OnePlus just announced its own pair of $80 wireless earbuds — here's what they're like compared to Google's $180 Pixel Buds

The OnePlus Buds looks very similar to Apple's AirPods, complete with the signature stem.

The Google Pixel Buds sit flush with the ear and barely stick out, if at all.

The moment I saw the OnePlus Buds, I knew they wouldn't fit and stay in my ears. That's because they're nearly identical, if somewhat larger, to Apple's EarPods and AirPods design, which have never fit or stayed put in my ears. Ever.

With that said, Apple's EarPods and AirPods fit lots of people just fine, and the OnePlus Buds are likely to be fine for them. But if you're like me and you've always had trouble with those kinds of earbuds, you can immediately forget the OnePlus Buds exist — there are no customizable tips or anything to help keep the Buds in my ears included with the OnePlus Buds.

Google's Pixel Buds, on the other hand, are similar to Apple's AirPods Pro in that they have an in-ear design that offer a snugger fit, and they actually stay in my ears as a result. They also come with three different rubber tip size options for a customizable fit. The snugger in-ear design also lets the Google Pixel Buds reduce ambient noise more than the OnePlus Buds, which don't have any impact whatsoever on ambient noise.

You're getting better sound quality with the Pixel Buds, which is to be expected considering their higher price tag compared to the OnePlus Buds. With that said, I should note that I and several other reviews have experienced a faint background hissing sound with the Pixel Buds that's only really noticeable when playing music at low volumes in a quiet room.

Due to their poor fit in my ears, the OnePlus Buds sound tinny and hollow to me.

Sound is dramatically improved when I manually press the Buds into my ears to simulate a good fit. Sound is overall good, but mids are lacking, giving music I listened to a confined soundstage. Still, for $79 wireless earbuds that come with other important features (mentioned below), the OnePlus Buds will suffice.

The poor fit surely has a significant role in the poor audio experience I had with the OnePlus Buds. It should emphasize why you need to know whether the OnePlus Buds will fit before buying them. Again, if Apple's EarPods or AirPods have fit you in the past, there's a higher likelihood that the OnePlus Buds will fit, and therefore sound decent. But also keep in mind that the OnePlus Buds are slightly larger than EarPods and AirPods.

In a sentence: "If these don't fit, they ain't it."

The songs I listened to include "Pneuma" by Tool, "Your House" by Steel Pulse, "Drip" by CloZee, "Nevermind" by Dennis Lloyd, "Catching Plays" by Destructo, among several other tracks spanning a variety of genres.

Overall, both the OnePlus Buds and the Google Pixel Buds offer similar battery life. OnePlus claims the Buds and the charging case combined make for 30 hours total of battery life. That's seven hours for the Buds themselves, and the case should provide an additional 23 hours of battery charge, if OnePlus' claim is true.

Google claims the Pixel Buds themselves have a five-hour battery life, and the case holds 24 hours of charge, for a total of 29 hours.

It's difficult to track battery life in real-life practice, but overall, you get pretty similar battery life on both buds. That's to say they last a good, comfortable amount of time before they need a charge. Both can also be charged for a short amount of time in their respective cases — about 10 minutes — to get a big boost in battery life. OnePlus boasts that the Buds can get more battery life from a quick 10 minute emergency charge than most other buds, as long as the charger you use delivers over 10W of power.

One major area where the buds differ is their charging cases. Google's Pixel Buds case features wireless charging, whereas the OnePlus Buds case does not.

Some features, including Dolby Atmos support for supposedly better sound, touch sensor control customization, and firmware updates for the Buds, will be exclusive to the OnePlus 6, OnePlus 7, and OnePlus 8 series. In effect, this means that only OnePlus 6, OnePlus 7, and OnePlus 8 buyers will get the best and most out of the OnePlus Buds. If you don't use those OnePlus phone models, the OnePlus Buds' appeal is diminished, as you're not getting the most they can offer.

Both earbuds are water and sweat resistant — that's a great plus for theOnePlus Buds.

Both earbuds can summon and control Google Assistant.

Both earbuds have automatic ear detection, so they'll pause and play music when you remove or place the buds in your ears.