Just as I had settled down for a quiet weekend catching up with my favorite PS5 games, my TV kicked the bucket. I've had the thing for almost as long as I've had my house, so it wasn't entirely surprising, but it did get in the way of my plans for a chill two days playing the latest season of Marvel Rivals.
As I cleared away the tears produced by seeing the funds for a new TV come out of my bank account, I grabbed my SteelSeries Arctis Game Buds and spent the weekend catching up with the Steam Deck - and now I'm more obsessed with the little gaming earbuds than ever.
With the 2.4GHz dongle popped into one of the best gaming handhelds I own, and the orange-themed buds comfortably stuck in my ears, I was able to get just as immersed as I had been playing the PS5 - so my weekend wasn't entirely ruined after all.
In fact, my two days spent with the SteelSeries Arctis Game Buds and my Steam Deck OLED handheld were so captivating, my new TV came, is already mounted on the wall ready to go, and I still haven't given it a proper test drive. Instead, I spent last night trying out my latest Steam Summer Sale purchase, Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon, with its soundtrack permeating my eardrums through the Game Buds yet again.
What really sold me on using the Game Buds throughout the weekend, as opposed to using one of the best gaming headsets I have at my disposal, is its enhanced portability. I wanted the ease of taking my Deck from room to room, and having a tiny pair of buds in my ears, as opposed to a big, bulky headset, made that pretty easy to manage - especially at 5.3g per bud.
It was a massive plus that they're also decked out with active noise canceling. I don't always like to have that turned on, in case my cat is howling in the other room and I'm none the wiser. But over the weekend, I switched it on with the literal light tap of a button (the side of the left bud) and was able to properly get immersed in the humming cicadas and other delightful summer sounds of Shin chan: Me and the Professor on Summer Vacation The Endless Seven-Day Journey, my latest Steam Deck game of choice.
Not only did the backlight of my 55-inch TV blow out, but this weekend also brought a 30-degree heat wave that I was not prepared for as a Scottish person. To make the most of the sun's presence, I ended up bringing my Steam Deck and my Game Buds to my Mom's house, something I'd likely not have done had the TV and the PS5 still been an option.
While my Mom read her various spy novels, I had my feet dipped into a paddling pool, the buds in my ears, and spent the blissful summer day catching rare Japanese fish, and playing multiple rounds of Dinosaur Battle.
I've been a fan of the portability of the SteelSeries Arctis Game Buds well before my TV broke, but this weekend finally secured them a place in my day-to-day gaming travel bag for life. There might not be any more sunny days in Scotland's future, but you can bet I'll always have them with me wherever I go from now on.
- See all gaming earbuds at Amazon
- SteelSeries Arctis Game Buds | $199.99 at Amazon
- SteelSeries Arctis Nova 5 Wireless:
$29.99$116.99 Amazon
If the Arctis Game Buds don't feel like your jam, our guides to the best PS5 headsets, the best Xbox Series X headsets, and the best Nintendo Switch headsets are full of pairs of cups worth your time and attention.
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