Review of Realme Buds Air Pro - headphones with active noise canceling for 8 thousand rubles

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

A model without surprises, which can be scolded and praised.

There are more and more active noise canceling headphones on the market, but their average price is declining slowly. Only a few models today cost less than 8,000 rubles, and the Realme Buds Air Pro is one of them. Whether this accessory can compete with much more popular and expensive counterparts and is it worth its money at all - let's figure it out in the review.

Table of contents

• Specifications
• Appearance and equipment
• Connection and application
• Sound and noise reduction
• Autonomy
• Outcomes

Specifications

Type of emitters	Dynamic, 10 mm
Earphone weight	5 g
Battery case	486 mAh
Connection	Bluetooth 5.0
Supported codecs	SBC, AAC
Noise suppression	ANC, ENC
Protection	IPX4

Appearance and equipment

The Realme Buds Air Pro and charging case come with a short recharge cable and four pairs of silicone ear tips. Small ear pads are installed by default, so for testing they had to be replaced right away for the headphones to hold better.

Please note that the sound guide of the Realme Buds Air Pro is oval, so there may be problems with third-party silicone tips. Even if you pull them on, it is not a fact that the headphones will sit comfortably in your ears.

The Realme Buds Air Pro case is shaped like a flattened egg. The case is made of slippery glossy plastic, but the hinge on the back is metal. The hinged lid adheres tightly enough to the built-in magnets, so accidental opening when flipped is excluded.

But the top panel of the case itself is not perfectly fitted: the joint of the two parts in the closed state can be easily felt with your finger.

On the right side of the case, there is a barely noticeable button for resetting and connecting to a smartphone for the first time. On the front panel, above the company logo, there is a two-color indicator of charge and pairing, and on the bottom of the case there is a USB-C port for charging.

The headphones themselves are also glossy and slippery too. It is not very easy to get them out, you have to get used to it - first you need to move the earphone by pressing to the side and then pull it out of the case. Especially compact Realme Buds Air Pro cannot be called, but they do not bulge out of their ears.

Headphones weigh 5 g. They are protected from dust and splashes according to the IPX4 standard. Light rain or sweat of Realme Buds Air Pro is not terrible, but you should not count on great moisture protection.

This is partly due to the fact that there are three holes on the body of each earphone: microphones and optical sensors that allow you to stop music when the gadget is removed from the ear. Charging contacts are located at the bottom ends.

At the top of the “foot” of each earbud is a touch zone that senses touches. A single press only allows you to accept an incoming call, but music playback is controlled by double and triple taps. This arrangement helps to avoid false alarms when, for example, you just want to adjust the earpiece.

Connection and application

Realme Buds Air Pro connects via Bluetooth 5.0. Just flip the cover of the case and select the headphones from the list of devices available for pairing on your smartphone in the Bluetooth section. If they are not determined, you will need to hold down the button on the case for a few seconds.

After the first pairing, in the future, the headphones will connect automatically as soon as you open the case. It works flawlessly. The connection with the smartphone is also always stable - there were no breaks even through several concrete walls inside the room.

To access all the capabilities of the headphones, you will need the Realme Link application, through which other devices of the company are controlled.

With Realme Link you can:

• switch modes of noise reduction;
• monitor the charge of the headphones and case;
• activate the game mode, which reduces the signal delay, so that the user is more comfortable in dynamic shooters;
• turn on the volume amplifier;
• activate the Bass Boost + function for more powerful bass.

Separately, it is worth noting the ability to reconfigure the controls for double and triple clicks for each earphone. These actions can be assigned to play and pause, switch tracks, return to the previous song, turn on the voice assistant, change the noise reduction mode, or even turn off.

Sound and noise reduction

Inside, the Realme Buds Air Pro has 10mm dynamic drivers with Dynamic Bass Boost algorithm, which is responsible for volume and bass. In fact, the sound does not shine with deep "lows", but it is distinguished by boominess, which is pleasant for some genres. It is especially felt with the Bass Boost + function, which will definitely come in handy for fans of club music or hip-hop.

With the upper frequency range, the headphones are also more or less good - connoisseurs of instrumental compositions are unlikely to be disappointed. But the middle is much less expressive, and no adjustments can correct it. This spoils the overall impression a little, but in general, the sound of the Realme Buds Air Pro on a five-point scale can be estimated at a solid four. Given the low price, of course.

As for active noise cancellation (ANC), here too Realme Buds Air Pro can be praised with a reservation. The system does a good job only with low street noise or nearby speech. It will hardly be possible to completely neutralize the noise of the train and immerse yourself in your favorite music in the metro, although in general this task is not for “gags”.

If you need to be aware of what is happening around, then you can use the transparency mode. It allows you to slightly increase the volume of ambient sounds so that you don't lose touch with reality. The sound of music in this mode becomes even more booming, and with active noise cancellation - more dense. That is, in any case, the sound quality does not suffer for sure.

You can switch between modes by double or triple clicking on one of the headphones. It depends on the scheme chosen in the application.

In headset mode, the headphones did not disappoint either. According to the interlocutors, the voice sounds natural, without muffling and distortion. When communicating on the go, active noise cancellation cuts off street noise well, but cannot withstand strong winds, even if the headphones are under the hat.

Autonomy

At 50% volume, which is usually sufficient, the manufacturer promises five hours of ANC operation or six hours of normal use. Taking into account the constant recharge from the battery in the case, these figures increase to 20 and 25 hours, respectively. These figures have been confirmed in practice.

It is also worth noting that Realme Buds Air Pro charges very quickly. Connected to the network, the case transmits energy to the headphones in 10 minutes, which is enough for almost three hours of music; in 50 minutes - energizes up to 100%. Full recharging of the "landed" gadget and case takes about two hours. There is no wireless charging of the case - only by cable via USB-C.

Outcomes

Realme Buds Air Pro headphones without surprises. There is something to scold them for: not the best moisture protection, not very high-quality assembly of the case and pretty boring gloss.

But in general, the accessory turned out to be successful. There is good sound, working noise cancellation, convenient transparency mode, good battery life and fast charging. Many models have all this today, but few cost 7-8 thousand rubles, like the Realme Buds Air Pro. Therefore, it is quite possible to recommend them to those who are looking for the most favorable price-performance ratio.