Thore THR/V120RG

The Thore V120 is a $30 wired Lightning earbud with standout comfort and decent bass-heavy sound. It's great for gym use and casual listening, but the mic quality is rough and durability is a real concern. If you want cheap, comfortable wired earbuds for your iPhone, these are worth a look. If you need reliable calls or wireless freedom, spend a bit more elsewhere.

The sound profile is solid for the price. The 11mm dynamic driver pushes out a 20Hz to 20kHz frequency response, and owners consistently mention excellent bass and good noise isolation. Our sound score puts it at the 49th percentile, so it's middle of the pack overall, but for $30 wired earbuds, that's honestly fine. You're not getting audiophile detail here, but you're getting a fun, bass-forward sound that works well for workouts and podcasts.

The mic is where things get rough. The calls score of 26.5 out of 100 is one of the weakest we've seen in this category. The inline remote has a mic and playback controls, which is convenient, but the actual call quality falls behind most competitors. If you're planning to take a lot of phone calls with these, you'll probably be disappointed. For music and casual listening, though, the performance is much more acceptable.

Compared to the wireless competition, the V120 is in a weird spot. The JLab JBuds Pods ANC and Soundcore P31i both offer true wireless convenience with active noise cancellation for not much more money. The EarFun Air Pro 4 and Anker Space A40 are even stronger options if you can stretch your budget. Those all beat the V120 on connectivity and battery, obviously, because the V120 has no battery at all.

But here's the thing: none of those wireless options can match the V120's comfort score. And for gym use, a wired connection means no latency, no pairing issues, and no battery to die mid-workout. The Baseus Bass BP1 Pro is probably the closest competitor in terms of price, but it's still wireless. If you specifically want wired Lightning earbuds, the V120 is one of the few MFi certified options at this price point, and that's worth something.

At $30, the Thore V120 is priced like a disposable accessory, which is both its strength and its weakness. You're getting MFi certification, a decent driver, and a comfortable fit for less than half the price of Apple's own Lightning earbuds. That's a real value proposition for anyone who just needs something that works with their iPhone without a dongle.

But the durability concerns complicate the value story. If a pair dies within a week and the replacement is also defective, as some owners report, then the lifetime guarantee becomes the only thing standing between you and a frustrating experience. The guarantee is nice on paper, but if the customer service and return process are as difficult as some reviews suggest, the $30 price tag starts to feel less like a bargain and more like a gamble.

The Thore V120 is a wired Lightning earbud for people who are done with charging cases and Bluetooth pairing. It's aimed squarely at iPhone owners who want something simple, cheap, and reliable enough to throw in a gym bag. At $30, it's competing with a sea of wireless options, but it makes a case for itself by skipping the battery anxiety entirely.

What's interesting here is the comfort story. Our database puts these at the 94th percentile for comfort, which is genuinely impressive for a budget in-ear. The 11mm dynamic driver and three included ear gel sizes mean most people should be able to get a secure, comfortable fit without much fuss. That's the kind of thing you notice on a long call or a sweaty run.

But there's a catch, and it's a big one. The overall score lands at 42.3 out of 100, dragged down hard by a 26.5 in the calls category. And while the customer rating sits at 4.1 stars across 322 reviews, a handful of owners report the left earbud dying within a week. That's a durability red flag we can't ignore, even with the lifetime guarantee Thore advertises.

If you take a lot of phone calls, skip these. The mic quality is genuinely bad, and you'll frustrate yourself and whoever you're talking to. Look at the Anker Space A40 or EarFun Air Pro 4 instead, both of which have much better call performance and wireless convenience.

Also skip these if you've been burned by cheap earbuds dying on you before. The durability complaints are specific and repeated, with multiple owners reporting the left side failing within a week. If you want something that will last, spend a bit more on a reputable wireless option or Apple's own Lightning earbuds, which have a more proven track record.

If you're looking for a cheap pair of wired earbuds to keep in your gym bag or use as a backup for your iPhone, the Thore V120 is a reasonable choice. The comfort is genuinely excellent, the sound is fun and bass-heavy, and the $30 price is easy to swallow. Just don't expect them to last forever, and don't plan on using them for important phone calls.

For anyone who needs reliable call quality or wants wireless freedom, look elsewhere. The mic performance is a dealbreaker for calls, and the durability complaints are concerning enough that we'd hesitate to recommend these as a primary pair. If you can spend a bit more, the Anker Space A40 or EarFun Air Pro 4 will give you a much more well-rounded experience.