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Door staff@engadget.com (Christine Persaud) - 01 Nov 2026
The best way to avoid these issues is to stop wearing just a single bud. Doing so is useful for taking a quick call every now and then, or maybe for listening to a translation of a lecture or meeting in one ear. But try to limit how often you do it. If the reason is that you still want to be aware of your surroundings, consider a pair of wireless earbuds that have transparency or ambient mode. Activate this mode to let in ambient sounds to hear the waitress coming by the table, talk to a friend, hear a pilot announcement on a plane, or simply be more aware of your surroundings, even with both ears plugged. Some can even switch to this mode automatically when they detect voices.
Some people like to wear a single bud while driving, the legality of which varies by state and location. Rather than doing this, use the speakerphone function of your phone, potentially through a system like Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. If you want to take private calls while others are in the vehicle, consider buying one of those old single-bud Bluetooth headsets or using an old pair of buds you have lying around that you aren't as worried about causing an imbalance.
If you're stuck on using only one bud often, you can still find single Bluetooth earpieces from brands such as Poly and BlueParrott, though these are mostly designed for professional use and are much bigger than the ones from decades past. Otherwise, limit single-bud usage to only when necessary and use a pair with role-swapping and switching. Or, better yet, find a set with transparency mode and rely on that while wearing both buds.
Some people like to wear a single bud while driving, the legality of which varies by state and location. Rather than doing this, use the speakerphone function of your phone, potentially through a system like Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. If you want to take private calls while others are in the vehicle, consider buying one of those old single-bud Bluetooth headsets or using an old pair of buds you have lying around that you aren't as worried about causing an imbalance.
If you're stuck on using only one bud often, you can still find single Bluetooth earpieces from brands such as Poly and BlueParrott, though these are mostly designed for professional use and are much bigger than the ones from decades past. Otherwise, limit single-bud usage to only when necessary and use a pair with role-swapping and switching. Or, better yet, find a set with transparency mode and rely on that while wearing both buds.