When OnePlus announced the Buds 3 at the Smooth Beyond Belief launch event, I was a tad bit confused. From the Buds Pro to Buds Pro 2, I was expecting the brand to come out with the Buds Pro 3. The OnePlus Buds 3 are priced significantly lower than the Buds Pro 2. That confused me further as to whether the Buds 3 were premium or not. But now, the confusion has been laid to rest, as I have figured out what the OnePlus Buds 3 are and what OnePlus was thinking when it decided to bring this product to India.
Let's jump into the full-length review, starting with the design.
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OnePlus Buds 3 Review: Design
The design of the OnePlus Buds 3 is actually very similar to the Buds Pro 2. However, there are a few differences. Firstly, the Buds 3 is available in a fresh 'Blue' colour. I will prefer black over blue simply because black for me is more classy. If you have the OnePlus 12R in the blue variant, then going for the blue earbuds may be a good option for you to create a colour-matching accessory for your device.
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The charging case of the Buds 3 is pretty similar to the Buds Pro series from OnePlus. The pairing or unpairing button is inside the case, and the charging port is on the back. It is pretty easy to open the lid and the earbuds are placed quite beautifully inside.
Then the design of the earbuds is also close to what you saw with the Buds Pro 2. I love the fit it has because of the design. Whether I am at the gym, walking, or just lying on the bed, I don't worry about the earbuds falling from my ears. The earbuds have a semi-chrome finish, which I oddly like. It gives it a more premium feeling.
The Buds 3 from OnePlus are pretty light, weighing around 40.8 grams overall, with each earbud weighing 4.8 grams.
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Rating - 10/10
OnePlus Buds 3 Review: Battery
In the battery department, the OnePlus Buds 3 are amazing. I barely charge them once or twice a week, and get through my videos, music, and podcasts without any trouble. The charging case has a 520mAh battery, which is quite large (believe me), and each of the earbuds have a 58mAh battery capacity.
With ANC (active noise cancellation) switched off, I can get about 8-10 hours of playback on each of the buds, while with the case combined, that becomes about 44 hours. So once or twice a week is enough for you to charge it. There's both transparency mode and ANC mode, so when you switch either of them on for some time or all the time, the battery performance goes down a little. But it isn't a drastic change, and you can still get a great experience.
I kept the settings of my earphone switched to LHDC mode, where you get the best quality transmission of the audio. So the battery drains faster in this mode. But you can always change that through the settings and set a mode according to your preference. There's fast-charging support through the Type-C port present in the charging case.
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Rating - 9/10
OnePlus Buds 3 Review: Sound Quality
The sound quality stood out for me. I kept the sound transmission in the highest quality, which is LHDC. It supports Bluetooth 5.3 connectivity, and can support smooth connectivity up to 10 meters distance.
The first thing that I did as I put the Buds 3 to test was open up Oppenheimer on my device and watch the entire movie. After the movie was done, I was more than convinced that at this price range, there's no other earphone that will be able to deliver the sound experience that Buds 3 does.
While the Buds 3 are geared towards users who love heavy bass, it is the kind of bass that's more clear and refined, that's definitely going to please your ears. I don't interfere much with the EQ (equaliser) settings as I am not an expert in curating the best sound experience, thus, I go with the default modes that are present and keep switching between them to get the best output.
Being on calls is also a great experience with the Buds 3. Noone I talked to wearing the Buds 3 complained that they heard a disturbance in my sound or could hear the background noise a lot. There are a lot of things (in the settings department) you can play with if you have the Buds 3, but I would generally recommend you not to touch any setting you don't understand.
Rating - 9/10
OnePlus Buds 3 Review: Overall Performance, App and Features
OnePlus Buds 3 are great in the performance department. Whether it is the sound or the battery, both are excellent. The features of the OnePlus Buds 3 actually are amazing! There's OnePlus Audio ID 2.0 with the Buds 3, which will give you a more personalised sound experience. You need to tap twice to get to the next song, tap thrice to go to the previous song, tap and hold 3 seconds to reject a call, and press and hold to switch noise cancellation or transparency mode.
You can just slide the finger up to increase the volume and slide the finger down to decrease the volume. There are 10.4mm woofers + 6mm tweeter dual drivers. It can support up to 49db Smart Adaptive noise cancellation. The best thing is that it also supports dual-connection, which I love because I am constantly switching between my smartphones for different work and calls.
Talking about the app of the OnePlus Buds 3, you don't need any app if you have a OnePlus phone. You can just access all of the settings through the Bluetooth listing.
But for other phones and iPhone, you will have to download the HeyMelody app and pair it through that. You can create Audio ID, and do more with the HeyMelody app when it comes to changing settings. The app will also help you in updating the firmware of the earbuds.
Rating - 9/10
OnePlus Buds 3 Review: Price and Conclusion
The OnePlus Buds 3 are priced at Rs 5,499. They are still new in the market, and you can get it from offline retail channels as well as Amazon and the official OnePlus India website. It is available in Splendid Blue and Metallic Gray colour options. You can get instant bank discounts along with further discount using the Red Cable Club membership. It comes with a warranty of one year, and the best thing is that it is not superficially priced.
You are getting a premium sound experience with very stylish and modern earbuds at a very affordable cost. You can't ask for more.
