OPPO Enco Air3 Pro Review: The best-sounding TWS under 5,000

The OPPO Enco Air3 Pro is the best-sounding pair of TWS earphones under ₹5,000. There is no questioning that. It blows competition, such as the Realme Buds Air 3 and the OnePlus Buds Z2, out of the water because of its honest representation of the bass and mid frequencies. The sound signature is bright and sparkly; it will appeal to audiophiles – especially those who are just getting acquainted with audiophile-grade audio devices and want to purchase a good, inexpensive pair of TWS for themselves. 

The sub-₹5K truly wireless earphones market in India witnesses some intense, cutthroat competition. Several brands offer premium features such as Active Noise Cancellation, multipoint connection, and accompanying app support in this price segment. Prime examples would be the OnePlus Buds Z2 (review) and Realme Buds Air 3 (review). OPPO is no stranger to offering compelling TWS options on a budget. For instance, the OPPO Enco X2 (review). It is one of my favourite TWS earphones that plays in the big leagues by providing a mix of fantastic performance and a plethora of features. Now, the company has launched a new player in the sub-₹5,000 segment to shake things up! Enter the OPPO Enco Air3 Pro. An affordable yet accomplished pair of TWS earphones with LDAC codec support, up to 49 dB of Adaptive ANC, low latency mode, multiconnect, and much more. Priced at ₹4,999, all of this looks mighty impressive on paper, but does it live up to the expectations? Let’s find out!

OPPO Enco Air3 Pro Review: Build, design, and fit

The OPPO Enco Air3 Pro have an understated look with some subtle flair. OPPO has incorporated a gradient design for the charging case where the top goes from being translucent to fully opaque. It’s a neat look that distinguishes it from the sea of white TWS in the market. The pastel Green colour variant looks even more eye-catching, in my opinion. 

The case is compact and can easily slip into small purses or pockets. There’s OPPO branding adorning the front alongside an LED indicator button that relays pairing and battery information. The bottom houses the USB Type-C charging port, and that’s about it. The case’s hinge seems sturdy enough upon inspection but some metal reinforcements would be even more reassuring. 

Upon opening the case, you see the buds neatly tucked in. The R and L indicators on the earbuds are large enough to be noticed from a mile away; convenient but a bit garish, maybe? Nevertheless, the buds are diminutive in size. According to OPPO, the stems are 6 per cent shorter than its predecessor – the OPPO Enco Air2 Pro. The charging case has also seen a reduction in size. 

The buds are pretty comfortable to wear over long periods; they’re extremely lightweight and the Medium eartips gave me a super snug fit. I would easily recommend these to anyone looking for workout earbuds seeing that they’ve got a good fit and IP55 water and dust resistance to boot. 

OPPO Enco Air3 Pro Review: Features

OPPO has packed the Enco Air3 Pro with features! You would be hard-pressed to find a more feature-rich pair of TWS earphones under ₹5,000. Let’s run through these features. First and foremost, there’s support for up to 49 dB Adaptive Active Noise Cancellation. So, not only do you get decent ANC performance, but it also uses AI to cleverly optimise the noise cancellation levels depending on your surroundings. In my experience, the ANC performance was decent. It’s not good enough to suppress traffic sounds, but will quiet down things such as an AC’s hum.

There’s also a Transparency Mode that amplifies surrounding sounds to keep you aware but it sounds a bit tinny and unnatural. You also get other niceties such as multiconnect which allows you to connect to two devices simultaneously, such as a laptop and phone, and switch between them without a hitch. It worked flawlessly for me! 

The buds are supported on the HeyMelody app which opens up a bunch of customisation opportunities for users. There are the basics such as checking your buds’ battery percentage, switching between noise cancellation modes, and personalising ANC according to your hearing. You can even switch to ‘Smart’ noise cancellation which adapts to the environment, as we mentioned before.

