Image credit: Josh Kirschner/Techlicious
Sleeping in hotels has always been a challenge for me. Away from home, in a strange bed, and usually on my own, I sleep poorly on business trips. And that’s the best-case scenario. Things go downhill quickly when that hotel room is also inundated with noises – whether mechanical or human – that prevent you from getting the rest you need to be functional the next day.
That’s exactly what happened to me on a recent trip for a conference. My hotel room at the fancy 4-star resort was located directly next to the elevators. It was 24/7 whirring motors. After the first night, with only two hours of sleep turning me into a zombie, I did something I had never done before: I actually slept with noise-cancelling sleep buds. And they were a lifesaver.
Those sleep buds are Anker’s Soundcore Sleep A30 ($229.99). I carry them on every trip to block out airplane engine drone and surrounding voices to try to get a few hours of sleep on my red-eyes to Europe and Asia. They cancel noise passively (simply blocking the ear canal with the silicone ear tips), as well as with active noise cancellation (ANC).
The form factor is more compact than standard audio earbuds, allowing the A30s to sit flat inside your ear for resting on a pillow or plane window and making them less likely to get knocked out of your ear as you turn your head. Various tip and ear wing sizes come in the box.
Image credit: Josh Kirschner/Techlicious
For planes, they work great. I just had never had to use them for “real” sleep before. And I wasn’t sure they would be comfortable enough lying flat for a full night in the hotel. Yet, that flat form-factor performed as intended. The A30’s buds are also lighter, at 3 grams, than most other quality earbuds (my Bose QuietComfort Ultra weigh in at a comparatively hefty 7.26 grams). I’m a side sleeper, but I barely felt them in my ears. And the ANC effectively blocked those infuriating elevator motor sounds.
While the A30’s ANC does a good enough job to help you sleep, the buds aren’t as fully isolating as better earbuds like the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Gen 2 or Technics AZ100. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I find the ANC on those buds places more pressure on my eardrums and can be tiring to wear for more than a few hours. The A30’s milder ANC is the better fit for a pair I need to wear for six hours or more.
The A30 buds can be used on their own or, when paired with your phone, with the Soundcore app to play various white noise and audio soundscapes. Sounds can also be downloaded from the app to the earbuds for local play to extend battery life. With ANC and Bluetooth on, you can expect about 6-10 hours (depending on audio volume). Turning Bluetooth off buys you a couple more hours. And turning ANC off, too, can extend the life to 16 hours. Which, unless you’re my teenage son, is more than you should ever need for a good night’s sleep.
Frankly, I find Soundcore’s included audio options, available through a partnership with Calm, to not be right for me. I prefer streaming simple white noise through the myNoise app (Android or iOS), which I’ve used for years and is free for basic features. Pro tip: the myNoise app also turns your smartphone into a great travel noise machine, almost on par with the classic Yogasleep Dohm I use at home.
Beyond their travel application, the A30 can also be used to mask your partner’s snoring. It tracks snoring patterns through the A30 charging case and will automatically adjust the sound level in alignment with the snores. Certain folks may find this a better solution than poking your spouse in the side throughout the night.
The A30s can stream music from your phone and have a built-in mic for calls. Audio and call quality are fair to middling, so I always bring a separate pair of regular audio earbuds for calls and music when conscious.
Soundcore also offers the Sleep A20 buds ($149.99) without ANC. I’ve tried them and wasn’t blown away. The passive noise canceling offered limited noise reduction on my plane trips. This October, Soundcore will be launching the Sleep Earbuds 4 Pro ($349.99), which has in-ear sensors to detect how you sleep and adjust the sound in real time. Those may work well for those with specific sleep problems, but seem like overkill for general noise reduction.
At a list price of $229.99, the Soundcore Sleep A30 aren’t cheap, especially since you will want another pair of headphones for general use. But they just may save you from that next vacation or business trip from hell, where a good night’s sleep would be priceless.
