Huawei FreeBuds Pro review

Specifications

Type of emitters	Dynamic, 11 mm
Earphone weight	6, 1 g
Connection	Bluetooth 5.2
Supported codecs	SBC, AAC
Noise suppression	ANC
Moisture protection	Not declared
Battery case	580 mAh
Wireless charger	Yes
Other	Bone conduction sensor

Appearance and equipment

The device comes in a compact box. Inside - the headphones themselves in a charging case, a USB - USB Type C cable and two pairs of additional silicone tips. They are not quite ordinary: they have an oval shape and are made of a slightly thicker material than most analogues. Plus they have an extra mesh to keep out dirt. They are put on a rather wide sound tube, under which it will be difficult to find suitable nozzles, so it is better not to lose the complete ones.

The headphones, like the case, are made of glossy plastic. Gloss, of course, collects all prints, dust and greasy streaks. There is nothing you can do about it, you just have to put up with it.

For review, we got a version in black, but also in white and silver. In the latter case, the case is matte, and the headphones themselves seem to be mirrored - pay attention to this option if you are going to buy FreeBuds Pro.

Huawei FreeBuds Pro: the shape of the headphones

The hinge of the case is metal, but also with a glossy finish. The mechanism itself looks reliable, there are no backlashes - everything fits perfectly. The lid with magnets holds well, accidental opening is excluded.

When you open the lid, two three-color LEDs light up: one inside, between the headphones, the other on the bottom edge of the case, next to the USB-C connector. The first diode shows the charge of the headphones, and the second shows the charge of the case.

Taking out the headphones is not very convenient: you first need to pry them with your thumb to lift them, and only then try to grab and pull them out.

The shape of FreeBuds Pro is very unusual - Huawei decided to combine a rectangular leg with an oval part, which is fixed in the auricle. The device looks original.

Control

The rectangular leg contains several controls that allow you to switch tracks and perform other actions by squeezing and swiping. This is how it works:

squeezing and holding the leg - change of operating mode (noise reduction, transparency);
swipe up or down (exactly along the edge, and not along the edge with the inscription Huawei) - volume control;
compress once - play and stop music or answer an incoming call and reset;
compress twice - playback of the next track;
compression three times - play the previous track.

At first glance, all this looks complicated, especially if you are used to simple touches. But in practice, squeezing has proven to be very comfortable, and the rectangular shape of the leg fits them perfectly. The main thing is to choose the appropriate size silicone eartips so that the headphones fit snugly in your ears and do not move with each squeeze.

Connection and application

Huawei FreeBuds Pro is just the same "sharpened" for Huawei smartphones, as AirPods Pro - for iPhone. The first connection to smartphones with EMUI 11 occurs automatically when you open the headphone case.

In other cases, it is recommended to pair the devices via the Bluetooth menu or the AI Life app, which will allow you to unleash the full potential of the headphones. True, the version of the program available on Google Play with FreeBuds Pro turned out to be unfamiliar, so I had to download a more recent version from the App Gallery. You can also do this on the official website or using the QR code from the complete instructions.

If the smartphone does not see the headphones, open the case and hold down the button on its right edge for a few seconds. The diode inside should light up white - so the accessory will go into pairing mode.

The AI Life app displays information about the charge of each earbud and case, and also gives you the ability to quickly switch between noise canceling modes.

In addition, the application has an “In-ear test”, which allows you to select the size of the silicone tips as accurately as possible. First, we independently chose the appropriate ones so that the headphones fit snugly, and then we carried out testing - AI Life "approved" our choice.

Even in AI Life, you can turn off the function of automatically stopping the music when you remove any earphone from your ear, as well as study the control scheme. It cannot be reconfigured, only assign a call to the voice assistant to one of the actions and disable the unused noise reduction mode (and go through not three, but two profiles by compression, for example).

It is worth noting that FreeBuds Pro perfectly keep in touch with the smartphone, for which you need to thank the dual antennas and support for the latest Bluetooth 5.2 standard. We tested the earbuds with Honor and Samsung devices and there was not a single drop or lag in either case.

