premium earbuds with good value for money

Huawei has been positively surprising us for a few years now with its earplugs. After a somewhat far-reaching red edition in the form of a lipstick, the company now comes with earplugs in a more normal case. However, that case is negligible: it is of course about the earbuds themselves, the comfort, the sound and the noise canceling capabilities. In this review you can read how Huawei is doing in those important areas, in addition to, of course, battery performance.

Design and operation

Huawei FreeBuds Pro 2 are again very similar in design to the earbuds from Apple. Not only because of their white color, but also because of their case with silver-colored detail and the brush head-like appearance of the earbuds. It’s a modern design, but not terribly exciting. Fortunately, Huawei has done something that makes the earplugs appear a bit more luxurious and slightly different, namely a slightly wider side with the Huawei logo on it and a silver edge.

The earphones are also IP54 splash-proof, so they can withstand rain and sweat.

Don’t tap, just squeeze

However, it immediately becomes a bit strange here, because where you are probably used to controlling earplugs on that side, it is all slightly different with the FreeBuds Pro 2. Although the side is just that wide, this is not what you use to control the earbuds with. Strangely enough you do that with the side of the side. Moreover, you do not make a tapping movement here, but a pinching movement.

That has its advantages and its disadvantages. First of all, it’s handy that people with long hair (but also think of hoods or scarves) don’t always accidentally tap their hair against the side and put their music on pause. With the tapping, it is often the question whether the touch has come through properly. Squeezing therefore seems to be a good alternative, but in practice it is a bit of a hassle.

If you sit on the couch with your phone in your hand and look at the instructions, you will be able to squeeze. However, if you are on your bike, it all seems to work less smoothly. Maybe you can’t do it with your hand as well touch point find. Also, it looks a bit cheesy, like you’re playing Hints and trying to announce a “Sounds Like” situation. Sometimes you’re really fiddling for minutes. There is also a difference between one squeeze, two squeezes and then there is also the option to hold longer, in addition to the option to raise or lower your finger for the volume.

I really don’t have coal shovels or huge sweaty hands and yet I regularly had problems steering the earplugs properly. As happy as I am that my hair isn’t a problem this time, I did listen to music on some bike rides that I don’t necessarily think is fantastic because skipping a song while cycling was not very successful. Incidentally, I was glad that there is not much whistling on the bike: despite the fact that these earplugs do protrude a bit from your ear, they are well shaped to work fine on the bike.

Noise Reduction and Sound

You can also turn on noise cancellation and it works well. It’s not perfect: even at the most extreme setting of the noise reduction, you still hear some sound, but it is certainly dampened considerably. You can also set the earbuds to an awareness mode so that you can still hear some of your ambient noise. That is, for example – there he is again – an advantage on a bicycle, so that you are a little more aware of other traffic (although you still have to pay extra attention, because electric cars are of course very quiet).

Then the sound quality, because that’s what people mainly buy earphones for. Listening to music is very good on the Huawei FreeBuds Pro 2. Whether you listen to the pop-dance song Break my Soul by Beyoncé or some heavier guitar work by the Foo Fighters: these earplugs know what to do with it. I decided to test the different modes of the earbuds with the very low Still Your Best from RnB talent Giveon. The difference between the different sound effects (bass boost, treble boost, voices) is not very big. Those 11mm drivers do a great job of making the music sound.

I do notice that the voice is a bit shriller when the tones are amplified and that is quite clever with the deep sound of Giveon. Not that the earplugs are otherwise very shrill: they can actually produce the best bass. Normally I’m usually the person who turns on the bass or the vocals, but in this case I liked the standard mode best, thanks to the French audiophiles at Davialet. Unfortunately, Spotify still doesn’t offer it, but the earbuds support LDAC Hi-Res audio. They even polish your audio experience a bit, making it sound like a small orchestra is in your ear when you’re listening to music. Or if you watch Netflix, for example, gunshots and roaring engines also come across well.

In terms of audio, you have little to complain about, unless you are someone who really wants complete silence with noise reduction: then you need other earplugs. However, there are more things in which these audio gadgets from Huawei are disappointing. The battery life definitely leaves something to be desired. In a few hours, the lifespan per earplug decreases if you have noise cancellation on. In short: if you are in a busy office garden, you will really have to spend your well-deserved lunch break without earplugs, so that you can recharge them before noon. Unfortunately, you probably won’t make it to the end of the afternoon, because after three hours the earbuds are dangerously low in battery. In any case, they do not make the four hours with ANC (active noise cancellation) on.

Battery life

The battery may also deteriorate a bit faster because the Bluetooth performance is a bit weak. It seems that the earbuds have to work very hard to keep in touch with your smartphone. Sometimes you hear a hiccup, but even if you walk away from your smartphone with your earplugs in your ears, it will soon lose its signal. So always keep your phone close to you if you want to use these earbuds optimally.

AI Life App

In any case, it is handy, because you have installed the AI ​​Life app with which you can choose the different settings of the earbuds. You can even have a test done to check whether you are using the right size silicone for your earplugs. However, the AI ​​Life app also has a drawback: you first have to download the Huawei App Gallery for it if you want to use the latest version of the AI ​​Life app (spoiler: you need it to find these brand new in-ears). ). You do not necessarily have to have that app: you can also pair the earbuds with your smartphone and use them without that app.

You have to put these earbuds back in their case regularly and luckily that is quite easy. You also get nice magnetic feedback from the case and so you know that they are sturdy and good. The earplugs also work with sensors, so that the music is immediately paused when you take them out of your ears, but also resumes when you put them back in your ears.

Very nice, because it often happens that you take your earplug out of your ear in a store to have a conversation with someone. You then want to put the earplug back in your ear and the music immediately resumes when you leave satisfied and well with your groceries. These earplugs are perfect for that: the sensors work extremely well and you can also listen with one earplug.

Conclusion

Huawei FreeBuds Pro 2 also do the most important thing well: the sound quality is good and the noise cancellation is okay. It is, however, a bit annoying that the control apparently listens very closely and looks a bit dull, in addition to the fact that the earplugs regularly have to go back in their cocoon because the battery life is not very long. It is useful to use the earbuds with their matching app, because you learn to deal with the in-ears a little better (and you can use extra audio settings). We fully understand why Huawei calls these its premium earbuds, because that’s what they look and certainly feel like. But, above all, that’s what they sound like, and that’s what it’s all about in the end. Whether you’re watching Disney+, listening to music or making a phone call: these earbuds give you all the freedom to do it to your heart’s content.

Buy Huawei FreeBuds Pro 2

The Huawei FreeBuds Pro 2 are available in the colors Silver Frost, Ceramic White and Silver Blue for a suggested retail price of €199.99. You will temporarily receive a Huawei Band 7 worth 59.99 euros for free.