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Skullcandy Push Ultra Truly Wireless Headphones Review

Tested using Methodology v1.4
Reviewed Aug 04, 2020 at 08:07 am
Latest change: Retest Aug 05, 2020 at 10:29 am
Skullcandy Push Ultra Truly Wireless Picture
5.7
Mixed Usage
5.2
Neutral Sound
5.6
Commute/Travel
7.7
Sports/Fitness
5.0
Office
4.4
Wireless Gaming
4.3
Wired Gaming
4.0
Phone Calls

The Skullcandy Push Ultra are a good option if you’re looking for a pair of wireless sports earbuds. They offer a reasonably secure fit and feel quite sturdy, with a silicone construction that feels like it’ll take a couple of drops without much issue and an IP67 rating for dust and water resistance. Unfortunately, they have a very unbalanced sound profile, disappointing battery life on a single charge, and do an awful job of blocking out ambient noise, although the latter might be helpful if you're out on a run and want to stay aware of your surroundings.

Our Verdict

5.7 Mixed Usage

The Skullcandy Push Ultra are sub-par for mixed usage. On one hand, they’re well-built, offer a reasonably secure fit, and have decently low latency when using them with mobile devices. On the other, their disappointing battery life, very uneven sound profile, poor integrated microphone, and terrible noise isolation performance limit their overall versatility.

Pros
  • Solid build quality.
  • Quick charging time.
  • Low latency on iOS and Android devices.
Cons
  • Awful noise isolation performance.
  • Very uneven sound profile.
  • Mediocre single-charge battery life.
5.2 Neutral Sound

The Skullcandy Push Ultra are poor for neutral sound. They have an extremely underemphasized bass, resulting in a listening experience that’s severely lacking in terms of body and warmth. Mid accuracy is significantly better, so vocals should sound clear, though they're slightly pushed toward the back of the mix. Their treble is a little uneven, meaning that vocals and instruments might also be missing a little bit of brightness and detail.

Pros
Cons
  • Very uneven sound profile.
  • Inconsistent listening experience.
5.6 Commute/Travel

The Skullcandy Push Ultra are middling for commuting and traveling. They block out very little noise, so you’ll hear quite a bit of rumbling from bus engines as well as the chatter of fellow commuters. They also aren’t especially comfortable and have a bulky carrying case that’s a little hard to put into a pocket.

Pros
  • Solid build quality.
  • Quick charging time.
Cons
  • Awful noise isolation performance.
  • Very uneven sound profile.
  • Mediocre single-charge battery life.
7.7 Sports/Fitness

The Skullcandy Push Ultra are a good choice for sports and fitness. They do a decent job of staying in your ears, while their silicone construction feels quite solid. They’re also rated IP67 for dust and water resistance, although that isn’t something we test for. If you’re the type who needs a lot of thump and rumble in your music to stay motivated when you’re at the gym or out on a run, these might not be the best option for you since they’re severely lacking in bass.

Pros
  • Solid build quality.
  • Stable fit.
  • Quick charging time.
Cons
  • Very uneven sound profile.
5.0 Office

The Skullcandy Push Ultra are poor for office use. While they charge very quickly, they don’t last especially long off of a single charge. They’re not comfortable enough to wear for extended periods without being a little fatiguing and their loose in-ear fit blocks out very little ambient noise, so you’ll hear quite a bit of chatter from nearby coworkers.

Pros
  • Quick charging time.
Cons
  • Awful noise isolation performance.
  • Very uneven sound profile.
  • Mediocre single-charge battery life.
4.4 Wireless Gaming

Due to their high latency on PC and Bluetooth-only compatibility, the Skullcandy Push Ultra aren't recommended for wireless gaming.

4.3 Wired Gaming

Since the Skullcandy Push Ultra can only be used wirelessly, they're not suitable for wired gaming.

4.0 Phone Calls

The Skullcandy Push Ultra are bad for phone calls. Their integrated microphone makes your voice sound thin and lacking in detail. It also struggles to isolate speech from ambient noise, so people on the other end of the line might have a hard time understanding you if you’re calling from a loud environment.

Pros
Cons
  • Very uneven sound profile.
  • Sub-par microphone recording quality.
  • 5.7 Mixed Usage
  • 5.2 Neutral Sound
  • 5.6 Commute/Travel
  • 7.7 Sports/Fitness
  • 5.0 Office
  • 4.4 Wireless Gaming
  • 4.3 Wired Gaming
  • 4.0 Phone Calls
  1. Updated Aug 05, 2020: The App Support section was updated to reflect the testing of the Skullcandy companion app.
  2. Updated Aug 04, 2020: Review published.
  3. Updated Jul 30, 2020: Early access published.
  4. Updated Jul 22, 2020: Our testers have started testing this product.
  5. Updated Jul 20, 2020: The product has arrived in our lab, and our testers will start evaluating it soon.
  6. Updated Jul 14, 2020: We've purchased the product and are waiting for it to arrive in our lab.