The headphones can be easily connected to two smartphones at once (not simultaneously, of course), so it is convenient to use them both together - FreeBuds Pro will automatically connect either with the last paired one, or with the only one available. It is enough to turn off Bluetooth on one device for a couple of seconds so that the headphones can switch to another.

Sound and noise reduction

In terms of sound, the Huawei FreeBuds Pro was a pleasant surprise. They are perfectly tuned and suitable for listening to songs of almost any genre. No raised frequencies are felt, the sound is very even, balanced and at the same time saturated. An elastic and tight bass is always felt well, which, even at full volume, does not hammer the middle and does not press on the ears.

In terms of noise cancellation (ANC), FreeBuds Pro are also good. They are great at drowning out the quiet sounds of the street or the hum of the crowd in a public place. Bass in this mode becomes a little less expressive, but it is not so noticeable as to sacrifice noise reduction.

The transparency mode in FreeBuds Pro allows you to increase the volume of ambient sounds while listening to music. In this case, the two streams do not interrupt, but complement each other. This mode will definitely come in handy if you often run on the street, where it is better to always stay alert.

Headset mode

For high-quality voice communication, the manufacturer has provided not only a set of microphones hidden from the wind behind narrow slots, but also a bone conduction sensor. The latter reads the vibrations of your voice that travels through your skull and converts them into a sound signal without interference.

And this is not an empty marketing ploy for the sake of a tick, to emphasize "uniqueness and peculiarity" - it all really works. The interlocutors noted very clear sound and minimal noise even when talking on a busy street. For these characteristics, FreeBuds Pro is definitely one of the best in its class.

Autonomy

Each earphone has a built-in 55 mAh battery, and a 580 mAh battery in the case. The manufacturer claims the following autonomy:

music playback with ANC - 5 hours in conjunction with smartphones with EMUI 11 and 4 hours in other cases;
music playback without ANC - 8 hours with EMUI 11 and 7 hours in other cases;
voice calls - 2.5 hours with ANC and 3 hours without ANC;
overall autonomy with case - up to 22 hours with ANC and up to 36 hours without it.

We tested the headphones with the Honor 20 Pro most of the time, and the battery life was close to the stated. With noise cancellation on, FreeBuds Pro worked for about four hours, and without it - about six. Moreover, in both cases, the left earpiece was discharged a little faster. Probably, he acts as the main one in the bundle, therefore, he spends the charge more actively. In any case, the battery life is excellent.

The FreeBuds Pro case can be charged via USB ‑ C or wirelessly, but the latter is limited to 2W, so you shouldn't rely on a fast recharge. In this mode, charging the case will take more than two hours, and over the wire - about an hour. The earbuds themselves in the case are powered up to 100% in about 40 minutes, which is not bad.

Outcomes

These headphones have a weird shape, but this weirdness lies in their originality. FreeBuds Pro is definitely not to be confused with other headsets that are very similar to each other today.

The Huawei model has non-standard controls, although it is quite convenient and eliminates accidental operation, besides, you quickly get used to it.

The sound is excellent, noise cancellation is decent, voice communication is generally great. In all these parameters, they are able to compete with the best TWS-headphones, including the AirPods Pro.

They also have disadvantages. First, the damn gloss - the headphones give the impression of an expensive thing until the moment you smear them with fingerprints.

Considering the flagship positioning and the price, the lack of support for the aptX codec could also be attributed to the disadvantages, but the headphones sound great even without it, so in this case it is only a formal drawback.

Another disadvantage is the lack of moisture protection. It is simply not declared, while the same AirPods Pro have at least IPX4 against rain drops and sweat. However, if you do not kill yourself in the gym and do not like jogging in the rain, then, in general, there are no critical shortcomings.

We can safely recommend Huawei FreeBuds Pro to all Android smartphone owners. And if you have an iPhone, you will have to accept the lack of the AI Life app for iOS - this will affect the usability, but certainly not the sound quality.