are nice, when they work. Or until they stop working. Which may happen quickly and seemingly out of nowhere. I did also notice the fit wasn’t quite as secure as I would have liked with longer term wear. Eventually they’ll start falling out or need frequent re-adjustments. That can go for any buds, though, of course. YMMV. For me, it was a sad ending to this one. I was so excited and hopeful at first. I still stand by the overall sound quality, battery life, and the sleek, easy-to-fit design. And of course customer service; while I did decide to give up, the two replacement pairs were sent to me with no hassles, no additional cost, and in a very timely manner. All of that said, I just didn’t feel right leaving this 5 star review the way it was when I had many problems pop up shortly after I wrote it and felt others should be aware of potential issues. Original review: Some background: I have small ear canals with relatively small ears overall, and the cartilage of my left ear was shattered and is now permanently deformed—don’t get pierced with a gun, folks) so earbuds are a STRUGGLE when it comes to fit. I have tried so many. Most needed to be returned. Even if I loved every single other feature they possessed. Comply foam tips have been a godsend but it’s nice to not have to go through the roll and hold process if I want to pop in my buds quickly. I can manage regular silicone tips with my tozo a1 minis and my soundpeats mini pros, but I do need to adjust them from time to time. These buds? I didn’t even have to try other size tips; the ones already installed out of the box were perfect. If that’s not the case for you, you have 5 other options. They instantly felt completely secure and have an excellent seal. Comfortable, lightweight, and the first and probably only pair I’ll ever find that doesn’t mess with the anatomy I’ve got. They don’t fall out or shift on their own. No adjusting required. I’m not an audiophile, but they sound great to me. And they can indeed get VERY loud without distorting. I’ve only had these for a day so I can’t speak for longevity, but I was so impressed with the fit (the battery life is a major plus, too, and again, the sound is great for this price point) that I had to come write a review. If you have issues with fit, these are what you want.

I have the hardest time finding earbuds that actually fit comfortably and don’t constantly feel like they’re going to fall out. These are SO much better. They’re small, comfortable, and I love that they come with different ear tip sizes so you can actually find one that fits. The sound is really good, they connected to my phone super easily, and the battery life has been great so far. Definitely recommend if you have smaller ears and normal earbuds never seem to fit right!

I wear earbuds all the time to listen to music and audiobooks. One of my ear canals is weirdly narrow so I'm always having issues finding comfortable earbuds. I got these a few months ago after trying (and failing) to find anything cheaper with a similar shape. They are really comfortable! I don't have any issues keeping them in my ears (they can get oily and/or sweaty at times, depending on what i'm doing). I also love the way they look! They don't stick out AT ALL, which is really rare for me when it comes to earbuds. I got them in the crystal purple color and i really like it. I find the sound more than adequate, but i'm no audiophile and am mostly concerned with the shape, battery life, connectivity, and controls when it comes to my earbuds (i mean unless the sound is bad i probably wouldn't notice). I also don't use them for calls, so i can't say how good they are with that or noise cancelling, though they do have pretty good passive noise cancelling (meaning they block out noise pretty well due to their snug fit). I was worried these earbuds would be the type to drain the battery of the device that i wanted to use them with (mainly this can happen with my ipod nano), but i haven't had ANY issues with that. They also seem to live up to their 8 hr battery life. The instructions DO say not to use a charger that exceeds 5V 1A, which might be an issue for some people (i only had one that was suitable when i got these). Mostly, the only issue i've had with these is that the controls can be very iffy. There's been so many times when i've tapped them to pause what i'm listening to and instead i either get nothing, or a voice telling me "base mode on" or sometimes "movie mode on." It can be pretty frustrating, but to be fair, this is an issue i've had with most earbuds. The only other issue i've had is that the BT connection does seem to be a little weaker or maybe just more sensitive (?) than other earbuds i own. What i mean by this is when i'm using them to listen to something on my phone or nano and i've got it in my back pocket the sound can fade out when i'm bending even slightly over. They're also not quite as long range as other earbuds i have, but the range is still long enough i don't have to be in the same room as the device i'm listening to, so it's not a huge difference. Anyways, these get 4 stars, cause overall, i think they're pretty good and don't regret spending $50 on them (which is more than i'm usually willing to spend on earbuds these days). UPDATE: it’s been over a yr now (currently December 2025) and i still use these. I have tons of earbuds but these are my favorites due to them being super comfortable (have even worn them for the full 8 hrs) and on account of them being great at blocking out noise due to their shape, but they still get a star off cause they don’t have the longest range. Really tempted to buy a second pair.

