OnePlus Buds Pro 2 guide

OnePlus Buds Pro 2 Truly Wireless Headphones Review

The OnePlus Buds Pro 2 Truly Wireless are the next generation of the OnePlus Buds Truly Wireless. With this update, the manufacturer has added some handy features that put them on par with competitor products like the Sony LinkBuds S Truly Wireless. Their companion app now offers a graphic EQ and presets so that you can customize them to your liking, and they have a spatial audio feature to create a more immersive sound. They also support multi-device pairing, LHDC codec for streaming Hi-Res audio as well as LC3 codec for high-quality audio with low bit-rate, and their ANC performs better overall than their predecessor.

inally, an Android rival to the AirPods Pro has arrived. OnePlus’s new Buds Pro 2 noise cancelling earbuds are some of the first on the market to support Google’s new spatial audio virtual surround sound tech, giving them a boost in a crowded market.

The earbuds cost £179 and compete directly with the similarly priced Pixel Buds Pro and £249 AirPods Pro, but with the added advantage of having an app for Android and iPhone so they are truly cross-platform.

The Buds Pro 2 have a fairly simple design and are slightly more compact than most rivals, including the AirPods Pro 2, making them light and comfortable to wear for long listening sessions.

The stalks are squeeze-sensitive for playback controls. Squeeze and hold to turn noise cancelling on and off, while taking out an earbud pauses the music. There’s no option for adjusting the volume so you’ll have to reach for the buttons on your phone for that.

The earbuds last up to six hours between charges with noise cancelling turned on, and charge just over three times from the little flip-top case for a total of 25 hours playback. The compact case is nice and pocketable, and charges in 100 minutes via USB-C but also has Qi wireless charging.

The OnePlus Buds Pro 2 are the company's second-generation premium wireless earbuds. The first-generation model was a decent attempt and a good overall product for the $149 asking price but was a letdown in terms of audio quality and noise cancellation.

The Buds Pro 2 promise improvement across the board; better audio quality with a new dual-driver system tuned by Dynaudio, improved adaptive noise cancellation, and improved battery life. The new model also includes spatial audio with head tracking, which is all the rage these days.

All of this comes at a slight premium, with the Buds Pro 2 being priced at $179. This places it closer to the more premium competition from Samsung and especially close to the excellent $199 Sony Linkbuds S, which can often be found for as low as $149. That is some serious competition so let's see if OnePlus' latest offering is up to the task.

The OnePlus Buds Pro 2 are great flagship earbuds at a mid-tier price point. Listeners who don't want to cross that dreaded $200 line can enjoy premium features like an ear tip fit test and multipoint connectivity. Some may find the default sound too bassy, but OnePlus provides the option to adjust the sound through the free HeyMelody app. We think most people will get plenty of use out of these earbuds, which are as comfortable as they are versatile.

OnePlus Buds Pro 2 review: Powerful sound at a reasonable price

BY

TAYLOR KERNS

PUBLISHED FEB 7, 2023

Not a huge upgrade, but the OnePlus Buds Pro 2 are easy to like

OnePlus has largely shed the flagship killer ethos that once made its phones so appealing to Android enthusiasts, but that spirit lives on in its earbuds. Announced alongside the OnePlus 11, the OnePlus Buds Pro 2 offer robust audio and killer call quality for an upper-midrange price of $179. Their ANC and battery life is only average for this price point, but these earbuds still offer great value.

Ever since OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei left the company to form Nothing, OnePlus has struggled to find its stride.