Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared on Tom’s guide.com
I’ve been using the Pixel Buds Pro now for a few months, and for the most part, I’ve really enjoyed Google’s newest earbuds.
Even though they don’t work as well natively with my iPhone 14 as my other pair of earbuds, the Beats PowerBeats Pro, I like that the Pixel Buds Pro’s case is much smaller, so it’s easier to stash them in my pocket.
I also like their very good active noise cancellation, and though I wouldn’t say the audio quality is among the best wireless earbuds, it’s still strong enough so that I never feel as if I’m missing anything from my music.
Recently, I also discovered that the Pixel Buds Pro are a lot tougher than I thought.
Last week, someone in my family (I won’t say who) decided to wash all of our winter jackets in preparation for the colder months ahead. Into the washer and dryer went my North Face jacket — and along with it, the Pixel Buds Pro, which had been left inside a pocket.
I only realized what had happened after I went looking for my jacket, only to be told that it was somewhere between the rinse and dry cycles. I feared the worst — after all, the earbuds themselves have an IPX4 rating, meaning they’re protected against splashing water, while the case only has an IPX2 rating, which means it can only take a few splashes of water.
I feared the worst as I removed the earbuds and case from my coat; during their journey through the washer and dryer, the buds themselves had come out of the case.
However, I was pleasantly surprised once I popped each bud into my ears, and they worked just as well as before. The case was undamaged, too. So, while I wouldn’t recommend putting your earbuds in with your laundry, it looks like they can survive the wash — at least they did in my case.
About the Author
Michael A. Prospero is the U.S. Editor-in-Chief for Tom’s Guide. He oversees all evergreen content and oversees the Homes, Smart Home, and Fitness/Wearables categories for the site. In his spare time, he also tests out the latest drones, electric scooters, and smart home gadgets, such as video doorbells. Before his tenure at Tom’s Guide, he was the Reviews Editor for Laptop Magazine, a reporter at Fast Company, the Times of Trenton, and, many eons back, an intern at George magazine. He received his undergraduate degree from Boston College, where he worked on the campus newspaper The Heights, and then attended the Columbia University school of Journalism. When he’s not testing out the latest running watch, electric scooter, or skiing or training for a marathon, he’s probably using the latest sous vide machine, smoker, or pizza oven, to the delight — or chagrin — of his family.
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