So far so good. Sound is awesome and the bass boost is great, really adds a 'punch' to the bass. Buds are small and don't protrude from the ears which makes them very stable and the 6 different sizes/styles of tips make customizing the fit very easy. I always seem to have a problem getting buds that fit comfortably but so far, (knock on wood) these are great. The case is actually aluminum not plastic and very small and comfortable in the pocket. The charging indicator is a series of 4 led's not a single led which, in my mind, makes it easier to tell how the charge is. Also it says in the instrutions that the case can be left plugged indefinitely so I don't have to remember to plug it in to charge it. A small thing yes but still a thing. If anything changes in the next couple of days, I'll post back with an edit. **edit** Couple days later and I'm still impressed. Only thing is I had to change the earpieces to a foam style which is my preference nothing to do with the actual bud itself. You have to remember to touch the bud in the middle to change settings but that's nothing, just a matter of getting used to it. I still think it's an extremely good deal considering the sound and comfort.

My daughter suggested these to me and to my surprise, I found them to be really great. At first I was afraid that they were going to fall out of my ears but they seem to be holding fast. The sound is clear and crisp. I only use them for listening to podcasts when I am out walking. The limited time I used these for music, I was also impressed. I had no problem connecting them to my Bluetooth on my iPad as well as on my Android phone. If you have more than one device, I suggest you turn off Bluetooth in the other ones for easier connection. I had some trouble connecting to the device I wanted because the other one seemed to be competing. All in all, an excellent product especially for the price. EDIT (5 MONTHS LATER) I stand by my previous comments. However 5 months into using these earbuds, the left one drastically got reduced in volume, to about half of the other one or less. Of course I did the usual things like tested these on another device; checked my own ear; reset them several times but the problem remained. Since I had registered them with the company in Boston and since I could download my purchase order from Amazon I had no difficulty in getting a replacement (in fact a whole new set). So I strongly suggest you register them ASAP once you purchase them and hang on to the proper documents (warrently and proof of purchase). Customer service answered promptly to my request; they were extremely helpful and within just a few days I had received the replacement even though I live in Canada in a relatively isolated area. In spite of the defective earbud, which apparently is common with many earbuds, I will still give this company 5 stars mainly because of customer support.

I ordered these after trying a Million different styles and brands, beats, air pods, JBL, skull candy and various off brand ones. These are the PERFECT headphones for physical activity. I run, I lift weights and I have tiny ears. All headphones have fallen out while running, causing them to break. But not these, the colour is so cute, they fit perfect, and because if the fit I have less background nose. The calls work amazing, and the sound is phenomenal. I can't hear anyone at the gym (unless they drop something LOUD). The sound is amazingly rich, and smooth. If I was to provide a suggestion, it would be for the ability to customize sound like bass, I got these on sale for 50 and totally worth it, but if I was to pay full price I'd ask for that! Overall, amazing, chefs kiss!

These earbuds deliver sufficient bass for a good listening experience, provided you find the correct fitting earbud tips, a process which for me involved trying three sizes of the included options. Their sound quality is commendable for single-driver earbuds, offering clarity comparable to others in their class, though they naturally don't rival the intricate soundstages of multi-speaker IEMs I own. Battery life has proven ample for my personal use, and they consistently pair quickly with my Android phone, with only a few brief signal hiccups. While the tap-controlled interface is conceptually good, the extreme sensitivity often leads to accidental setting changes when merely inserting or adjusting the earbuds, which can be quite annoying. Despite this minor frustration, I am generally pleased with my purchase. I haven't tested them for calls, so I cannot comment on that aspect. It's worth noting that I had to disable my cellphone's volume limits and Bluetooth volume restrictions to achieve maximum output, after which the earbuds became excessively loud at their highest setting. A practical concern is the charging case's size; it's too compact to accommodate my preferred Spinfit earbud tips, meaning they fit in the case but prevent the earbuds from charging, a problem that fortunately doesn't exist when using any of the tips provided. Otherwise I like the small size of the case, it's very pocket friendly.

The Bluetooth connection stopped working and is spotty, I have tried the troubleshooting still not having any luck. I used the old back bay headphones and they were amazing I thought I’d upgrade. Save your $ on this one.