The JLab GO Air Pop and Skullcandy Dime are both very popular budget wireless earbuds. I’ve reviewed them both and can say they are both good products for the price, but they do have notable differences. Is one better overall than the other? Which of the two should you get? That’s what this comparison article intends to discuss and help you figure out.
What Are the Main Differences Between the GO Air Pop and Dime Earbuds?
Battery Life – The GO Air Pop has a purported total battery life (buds + case) of 32 hours, which is decent for budget wireless earbuds; while the Dime has a mere purported total of 12 hours, which is considerably worse than average. The next generation Dime 2 has come out and upgraded the Bluetooth version from 5.0 to 5.2, and the main improvements on Bluetooth v5 updates are signal range and battery efficiency, yet the Dime 2 does not improve upon the battery life for some reason.
Controls – The GO Air Pop earbuds have touch controls while the Dime earbuds have pressable buttons. Both of these styles have their situational pros and cons and are a matter of personal preference I’d say.
Charge Case – The GO Air Pop case has a USB cable built into it, while the Dime case has a female micro USB port and uses a separate cable.
The built in cable is an interesting feature – it’s nice to not have to worry about carrying a separate cable around, but, you can’t easily replace it if it breaks for some reason.
Warranty – JLab has an industry leading two year warranty on all its earbuds. Skullcandy earbuds actually used to have a two year warranty, but they somewhat recently lowered it to one year, which is the fairly standard minimum for budget earbuds
Does the GO Air Pop or the Dime Have Better Fit and Comfort?
The GO Air Pop has a superior fit to the Dime that is more comfortable and more secure feeling. While the Dime’s fit is adequate and able to create a proper seal, it feels a little shallow and uncomfortable. The Dime’s ergonomic design is not great – the buds are noncontoured, the nozzles are a bit short and shallow, and the stems are big and wide. If the Dime’s shape doesn’t work with your ear geometry then you might be out of luck.
The other issue with the Dime is that pressing the buttons to activate the touch controls requires quite a lot of force, enough to create uncomfortable pressure on the ear and possibly move the buds and mess up the prior fit.
Does the GO Air Pop or the Dime Sound Better?
Both the GO Air Pop and Dime sound very good for their minimal prices, and it’s very close between the two, enough so to say that their respective sounds are equally good but just slightly different. The Dime sound curve is a little more neutral and even and has clarity that is very impressive for budget wireless earbuds. The Go Air Pop has three EQ presets, and their default “JLab signature” EQ (which sounds best for music by far) follows more of a Harman/U-shape with more tuned up and prominent bass.
Should You Get the JLab Go Air Pop or Skullcandy Dime?
Both the GO Air Pop and Dime sound great and, in my opinion, best in class for the minimal price. That said, the Dime has poor battery life – less than half of the GO Air Pop – which is enough of a factor to make the GO Air Pop the pretty clear superior choice. The Dime also has worse fit and control usability.
That said, if you prefer a more neutral sound or pressable button touch controls, and you maybe don’t mind the shorter battery life, the Dime earbuds are a perfectly good choice for the money.
Get the JLab Go Air Pop wireless earbuds on Amazon (affiliate link)
Get the Skullcandy Dime wireless earbuds on Amazon (affiliate link)
(Do note that the subsequently released Dime 2 is the updated version)
Relevant Articles
• Full JLab GO Air Pop review
• Full Skullcandy Dime review
• Our current picks for the overall best budget true wireless earbuds
