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Irish Mirror

Lifestyle

Mark Kavanagh

OnePlus Buds Pro 2: Excellent sound quality and battery life

OnePlus Apple ANC Android Google Oppo QI (Organization)

I’ve been using OnePlus Buds Pro 2 for a few weeks now.

They are the first Android buds to offer a Spatial Audio style experience, they are Hi-Res audio certified and they come with a custom EQ created by legendary composer Hans Zimmer.

The buds look and feel like the first gen model, which is no bad thing.

They have a sleek, rounded design with an attractive finish that blends a glossy metallic stem with a matte plastic top half.

It gives them a premium look that differs from similarly shaped competitors’ earphones.

My review model was the black colour, but you can also buy them in a dark green option.

The buds are lightweight at less than 5g but their charging case is relatively large. The latter is only IPX4 rated for splash resistance, but the buds are IP55 rated for dust and water resistance.

They come with three pairs of silicone eartips and I would encourage you to try them all out to ensure you get the most secure in-ear fit.

ANC

These are €179 buds, so I didn’t expect the active noise cancellation to be as good as the market leading ANC earphones which all cost about €100 more.

And to be clear, they do not shut out as much as the market leading buds for ANC from Bose, Apple and Sony.

But I took them on two transatlantic flights, and they still shut out enough noise for me to wear them for a couple of hours and be pleased.

Audio

What I’m a big fan of is the superb audio these buds deliver – I’d guess some of that is down to Dynaudio, the firm which previously worked similar magic on the Oppo Enco X buds.

The earbuds are compatible with Bluetooth 5.3 and support the AAC, SBC and LC3 codecs. The latter is the successor to SBC.

Each bud houses both an 11mm for bass and a 6mm driver for high-end frequencies. They combine most effectively.

Music sounds warm, full-bodied and bass-driven without being too bass-heavy.

I listened to a range of music genres from many eras and was consistently pleased with the results.

Instrument separation is superb, and the soundstage is wide.

You get support for the low-latency codec LHDC – which offers lower latency for gaming than LDAC – but you need to pair the buds with a phone that supports this Hi-Res audio certified codec such as OnePlus 11 or Oppo Find X5 Pro.

Spatial audio

The earbuds are among the first on the market to support Google’s new implementation of spatial audio virtual surround sound, which is built in to Android 13.

It works in a similar way to Apple’s implementation for AirPods with the iPhone.

It produces a more immersive, cinematic-like experience on the go, but bear in mind lots of music still sounds better in stereo.

But it works very well for movies with Dolby Atmos style compatible soundtracks.

OnePlus Buds Pro 2 have sensors that can track the position of your head in relation to your phone.

This enables the centre channel of the movie or TV show to always sounds like it’s coming from the screen.

Controls

The buds pair with the Hey Melody app (available for iOS and Android) and sport on-bud gesture controls for all the basic functions but unfortunately not for volume tweaking.

Unique features on the app include a personalised noise cancellation test, an ear tip fit test and a Golden Sound test to create an EQ balance to suit your individual needs.

This can be useful if you struggle with some high or low frequencies, but for most people the default EQ setting will suffice.

Incidentally, if you are using the Buds Pro 2 with a OnePlus phone, there is no need to use the accompanying app. All the features you need are easily accessed in the phone’s Bluetooth settings.

The buds have Google Fast Pair support too – they will quickly pair with any Android phone.

Battery life

The only thing I dislike about these buds is the rather large case, but I concede that’s nit-picking.

The case size does ensure you get a total of 25 hours of battery life with ANC on and 39 hours with ANC off.

That works out at close to an impressive ten hours form a single charge with no ANC or about six hours when using the noise cancellation.

However, do note that if you also use the higher quality LHDC codec then the battery life is impacted.

If wireless charging is important to you, then you’ll be happy as Buds Pro 2 support Qi wireless charging.

Verdict

OnePlus Buds Pro 2 are easy to recommend as a full-featured set of true-wireless earphones that deliver great value for money.

The dual-driver system gives you great sound and their noise-cancelling ability is effective even though it’s not the most impactful on the block.

Pricing

OnePlus Buds Pro 2 are on sale for €179.

Key specs

Earbud dimensions: 24.3 x 20.9 x 32.2mm
Earbud weight: 4.9g each
Charging case dimensions: 61 x 50 x 25.4mm
Charging case weight: 47.3g
Driver size: 11mm, 6mm
Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.3, SBC, AAC, LC3, LHDC
Battery life: with ANC 6h earbud, 25h with case (9/39h ANC off)
Case charging: USB-C, Qi wireless charging
Water resistance: earbuds IP55 (sweat resistant); case IPX4