There are some preset EQs you can choose from – Original Sound, Bass Boost, and Natural Inspiration. Natural Inspiration is quite bright and Bass Boost is well… the opposite. I tested the earphones on Original Sound, which proved to be quite balanced. Sadly, there’s no customisable EQ; a missed opportunity in my books. The app also allows you to toggle features such as Golden Sound and OPPO Alive Audio. Golden Sound creates a custom sound signature based on your ear canal’s shape and hearing abilities while Alive Audio is OPPO’s rendition of spatial audio. 

I turned on Alive Audio and there was an immediate difference when listening to music on YouTube Music. The soundstage was much wider and audio cues originated from all around me rather than just the right and left channels. Cool stuff at ₹5K! Golden Sound, honestly, didn’t create a tangible difference in the sound but it could be extremely useful for those who are facing hearing disabilities.

The app also lets users toggle on Game Mode which lowers the earphone latency to merely 47 ms and drops the end-to-end latency to 94 ms. I felt no noticeable audio-video lag when using this mode. There’s also the Earbud Fit Test in the app that discerns if the eartips you’re using have provided an airtight fit.

Lastly, the app also lets you customise every single control. So, By default, there are no volume controls mapped to the touch panels, but I customised the controls so that the long press action lowers and increases the volume levels on the left and right panels respectively. I’m glad OPPO has incorporated this level of customisability since many don’t – sometimes at even double the price. As I said, tons of features!

OPPO Enco Air3 Pro Review: Performance

Equipped with 12.4 mm dynamic drivers, the OPPO Enco Air3 Pro sounds excellent for the price. According to OPPO, these earbuds are the first in the world to use a bamboo fibre diaphragm which can easily reproduce high frequencies. The earbuds have a frequency response range of 20 Hz - 40,000 Hz – which is higher than the human hearing range, but this does help reduce the drop-off in the highs. OPPO also claims that since the bamboo diaphragm is much lighter in comparison to titanium-plated ones, it can be driven more easily. 

The company has also added high-quality LDAC codec support – a massive rarity at this price! This codec allows 990 kbps transmission speeds over Bluetooth which is almost triple that of the SBC codec, allowing for more high-res sound which is close to CD quality. 

All of this innovation shows merit when you listen to these earbuds for the first time. The sound signature is beautifully balanced in the bass and mids and the highs have a bit of a boost to bring out sounds such as cymbals and hi-hats that are usually lost in the mix. The sound signature graph also shows that the earphones have a superb and balanced bass response that complements the mids very well, ensuring that one frequency doesn’t overpower the other. 

The highs from 2kHz to 8kHz have a boost and the sound signature is quite bright, by default. However, they also work to bring out oodles of detail in tracks such as Pull Me Under by Dream Theatre. In this track, the detail and clarity of the high-frequency instruments in usually lost in cheap earphones (under ₹5,000), but that’s definitely not the case here. Comparing these earbuds to the OnePlus Buds Z2, you can hear how much detail you lose out on in the mids (where most vocals lie) since the bass response is quite bloated. However, do note, that the highs can get a bit fatiguing to listen to after long periods of listening.

This is not the case with the OPPO Enco Air3 Pro since they emphasize the vocals in a clear manner by balancing the bass. The trick is to tune the earphones in such a manner that the bass and mids are symbiotic, and do not cannibalise each other, which is what the Enco Air3 Pro does so well. This sound signature is not something that we’d call commercial. It will not appeal to the masses that love bass-forward sound signatures – but if you’re a purist who’s looking to get your hands on a relatively cheap pair of TWS under ₹5K, this is a great starting point.

Moving on to the microphones, it is decent but nothing to write home about. The earphones pack dual microphones with AI noise reduction technology that attempts to reduce ambient noise when on calls. However, it doesn’t do the best job at this. It is on par with other TWS at this price – you can make decent calls when you’re indoors with minimal distractions, but when there’s a lot of ambient noise, the person on the other end of the call will be able to hear a lot of it. 