Compared To Other Headphones

The Skullcandy Push Ultra are good wireless sports earbuds, with solid build quality and a decently secure fit. However, due to their uneven sound profile and terrible noise isolation performance, they aren’t as versatile as similar sports earbuds like the Mpow Flame Pro Truly Wireless. If you’re looking for similar options, take a look at our list of recommendations of the best wireless earbuds for running and working out, the best wireless Bluetooth earbuds, and the best true wireless earbuds.

Skullcandy Push Active True Wireless

The Skullcandy Push Active True Wireless are the sports-oriented variant of the Skullcandy Push Ultra Truly Wireless and are better overall headphones. The Push Active are in-ears with a more comfortable and stable in-ear fit, and their sound profile is much more neutral, which some users may prefer. They have significantly better battery performance and more customization features, thanks to their companion app. However, some users may prefer the Push Ultra's in-ear fit, which doesn't fit as deeply into your ear.

Skullcandy Push Truly Wireless

The Skullcandy Push Truly Wireless are more versatile than the Skullcandy Push Ultra Truly Wireless. The Push are slightly more comfortable, have a higher-quality integrated microphone, deliver a more consistent listening experience, and block out far more background noise. However, the Ultra have lower Bluetooth latency and a longer total battery life, and they charge quite a bit more quickly.

Beats Powerbeats Pro Truly Wireless

The Beats Powerbeats Pro Truly Wireless are better truly wireless earbuds than the Skullcandy Push Ultra Truly Wireless. The Beats offer a far better-balanced and consistent listening experience, block out way more ambient noise, and have more than double the Skullcandy's single-charge battery life. The Beats' integrated microphone is also much higher quality since it isolates speech from background noise far more effectively. Conversely, the Skullcandy are a little more portable and have lower audio latency on mobile devices. Their charging case also provides nearly six extra charges to the Beats' one.

Skullcandy Indy Fuel Truly Wireless

The Skullcandy Indy Fuel Truly Wireless are more versatile than the Skullcandy Push Ultra Truly Wireless. The Indy Fuel are more comfortable, deliver audio more consistently, leak less audio, and offer lower wireless latency. They also have a better-balanced sound profile. However, the Push Ultra have a longer battery life, and their inferior passive noise isolation might make them better for situations where you want to stay aware of your surroundings.

Mpow Flame Pro Truly Wireless

The Mpow Flame Pro Truly Wireless are better than the Skullcandy Push Ultra Truly Wireless regarding mixed usage. They have a more comfortable, stable fit and much better noise isolation performance, and last more than twice as long on a single charge. On the other hand, the Skullcandy sound slightly more open and charge substantially faster, which is handy if you need to get out the door in a rush.

Samsung Galaxy Buds Truly Wireless

The Samsung Galaxy Buds Truly Wireless are substantially more versatile than the Skullcandy Push Ultra Truly Wireless. The Samsung have a comfier, more stable fit, a better-balanced out-of-the-box sound profile, a better microphone, and a more comprehensive companion app. That said, the Skullcandy have an easier-to-use control scheme, a longer total battery life, and a higher IP rating.

Samsung Galaxy Buds+ Truly Wireless

The Samsung Galaxy Buds+ Truly Wireless are better all-around truly wireless headphones than the Skullcandy Push Ultra Truly Wireless. The Samsung last nearly twice as long on a single charge, are comfier and more stable in the ear, deliver a better-balanced and more consistent listening experience, and have a somewhat useful companion app. That said, the Skullcandy have a more intuitive physical control scheme and a higher IP67 rating for dust and water resistance.

Skullcandy Indy Truly Wireless

The Skullcandy Indy Truly Wireless are better for mixed usage than the Skullcandy Push Ultra Truly Wireless. The Indy are more comfortable to wear, offer a more consistent and balanced sound profile, and have a higher-quality microphone. Meanwhile, the Push are sturdier-feeling and last longer off of a single charge.

JBL Endurance Peak True Wireless

The JBL Endurance Peak True Wireless are better for mixed usage than the Skullcandy Push Ultra Truly Wireless. The JBL have a more portable case and do a better job of staying on your ears while also providing a far more neutral, consistent listening experience. The JBL are also more effective in reducing the volume of ambient noise. That said, the Skullcandy have a more intuitive control scheme and a case that generates a longer total battery life, and they last longer off a single charge.

