The market for True Wireless headphones is quite large. Each brand produces its headphones generally, but fewer brands create “Pro” versions with active noise reduction. The OnePlus Buds Pro is the manufacturer’s new active noise-canceling headphones and the first. They offer active noise reduction as well as a transparency mode, admittedly like all other Bluetooth headphones of this type, but let’s see what it does.
| PROS | CONS |
| Lightweight, comfortable design | Mediocre microphone quality |
| Solid battery backup | No EQ adjustments in-app |
| Wireless charging and IP55 rating | |
| Powerful ANC |
General
| OnePlus Buds Pro | |
| Brand | OnePlus |
| Type | In-Ear |
| Colors | Matte Black, Glossy White |
| Battery life | Up to 38 hours |
| Weight | 4.35 g |
| Connectivity | Wireless, Wired |
The positive point for Bluetooth headphones, they weigh only 4.4 grams each, which is quite light.
As for the comfort, after about 2 or 3 hours, you start to feel them in the ears and be a little embarrassed. Otherwise, no feeling of discomfort enters the front ears, and it will depend on the person.
It is also possible to control your music or various actions directly through the headphones. For that, there is no need to look for touch controls. It is enough to make a small pressure while pinching the left or right earcup to act.
- Long press: Activate transparency / noise reduction mode
- 1 simple press: Play / Pause or answer / hang up a call
- 2 presses: Next music / Reject a call
- 3 presses: Previous music
All headphone settings are also available in the HeyMelody app, compatible with iOS or Android devices. OnePlus and Oppo smartphones do not need it. However, the headphones connect automatically and are well integrated under OxygenOS and ColorOS. It is also nice to be able to generate your own personalized listening pattern.
Design
| Type | In-Ear |
| Driver Type | 11 mm dynamic |
| Wireless | Yes |
| Noise Cancelling | Adaptive Noise Cancellation |
| Dimensions | 3.2 x 2.32cm |
| Case dimensions | 6.01x 4.9 x 2.49 cm |
As always with OnePlus, we find the traditional red and white box. In the box are first the headphones in their transport and charging case. If we remove the white cardboard, we find another packaging within one, the warranty sheets of an operating manual. Another has the accessories, which is actually a USB-C to USB-A charging cable, and another has additional tips.
That’s always it when you buy headphones with active noise reduction; they are in-ear. Who says intras says tips to potentially change if necessary depending on the size of your ears. Therefore, there are two additional sizes here, S and L, size M tips already installed on the headphones. From a global point of view, the packaging is elegant and gives a premium appearance.
Now let’s move on to the headphones themselves. They come in a charging case that can lie flat, unlike AirPods Pro. We received the white version, but there is also a black version of the OnePlus Buds Pro. On the case, we find the OnePlus inscription on the top, an LED indicating the battery level on the front, and that’s it. On the back, there is still the USB-C port for wired charging.
The OnePlus Buds Pro is two-tone, with a silver part; it is the “touch” part of the headphones. The rest is white in matt plastic, both the upper arm and the tips, for a very harmonious set and a really premium look. We have the impression of having a high-quality product.
Features
| Microphone | Yes |
| Frequency response | 20 Hz – 20,000 Hz |
| Impedance | 16 Ω |
| Sensitivity | 98 dB ± 3dB |
| Quick Charge | 7.5W wired / 2W wireless |
| Speakers | Yes |
| Water-resistant | IPX4 |
It is possible to activate the noise reduction mode or not. We find the transparency mode and the noise reduction mode. These two modes make it possible either to attenuate ambient noises or to accentuate them to hear, on the contrary, what is happening around you. However, it is a pity that the OnePlus Buds Pro does not offer a mode between two, namely without anything activated, nor transparency, nor noise reduction.
The ANC works well, as long as you put the Buds Pro correctly in the ears and with the right tips. The noise reduction can go up to -40 decibels, which is quite high. An intense noise reduction mode is available; another, intermediate, too, reduces ambient noise but a little less, by only -25 dB. The OnePlus Buds Pro has an automatic noise cancellation mode, adapting to the ambient sound level.
This adaptation is quite functional; the proposed noise reduction is correct, although the headphones sometimes need time to react. Sometimes, while writing this review of the OnePlus Buds Pro, the fan is still a bit noisy. But overall, the ANC remains efficient.
It is also a convenient feature regarding transparency, especially when you go for a walk or walk the dog. For me, it was a short 15-minute walk to take photos and videos with another smartphone. No need to activate the ANC here unless you want to get hit by a car and not be careful at all costs. Transparency comes in handy in these situations, or if you are listening to music in a waiting room, for example.
Sound
The OnePlus Buds Pro features an 11mm coil, which lays a solid foundation for good sound quality for high-end headphones. And indeed, we can see one thing, the sound quality of the OnePlus Buds Pro is really very pleasant.
The treble and mids are well balanced. It helps to deliver powerful and pleasant sounds. However, we note that the bass is not as punchy as we would have liked. This is perhaps due to the active noise reduction that we used a lot but did not feel the differences between the different modes in terms of sound quality.
OnePlus uses the AAC and SBC codecs, SBC for medium quality and AAC for higher quality. We have set the settings to AAC, which is possible if you use an Android smartphone and Oppo.
The OnePlus Buds Pro has three microphones, allowing the caller to hear perfectly what is being said. The sound is good, clear, limpid, and there is even a little active noise reduction during calls so as not to disturb our interlocutor with extraneous noises.
Battery
| Battery Type | Earbud: 40 mAh, Charging case: 520 mAh |
| Battery Life | Up to 28 hours (ANC On), 38 hours (ANC OFF) |
| Charging Time | 10 mins for 10 hours |
| Charging Port | Wired, USB Type-C |
OnePlus promises up to 38 hours of battery life without the ANC activated; with the latter, the autonomy drops to 28 hours. In fact, the autonomy is also perfect, with more than 36 hours without ANC activated. Pay attention to the power of the volume, which will greatly influence the performance of the OnePlus Buds Pro.
By activating the ANC (Active Noise Canceling), we reach even a little over 28 hours, with the volume at around 40%. We see that the noise cancellation offers a lower overall musical volume than when it is not activated. However, the autonomy remains very good with a little more than the promise.
As for recharging, it is done either wirelessly or USB-C. The rest of the charge, however, is done more slowly to preserve the battery of the headphones as well as the case.
Connectivity
| Bluetooth | 5.2 |
| Multi-Device Connection | No |
| Connection | Wireless, Qi-certified |
Conclusion!
It’s almost flawless for OnePlus, with some excellent high-end Bluetooth headphones. Sold at around 175$, they are much cheaper than all the other high-end headphones that we have been able to test. If the services are not the same, of course, for such a price, they have all their interest for someone who wants good services at a pleasant price.
