TicPods Free Review | AirPods for Android?:

TicPods were something I have been hoping to come to Android for a LONG time.

I used to be a huge Apple fan.

When I got my hands on the iPhone 6 Plus, I looked at my phone after a week and decided it was time for a change.

Enter my Android obsession.

For the past several years, I have been an Android enthusiast.

I still follow Apple because they are the leaders in this mobile tech space.

A product they put out a few years ago were AirPods.

At first, I thought they were gimmicky. They were Apple signature EarBuds without a cord.

Then I started watching reviews.

I realized the AirPods were one of the best inventions Apple had produced in years.

Going to Apple’s website, I decided I was going to buy them despite having an Android phone.

The reason I never pulled the trigger was that they did not work with voice assistants other than Siri.

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Enter The TicPods Free:

I had been watching Mobvoi for awhile. They are ex-Googlers that started their own company.

The reason they were on my radar is that I had been searching for a new Android Wear watch.

Mobvoi was dominating all the WearOS smartwatch charts I looked at.

This got me interested in the company and watching for when they released a new watch.

In the meantime, I see Mobvoi advertise an Indiegogo campaign for the TicPods Free. An AirPod clone with built-in technology to run Google Assistant (my Assistant app of choice).

I was intrigued. Once they released on Amazon, I scooped up a pair.

Price:

As I said before, I picked these up on Amazon. They are priced at $129 making them around $30 cheaper than Apple AirPods.

The savings on the TicPods vs. the AirPods isn’t drastic but the functionality is.

With the TicPods you can use any Assistant that you prefer (Alexa, Siri, Google). They also have active noise cancellation and isolation.

Style:

The TicPods are going to have a lot of comparisons to the AirPods.

The first difference is the TicPods are larger than the AirPods.

The Pods fit comfortably in my ears. I could not get them to shake out no matter what I did.

A problem I ran into was with the silicone tips that came installed out of the box. The size of them was hurting my ears and making the sound tinny.

Once I swapped out the tips for the smaller ones, the seal was comfortable and the sound was excellent.

The TicPods have a stem that juts out from the buds. With a press or a swipe, you control your volume, pause, play, or skip a track, or fire up whatever “assistant” service you use.

The stems that are on the TicPods are long. I would tell you to check out some reviews to see if you like the look. If you are a fan of the style of the Apple AirPods than the TicPods won’t bother you at all. I love the look of the both.

One of the coolest features of the AirPods is the charging case.

The TicPods have a similar case where you place your buds in and the case charges them.

The case has a snap lid and green LED lights on the front so you know your Pods are charging.

TicPods come with an IPX5 water resistant rating. You won’t have to worry about sweat or rain damaging your headphones.

The headphones come in 3 colors dark blue, red, or white.

I opted for the dark blue because I am a fan of all things dark mode. Matte Black would have been my option of choice but I take what I can get. Also, the white is the closest you can get to an AirPods clone.

Features:

TicPods allow you to pair them with the assistant of your choice.

In my experience with them, the functionality works flawlessly. I was also happy with the Bluetooth connectivity.

When I got my TicPods, the first thing I tried was calling a few people to test the microphone.

Being that the pods have a stem that is away from your mouth, I was curious about call quality.

After talking to 5 different people on them, they all said the same thing – I sounded great. The call quality was crisp and clear.

The only criticism I had was when doing things while on call.

Being that the mic is so far away, the TicPods pick up anything you are doing that is loud.

I was wrapping a few gifts for a birthday while on call. My friend said he could hear the crackling of the wrapping paper.

The gestures on the stems of the TicPods are great. I had no issues using any of them while on the go.

The TicPods will pause any audio or video playback when they detect a pod has been removed from your ear. They will resume playback once inserted back into your ears.

This was the big selling point for me since when I am at work, I don’t need to be messing around with taking my phone in and out of my pocket.

I take out one of the TicPods and it pauses my podcast. Once I am ready to resume I pop one back in and it continues playback.

If there is a con with the TicPods it would be audio quality. I wanted them for work or when I am out running/walking. For these circumstances they are perfect.

For times I want better audio like the gym, I still use my JayBirds.

The audio quality is not bad at all on the TicPods. But I would be lying if I didn’t tell you there are better options out there for audiophile people.

One charge out of the case, for me, lasted about 3 and a half hours. The great part is the case offers about 5 charges which give you 15-20 hours of total playback time if you’re on the go.

Even better, the case offers fast wireless charge which will take to from 0 to 100 in only 40 minutes.

Conclusion:

The TicPods Free from Mobvoi is everything I ever wanted in an AirPod clone with Android support.

They are cheaper than AirPods and (for me) offer more functionality.

Audio Quality, although not the best, was fantastic for my needs.

If you are in the market for AirPods but want something that will work with Google Assistant and Android, you can’t go wrong with the TicPods.

They are comfortable and compact.

The TicPods are my favorite headphone right now and I highly recommend them.

I will be looking forward to more products from Mobvoi including a new smartwatch once they update the processors in them.

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