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Test Results

perceptual testing image
Design
Design
Style
Type Earbuds
Enclosure Closed-Back
Wireless Truly Wireless
Transducer Dynamic

The Skullcandy Push Ultra are wireless earbuds with an ear hook design. They differ from more conventional-looking rivals like the Mpow Flame Pro Truly Wireless, with large buds that sit at an outward-facing angle and don’t enter the ear canal very deeply. They’re almost entirely covered in a sporty silicone-like material that should resist fingerprints effectively.

6.5
Design
Comfort
Weight 0.05 lbs
Clamping Force
0 lbs

The Skullcandy Push Ultra are somewhat comfortable. Unlike many other wireless earbuds, they’re one-size-fits-all, with no selection of differently sized ear tips. Their bulky outer buds can cause some minor fatigue over extended listening sessions. However, due to their shallow, angled fit, the ear tips don’t exert much in the way of pressure, and their slightly flexible ear hooks should conform to a wide range of ear shapes and sizes. If you're looking for similar Skullcandy earbuds but with a more comfortable design, check out the Skullcandy Push Active True Wireless.

6.6
Design
Controls
OS Compatibility
Not OS specific
Ease Of Use Good
Feedback Decent
Call/Music Control Yes
Volume Control Yes
Microphone Control No
Channel Mixing
No
Noise Cancelling Control No
Talk-Through
No
Additional Controls Voice Assistant

The Skullcandy Push Ultra’s control scheme is adequate. Controls are mirrored on both buds, so you have complete functionality regardless of the unit you’re interacting with. The two volume buttons are also used for track skipping, with a two-second press on the up or down buttons resulting in track skipping or rewinding, respectively. The large black center cap can be tapped to play and pause music as well as answer calls. A triple tap activates your phone’s voice assistant while a double-tap followed by two-second hold switches between their three EQ presets: “Music”, “Movie”, and “Podcast”. You can tell when you've switched modes via an audible voice notification.

9.1
Design
Portability
L 2.1"
W 1.5"
H 1"
Volume 3.2 in³
Transmitter Required No

The Skullcandy Push Ultra are very portable, though their ear hooks add slightly to their size, especially compared to smaller alternatives like the similarly-named Skullcandy Push Truly Wireless or the Skullcandy Indy Evo Truly Wireless. Unfortunately, their case is very bulky and might be very tricky to put into your pocket.

7.0
Design
Case
Type Hard case
L 3.5"
W 2.9"
H 1.7"
Volume 17.3 in³

These earbuds have a decent charging case that supports wireless charging and should do a good job of protecting them from bumps, drops, and scratches. It’s large but quite well-built overall, though it should be noted that the charging port on the inside of the case has trouble aligning with the buds, so the actual recharging process is a little more finicky than it needs to be.

7.5
Design
Build Quality

The Skullcandy Push Ultra’s build quality is good. The case and buds themselves are made of a silicone-like material that feels like it’ll endure a couple of drops without sustaining damage, though the case’s zipper feels like a potential weak point. They’re also rated IP67 for dust and water resistance, though that isn’t something we test for.

7.5
Design
Stability

The Skullcandy Push Ultra should do a good job of staying in your ear, mostly by virtue of their ear hooks. Due to their shallow in-ear fit and consequent lack of an airtight seal, they’re slightly less secure than the Mpow Flame Pro Truly Wireless.

Design
Headshots 1
Design
Headshots 2
Design
Top
Design
In The Box

  • Skullcandy Push Ultra headphones
  • Charging case
  • USB-C charging cable
  • Manual
  • Quick start guide

Sound
Sound
Sound Profile
Bass Amount
-16.29 dB
Treble Amount
-1.55 dB

The sound profile of the Skullcandy Push Ultra is quite uneven overall. Bass is severely lacking, resulting in a loss of punch and body in most tracks. Mids are mostly accurate, though a slight dip in the range means that vocals might be pushed slightly toward the back of the mix. Treble is also a little uneven, with some missing detail on finer vocals and instrumentation. If you're looking for a bit of added thump and rumble, you should take a look at the Skullcandy Indy Fuel Truly Wireless, which have a better-balanced sound profile.

5.7
Sound
Frequency Response Consistency
Avg. Std. Deviation
1.05 dB

These earbuds have disappointing frequency response consistency performance. It’s tricky to achieve a similar re-seat on separate listening sessions, so you’ll hear sounds in the bass and treble range differently.

