OnePlus has become one of the biggest tech brands in India. It has launched successful products one after another. A few years back, it diversified its product line by offering the first-ever OnePlus earphones. They were Bluetooth but not wholly wireless. As OnePlus always does, it listened to its customers’ demand and introduced the first-ever TWS earphones, aka, the OnePlus Buds. The OnePlus Buds was launched alongside the OnePlus Nord, and it was interesting to see the colour options OnePlus went with for this particular product. We have seen a lot of brands launching TWS products in the last six-eight months and OnePlus isn't missing out on this train as well. One of the biggest questions that people want the answer for is, how is it actually in performance, especially considering its price point of Rs 4,990. Keep reading ahead to find out our review of the product.
OnePlus Buds Review: Design and Fit
Design of the OnePlus Buds grows on you the more you use it. Especially its Nord Blue colour variant, it is beautiful to look at. The charging case isn’t too different from all the other cases out there, but it does have the colour option of Nord Blue, which makes it unique and cool in a way. No other Buds in the market come with the same colour option. It helps the consumer to stand apart from the crowd without making them look awkward.
One of the good things about the charging case is that it weighs at only 37 grams and each of the buds weighs 4.7 grams. The case comes with a matte finish and it makes it easy for the user to get a grip on it. The charging case is very handy, and anyone can very comfortably put them in their pockets. There is a button on the Charging case and it also has a USB Type-C port for charging. OnePlus isn’t providing customers with wireless charging on this one, but that’s alright, not a lot of people would even expect it is looking at the price of it. But its close competitor- Realme Buds is offering wireless charging which is a thing to worry for OnePlus.
But OnePlus doesn’t stop to impress the customer with its unique colour just outside on the case and the buds. Once you open the charging case, you will notice a dual colour scheme which the charging case comes with. There is a light green colour scheme running inside the case. The earbuds placed inside look very elegant and are a sight for the eyes.
One thing that we would agree upon is that the OnePlus Buds do resemble the design of Apple AirPods, but you should know that there is a huge difference in the design for the product from the inside. Unlike AirPods, the OnePlus Buds come with physical buttons which are on the flat surface of the upper end of the stem.
In terms of fitting, if you have an average-sized year, you should have absolutely no problems with the fitting of OnePlus Buds in your ears. One thing that you should remember is that OnePlus is not offering additional silicon tips with the Buds, so there is no scope of improving the fitting for your ears if it doesn’t fit well for you. But again, for an average-sized ear, these Buds are just fine for fitting. You can walk comfortable wearing them and listen to songs for long hours, and you won’t face any problem with the Buds falling off or sliding down in any way.
OnePlus Buds Review: Connectivity, Audio and Battery Life
One of the most crucial factors that people consider before they purchase new TWS earbuds after its price is the battery and then performance. Without a good battery backup, even a good TWS earphone is useless. What would be the use of the earphone if you get the hindrance of battery every time you are listening to your favourite songs or watching the climax of a movie.
With the OnePlus Buds, you are bound to get excellent battery life. The Chinese tech giant has claimed that a user can run it for up to 7 hours which is not bad. Combined with the charging case, the customer can use it for up to 23 hours maximum, again, which is a decent number of hours. These claims are entirely accurate from the company, and along with that, there is a fast charging option available as well. The Buds can be charged fully in about 80 minutes.
As for the performance part of the OnePlus Buds. One thing that OnePlus always does is put a lot of focus on the software side of its products. The OnePlus Buds come with Google’s Fast Pair feature, which is a huge bonus to the customers since they will be able to connect their Buds with their smartphone in a go. But it works best if you use it with OxygenOS. However, I did notice some frequent connection drops while using the Buds with OnePlus Nord. Also, the audio randomly pauses on YouTube Music and it resumes automatically.
The sound experience is entirely satisfactory, as well. For the price that you get these TWS earbuds for, you get a very balanced sound experience. If you love strong bass on your songs, maybe then these earbuds aren’t the perfect fit for you. The mids and lows are handled by the OnePlus Buds quite smoothly, and they are suitable for hearing every day Bollywood and Hollywood songs. There is 13.4mm driver insider the OnePlus Buds which should feel good to you as well.
One feature that you are going to cherish about these earphones if you are a gamer is the low-latency gaming. With Bluetooth earphones, people generally face latency, which means desynchronisation of sound and the game. It is frustrating, but with the OnePlus Buds, you don’t have to worry about it. I have played PUBG Mobile on the OnePlus Nord with OnePlus Buds as the audio source and there was no latency. Even the OnePlus Bullets Wireless Z and OnePlus Nord had zero latency while playing PUBG Mobile. Latency is something that's worrying a lot of users as people are looking to play PUBG Mobile via their Bluetooth earphones. Thankfully, the 2020 OnePlus audio products are offering low latency than any other company.
There is one thing though which OnePlus misses out on, and it is the ANC (Active Noise Cancellation). However, you do get the Environmental Noise Cancellation feature which will allow you to listen to what the speaker is saying clearly while you are in a call.
OnePlus Buds Review: Price and Verdict
OnePlus is offering the OnePlus Buds for Rs 4,990. While it is not very expensive in terms of other flagship TWS earphones from companies such as Samsung and Apple, it still offers a ton of value. If you are looking for a good and safe bet for your money, OnePlus Buds are what you can go for. There are more options for you from Realme and Xiaomi that you can look at and yes they are cheaper. Still, OnePlus does have the edge over them, not just in colour options but also in performance especially the battery life. So it would be best if you considered giving OnePlus Buds a consideration before you go out for purchasing your next TWS earphones.
