iMore Reviews BuddyPhones Explore+ and Play+

Volume control and StudyMode for all your kids' listening activities.

Virtual school drags on here in South America, and we've become a bit tired of the competing noise of multiple virtual classes going on at once. I tried letting my kids use my own earbuds, like the Trelab X3 Pros, and other headphones, but nothing was comfortable enough on their little ears and small heads. I also worried about volume control since children may not realize when the volume is too loud. Thankfully, now we have BuddyPhones+ as a solution. These clever headphones are made for kids and have built-in volume control to keep little eardrums safe.
BuddyPhones are becoming a popular choice for parents across the country and they're available from many retailers. Online, you can find them at BuddyPhones.com and Amazon. If you prefer to shop in-store, Best Buy and Walmart both offer BuddyPhones and they aren't hard to find in most states.
The price of BuddyPhones varies according to which model you need. Wired BuddyPhones start as low as $20 for the Travel model, while wireless BuddyPhones can cost as much as $100 for the Cosmos+ model. There are several models in-between at different price points; you just have to decide which features and accessories you prefer.

BuddyPhones+: Happy eardrums and happy kids

Headphones for home learning

My kids love their BuddyPhones+ because they come with cute stickers and have simple, easy-to-use designs. Each child customized their headphones with the stickers of their choice, and they are happy to keep them organized in the included carrying bags. My son tries to take his BuddyPhones everywhere. I like them for different reasons, however.

Headphones are great for kids during virtual school and travel so that the rest of the world doesn't have to listen to what they are listening to. The problem is that kids, especially young children, have no concept of volume control and don't realize how loud is too loud. This problem is solved with BuddyPhones because of the built-in SafeAudio audio control that keeps children from turning the volume up over 85 decibels. Now I can let them listen to their hearts' content without worrying about any damage to their hearing.

BuddyPhones come with a tandem listening cord, making it possible for both kids to plug into the same port and listen to the same device at the same time.

The wireless BuddyPhones Play+ model also comes with something called StudyMode, which is a switch that you can turn on to tune out background noise and amplify the sound of voices (i.e. the teacher's voice). My daughter says this helps her concentrate in virtual school, which is good because she needs all the help she can get. My son has the wired version — the BuddyPhones Explore+ — and it works just as well for volume control. This model also comes with a tandem listening cord, making it possible for both kids to plug into the same port and listen to the same device at the same time. This is especially convenient when both kids are trying to watch a movie in the car or at the airport.

Speaking of travel, both of these headphones fold easily into a more compact size. They come with a convenient carry bag so the kids can stuff them into a backpack or carry-on without worrying about damaging the headphones or losing any accessories. Finally, I have seen my kids drop these headphones and otherwise mistreat them, but so far they look just like they did the day we took them out of the box. BuddyPhones do seem pretty durable despite the inevitable beating that kids will give them.

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