Skullcandy’s passion for sound and design is obvious through its products that include earbuds, headphones and speakers. For the Method 360 ANC earbuds, however, Skullcandy went a step further and teamed up with Bose, which is well known for fantastic sound design itself. What happens if two companies passionate about audio collaborate? The Method 360 ANC earbuds are the answer!
Utilising a rather peculiar shape, the case for this colour of earbuds (bone) is white plastic with some rubber that connects it to a small metal carabiner. It looks smooth and of good quality overall – especially the metal carabiner – but, when opened, the outer casing feels a bit weaker than it should. The case opens by sliding the outer casing down and revealing the inside. With this setup, each earbud has its own side, so to speak, and it makes the case rather bulky. The earbuds charge inside the case, and the case itself can be charged via USB-C. A very short charging cable is included – it is almost cute how short it is. At the end of the day, most people have lots of USB-C cables lying around nowadays, though, so this is not really a problem.
Since the outer shell is slightly see-through, it is possible to check the charge on the earbud LEDs when they are inside the case, which is really handy. The LEDs will pulse when the buds are charging, either in amber (0% – 40% charging) or white (41% – 90% charging). The case itself also has an LED next to the USB-C port, which, when charging the case, similarly indicates level of charging with either pulsing amber (0% – 40%), pulsing white (41% – 90%) or solid white (91% – 100%). Additionally, when putting the earbuds in, a voice will also tell the user the current level of charge, and it can also be seen on the phone or the app to some extent.
When wearing the earbuds, battery life lasts for nine hours with ANC (Active Noise Cancelling) on, or 11 hours with it off, and the case holds an additional 23–29 hours of charge. The buds also feature rapid charge, where charging for 10 minutes provides two hours of usage – a fantastic feature.
Taking the buds out of the case, the premium look and feel becomes apparent. They have a very subtle sheen that is really pretty, and, apart from the usual ear gels, also some type of rubber around the edge, referred to as fit fins. Both can be replaced; the pack includes each in sizes S, M, and L, and replacement is simple and straightforward. The fit is fantastic and immediately noise-cancelling due to the fit fins. They pair immediately and with no issue with iPhone or MacBook.
When first popping the buds into the ears, ANC is automatically turned on. The presets allow to for swapping between ANC, Stay Aware mode and “normal” mode by tapping one bud three times. These presets can be changed via the Skullcandy IQ app with no problem at all. Of course, other presets include play and pause or volume change, all customisable through the app.
When ANC is on, it truly is on. The earbuds are amazingly sound cancelling, and swapping between ANC and Stay Aware is like night and day. When removing one bud from the ear, the other seems to automatically swap to Stay Aware mode until both buds are back in the ears, in which case the previous setting resumes (usually ANC on), which is such a nice touch. Stay Aware mode is also incredibly effective. Through the app, the intensities for both Stay Aware and ANC modes can be adjusted, as well.
This is all coupled with a sound that is truly impressive. While these buds sadly do not come with personal audio, the sound by Bose really seems to make a difference, and EQ settings are available. There are three preset EQs for Music, Bass Boost and Podcast, but through the app, a custom EQ setting becomes available as well, and it is fun to play around with that.
The fit is fantastic, and they sit surprisingly secure in the ears, perhaps due to the fit fins. Either way, these can be worn for a long while. However, when the time comes to return them to their case is where the real puzzle starts. It is not very intuitive as to which bud belongs in which side and which way around. Hopefully, after a few more months of using them, this will become easier.
