I know you are probably stuck on the part of the brand name of these wireless earphones, yes, they are not that well known – personally, I never heard of them prior to the company reaching out and sending me a review unit and the title probably lets the cat out of the bag already but it’s not all bad – I mean it.

xFyro is an American company that was founded not long ago with the aim of creating “top quality audio products at reasonable prices”, at least that’s what their website reads. As usual, the company cut down on marketing to keep their prices low but from my experience, it seems like there were more corners cut with the earphones itself.

The Aria isn’t the company’s first product, the company has five other products across different market segments but the Aria is their latest one. The product started its life on Indiegogo where it received over 14,000 backers, who got to pay for the product at discounted prices.

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So what enticed such a huge number of people to want a product and was it worth it? For starters, the company talked a big game about the xFyro Aria, promising 100% water and dust proofing, noise cancelling, ultra high-def speakers and 32 hours of battery life.  A big promise, even for the $109 asking price for early backers.

Well, I have had my time with the earphones, over two months and the report I have is not one of a happy user, here’s why:

Poor Battery Life

Turns out the promised 32 hours of battery is actually “smart marketing” –  or a lie if we are to be brutal. The company says that one full charge will get you around 8 hours of listening using the Arias, then, since they come with a carrying case that charges them, you can fully charge them three more times thus coming to a total of 32 hours of usage without counting the 45 minutes required to charge the buds from zero to full.

Now back to the hours of listening, as much as the company quotes 8 hours per charge, I was only able to squeeze 3 hours from these things. Which is honestly terrible by any measure. Take those three hours and add that I was only able to recharge the buds three times using the case before I needed to plug it in and you get a maximum of 12 hours of listening which is a far cry from the promised 32 hours, this is without putting into factor the waiting time between charges.

I also have to mention how annoying the battery low notifications are. Literally, you get a prompt to charge them after every 10 seconds once you hit battery low. And it’s not just a beep, you get a beep and a voice prompt, “battery low, please charge“, for 10 times!!!

The Sound Could Be Better

On top of the terrible battery life, these things don’t even sound that great. It lacks bass, which some people could say is an advantage since it puts a focus on the mids and highs but I like the lows too, actually, a majority of people share my preferences.

xFyro also mentions that the Aria has noise cancellation well, bummer, but that’s just not it. There’s no active noise cancellation, all you get is passive noise cancellation which is dependent on how well the earbuds fit which brings me to the next point which is the comfort of the xFyro Aria is wanting, they either fit too tight that hey hurt my ears (even with the interchangeable ear tips) or they barely fit and I have to keep placing them well so that they don’t fall off.

It’s Not All Bad

However, it’s not all bad. There’s a substantial list of good features that come with the xFyro Aria. For instance, they have a very good design and the addition of a charging case just adds to their premium feel.

They do feature Bluetooth 5.0 technology, which means you can connect them to more than one device and also the range is pretty good, I was able to get up to 10m in an open field without any distortion but introduce buildings and walls and the distortion kicks in slightly closer than 10m.

The Aria is rated for IP67 water and dust resistant, which is good for when using them while working out or out in the open but I don’t see an instance where we would need to actually dunk them in water.

There’s Google Assistant integration and SIRI integration for iPhone users. It works as advertised and the physical tactile button actually on each bud actually helps in the ease of use.

You can also use them for calls, however, you will have to speak a little louder if the person on the other end of the call is to hear you clearly.

Why You Shouldn’t Buy

The xFryro Aria look really good on paper but are a huge disappointment in actual use. For the kind of money the company was asking for during their Indiegogo campaign, these wireless earbuds should offer more than they currently do.

Interestingly, the Aria isn’t listed on the company’s website anymore, instead, we have the xFyro xS2 which looks like a better promise than the Aria, even for a slightly lower price.