Sound
Raw Frequency Response
1.0
Sound
Bass Accuracy
Std. Err.
16.66 dB
Low-Frequency Extension
207.49 Hz
Low-Bass
-30.03 dB
Mid-Bass
-15.24 dB
High-Bass
-4.94 dB

The Skullcandy Push Ultra have awful bass accuracy. It’s heavily underemphasized across the entire range, with very little low, mid, or high bass. Regardless of your preferred musical genre, tracks are lacking thump and body. However, since their bass response is very sensitive to the earbuds’ fit and positioning, you may have a much different listening experience.

7.9
Sound
Mid Accuracy
Std. Err.
2.76 dB
Low-Mid
-0.08 dB
Mid-Mid
-3.12 dB
High-Mid
-1.44 dB

These earbuds have very accurate mids. They sound clear and present, though a dip in the upper mid-mid and lower high-mid range slightly weakens vocals and lead instruments and pushes them toward the back of the mix.

6.8
Sound
Treble Accuracy
Std. Err.
4.29 dB
Low-Treble
-2.84 dB
Mid-Treble
-1.69 dB
High-Treble
-13.4 dB

The treble accuracy of these earbuds is alright. Dips across the low-treble and high-treble range dull some finer details. That said, treble is highly dependent on the earbuds’ positioning, so your experience could vary significantly.

5.9
Sound
Peaks/Dips
Peaks
3.15 dB
Dips
1.52 dB

The Skullcandy Push Ultra have sub-par peaks and dips performance. A bump that extends from the mid-bass to the mid-mid range produces some boominess and clutters vocals and lead instruments. The following dip in the mid-mid range pushes vocals and lead instruments to the back of the mix. Steep peaks in the mid-treble range make some sibilants and details sound piercing and overly sharp.

7.9
Sound
Imaging
Weighted Group Delay
0.2
Weighted Amplitude Mismatch
1.89
Weighted Frequency Mismatch
2.67
Weighted Phase Mismatch
2.86

The Skullcandy Push Ultra’s stereo imaging performance is very good. Their weighted group delay falls beneath the audibility threshold, ensuring a tight bass and transparent treble. While their L/R drivers are well-matched in regards to phase response, some minor amplitude and frequency mismatch are present. This has a very minor impact on their ability to accurately replicate an object’s location in the stereo field and consequently makes for a marginally less immersive listening experience. That said, these results are only valid for our test unit, and your own device may perform very differently.

2.8
Sound
Passive Soundstage
PRTF Accuracy (Std. Dev.)
N/A
PRTF Size (Avg.)
N/A
PRTF Distance
N/A
Openness
9.5
Acoustic Space Excitation
3.1

These earbuds have an awful passive soundstage, similar to any other pair of earbuds that bypass outer ear interaction. It's worth noting that their somewhat loose seal creates a slightly more expansive, open soundstage than other earbuds.

0
Sound
Virtual Soundstage
Head Modeling
No
Speaker Modeling
No
Room Ambience
No
Head Tracking
No
Virtual Surround
No

The Skullcandy Push Ultra don’t have any virtual soundstage features.

7.8
Sound
Weighted Harmonic Distortion
WHD @ 90
0.298
WHD @ 100
0.113

The weighted harmonic distortion of these headphones is very good. Aside from some spikes in the low-bass and high-treble ranges at moderate volumes, most of the frequencies fall within good limits, which should ensure clean and pure audio reproduction.

Sound
Test Settings
Firmware
v3.2.25
Power
On
Connection
Bluetooth 4.2
Codec
SBC, 16-bit, 48kHz
EQ
Default
ANC
No ANC
Tip/Pad
Default
Microphone
Integrated

These are the settings used when testing the Skullcandy Push Ultra. These results are only valid when using this configuration.

Isolation
1.2
Isolation
Noise Isolation
Isolation Audio
Overall Attenuation
-2.68 dB
Noise Cancelling No
Bass
0.17 dB
Mid
0.21 dB
Treble
-8.28 dB

The Skullcandy Push Ultra do an awful job of passively blocking out background noise. The volume of sounds in the bass and mid-range is barely reduced at all, so you’ll hear quite a bit of rumble from bus engines and fellow commuters if you take public transit while wearing them. They perform slightly better when it comes to higher-pitched ambient noise, but not by much. Conversely, their poor noise isolation could be helpful if you're a runner who wants to stay aware of your surroundings.

