ZDNET’s key takeaways
- The Ozlo Sleepbuds, created by three Bose engineers, launched final fall, and they’re essentially the most helpful sleep earbuds I’ve examined to date
- The sound is ideal for masking environmental annoyances that maintain you awake, and the match is comfy and safe.
- The sleep monitoring characteristic hasn’t hit the earbuds but, and setup took just a few tries and several other glitches, however as soon as these work in your ears, they get you to mattress immediately.
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apr / 2025
I take my sleep as severely as some athletes take their exercise routine or weight loss plan. Whereas I can management every little thing from the steps I take forward of bedtime to the pajamas I put on or the sleep masks I put over my eyes to drown out mild, one uncontrollable issue typically retains me awake: the sounds outdoors my Brooklyn residence.
My bed room overlooks a busy — and infrequently noisy — road. As I write this, bike engines rev, and a firetruck’s siren blares within the background. I’ve woken as much as police sirens, honking vehicles, noisy pedestrians, and my neighbors, who loudly have a good time with songs and festivities into the wee hours of the night time. It is a vibrant space however a horrible one for catching simple Z’s.
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Throughout a current vacation season, the loud voices singing songs till 1 a.m. saved me awake and made it troublesome to get to mattress. However this yr, I took the noisy alternative to check out the Ozlo Sleepbuds, and, boy, am I glad I did. They helped me go to sleep in minutes.
The Ozlo Sleep earbuds are a number of the most comfy and efficient sleep earbuds I’ve ever examined, and I am unable to advocate them sufficient to anyone who must calm down their bedtime atmosphere to catch just a few extra Z’s, that’s, in the event that they’re prepared to pay the $300 price ticket. Hold studying to be taught why.
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If you happen to’ve heard something about Ozlo, it is in all probability since you have been within the discontinued Bose Sleepbuds that the audio model minimize the wire on in 2020. The buds “did not attain the extent of adoption” Bose had hoped for, regardless of their avid following, Bose spokesperson Joanne Berthiaume advised The Verge. The Ozlo Sleepbuds are the reincarnation of Sleepbuds, incorporating a few of Bose’s proprietary expertise, such because the StayHear Plus suggestions, into a brand new product.
The earbuds are available a hefty however glossy case, and you’ll customise your ear suggestions and ear wings to fit your desired match. Setup was the place I confronted essentially the most points, and the connection fell via twice earlier than I may hyperlink up with the app. As soon as I used to be linked, the app’s introductory pages glitched, and I discovered myself closing out the app to relaunch it a number of instances. When my settings within the app have been confirmed and the connection was established, I had no bother utilizing these buds.
Fortunately, you do not want the app to get white noise out of the earbuds from the leap, and the primary night time I examined them, I used them simply with out the app. However in order for you customization, the Ozlo app supplies ten totally different sleep sounds (or masking sounds) you possibly can type via.
There’s an earbud alarm you should utilize (although I’ve dangerous luck with these in-ear alarms, given how I get up with my earbuds strewn throughout my mattress), a sleep timer that shuts down the buds after a customizable period of time to save lots of battery, and an Auto-Play Sleep Sound characteristic that detects as soon as you have fallen asleep and switches from the podcast or music you are taking part in to the masking sound you have chosen.
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The Ozlo Sleepbuds hit the market with two key options which are sadly lacking: sleep-tracking and environment-sensing capabilities. Finally, Ozlo will roll out an over-the-air replace so as to add these options. I’ll take a look at them out as soon as they’re obtainable and replace my evaluate with my ideas, though it’s disappointing that these key promoting factors aren’t obtainable at launch.
These buds are made to final in your ears via an evening’s sleep. A pair of earbuds hardly ever lasts the night time in my ears, given how frequently I transfer round in my sleep. Once I put on sleep earbuds, it is to assist me go to sleep amid a loud backdrop of sound outdoors my window. As soon as I am asleep, I can keep asleep and am not woken up by a lot. I solely want them to remain in and match effectively at first of the night time; I do not want them in for the complete night time — although I do not thoughts when they’re.
The ear wings on the Sleepbuds stabilize the match for a very long time, and after I get up, usually, one earbud continues to be in my ear (there was one night time over the previous week of testing the place each stayed in the complete night time). The battery life lasted me about one and a half nights earlier than it was due for a recharge.
Each night time I wore these buds, I slept like a child and fell asleep inside minutes. I discovered myself first gravitating in direction of them on nights when my neighbors celebrated on the road outdoors my residence. Nevertheless, I ultimately put them in my ears even when outdoors disturbances have been negligible. They’re merely that comfy and efficient. They succeed at masking noise round me and isolating me from the pesky engines and sirens outdoors.
One space that I could not take a look at was whether or not they masks loud night breathing. From my expertise utilizing them alone in my bed room to dim outdoors sounds, I would say they do a very good job of eradicating ambient distractions, however I am unable to affirm how efficient they’d be at minimizing snores proper subsequent to you.
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If you happen to do not shuffle in mattress all through the night time, these will stick in your ears — they usually’re fairly comfy for facet sleepers. I did not expertise any stress constructed up over time, and, within the mornings, I did not really feel any soreness or sensitivity.
One in every of my favourite elements of those buds is the sleep sounds paired with the Sleepbuds’ audio power, which is loud sufficient to fully masks exterior sounds outdoors my bed room window whereas being quiet and impartial sufficient to ship me to sleep. That is a troublesome feat and one which I had bother discovering whereas testing competing sleep earbuds.
ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation
So, who’re these for? Individuals who prioritize consolation in a sleep earbud and are prepared to pay prime greenback for it. These earbuds dissolved in my ears throughout sleep, and as I shuffled from one facet to the opposite, I discovered myself completely content material with them in my ears. The Ozlo Sleepbuds masked noises correctly and effectively, dulling down the surface hubbub on one of many busiest weeks of the yr in my neighborhood.
So, sure, they work as a noise masker (they technically aren’t noise canceling). Setup and connection could be a bit dodgy, however brand-new product launches inevitably include bugs. The product itself is nice as soon as it is linked. I look ahead to sleeping with these earbuds the subsequent time my neighborhood is up all night time singing and partying.
Usually, these earbuds price $349, however throughout Cyber Monday, they’re on sale for $274, a 21% low cost.
I’ve examined a number of sleep earbuds, however these Ozlo Sleepbuds are merely the most effective. They’re those I like to recommend to individuals prepared to pay $300 to get whisked away to sleep, they usually’re well worth the funding, particularly in case your sleeping atmosphere is noisy and distracting, and wish earbuds that can match comfortably (in most ears).
