In spite of the price, the Cirro Buds Pro hardly manage to stand out as serious gaming buds and aren’t too great for everyday use, either. They can be decent for short stints, with audio that’s not half bad, but they’re not the buds you should get if you’re looking for the best quality or the greatest value. The best gaming headsets, even the budget picks, trounce them.
About the HyperX Cirro Buds Pro
Here are the specs of the earbuds we tested:
- Price: $80
- Battery life: Up to 4.5 hours (buds), up to 16 hours total with case
- Drivers: 8mm dynamic
- Colors: Tan, Black, Blue
- Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.2
- Audio codecs: SBC, AAC
- Water resistance: IPX4
- Ear tips: Small, medium, large
- Weight: Earbuds, 0.29 ounces (8.2 grams); case, 1.38 ounces (39 grams)
- Special features: Bluetooth multipoint connection, active noise cancellation, ambient sound mode, game mode with 90ms latency, wear sensor, touch controls
What we like
A few less common features for the price
The HyperX Cirro Buds Pro include both active noise cancellation (ANC) and in-ear detection. The former is effective for reducing loud droning sounds for a better listening experience, while the latter simply pauses playback if the earbuds are removed and resumes playback when they’re re-inserted into the ear.
These features have often been reserved for more expensive earbuds, so it’s nice to see them available for $80, especially in the gaming segment. These aren’t the only options at this price that have ANC, but I can’t think of any earbuds for the money that also include wear detection. If having both of these features is a priority, then the HyperX Cirro Buds Pro may stand out from the crowd for you. Sadly, the in-ear sensor actually has a dark side that I’ll touch on later.
A decent and subtle fit
Credit:
Reviewed / Mark Knapp
They are comfortable and also manage to stay in.
Many earbuds these days go for the AirPods-style stem design, but the Cirro Buds Pro opt for a more streamlined approach that instead mostly tucks into the ear opening. Relying on the silicone eartips to establish a grip in the ear canal (three different sizes are included), the HyperX Cirro Buds Pro managed a surprisingly firm hold that held up for me on walks and light runs alike.
They’re not stuck on like Spider-Man, and failed my bagel test in which I eat a substantial bagel to see if earbuds can stay in place—a test none have passed to my memory. At least they hold firm through some proper headbanging.
The Ambient Noise mode blocks out wind
Enabling the Ambient Noise or pass-through modes that use the earbuds’ mics to let external sound come through can be perfectly handy for hearing your surroundings, but if you’re moving (say, on a bike, a jog, or just out in the wind), it can simply be overwhelmed by the sound of wind.
At first, I thought the Cirro Buds Pro were just denying my wishes and turning Ambient Noise mode off moments after I turned it on, but I soon discovered that any time they detected wind noise, they’d quickly disable the pass-through until it died down.
What we don’t like
Sound quality could be better
Make no mistake, the HyperX Cirro Buds Pro put out decent audio. They have a good helping of bass, and manage the mids and treble well enough. The presentation has no sparkle to it, though, and the spatial audio is just as mediocre. It fails to impress or delight in any way.
I wouldn’t expect too much from such a modestly priced pair of earbuds, but HyperX put its effort into extra features stacked on top of an overall middling audio experience. Headphones and earbuds should nail the audio first and then layer on top of that.
“Gaming” without the bonafides
HyperX makes a lot of great gaming products, including some of the best audio gear out there (see the HyperX Cloud Alpha Wireless headset). The HyperX Cirro Buds Pro are positioned for gaming, but they don’t really do anything toward that end. They come with an advertised 90ms of latency in Game Mode. Bluetooth is almost never very fast, and 90ms is a step in the right direction, but it’s hardly exceptional when gaming.
There are other options that actually put their money where their mouth is. The Anker Soundcore VR P10 include a dedicated dongle (with pass-through charging even) for stable and low-latency connectivity on top of their standard Bluetooth connectivity, and they’re just as cheap as the HyperX Cirro Buds Pro. It’s a similar story for the Logitech G Fits, though they’re $100 more and lack active noise cancelation.
Inconsistent connectivity
Credit:
Reviewed / Mark Knapp
There’s too much cutting in and out with these earbuds.
The HyperX Cirro Buds Pro struggle in one area that they really can’t afford to: connectivity. Just about every time I wear them, I catch them blipping out. When I’m on a walk, the connection often drops out for a moment here and there. When I’m sitting still at a table rocking out to music—even then it can drop out. I’m used to Bluetooth coming with its share of connectivity issues once in a while, but it was so regular for the Cirro Buds Pro that it stood out distinctly.
It’s not like the buds are using a particularly demanding codec, like LDAC, either, which demands more from the Bluetooth connection.
They frequently pause on their own
The wear sensors are supposed to automatically pause audio playback if the HyperX Cirro Buds Pro are removed. The problem: they’re very touchy. These buds pause my audio so frequently that they’re constantly throwing off my groove. I push them back into my ear so they’re close enough to resume playback, but often that adjustment results in an accidental touch that then pauses the playback that just resumed.
This is a problem that will affect everyone differently depending on how well the HyperX Cirro Buds Pro fit into their ears. Some wearers may have a better time, but others could just as easily experience this problem even more often than I have.
No app means limited control
I don’t particularly find it bad that a pair of earbuds don’t have a related smartphone app. In some ways it’s refreshing. But some of the HyperX Cirro Buds Pro’s issues could very well have been solved by an app. The connectivity issues might have been a firmware update away. The chaotic wear sensor could have just been toggled off for anyone finding it disruptive. But without an app, the HyperX Cirro Buds Pro are stuck with their problems, and there’s no native equalizer, to boot.
Should you buy the HyperX Cirro Buds Pro?
No, there are better options
Credit:
Reviewed / Mark Knapp
They fail with a lot of the basics.
The HyperX Cirro Buds Pro have some of the makings of a decent pair of earbuds. The audio they pump out is decent and they offer a few features you don’t often find for the price, but they’re so mired in technical issues that they’re simply not worth considering; and that’s before taking into account the competition.
The Anker Soundcore VR P10 are priced the same at $80, and they do far more to serve gamers thanks to their dedicated USB-C dongle. They actually get latency down, and the USB-C dongle has 15-watt pass-through charging so you can keep gaming on a variety of devices as long as you want (especially handy for the Steam Deck).
Meanwhile, anyone looking for a great set of everyday earbuds that can still keep up with your gaming needs look no further than the EarFun Air Pro 3. They’re no more expensive than the HyperX Cirro Buds Pro (and usually only $64), also offer ANC, have a rather useful app, provide great sound for the price, and have a game mode that boasts of latency as low as 55ms. They also have greater water resistance and up to 7 hours of battery life from the buds and 36 more from the case.
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Prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time.
Meet the tester
Mark Knapp
Contributor
Mark Knapp has covered tech for most of the past decade, keeping readers up to speed on the latest developments and going hands-on with everything from phones and computers to e-bikes and drones to separate the marketing from the reality. Catch him on Twitter at @Techn0Mark or on Reviewed, IGN, TechRadar, T3, PCMag, and Business Insider.
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