Belkin SoundForm Bolt review

Belkin sells a range of affordable earbuds, from the entry-level SoundForm Bolt (£19.99/$39.99) to the SoundForm Pulse (£69.99/$119.99), so even its top-of-the-range pair are more affordable than most.

I’ve tried out the Bolt earbuds to see what you get for a very small cash outlay and I’m impressed with the results. You will certainly find finer audio quality by spending more, of course, but what you get at this price point is impressive.

The Bolt buds come in a protective charging case, and in three colors: black, white, lavender and teal.

You don’t get active noise cancelling (ANC) as with more expensive earbuds, but sound quality is clear, and the battery life is decent for a very attractive price tag. 

Design & Build

The Bolt buds are squatter and fatter than Apple’s AirPods, rather like the Sony WF-C700N or Google Pixel Buds A.

They come in a large oval, matte-finish charging case and three pairs of ear tips in different sizes. There is a USB-C port at the back for charging and four LEDs that indicate the remaining battery charge.

There’s no supporting app so you can’t see how much charge is left in each bud as you can with more pricey earbuds.

The buds weigh 4.5g each so don’t feel heavy in the ear. There’s a choice of three silicone tips in the box, which I strongly recommend you try out as sound quality and in-ear stability are improved with a proper fit.

IPX4 water resistance is basic but should protect the buds from rain or sweat at least.

Bolt uses Bluetooth 5.2 for connectivity, and I didn’t have any wireless drop-out issues during testing.

Features

Pairing the buds was a painless process and took under a minute the first time.

You can control various features by touching the buds: one tap for Play/Pause; two for next song for take/end a phone call; three for previous song; and hold for 2 seconds to block calls or activate the microphone.

There’s no volume control option on the buds themselves which is normal for budget earbuds.

Foundry

There’s also no active noise cancelling but I wasn’t expecting this with a pair of earbuds at this price. ANC cancels out the ambient noise, and you’ll hear more going on around you than you will with a more expensive pair of ANC buds.

But for those who wear their buds while on the move, having more awareness of what’s going on outside your audio bubble can be an advantage. There’s a Mono Mode that allows the use of one earbud at a time to extend battery life and/or stay more aware of your surroundings.

The buds don’t come with auto-pause (aka wear detection), so if you take out your buds a song continues playing unless you manually stop it yourself by tapping or on your phone.

Sound Quality

Inside the Bolt earbuds are 6mm dynamic drivers for a clear sound, but not as high-end as earbuds with 10- or 12mm drivers that will produce beefier bass and superior audio quality and volume.

Compared to the top-end Belkin Pulse earbuds, you will notice higher quality with the 12mm drivers but it’s not a significant difference despite Bolt costing a third of the price.

While out in a busy environment, audio from the Bolt earbuds are a little tinny but is better in a quiet space. This is where ANC would really improve audio quality, but with the right choice of tip, you’ll notice improved audio.

Foundry

Volume is easily loud enough. I wouldn’t want to harm my ears by having the buds pumping at full volume.

Listening to audiobooks and podcasts, you don’t need absolute top-quality audio and voice quality on the Bolt earbuds are clear if lacking a little bass.

The SoundForm Bolt come with just one mic per bud, compared to top-of-the-Belkin-range SoundForm Pulse earbuds that boast six in total. However, the quality is impressive despite the more than affordable price tag.

Battery Life & Charging

The Belkin SoundForm Bolt earbuds have excellent battery life.

According to Belkin, the buds can last around nine hours out of the case. With the case, this is then extended to 28 hours – enough for a long-haul flight and travel in between. 

The case itself charges over USB-C, which is an improvement over cheaper earbuds that charge using fiddly Micro-USB but does not have wireless charging more expensive earbuds.

You can see the remaining charge in 25% increments via four front-of-case LEDs.

Price & Availability

The Belkin Bolt earbuds cost £19.99/$39.99 and are available now from the Belkin Store in the UK and US. You can also get them from Amazon UK and Amazon US.

The price is excellent for buds from a premium if not proper audiophile brand, especially for UK buyers who usually must pay more than their US counterparts.

You can find more options in our chart of the best cheap wireless earbuds, including several with active noise cancelling (ANC). We also have more premium options in our chart of the best wireless earbuds overall. 

Should you buy the Belkin SoundForm Bolt?

If you need an entry-level or spare set of earphones with a choice of colors, the Belkin Bolt earbuds offer more than reasonable audio quality and a decent battery life for a bargain price.

Belkin alternatives

As mentioned, Bolt is the entry-level SoundForm earbuds from Belkin. If you want better audio quality and features, consider the rest of the range based on their features.

SoundForm Bolt ($39.99 / £19.99):

• 6mm dynamic drivers
• 28-hour battery life
• Charging case
• 1 mic per bud
• No active noise cancelling
• IPX 4 water resistance

SoundForm Move ($49.99 / £29.99):

• 6mm dynamic drivers
• 19-hour battery life
• Charging case; wireless charging case, add $20/£10
• 1 mic per bud
• No active noise cancelling
• IPX 5 water resistance

SoundForm Play ($59.99 / £34.99):

• 6mm dynamic drivers
• 38-hour battery life
• Charging case
• 2 mics per bud
• No active noise cancelling
• IPX 5 water resistance

SoundForm Flow ($89.99 / £59.99):

• 12mm dynamic drivers
• 31-hour battery life
• Wireless charging case
• 2 mics per bud
• Active noise cancelling
• IPX 5 water resistance
• SoundForm app

SoundForm Pulse ($119.99 / £69.99):

• 12mm dynamic drivers
• 35-hour battery life
• Wireless charging case
• 3 mics per bud
• Active noise cancelling
• IPX 5 water resistance
• SoundForm app