OnePlus Buds 3 Review: New Earbuds Take Aim at AirPods

As you navigate the crowded wireless earbud market, OnePlus aims to catch your attention with its latest offering. The OnePlus Buds 3 enter the arena with lofty ambitions, setting their sights squarely on industry leaders like the AirPods Pro. But can these newcomers truly compete with Apple’s popular earbuds? In this review, you’ll discover how the OnePlus Buds 3 stack up in terms of sound quality, comfort, and features. We’ll explore whether these earbuds deliver on their promises and if they’re worthy of a spot in your tech arsenal. Join us as we put the OnePlus Buds 3 through their paces and help you decide if they’re your next audio upgrade. OnePlus Buds 3 Review: New Earbuds Take Aim at AirPods

Introduction to the OnePlus Buds 3

Affordable True Wireless Earbuds

The OnePlus Buds 3 are the latest addition to OnePlus’ lineup of affordable true wireless earbuds. Officially introduced in China, these earbuds aim to deliver a premium audio experience at a wallet-friendly price point.

Dual Driver Design

One of the standout features of the OnePlus Buds 3 is their dual driver design. Each earbud houses a 10.4mm woofer and a 6mm tweeter, delivering deep bass and crisp highs. This combination, enhanced by OnePlus’ BassWave technology, promises a rich and immersive audio experience.

Noise Cancellation and Ambient Sound

The earbuds are equipped with active noise cancellation (ANC) capable of reducing ambient noise by up to 49dB. An intelligent ANC mode adjusts the noise cancellation level based on your surroundings, ensuring you can enjoy your music without distractions. Additionally, a transparency mode lets you hear important sounds from your environment when needed.

Comfortable and Durable Design

With each earbud weighing less than 10 grams and featuring a glossy finish, the OnePlus Buds 3 are designed for comfortable, long-lasting wear. They are IP55 certified for dust and water resistance, making them suitable for use during workouts or in light rain.

Extended Battery Life

The OnePlus Buds 3 come with a charging case that houses a 520mAh battery. Each earbud has a 58mAh battery, providing up to 10 hours of playback with ANC off or 6.5 hours with ANC on. The charging case extends the total playback time, ensuring you can enjoy your music for extended periods without worrying about running out of battery.

Personalized Audio Experience

With the OnePlus Audio ID 2.0 feature, you can create custom sound profiles tailored to your individual hearing. This personalized audio experience ensures that you get the most out of your music, regardless of your listening preferences or hearing characteristics.

Design and Comfort of the OnePlus Buds 3

Sleek and Ergonomic Style

The OnePlus Buds 3 boast a sleek, ergonomic design that prioritizes both style and comfort. Available in two eye-catching colorways – Metallic Gray and Splendid Blue – these earbuds feature a blended metallic and matte finish that subtly plays with light and shadow, creating a premium look. According to the official OnePlus website, the earbuds weigh a mere 4.8g each, ensuring a lightweight and comfortable fit for extended listening sessions.

Customizable Comfort

To ensure a snug and personalized fit, the OnePlus Buds 3 come with three different sizes of silicone ear tips. This variety allows users to find the perfect fit, maximizing comfort and minimizing the risk of the earbuds falling out during workouts or other activities. As noted by PhoneArena’s review, the earbuds fit effortlessly into the ear without adding pressure, promising extreme comfort even during prolonged use.

Intuitive Controls

In addition to their sleek design, the OnePlus Buds 3 offer intuitive controls for seamless usability. According to PCMag’s review, volume can be adjusted by sliding a finger up or down on the earbuds’ stems, providing a convenient way to control audio levels without reaching for your device.

Durable and Water-Resistant

Designed for an active lifestyle, the OnePlus Buds 3 boast an IP55 water and dust resistance rating. This rating ensures protection against rain and sweat, allowing users to enjoy their audio experience worry-free during workouts or outdoor activities. As Scarbir’s review highlights, the earbuds’ waterproof rating, combined with their comfortable fit, makes them an ideal choice for fitness enthusiasts.

With their sleek and ergonomic design, customizable comfort options, intuitive controls, and durable water-resistant construction, the OnePlus Buds 3 offer a compelling blend of style, functionality, and convenience for discerning audio enthusiasts.

Sound Quality and Active Noise Cancelation

Powerful Acoustic Drivers

The OnePlus Buds 3 are engineered to deliver an immersive audio experience, thanks to their dual dynamic drivers. Each earbud houses a 10.4mm woofer and a 6mm tweeter, resulting in rich, thumping bass and crisp, detailed highs. This combination ensures that every note, vocal, and instrument is reproduced with exceptional clarity and depth, allowing you to fully appreciate the nuances in your favorite tracks.

Elevated Audio Performance

To further enhance the sound quality, the earbuds incorporate BassWave technology, which adds depth and vibrancy to the low-end frequencies, creating a more engaging and satisfying listening experience. Moreover, the Buds 3 are Hi-Res Audio certified, enabling them to transmit high-resolution audio data through the LHDC 5.0 codec at an impressive 96KHz/24-bit sample rate and 1Mbps bit rate. This results in natural, studio-quality sound that faithfully reproduces every intricate detail.

