Canyon DoubleBee GTWS-2 Gaming Earbuds review

Generally speaking, I split my audio devices into two categories: music and gaming. I rarely use over-ear phones for music, and almost never use in-ear buds for gaming. Not sure why, but mixing the two often feels wrong in some vague and undefined way. So when I get the chance to review in-ear buds purely designed for gaming, like the Canyon DoubleBee GTWS-2 gaming earbuds, it’s a trip just outside of my weirdly specific comfort zone.

Thankfully, though, they’re pretty good for the price. Obviously, what attracted me initially was the distinctly “Cyberpunk” aesthetic. The yellow plastic, LED lighting, battery life counter smack bang in the centre of two wings that lift up like the doors of a DeLorean… If I hadn’t been reviewing them I’d have bought them just for the case alone.

If you were paying attention about 50 words ago, you’d have noted that I said “pretty good for the price” – so while the Canyon DoubleBee is a very decent option, it is a budget option all the same. As a result, while they look great and feel comfortable enough to wear, they lose out a little in terms of audio quality and battery life.

Neither is particularly bad, but the battery life is a sticking point if you’re using them for gaming, as you might get a couple of long sessions out of them between charges, but that might not be enough for you. And if I’m dead honest, they look slightly less impressive in your hand, as the yellow plastic casing doesn’t feel all that sturdy or expensive.

Still, they’re comfortable to wear and are perfectly serviceable if your main reason for using them is to play a handheld during a commute or in a busy household. I used them primarily with my Steam Deck and, frankly, I don’t have any real complaints. Had I been playing something on PC with richly-designed audio like Helldivers 2 or Alan Wake 2, I might have switched to a larger, beefier set or a pair of over-ear phones instead.

You can use them for voice chat (or calls, of course) when gaming, as they do have an in-built microphone. Again, this element is functional but I did get some feedback when playing with a group of four, and I wasn’t always coming across as loud as I should have been.

As for music, they’re… okay. Again, if I was using them at work or somewhere that I just needed to be able to hear my music, I wouldn’t complain too much, but compared to other devices – even budget options – they’re not great. The bass just doesn’t feel right, and there’s no way to adjust levels to compensate. For just £10 more you can get the 1More Pistonbuds Pro Q30 earbuds that come with some very decent ANC tech.

In closing then, the Canyon DoubleBee GTWS-2 gaming earbuds are very decent for the pricepoint, but lack some of the bells and whistles you could have for just a bit more outlay. The sound quality is good overall, and they have very little latency (I don’t think I noticed any while using them), and they look pretty damn sexy to boot. If all you’re after is a set of earbuds that won’t break the bank what you can use across a range of devices and situations, you could do a lot worse for £30.