Not So Crap Stuff from China: Generic "F9" True Wireless Bluetooth Earbuds with Charging case (and acts as battery bank for other stuff)

This is only Bluetooth 5.0, so it's being sold as low as $4.99... with free shipping by Amazon via their outlet, Woot.com. They sold out, but they have a slightly better version also for $4.99 (claims to have better battery life?). You don't expect much for $5, and this overdeliver at $5. 

It can recharge itself from the case in about 30-60 minutes, and one full charge should lasts you at least 3-4 hours of non-stop play-time. And the case itself should be able to recharge the earbuds at least 4-6 times. And I'm being relatively conservative. Oh, and it claims to act as a small 2000 mAh powerbank and has a USB-A output port (it charges via the old-fashioned MicroUSB though). 

The fit is relatively comfortable once I got both buds fitted  properly. The eargel portion goes into the canal, then rotate the body until it fits into the crook of the ear. It won't stand up to rigorous exercise, but it should not fall off with walking or stair climbing. If you need them to be tighter, you need better eargels, which you can find on Amazon. But that introduces us to the nags and niggles. 

Now for the nags and niggles... this thing is very sensitive to the size of the eargels. Beware, that if your eargels are too large, your buds won't fit back into the case and may not recharge. I tried replacing the eargels with foam tips... Won't fit nicely back into the case, even with pressure on the main lid. Also, the indicators of charge are pretty much junk. When it's out of power, it shows 2 out 4 bars. And one side runs out of power first (though only by a few minutes). And 2000 mAh battery... Who uses that? 

Still, it's great value for a measly $5. It may not looks as clean as the Xiaomi Airpod clone, but at least this ain't a "homage". And no, I won't pay $100-200 for earbuds, not even if its Bose or Sony. 

More Crap from China: A Quick Review of Xiaomi E17 ANC

One of the items I picked up on Aliexpress was a Xiaomi E17 ANC "airpod-like" wireless earbuds. The whole design is obviously a "homage" to Apple's Airpods. I thought I ordered Blue, but I got a black one instead. 

The advertised features are 11db ANC mode, transparency mode (so you CAN hear people near you), and supposedly 20 hours playtime. Clearly, it's counting the battery capacity in the carrying case, not in the buds themselves. There are 2 sets of touchpads along either stem of the earbuds. 

It does come with a small wrist-loop that can be threaded through the opening on the side of the carrying case. There's a cutout in the loop, but no explanation on what it is for. Maybe for hanging onto things? 

To charge it, plug in a USB-C cable into the bottom. When LED over the Mi logo turns solid, the charging is complete. 

To pair it, simply flip open the lid near the device you wanted (recommended distance: 2 inches). The instructions says you should turn on BOTH Wifi and Bluetooth on the device (why?)

As said before, each bud has two control pads on the stem. But all of these work on either pad alone. Swipe up or down controls volume. Single tap is pause/play, double tap is fast forward, and triple tap is reverse. If a call comes in, single tap answers. Once I triggered Google assistant by accident, but there's no documented gesture for that. Touch and hold both touchpads to toggle between ANC and "transparency mode". That's it. That's all the documentation. No explanation on what the button on the charging case back does (seems to control charging of the buds?) 

 After using it a few days, the ANC does work, and yet... it doesn't feel like it doesn't do much. I have an air purifier in my room, and it's like a fan in the background if I turn it up to any setting beyond "whisper quiet". With E17's ANC on, I still hear the fan, just... more muffled. It's similar to wearing an earplug, or wearing over-the-ear headphone with a decent cushion seal. Switching to "transparency mode" just seem to turn ANC off. 

There were no spare silicone ear tips, just one set was installed, and they fit... "okay". I'll try to replace them with foam tips when I find some of my spares. 

It also does not do multi-point. It will pair with only ONE device. And that device had to "forget" about the E17 to allow it to pair with anything else. Maybe they consider that a security feature, heh? 

My MAIN problem with the E17 is its lack of battery life in the buds. I am only getting about 3 hours when one bud or the other starts beeping, indicating low power and needing a recharge from the carrying case. This severely affects my enjoyment of the device and makes me want to bring back out my Lenovo "neckband" or other Bluetooth headsets with far more battery life, even if they don't look as "cool". 

Overall rating: B-