Work Bag Worthy: The Dell Pro Plus Earbuds Earned It

I’ve been using the Dell Pro Plus Earbuds (EB525) for a few weeks now. Every day without fail, I’ve started reaching for them without thinking now. That’s usually a good sign. They’re clean and understated in design, but I love the blacked-out look. And they’ve earned a spot in my work bag. Which, for me, is a sacred space. Only the essentials go in there. As ever gram matters, especially with a 40-minute walk and a 30-minute train ride daily

The first time I used them was during a call with a supplier in Singapore. I was in a shared workspace, and someone nearby was watching a video way too loudly. You know those people who sit in an open office on a call, laughing and chatting loudly (If that is you, we have issues! haha). I remember thinking, “This is going to be a disaster.” But the earbuds held beautifully. My voice came through clearly, and I didn’t have to repeat myself once or ask them to repeat themselves. That was the pleasant surprise.

Fit and Feel Over Time

At first, I wasn’t sure about the fit of the Dell Pro Plus Earbuds. I’m one of those weird people who never seem to get a perfect fit straight out of the box. It’s like my ears didn’t get the memo on standard sizing. I usually end up mixing tip sizes, Medium in one ear, Larger in the other, just to get something that feels halfway decent.

The medium tips felt okay initially. Not great, not terrible. However, after about 40 minutes, I began to notice a slight pressure. Not painful, just… present, especially in one ear. Like a gentle reminder that something was lodged in my ear canal. I swapped to the large tips the next day, and that made a noticeable difference. Still not perfect, but after swapping one ear back to a medium. I didn’t need to adjust them constantly, which is rare for me and my weird ears!

The Dell Pro Plus Earbuds don’t disappear into your ears like some of those ultra-light buds do. You’re aware they’re there, but not in an annoying way. I’ve worn them through back-to-back meetings, three hours, maybe more, and then straight into some Teddy Swims for another hour or so. And didn’t feel the need to take them out until I went to lunch. That’s a win in my book.

One thing I noticed that surprised me a bit: when I’m walking and talking, they stay put. I’ve had earbuds that slowly wiggle loose with movement, and it’s distracting. You start fiddling with them mid-conversation, which is never a good look. These don’t do that. I even wore them during my walk to the station, about 40 minutes or so, and they stayed snug the whole time. No slipping, no readjusting. And it’s weird, because I was waiting for the slip or move, but nothing.

I haven’t tested them during a run or anything more intense, but for everyday movement, walking, pacing or pulling your hair out during calls, even a bit of head-turning while multitasking, they hold their ground. That’s more than I can say for most earbuds I’ve tried.

Sound, Silence, and Everything In Between

The audio quality of the Dell Pro Plus Earbuds is solid. Not exceptional, but definitely more than most people need, unless you’re the kind of person who spends weekends comparing sound profiles and debating the merits of FLAC over MP3 (FLAC is, of course, the format I swear by, even though half my playlist is still streaming at 128kbps because convenience wins every time).

Voices come through clean and crisp, which is what really matters for calls. I’ve used them for Team meetings, quick check-ins with friends on my walk to the train, and even a few voice memos, and I never had to strain to hear anyone or listen back to them. That clarity makes a difference when you’re trying to stay sharp during back-to-back calls.

Music playback was better than I expected. I ran a few tracks while working late one night, just something mellow in the background (The Distrubed and then Crooked Vultures) while I chipped away at emails and reviewed supplier contracts, and they held up well. There’s a decent amount of bass, enough to give the sound some weight. I wouldn’t use them for sound engineering sessions or anything where sound detail really matters, but for casual listening while working? The Dell Pro Plus Earbuds are perfect.

The active noise cancelling (ANC) is… decent. It’s not going to block out everything, and I’m ok with that. I don’t want a completely soundless chamber, I could still hear the background and the occasional door slam, but it softens the ambient noise enough to help me stay focused. I’ve used them during noisy lunch breaks and they’ve helped me stay in the zone, even when the office gets a bit chaotic. It’s not total silence, but it’s more than enough to take the edge off.

Transparency mode turned out to be more useful than I expected. I’ve had moments, like someone tapping me on the shoulder mid-call, where I switched modes without removing the earbuds, and it felt smooth and natural. Usually, these features feel a bit clunky or artificial, but this one worked well. I’ve even used it while walking through the CBD, just to stay aware of traffic and people, and it did the job without making everything sound tinny or distorted. It’s one of those small things that quietly improve the experience without drawing attention to itself.