OPPO Enco Air3 Pro Review: Battery life

The OPPO Enco Air3 Pro houses 43 mAh batteries in each earbud and a 440 mAh cell in the charging case. This translates to 7 hours of playback time on the earbuds and 30 hours of total battery life, as claimed by OPPO. Do note these numbers are with ANC turned off and with AAC audio in use. In my testing, I did quite the opposite. Active Noise Cancellation was turned on pretty much all the time and I was using the LDAC codec. 

So, naturally, the numbers I got in my testing were much lower. So, the earbuds lasted a little under 4.5 hours in my tests, and the charging case provided 3 full charges after that with a little juice to spare (enough to charge the buds to about 60 per cent). The volume levels varied from 50-70 per cent. Your mileage will depend on whether you turn on ANC, use LDAC and the volume levels you listen at.

But all that being said, the battery life is still mediocre when compared to other options such as the OnePlus Nord Buds 2. Without ANC, the OnePlus Nord Buds 2 can provide up to 36 hours of total battery life – that’s 6 whole hours more than the OPPO Enco Air3 Pro.   

OPPO Enco Air3 Pro Review: Verdict

The OPPO Enco Air3 Pro is the best-sounding pair of TWS earphones under ₹5,000. There is no questioning that. It blows competition, such as the Realme Buds Air 3 and the OnePlus Buds Z2, out of the water because of its honest representation of the bass and mid frequencies. The sound signature is bright and sparkly; it will appeal to audiophiles – especially those who are just getting acquainted with audiophile-grade audio devices and want to purchase a good, inexpensive pair of TWS for themselves.  The earbuds are also extremely feature-rich, however, OPPO needs to work on its ANC game and the lack of a customisable EQ in the HeyMelody app just seems like a missed opportunity. However, all of the nitpicks can be set aside and forgotten given that the sound is just incredible. If you have ₹5,000 to spare, pick these up now! Unless you clearly prefer bass-forward earphones – if that’s the case, pick the Realme Buds Air 3.

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OnePlus Nord Buds 2r Review: Simplistic value-for-money earbuds

When I was first intimated about the launch of the OnePlus Nord Buds 2r and its pricing, I was a bit concerned. The pricing is extremely close to its older sibling (₹2,199 vs ₹2,999) and it was bound to drop features to lower the price. Thankfully, OnePlus hasn’t dropped too many features – ANC being the only one of note – so the ₹900 price difference seems justified. In the budget TWS segment, a ₹900 difference is substantial. Additionally, the ANC on the older Nord Buds 2 isn’t path-breaking. So, the OnePlus Nord Buds 2r is actually an excellent offering at this price that offers good bang for your buck.

OnePlus has been on a roll with its audio device portfolio. The company launched its premium TWS offering – the OnePlus Buds Pro 2 (review) – and a few budget options including the much-awaited OnePlus Nord Buds 2 (review) this year. All of these were pretty well-received by reviewers as well as consumers. Enter the OnePlus Nord Buds 2r, the younger sibling of the popular OnePlus Nord Buds 2 that sacrifice a feature or two in favour of a more affordable price tag. The OnePlus Nord Buds 2r is priced competitively at ₹2,199 and misses out on Active Noise Cancellation which you get on the OnePlus Nord Buds 2. Do note that the Nord Buds 2 are just priced at just ₹900 more. So, are the Nord Buds 2r good enough to justify missing out on ANC for a few hundred bucks? Let’s find out that and more in my detailed review.

OnePlus Nord Buds 2r Review: Design and Fit

The OnePlus Nord Buds 2r’s design is very reminiscent of the OnePlus Nord Buds 2. The charging case, in particular, is strikingly similar when it comes to shape and size. The earbuds are available in two colourways – Deep Grey and Triple Blue. We got the former for review and it looks pretty ‘Plain Jane’, but still classy in a minimalist sort of way. 

There’s some subtle OnePlus branding on the top of the case and a USB-C charging port on the back. You also get an LED indicator on the front that lets you know the pairing and charging status. Upon opening the case, you see both buds tucked into their slots marked L and R, which is pretty convenient (and not always a given).

