With wireless charging, an LED display on the case, microphones for calls and touch controls, are these $36 earbuds worth the price?

True wireless earbuds are getting cheap. Have a look on Amazon. There are multiple options under $10! But what does $36 get you? That’s where the TAGRY X08 come in.

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Unboxing

Open the box and you’re greeted by a user manual, small and large pairs of additional eartips (as well as the mediums preloaded on the earbuds), a short USB-A to USB-C cable, and the charging case with earbuds inside.

Image Credit: TAGRY

The charging case

The earbuds case is a little larger in all dimensions than my existing AirPods 3rd generation case. The case is light and has a matte plastic finish. The earbuds and case come in six colors: Black, Pink, Purple, White, Ocean Blue, and Sunset Pink. The pair sent to us are in white. The LED display is behind a black plastic strip that goes over the front of the case. For this reason, I imagine darker color options would look a little more discreet.

Image Credit: TAGRY

Pairing and design

Opening the case powers on the earbuds and puts them into pairing mode. TAGRY X08 connect over Bluetooth 5.3 and can be used up to 33 feet from your device. They have an AirPods Pro-like design, with a stem and in-ear tips. The earbuds also have a very light feel to them, making them comfortable in the ear, but feel a little cheap. The fit in my ear is good, but provides little noise isolation.

Image Credit: TAGRY

Sound quality

On the inside of each of the X08 earbuds is a 13mm driver and triple-layed composite diaphragm. In use, the TAGRY X08 are a little muffled at any volume. They get loud, but anything over around 75% will start getting distorted. I’d describe the earbuds as good enough for any spoken word content, but not something you’re going to want to use for extended sessions of music listening if you’re used to anything better.

Image Credit: TAGRY

Microphones

Each bud has a microphone for calls. The microphone has CVC noise reduction, but faces outwards, where a downward facing microphone would be more effective at picking up your voice and not your surroundings.

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Touch controls

The earbuds have touch controls for playback, calls and the voice assistant. The buds require a tap on the exterior. Personally I prefer squeeze options available on some other earbuds, as tapping further into your ear can be loud and uncomfortable. A single tap on either bud plays or pauses the music. If music is playing, a double tap on the right bud skips forward, while a double tap on the left bud goes to the previous track. If there’s an incoming call, a double tap answers or ends a call. A long tap rejects incoming calls. Triple tap on either bud activates the voice assistant. Tap and hold the right bud for volume up. Tap and hold the left bud for volume down. I found these touch controls to be somewhat inconsistent. You have to get the position, force and gap between taps just right for the desired control.

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Battery

The TAGRY X08 earbuds claim a respectable 6 hours of playback on a single charge. This is increased to a total of 30 hours with the case. The case charges via USB-C or wireless charging. The LED display on the case shows the charging status of each bud.

Image Credit: TAGRY

Waterproofing

The earbuds are rated IPX5 waterproof, making them safe against rain, sweat and splashes.

Image Credit: TAGRY

Missing features

For a pair of earbuds at this price, some missing features are to be expected. TAGRY X08 do not have active noise cancellation (ANC), in-ear sensors to automatically play or pause music, multipoint for simulateous connection of up to two devices, and there’s no app, so customization of the sound and controls are unavailable.

Pricing & availability

The TAGRY X08 retail for $49.99, but are currently on Amazon for $35.99. They have been seen as low as $25.99. While a good price point, I’d personally feel more comfortable recommending budget option from reputable brands such as Soundcore (Anker), JBL and JLab.

This product was sent to us by TAGRY. TAGRY has not paid us for this review. The Amazon links are affiliate links, therefore we may earn a commission for any purchases made.