7.3
Isolation
Leakage
Leakage Audio
Overall Leakage @ 1ft
38.02 dB

The leakage performance of these earbuds is satisfactory. Escaping sound occurs mostly in the treble range and is audible over the noise floor of an average office, which might be annoying for people nearby if you like to listen to your music at high volumes. Consider the Skullcandy Sesh Evo True Wireless if you're looking for a pair of Skullcandy truly wireless in-ears that leak less audio.

Microphone
Microphone
Microphone Style
Integrated
Yes
In-Line
No
Boom
No
Detachable Boom
No
Mic Yes

These earbuds have an integrated mic.

5.2
Microphone
Recording Quality
Recorded Speech
LFE
210.51 Hz
FR Std. Dev.
9.04 dB
HFE
22,988.02 Hz
Weighted THD
1,742.972
Gain
-13.64 dB

The recoding quality of the Skullcandy Push Ultra’s microphone is poor. Those on the other line might hear your voice as sounding thin, muffled, and lacking in detail.

2.9
Microphone
Noise Handling
Speech + Pink Noise
Speech + Subway Noise
SpNR
0.48 dB

The microphone’s noise handling capability is terrible. It struggles quite a bit with isolating speech from even moderate background noise. If you frequently make phone calls in crowded or noisy environments, these probably aren’t the best option available.

Active Features
6.2
Active Features
Battery
Battery Type
Rechargable
Continuous Battery Life
5.1 hrs
Additional Charges
5.7
Total Battery Life
34.2 hrs
Charge Time
0.3 hrs
Power-Saving Feature
No
Audio While Charging
Yes
Passive Playback
No
Charging Port USB-C

These earbuds provide mediocre battery life. They only last a bit over 5 hours on a single charge and lack any energy-saving features like an auto-off timer, which is somewhat disappointing. They charge exceptionally quickly, with a full charge taking under 20 minutes. Their case also holds nearly six additional full charges, which is also quite handy. Their lack of a master bud is another helpful feature since you can listen to one while the other charges in the case.

4.0
Active Features
App Support
App Name Skullcandy
iOS Yes
Android Yes
macOS No
Windows No
Equalizer
No
ANC Control
No
Mic Control No
Room Effects
No
Playback Control
No
Button Mapping No
Surround Support
No

Update 08/05/2020: The Skullcandy Push Ultra's companion app is awful. It has basically no functionality, allowing you only to update the firmware of the headphones and enable the "Find My Earbuds with Tile" feature. It displays the headphones' current EQ preset but doesn't allow you to change it.

Connectivity
6.8
Connectivity
Bluetooth
Bluetooth Version
5.0
Multi-Device Pairing
No
NFC Pairing
No
Line Of Sight Range
161 ft
PC Latency (SBC)
230 ms
PC Latency (aptX)
N/A
PC Latency (aptX HD)
N/A
PC Latency (aptX-LL)
N/A
iOS Latency
114 ms
Android Latency
88 ms

The Skullcandy Push Ultra have decent Bluetooth connectivity. They use Bluetooth 5.0 but don’t support multi-device or NFC pairing and have somewhat high PC latency. However, their audio latency on iOS and Android mobile devices was low enough to stream videos on YouTube without much of a problem. It should be noted that apps compensate for audio lag differently, so you may have a very different experience in your day-to-day usage.

0
Connectivity
Non-Bluetooth Wireless
Non-BT Line Of Sight Range
N/A
Non-BT Latency
N/A

These earbuds are Bluetooth-only and don’t support non-Bluetooth wireless connections.

0
Connectivity
Wired
Analog Audio
No
USB Audio
No
Detachable No
Length N/A
Connection No Wired Option
Analog/USB Audio Latency
N/A

These truly wireless earbuds don’t support wired connections.

Connectivity
PC / PS4 Compatibility
PC/PS4 Analog
No
PC/PS4 Wired USB
No
PC/PS4 Non-BT Wireless
No

The Skullcandy Push Ultra aren’t compatible with PS4 consoles and their latency is too high to recommend them for PC gaming.

Connectivity
Xbox One Compatibility
Xbox One Analog
No
Xbox One Wired USB
No
Xbox One Non-BT Wireless
No

These earbuds’ reliance on Bluetooth connection makes them incompatible with Xbox One consoles.

2.2
Connectivity
Base/Dock
Type
Charging Case
USB Input
No
Line In
No
Line Out
No
Optical Input
No
RCA Input
No
Dock Charging
Yes
Power Supply
USB-C

The Skullcandy Push Ultra come with a case that holds just under six charges. It can be recharged wirelessly or via the included USB-C cable.