Aukey Key Series B80 Review – The Almost Perfect Sports Earbuds

A good pair of wireless earbuds for sports under $100

Aukey Key Series EP-B80 are one of the best workout headphones due to their dual driver design with a sports fit (ear hooks) and waterproof casing (IPX6).

If you want versatile exercise headphones with great sound, you should consider these.

Now, they aren’t perfect as they have one fatal flaw.

Learn about it in this Aukey B80 review below.

Aukey Key Series B80 relevant:

• Best workout headphones

What’s in the Box of Aukey B80?

• Aukey Key Series B80 wireless earbuds
• 3 pairs of memory foam eartips (L, M, S)
• 3 pairs of silicone eartips (L, M, S)
• USB-C charging cable
• Silicone carrying case
• User manual

Comfort & Fit

5.0 Perfect

The Bluetooth earbuds are lightweight, and with memory foam eartips, you barely feel them in your ears. You can wear them for hours without any discomfort.

While the buds themselves are quite big in size, they don’t irritate the skin as they protrude out quite a bit.

And, thanks to flexible ear hooks they stay put no matter what. You can run, sprint, do jumps, or any other kind of sport.

The Aukey B80 stick to your ears really well, which makes them perfect for working out.

Furthermore, they come with 6 pairs of ear tips. 3 silicone and 3 memory foam pairs.

The memory foam tips are superior in comfort and stability but don’t last as long. Thankfully, you can get additional eartips separately.

Figuring out the sides is super easy due to the specific shape of the ear hooks. You can’t fit the left earbud to the right ear without noticing.

Above all, you can expect a comfortable fit for hours.

Noise Isolation

4.5 Almost Perfect

Due to memory foam eartips and in-ear fit, passive noise isolation is excellent.

Keep note, there is no active noise cancellation.

The wireless earphones block most of the background noise, so you can enjoy your music.

But you have to insert them into your ear canal properly otherwise you won’t get effective isolation.

Nonetheless, there is some cable noise present when it touches the back of your neck. But you can use the cable clip to shorten it and avoid the problem.

Plus, in a windy situation, you’ll hear some wind noise because the buds protrude out.

Bluetooth

4.0 Great

With Bluetooth 5.0, you get reliable and stable wireless connectivity.

They have a slightly improved 50ft (15m) range with decent strength.

We tested the connection, and 1 wall (in between your music device and earbuds) won’t break it, but when we added the 2^nd wall, it broke immediately.

In conclusion, this is the usual performance of the latest Bluetooth headphones.

Additionally, to get the best audio quality over Bluetooth, the earbuds support standard SBC, aptX, aptX Low Latency (for perfect lip-sync in videos), and AAC codecs. But you can’t connect to 2 devices (we tried and failed).

But there is one major flaw…

The moment you turn on the Bluetooth earbuds, you can hear constant white noise in the background.

Even if you’re not listening to music or videos, you can hear it.

The white noise does stop, when the earphones don’t receive any signal after a while but reemerges again after you start your audio.

It is super annoying for listening to audiobooks or videos and even music at lower volumes.

While it won’t bother you listening to music at medium to higher volume, it’s a deal-breaker for many audiophiles.

Battery

3.5 Almost Great

Good battery performance with USB Type-C port, quick charging, and up to 8 hours of playtime on a full charge.

Now, most of the time, you’ll probably get closer to 6-7 hours, but it mostly depends on your volume.

Nonetheless, it’s decent battery life for a pair of modern wireless earbuds (and much longer than true wireless earbuds).

You get to a full charge in under 2 hours (about 1.5h) and also have the option of a 10-minute quick charge that gives you about 1 good hour.

Durability

4.0 Great

From packaging to materials and design, everything feels premium and gives a better impression most headphones under $100.

The Aukey B80 cable is round and flexible, almost soft. But it feels sturdy without major weak points.

Also, the ear hooks are rubbery and adapt to the shape of your ears with ease.

In fact, the only plastic parts are the earbuds, cable clip, and the in-line module (mic and controls).

With not only water-resistant but waterproof design that has a rating of IPX6, you can easily wash them under water, and sweat or rain aren’t a problem at all.

All in all, perfect sports headphones that will withstand most activity.

Features

3.5 Almost Great

In case you’re using voice control the Aukey Key Series B80 have support for it.

So, you can connect them to your Android or iOS smartphone and use voice commands via the in-line microphone.

The microphone is suitable for making phone calls in normal situations but comes with the usual faults. You won’t make great calls in noisier places or in windy weather.

For that check the best earbuds with microphone.

Also, the 3-buttons remote control works as standard. You can control play/pause, volume, song selection, accept/reject calls, redial the last number, switch mic to your phone, and call up Siri or Google Assistant (or others).

All the functions are explained in the user manual.

Accessories

Together with the wireless Bluetooth earbuds you also get a nice selection of eartips (6 pairs, including memory foam).

A USB-C charging cable which is nice to see since a lot of headphone manufacturers don’t want to switch to the new standard.

And, you get a nice silicone carrying case for protection and easier transportation.

Sound

4.0 Great

The dual drivers, dynamic and balanced armature drivers, produce high sound quality compared to other workout headphones.

But the major flaw we mentioned before (white noise) takes away from experience and for some people makes it unusable.

However, when you turn up the volume to at least half, you won’t notice the white noise in most music genres.

In that case, the treble is clear and detailed with a good amount of bass. The highs are slightly emphasized, which gives a great sense of clarity in most songs.

Sibilance isn’t a huge problem.

Also, the bass has power but can be a bit “boomy” and muddled, so if you’re a purist, don’t get these. See best bass earbuds instead.

All in all, the great selection of Bluetooth codecs and dual-driver design promise high audio quality, and the EP-B80 deliver (with the exception of present white noise).

If you need stylish wireless headphones for running or the gym to listen to music, then these are a great choice.

But if you want to use your headphones for critical listening or watching videos outside a sports-environment, then these aren’t the best choice.

In the end, Aukey B80 are great workout headphones under $100 but are less suited for anything else than comparable models.

Specifications

Matija Ferjan

Matija Ferjan is a seasoned audio enthusiast reviewing headphones since 2015. He has personally tested hundreds of headphones and earbuds. He’s an active member of the Headphone Audio community and a true nitpicker, always looking for the “best-value-for-money” headphones.