Skullcandy Grom Wireless

The $34.99 Skullcandy Grom Wireless kids' headphones achieve something that most others don't: They look like something adults might actually wear. They also deliver a full sense of bass and have a unique headband that accommodates a variety of head shapes and sizes. Our main concern is that it's trivial for kids to get past the volume-limited 85dB mode and listen at potentially damaging volumes. Competitors also have this issue, however, so it doesn't affect our impressions too much. We still prefer the Editors' Choice-winning Earfun K2 Kids headphones overall since they provide similar sound for just $24.99, though the Skullcandy is worth the extra money if your child is particularly style-conscious.

Design: Stylish 

Available in black with green and gold accents, the headphones have a semi-matte finish and a large Skullcandy logo on both sides of the headband. They look much cooler than the average pair of kids' headphones. The earcups have a circumaural (over-ear) fit for kids but may land between an over-ear and on-ear design for teenagers and adults. The earcups swivel and partially collapse, but they don't include a pouch or case to store them. The headband design is unique in that you can tighten or loosen the affixed canvas strap for optimal comfort.

(Credit: Tim Gideon)

Inside each earcup, a 30mm dynamic driver delivers a frequency range of 20Hz to 20kHz at a default maximum volume of 85dB. However, there's an easy way to override this. As for connectivity, they support Bluetooth 5.2 and the AAC and SBC codecs. You get the same codecs with the Earfun K2 Kids. Google Fast Pair and multipoint pairing are not available.

The left earcup has a power/pairing button with a nearby status LED—press it twice to summon your device’s voice assistant. The outer shell cleverly functions as a button, too. Press the bottom once to control playback, as well as to answer or end calls. Click it twice to skip forward a track, or three times to go to the previous one. Finally, you can hold it down for six seconds to reset the paired devices list. A dial just below the power/pairing button controls the volume.

Both earcups house 3.5mm jacks for the included audio cable. In wired mode, the headphones work passively only. The right earcup’s jack also supports audio sharing—you can send any streaming audio from your headphones to another pair with a 3.5mm aux input by attaching the aforementioned cable. A USB-C connection is on the left earcup for the included USB-A-to-USB-C charging cable. 

(Credit: Tim Gideon)

As mentioned, I wish it was more difficult to override the volume limit. It requires some extra force to move the volume dial past a click stop to defeat it, but that's not really a challenge for a curious child. Doing so extends the top limit from 85dB to 95dB. Skullcandy says this mode is for loud listening environments, though the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) says that the 94dB level is unsafe for more than an hour at a time. At least you can see the current setting at a glance—a red skull appears on the volume dial when the limit isn't in place. Restricting this function to a hidden switch or a setting in a parental app would have been a much better move. I can’t blame Skullcandy for not including an app, however, since no other competing models have one either.

(Credit: Tim Gideon)

Skullcandy estimates that the Grom Wireless headphones can last roughly 45 hours per charge. Your real-world results will vary depending on your listening volume level, but this slightly beats the 40-hour mark of the Earfun K2. The company claims that 10 minutes of charging should net you 4 hours of playback but does not specify how long a full recharge takes.

Sound Quality: Boosted Bass

To evaluate the audio performance, I used the same test tracks as for every other headphones I test. I doubt these songs are among your kids' favorites, but are the best way I can assess the pair's sonic capabilities. I mostly stayed under the 85dB threshold but can confirm that the drivers get quite loud for children's headphones without the volume limit in place.

On tracks with intense sub-bass content, like The Knife’s “Silent Shout,” the headphones deliver palpable thump. I don't hear any distortion at top volume levels, and the deep lows still sound robust at more moderate settings. They have no trouble reproducing the sub-bass in a Kendrick Lamar track, either. I found all the volume levels perfectly safe with the limit in place.

(Credit: Tim Gideon)

The drums on Bill Callahan’s “Drover,” a track with far less deep bass, get plenty of additional low-end depth, while his baritone vocals receive some pleasant low-mid richness. In other words, these headphones bring the bass. That ability might concern parents, but volume is a much bigger issue as it pertains to hearing loss. The sculpting is evident here, as the mids are somewhat lacking.

On orchestral tracks, like the opening scene from John Adams’ The Gospel According to the Other Mary, the drivers boost the lower-register instrumentation slightly and deliver the higher-register brass, strings, and vocals with an appropriate sense of clarity. Overall, the bass response sounds less dominant on this kind of recording than on pop tracks.

The voice mic array works well. I could understand every word from a test recording on my iPhone thanks to the relatively strong signal level. The mics don't particularly strive for conversational clarity, but voices are still easy enough to understand.

Verdict: Fashionable, With a Flair for Bass

The Skullcandy Grom Wireless headphones produce significant bass at a safe 85dB volume and look much cooler than other kids' headphones. We're also fans of the neat audio-sharing feature and the highly adjustable fit. Like most competitors, however, we think it should be more difficult for a kid to defeat the volume-limited listening mode. The EarFun K2 Kids remain our Editors' Choice pick because they provide similar sound quality for a more affordable price, though the $10 difference shouldn't dissuade you from getting the Skullcandy if you prefer a more sophisticated design.