Generally speaking, true wireless earbuds have a primary – or master – earbud which acts as a bridge between the audio source and the secondary earbud. In addition to managing the connection between the two earbuds and the audio source, the primary earbud works to compensate for any audio delay – also known as latency – that can occur between earbuds during transmission.

To reduce latency, the two earbuds send information between themselves and calculate how long this process takes. Once this timeframe has been calculated, the earbuds understand how long the process should take which allows the master bud to compensate for any latency and ensures the earbuds remain synced to each other and to the source device. It’s important to note that latency can be strongly affected by environment, such as crowded or built-up areas, which can cause brief interruptions while listening to music or having a conversation.

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