Headphones are now a less prominent product than a few years ago when they were in fact the only accessory to listen to music in a “personal” way. With the evolution of earphones, now increasingly sophisticated and capable of high quality, the market for bulky and visually flashy products such as headphones has essentially been reduced to audiophiles who buy them because they are generally capable of producing sound superior to earphones. of equal cost. Yet, as demonstrated by the Soundcore Life Q10 we tested these days, there are some good reasons to decide to buy headphones even when these are cheap (49.99 euros on Amazon).
Soundcore Life Q10 how they are made
Anker, on which the Soundcore brand is dependent, is known for fielding the ability to produce good quality accessories at an affordable price. At first glance, the Life Q10 confirm this impression from a constructive point of view. Although they are, in fact, a product with the reach of many pockets, they offer a good feeling taken in the hands: plastic abounds, but it is of good quality and without unpleasant odors, frequent in this price range and all the more annoying because it is an accessory to wear; the movement and precision of the adjustment bands is precise and pleasantly controlled; even the system that allows the headphones to fold looks well made and sturdy.
The padding is located in the right places, the keys that control the ignition and operation of the headphones click precisely and finally the combination of black and red colors is an excellent compromise to make the design more pleasant without being flashy.
The Soundocore Life Q10 are Bluetooth headphones, compatible with Bluetooth 5 and run on battery (impressive, but not fully tested by us, the declared autonomy: 60 hours), but they are also equipped with a 3.5 mm connector that allows them to work even in the absence of the wireless network and when the battery is low.
It should be noted that Anker warns of an incompatibility with the iPhone 11 due to a problem of the Bluetooth chips in relation to the technology implemented by Apple in its phones which could in some cases give rise to disconnections during the telephone call phase. We have carried out some tests but we have not been faced with the problem, but if you plan to use these headphones also for making telephone calls you should take into account this note from the manufacturer. In any case, Anker promises a firmware update to fix the bug.
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How they work and how they fit
We recharged the Soundocore Life Q10 using the included USB-2 to USB-C cable and the rest came by itself… The connection is activated by pressing and holding the power button to reveal the accessory to the device. We connected them to an iPhone and a Mac very easily and without any hesitation. The volume is adjusted using the buttons on the right side of the headphones where we also find the power button and the button to increase the bass effect.
As for comfort, despite the fact that we are dealing with an economic product, there is little to complain about. The Soundocore Life Q10 are light thanks to the use of plastic and at the same time they are also quite comfortable; the abundant padding on the cups and the reduced pressure allow you to wear them for a long time without feeling uncomfortable. Also contributing to this is the fact that we are talking about “around-the-ear” headphones and the good overall weight balance.
One can perhaps complain about the heating effect produced by the lining of the padding, which after a few tens of minutes leads to a change in the position of the earphones. But it's hard to find headphones at this price level that don't have this problem.
The Bluetooth connection proved to be very stable. Anker declares a range of up to 15 meters (which is more than the classic ten meters of Bluetooth). We didn't take precise measurements, but walking around our not huge house we never had any problems with listening or disconnection.
How they sound
Given that we are talking about headphones from 50 euros, therefore of a very economical range, one can only be satisfied with the quality of the Soundcore Life Q10. We have carried out some tests with the songs that we usually use to try products of even much higher price and the Anker headphones hold the comparison. The separation is excellent, the definition of the sound while not (obviously) perfect is above the average of similar products we have tried.
There are no excesses on any of the frequencies, all treated in the same way and rendered in a balanced way but the best Anker headphones give it in the medium tones and in the human voice, with a recommendation: it is good not to bring the volume to the maximum level because at at that point the sound tends to distort and mix the various tones making listening unpleasant.
If you try to press the “BassUp” button that increases the prevalence of the bass you actually get a perceptible increase in these frequencies, but we must say (even for non-lovers of music too pumped up on the bass) that we prefer the music that the Soundcore Life Q10 produce in the absence of support for this function.
Overall and taking into consideration every aspect, however, these headphones deserve a thumbs up when it comes to listening quality and this also thanks to a decent passive soundproofing capacity that reduces the noise coming from the outside.
In conclusion
The headphone market around € 50 is very crowded, but the Soundcore Life Q10s manage to rise above average and stand out from the pack. They are built with good quality plastics, are exceptionally comfortable, can be worn even for a long time without pain and discomfort (if you put aside a certain tendency to heat the ear cup) and are also easily transportable thanks to the design that allows them to be folded. The sound quality they produce is good, undoubtedly higher than the level one would expect from a product of this cost.
These are headphones for everyday use, for a train or subway trip without the worries that come from using products of much higher costs without sacrificing satisfactory quality. They can also be the right headphones for the home, a Skype conference or remote school or just to go around the house accompanied by your own soundtrack.
The Soundcore Life Q10 can be purchased on Amazon for 49.99 euros. At the moment they are also heavily discounted; using the code 2SBGLMKR you can pay only 34.99 euros. Delivery included in the price.