Real-World Use

I’ve taken calls in cafés, on trams, even once while walking through Flagstaff Gardens with a coffee in one hand and my phone in the other. The mic performance is probably the standout feature of the Dell Pro Plus Earbuds. Dell’s AI noise cancellation actually works, not just in theory, but in the messy, unpredictable environments we all end up in. I had a call with a friend while a busker was playing guitar nearby, and I was sure the background music would bleed through. I even apologised to him for it & he had no idea what noise I was apologising for. All he heard was just my voice, clear as day. That’s impressive. I’ve used plenty of earbuds that claim to cancel noise, but this is one of the few times I’ve seen it hold up in a real-world scenario.

The touch controls, though… they’re a bit of a mixed bag. They work, technically, but I’ve fumbled more than once. Tried to mute myself and ended up skipping a track. Or tapped too long and triggered ANC when I didn’t mean to. It’s not a dealbreaker, and it could just be my chubby fingers, but there’s definitely a learning curve. I still prefer physical buttons, if I’m honest. There’s something reassuring about the tactile click of a real control, especially when you’re mid-call and trying not to look like you’re poking your own ear in public.

That said, once you get used to the gestures, they’re manageable. I’ve started to memorise the timing and pressure needed for each function, but it’s not second nature yet. Maybe it will be after a few more weeks of use. Or maybe I’ll just keep accidentally activating transparency mode when I mean to pause my music. Either way, they’ve held up well in the chaos of daily life, and that’s more than I can say for some of the other earbuds I’ve tried.

Battery Life That Keeps Up

Battery life has been consistent with the Dell Pro Plus Earbuds, which is honestly a relief. I get about 4.5 to 5 hours of use with ANC turned on, and that lines up pretty closely with Dell’s spec sheet. It’s not groundbreaking, but it’s reliable and that counts for a lot when you’re bouncing between meetings, calls, and the occasional podcast during a commute. The charging case adds enough juice to comfortably get through a full day, even with a few longer sessions thrown in. I haven’t had to worry about running out mid-afternoon, which is more than I can say for my current earbuds.

I’ve used the quick charge feature twice now, and both times it saved me. Once was before a call I completely forgot about, classic, and the other was right before heading out for ARC Fest prep, when I realised the battery was nearly flat. Five minutes on the charger gave me about an hour of use, which was just enough to get through what I needed. It’s one of those features you don’t think about until you need it, and then you’re genuinely grateful it’s there. I wouldn’t rely on it every day, but in a pinch? It’s a lifesaver.

IT Features I Didn’t Expect to Care About

I didn’t think I’d use the Dell Display and Peripheral Manager, to be honest. It looked like one of those enterprise tools that gets installed and then quietly ignored, and just takes up RAM as it hangs in the background. So I normally don’t even bother installing them. But curiosity got the better of me, and I gave it a go. Turns out, it’s actually kind of useful. The interface is clean, and it didn’t overwhelm me with options. I updated the firmware once, just to see how painful it would be, and it was surprisingly smooth. No weird errors, no digging through menus. Just a few clicks and done. If I were managing a team, I’d genuinely appreciate the ability to push updates or set audio defaults remotely. It’s very enterprise, but in a good way. The kind of thing that makes IT’s life easier without making the rest of us feel like we’re being micromanaged.

Then there’s the dongle. I ignored it at first. Thought it was just another thing to lose in a backpack or leave plugged into the wrong laptop. But I gave it a shot during a call, and I was immediately sold. The connection was instant, no pairing, no fiddling, no wondering if Bluetooth was having a bad day. Just plug and go. It felt like cheating, in the best way. I’ve kept it in the case ever since, and now I reach for it more often than I expected. It’s one of those little accessories that quietly earns its place, even if you didn’t think you needed it.

Final Thoughts

After a few weeks with the Dell Pro Plus Earbuds, they’ve quietly become part of my daily rhythm. Not flashy, not perfect, but dependable, well-built, and surprisingly thoughtful in the ways that matter. They’ve handled chaotic calls, long commutes, and late-night email marathons without flinching. And they’ve earned a spot in my work bag, which, for me, is sacred territory. Only the essentials go in there. The gear I trust to show up, stay out of the way, and do its job.

What stood out most wasn’t the sound quality or the ANC, though both are solid. It was how seamlessly the Dell Pro Plus Earbuds fit into my routine. No fiddling, no second-guessing, no wondering if today’s the day they’ll slip loose or glitch mid-call. Just reach, insert, go. That kind of quiet reliability is rare. And when you’re juggling meetings, commutes, and the occasional coffee-fueled brainstorm, it’s the kind of thing that makes a real difference.

The Dell Pro Plus Earbuds don’t demand attention. They don’t try to impress with flashy features or over-engineered gimmicks. Instead, they do the one thing most earbuds fail at: they disappear into the flow of your day. And in that disappearance, they earn trust.

So no, they’re not the flashiest earbuds I’ve used. But they’re the ones I keep reaching for—without thinking, without hesitation. And that, in my experience, says more than any spec sheet ever could.