Last Updated on July 9, 2023
This post contains affiliate links. Joshua also contributed to this post.
Headphones and earbuds feel like essentials these days. Whether they’re for work, school, or for scrolling through YouTube, you’ll need at least one pair in the house.
Aldi has sold headphones in the past, both for adults and kids. Now, the grocer is back selling a new line of licensed headphones.
The KIDdesigns Kid’s Character headphones are an Aldi Find, meaning they are only in stores for a limited time and once they’re gone, they’re gone. Aldi doesn’t ship products online, either, so if you can’t find these in stores, you won’t be able to get them.
The headphones sell for $12.99, which is a good deal considering the kids’ licensed headphones on Amazon range for $15 to more than $30 in some cases.
Aldi carried four different design choices: Jurassic World, Spider-Man, Rainbow High, and Disney Princesses. I decided to try out the Rainbow High headphones. We can’t currently find these specific headphones anywhere else, so right now at least they appear an Aldi exclusive.
According to the box, the headphones are distributed by a company called Tech2Go out of El Paso, TX. When we Googled the address, it was shown as SDI Technologies, which also distributes eKids headphones. Aldi has sold eKids headphones in the past that included Minnie Mouse and Star Wars, and those headphones are a lot like these. It’s all a bit confusing, but KIDesigns may be an SDI brand, or a brand SDI helps distribute. Either way, this company is, among other things, in the kids’ headphones business.
These headphones are pretty straightforward to use. They connect with a standard 3.5mm jack. There are no controls of any kind on the headphones; if you need volume control, you’ll have to do it on your device. There is also no microphone.
I am in no way part of the targeted age group, but I did end up pleasantly surprised with the fit. The headband is adjustable, and unlike some kids’ headphones, these will fit a larger head. I figured I would need it to be on the longest setting, but that wasn’t the case for once. They fit me fine around the middle adjustment setting. The foam around the ears is still small, so they aren’t super comfortable to wear for long periods of time, but they did more than I thought they would.
The headphones advertise that they have kid-friendly volume to protect hearing. That feels like an understatement. The sound is so low that for it to be remotely near my normal volume, I have to turn it up as far as it will go. I understand this is for kids’ protection, since they may not be aware of when the volume is too loud, but it’s still not my favorite feature.
The sound quality, meanwhile, is merely so-so. I have a pair of Sony headphones that I’ve had for a couple years, and they have superior sound quality and are cheaper, too. So as always, you know you’re paying for the licensed characters and not for deep sound quality.
The Verdict:
The KIDdesigns kid’s character headphones aren’t a bad choice if you’re looking for cheap headphones for children. They fit well, and the volume control might not bother kids as much. The sound quality is about what you expect. Worth a look if you have a young kid who wants licensed headphones.
