The most used button on the headphones, play/pause, is a tiny button wedged between vaolume up and volume down.
The right earpiece already has tap capability – double-tap to activate Alexas (or other). Why not single tap to play/pause? So much easier than ‘feeling in the dark’ for the tiny, sandwiched button and more practical than taking off your headphones or even temporarily muting.
Was this purely a design oversight?
Welcome to the Forum, @noel.s.holmes! 
While “play/pause” is not my most-used Headphones button, and I can usually easily feel that button when I want to use it (maybe not so much if I’m wearing gloves), I really like the idea of using a single-tap on the earcup because that would more closely mimic the single-tap control of the Wyze Buds that I also use. I couldn’t find one single Wishlist topic that addresses this idea alone, but I did find these potentially relevant topics in a quick search:
As with any Wishlist topic, you can visit those to click or tap the Vote button above the initial post and share your ideas and use cases in the comments to show your support for the product and feature request/suggestions that are important to you.
In that second topic, there’s a post from five years ago that suggests the same thing you did:
@Crease - sounds like you’re in the minority! I’m interested – what’s your most used button?
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ChatGPT query: For a set of headphones with the standard buttons – on/off, play/pause, skip fwd, skip back, volume up, volume down – what is, on average the most commonly used button?
Response:
Short answer: Play/Pause is the most commonly used button on standard headphone controls.
Used constantly for:
starting/stopping music
pausing for conversations
quick interruptions (calls, meetings, etc.)
Happens many times per session, not just once
This is the “reflex” button people hit without thinking (my comment – IF they can find it without thinking 
It’s tied to interruptions, not preference
Works across all contexts (music, calls, podcasts)
Often doubles as:
call answer/end
voice assistant trigger (long press)
It’s the only button that’s both high-frequency + universal
Design implication:
Play/Pause should be the easiest, fastest, most tactile control
Volume = second priority
Skip = optional or gesture-based
This is why:
Many premium headphones make Play/Pause:
the largest button
center-positioned
or a single-tap gesture
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The earpiece single-tap would definitely qualify as the easiest, fastest, most tactile control.
Please share with your design team!
- Noel
On the Wyze Headphones, my most used button is Quick Conversation Mode. Since that isn’t really a button, the most used is power on/off. I manage all other features from the device to which the Headphones are connected. Same for standard headphones.
@Seapup took my answer:
My use is mostly podcasts when I’m doing otherwise mindless household chores or when I’m donating platelets. When there are large-bore needles in the antecubital fossæ of both arms for a couple of hours every two weeks or so, there is no headphone button touching, and I intend to remain on good terms with the apheresis phlebotomists.
As a lowly Forum volunteer, I have no design team. Wyze probably does, though, and participating in Wishlist topics is one way to provide Wyze with feedback.
Please note that the Forum is primarily a user-to-user support community with no guarantee that anyone from Wyze will read or reply to a given topic or post. For best potential visibility to Wyze employees, it’s recommended to vote and comment on Wishlist topics that interest you for ideas you’d like to see implemented. If you’re having an issue with a specific app or firmware update, then the relevant announcement topics in Wyze News (and/or Beta if you’ve enrolled in the beta program) are your best bet here for having those issues seen.
On/Off is most used on Wyze headphones? Definitely worth investigating.
And, funny enough, even just after I read your response, my Wyze headphone (@80808080 charge) just powered off!
The ChatGPT response listed all the button in order of use frequency…
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Priority 5) Power — last**
Used once per session
Not part of active listening behavior
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Did a crosscheck with Claude, same query… it’s response…
Play/pause, by a wide margin.
Most listening sessions involve multiple interruptions – someone talks to you, you need to hear something around you, you take them off briefly. Play/pause handles all of that. Volume adjustments are also frequent, but play/pause tends to win because it’s used reactively throughout the day rather than just at the start or when the environment changes.
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Then Google AI - ah! a bit of a discrepancy…
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Common Button Usage Rankings
Based on user habits and interface design priorities, the hierarchy of use generally follows this order:
1. Play/Pause: The “high-traffic” button. Because it is the most used, manufacturers often make it the most tactile, easiest to find, or the largest button on the device. On many modern earbuds, this is the only “single-tap” function.
2. Volume Up/Down: These are the second most used. Users frequently adjust volume to compensate for background noise changes (e.g., walking from a quiet office into a noisy street).
3. Skip Forward: Primarily used by music listeners to find a specific track in a playlist or skip an advertisement in a podcast.
4. On/Off: Typically used only twice per session (start and end). Many modern headphones even automate this via “wear detection” or auto-sleep timers, further reducing manual button presses.
5. Skip Backward: Statistically the least used of the core playback controls. It is often hidden behind a “triple-tap” or a long press, reflecting its lower priority in user experience design.
Wyze Forum +10
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So On/Off may not be in last place for most headphones. A bit perplexing? So, I asked Perplexity…
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Response:
There is no large, rigorous dataset published on this, but the available evidence and design choices point strongly to the play/pause control being the most commonly used button on average.
Many headphone and earbud control schemes are built around a single primary, easy-to-reach button that defaults to play/pause, and only use extra presses/gestures for skip or other functions, implying that play/pause is expected to be used most frequently.
Reviews and usability writeups note that onboard controls are primarily there to let you quickly start/stop playback or answer/end calls, with volume and track-skipping as secondary conveniences.
User discussions and complaints often single out play/pause as the button they hit constantly and expect to be large and easy to find, whereas skip/volume issues are mentioned less.
On/off is typically used only a couple of times per listening session (start and end), so its total presses are far lower than play/pause, which may be tapped many times in the same session.
Volume up/down are important but tend to be adjusted in bursts and then left alone once the level is comfortable, again leading to fewer presses than frequent play/pause toggles.
Skip forward/back are used occasionally when changing tracks or seeking, but they are almost always mapped to double/triple presses or secondary buttons, reflecting less frequent use than the primary play/pause action.
So, over typical daily use, the play/pause button is the one most people press the most.
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…but maybe the Wyze team usage is a bit different? Or maybe the headphones are cycling on/off more that most headphones?.. Worth pondering (researching…fixing…)
I let all of the AIs know that they are hallucinating and corrected them based on what you two have told me.
Please do some reasearch of your own. Maybe I’ve got them straightened out. And be sure and let your other users know that they are hallucinating when they think the product could be improved.
- Noel “Wyze-ass” Holmes.