Personalized Audio Tuning

Recognizing that everyone’s hearing is unique, OnePlus has introduced the OnePlus Audio ID 2.0 feature. This innovative technology creates a personalized audio profile tailored to your individual hearing characteristics, ensuring that the sound is optimized specifically for your ears. By analyzing your ear canal shape and adjusting the audio output accordingly, the Buds 3 deliver a truly customized listening experience.

Effective Noise Cancellation

In addition to exceptional sound quality, the OnePlus Buds 3 offer advanced active noise cancellation (ANC) capabilities. Their ANC technology can reduce ambient noise by up to 49dB, with an adaptive noise cancellation range of 4000Hz. This level of noise reduction allows you to immerse yourself in your music or content without being disturbed by external sounds, whether you’re commuting, working, or simply seeking a peaceful escape.

Clear Voice Capture

For crystal-clear calls, the earbuds are equipped with three microphones and wind-noise reduction technology. This feature ensures that your voice is transmitted clearly, even in windy or noisy environments, by effectively reducing background noise and wind sounds. Whether you’re on a business call or catching up with friends, the Buds 3 deliver a seamless and uninterrupted communication experience.
Battery Life and Connectivity

Long-Lasting Power

The OnePlus Buds 3 boast an impressive battery life that keeps you immersed in your audio experience. With ANC turned off, these earbuds deliver up to 10 hours of playtime on a single charge, reaching an impressive 44 hours when combined with the charging case. Even with ANC activated, you can enjoy up to 6.5 hours of uninterrupted listening or calls, with the case providing an additional 28 hours of power.

Charging is a breeze, thanks to the USB-C port on the case. A quick 10-minute charge gives you up to 2 hours of playtime on the earbuds alone, or a remarkable 7 hours when using the case. This fast-charging capability ensures you’re never left without your favorite tunes or crucial calls.

Seamless Connectivity

Equipped with Bluetooth 5.3, the OnePlus Buds 3 offer a stable and reliable connection, allowing you to jam to music and make calls without interruptions caused by shaky connections. With a transmission range of up to 10m, you can move freely while maintaining a strong audio link.

Multitaskers will appreciate the earbuds’ ability to connect to two devices simultaneously, enabling seamless switching between your phone, laptop, or tablet. This multipoint connectivity feature ensures you never miss a beat, whether you’re streaming a movie on your tablet or taking a call on your phone.

Low-Latency Gaming

For gamers and multimedia enthusiasts, the OnePlus Buds 3 deliver a game-winning low latency of 94ms, ensuring audio remains clear, smooth, and stable, whether you’re gaming or listening to music. This exceptional responsiveness, combined with the earbuds’ robust connectivity, creates an immersive and uninterrupted audio experience.

Verdict: How the OnePlus Buds 3 Compare to AirPods Pro

Sound Performance

While the OnePlus Buds 3 have smaller 6mm drivers compared to 11mm on the AirPods Pro, they still offer a rich audio experience. With customizable EQ settings, you can fine- tune the sound to your preference. The AirPods Pro, on the other hand, provide balanced and immersive audio with Apple’s spatial audio technology.

Design and Comfort

The OnePlus Buds 3 boast an IP55 dust/water resistance rating, making them more durable for workouts or outdoor use compared to the IPX4-rated AirPods Pro. However, the AirPods Pro offer customizable silicone tips for a secure and comfortable fit, whereas the OnePlus Buds 3 come with fixed eartips.

Battery Life and Charging

In terms of battery life, the OnePlus Buds 3 clearly outperform with up to 10 hours of playback on a single charge, compared to just 5 hours on the AirPods Pro. The Buds 3 also have a longer total battery life of 34 hours with the charging case, versus 19.5 hours for the AirPods Pro case. However, the AirPods Pro charge faster at just 0.5 hours versus 1.5 hours for the Buds 3.

Call Quality and Connectivity

With 6 microphones compared to 4 on the AirPods Pro, the OnePlus Buds 3 excel at noise cancellation during calls. They also support the latest Bluetooth 5.3 for improved connectivity. However, the AirPods Pro offer seamless integration with Apple devices and additional features like ambient sound mode.

Value Proposition

Priced at just $99, the OnePlus Buds 3 offer tremendous value compared to the $249 AirPods Pro 2. While the AirPods Pro provide a more premium experience overall, the Buds 3 are an excellent budget alternative with impressive features like long battery life, water resistance, and effective noise cancellation.

Conclusion

As you consider your next wireless earbud purchase, the OnePlus Buds 3 deserve serious consideration. While not perfect, they offer an impressive combination of sound quality, comfort, and features at a competitive price point. The improved active noise cancellation and spatial audio bring them closer to premium offerings, though some refinements are still needed. For Android users especially, these earbuds provide excellent integration and a user-friendly experience. Whether you’re a longtime OnePlus fan or simply in the market for capable wireless earbuds, the Buds 3 strike a compelling balance of performance and value that’s hard to ignore in today’s crowded audio landscape.

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