Crazybaby is a quirky audio company from China known for its unusual designs.
It does this with a quirky design and a focus on comfort.
But is that enough?
Design
TheCrazybaby Air 1Shas a fairly unique design.
The earpods themselves are fairly conventional in appearance, and actually, Im rather fond of them.
Theyre super thin and light (weighing just 4.5 grams apiece), making them supremely comfortable to wear.
On the side of each bud are buttons that control playback.
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Like, really weird.
Ill let you use your imagination.
TNW is a family publication, after all.
The charging case is long, and it sticks out like a sore thumb.
Theres no chance of you shoving it in your back pocket and forgetting about it.
These quirky little buds earned me a bag swab.
I realize that this directly contradicts the findings of other reviewers, like those fromThe VergeandMashable.
While so much of headphone reviewing is subjective, this could be indicative of inconsistencies in the manufacturing process.
Listen to the track.
Godreaus voice is undeniably beautiful, and the tune blends acoustic guitar with soaring violins.
Sadly, it feels a little bit wasted on the Crazybaby Air 1S.
That said, I was extremely disappointed with how the Crazybaby Air 1S reproduced my favorite tracks.
There are a couple of silver linings though.
The first is call quality, which the Air 1S performs well at.
The microphone was able to distinguish my voice, despite being near a busy arterial road.
I was also impressed with the sound isolation of the Air 1S.
Because they fit so snugly (and comfortably), the amount of noise that leaks in is limited.
Battery and software
Across the board, battery life is an achilles heel for totally wireless earbuds.
Theyre smaller, so theres less room for battery capacity, forcing users to recharge them every few hours.
The Crazybaby Air 1S is no exception.
Its charging case offers an extra 12 hours of juice, which is decent.
It sounds simple, but this is easier said than done.
More than once, Ive accidentally charged only one bud.
Sods law in play, this typically happens right before a long flight or train journey.
Another complaint relates to the devices software, which, in my experience, is pretty buggy.
For example, itd regularly fail to properly report battery levels.
Who is this for?
The Crazybaby Air 1S looks undeniably cool.
Its also got solid call quality, and its really comfortable to wear.
Those are the high notes of what amounts to be an otherwise underwhelming bit of kit.
The fact that its IPX6 rated helps in this regard, too.
That said, its a bitmeh.
It just didnt impress me all that much.
The Crazybaby Air 1S is availableon the companys official website, where it retails for $159.00.
