QuietOn Noise Canceling Earbuds

I don’t do a lot of product reviews on this blog. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever done one before. But when I got an email from QuietOn about their tiny, noise-canceling earbuds, I thought, “This is relevant to my interests.” I live next door to an apartment building with spring-loaded metal doors. I have a teenager who lives life out loud – even in her sleep. And my youngest child loves telling the story of the time they were afraid to come downstairs because they mistook my husband’s snoring for a growling bear. I’ve tried ear plugs, but I hate them. So, I tried QuietOn earbuds. Here’s how that worked out for me.

The Pitch

According to the press email, these earbuds were created by a famous Finnish designer, and they are small enough and comfortable enough to sleep with. They have a ‘push-to-talk’ capability to turn off the noise-canceling, so you don’t have to take them out to talk with someone. They use “analog technology – no DSP, no digital, no radiation.” I don’t know what that means. The battery is supposed to last for about 20 hours on a single charge. They sell direct from their website. At the time of writing, QuietOn earbuds are $169.00 (on sale from $219). When I saw the price tag I choked. But they’re cheaper than the Bose ones.

The Product

I roll my eyes at bloggers who talk about packaging (you’re just going to throw it away) but at that price, everything about the product should be nice. The QuietOn packaging is nice. You might toss the box, but it is a great container for the tiny charging cord (although you could just use your cell phone cable) and the extra foam eartips (they earbuds come with three different sizes) and the metal case. The metal case is also the charger, since the individual earbuds are too small to plug in. The earbuds themselves fit flush with the ear so they don’t poke out and press against the pillow. The anonymous famous Finnish designer did well.

The Test

I’m a stickler for ear protection at concerts. I didn’t use them enough when I was young, and now my ears ring all the time. But I can’t stand sleeping with them in. They amplify the sound of my own heartbeat and breathing. And they are uncomfortable. Since I’m a side sleeper, they feel like they’re poking my head. I used the smallest foam tips on the QuietOn earbuds. The first time I tried sleeping with them, I was afraid to roll on my side and woke up in the middle of the night and took them out. The second time I slept better. They still put some pressure on my ear when I rolled over, but I made it through the night.

The battery life is supposed to be 20 hours. The batteries definitely last until morning. But I haven’t tested whether they make it through two nights. I always recharge during the day rather than risk forgetting to charge them.

The noise canceling is subtle. It didn’t seem as quiet as when I put on noise-canceling headphones. I still heard my own breath and heartbeat, but it wasn’t amplified the way foam earplugs do. But when someone used the bathroom next to my bedroom, I only knew they were there because I saw the light on. It did seem like the ringing in my ears was louder when I used them, but it’s always there anyway.

Conclusion

QuietOn earbuds are more comfortable than earplugs or noise canceling headphones when you’re trying to sleep. And if you travel a lot, the tiny size is definitely a plus for packing or nodding off in an airplane seat. I will definitely take them with me when I travel, especially since I often take red eye flights and stay in noisy youth hostels.

But they don’t silence the world as well as over-the-ear headphones. Still, they are good enough for blocking out household noise (a definite plus these days) or noisy neighbors. As for blocking out a snoring partner? Yeah. Not so much. Maybe if you’re talking about quiet snores. But trying to sleep next to someone whose snores sound like a bear from the top of the stairs? Not a chance. QuietOn can’t cancel that kind of noise.

So do I recommend them? Eh…. maybe? It depends. If you’ve got the money and you have a slight noise problem, QuietOn could be a good choice. If you’ve got the money and you’re desperate for a good night’s sleep, give them a try. But if you share a bedroom with a loud snorer, nothing short of a cone of silence can help you.

{QuietOn provided its noise canceling earbuds to me in exchange for this review.}