The earbuds, however, have some new design flourishes. For instance, the edges are far more rounded than the OnePlus Nord Buds 2 and the OG Nord Buds. It gives them a far better, streamlined look. The touch panels on the back of each bud are indicated with a subtle circular indent. The earphones are also extremely lightweight at just 4.3 g each.

Being lightweight, these are comfortable to wear for long periods of time, but the fit can to be improved. No matter which ear tip I tried, I couldn’t get a tight and secure seal which led to inadequate passive isolation and the trouble of having to readjust the buds every few minutes. Your experience could differ, so we suggest you try these out at a store to see if you can find a perfect fit.

Especially since these could make for really solid gym or fitness earbuds with their IP55 dust and water resistance. Overall, I like the understated look but wish the fit was a bit more reassuring.

OnePlus Nord Buds 2r Review: Features

At ₹2,199, the OnePlus Nord Buds 2r is naturally not the most feature-laden pair of TWS earphones in the market. In a sense, they are overshadowed by the Nord Buds 2 that launched a couple of months ago since those came with ANC – an all-important feature that many desire. 

The buds do come packing app support though – OnePlus users can leverage this in their system’s settings while other Android users need to download the HeyMelody app. Sadly, these buds are not supported on the iOS version of the HeyMelody app. So, iPhone users, you would be missing out on some vital customisation opportunities.

Credit: HeyMelody (Google Play Store)

The HeyMelody app isn’t packed with features, but the ones it does have are well-implemented. There’s basic stuff like checking the battery status of your earbuds and performing firmware updates. You’ve also got the ability to customise your earbud controls – a much-appreciated feature at this price point.

You can customise the single tap, double tap, triple tap, and long press actions on both buds according to your preferences. However, single tap only cycles between ‘Play/Pause’ and ‘None’, which is a wasted opportunity. Yet again, we have no volume controls similar to the OnePlus Nord Buds 2. This is disappointing since users would have to pull their devices out every time they wanted to tweak the volume levels. 

The app also lets you customise your sound with an inbuilt 6-band EQ – which is fantastic since sometimes even premium earphones only have a 3-4 band EQ. There are also three EQ presets – Balanced (turned on by default), Bass, and Bold. We found the Balanced EQ preset to be the best among all. You can also toggle on and off Game Mode via the app which drops the latency down to 94 ms. 

The buds are powered by the latest Bluetooth v5.3 and I found the connectivity to be fantastic. The range is great as well and it even permeates a wall or two with ease. OnePlus users get Fast Pairing which grants them near-instantaneous pairing with their phone. There’s also Mono mode support where you can use a single earbud independently while the other is charging in the case. Works like a charm.

As we said, a few features but well-implemented. The only major drawback is no app support on iOS, which means iPhone users cannot tweak the EQ, customise controls, or turn on Game Mode. 

OnePlus Nord Buds 2r Review: Performance

Packing 12.4 mm titanised diaphragm drivers, the OnePlus Buds 2r serves up some booming bass response. Select OnePlus phones (7/7Pro/7T/7T Pro/8/8Pro/8T/9/9Pro/9R/9RT/10 Pro/11/11R) support Dolby Atmos sound. It’s a shame that OnePlus didn’t allow for Dolby Atmos support across all devices with compatibility which some budget TWS do have. I reviewed these earphones with the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra as the source device, so I couldn’t test out Dolby content with these buds. The buds support the SBC and AAC codecs.

That aside, the buds have a bass-biased sound signature that is slightly similar to the Nord Buds 2. The bass response on the Nord Buds 2 is very slightly more pronounced in the sub-bass area than that of the Nord Buds 2r but the end result is pretty similar. The bass response is loud and impactful; pop, EDM, hip-hop and Bollywood dance tracks pack a punch but there is a bit of muddiness that shrouds the details in the mids.

Due to this vocals can get a bit lost in the mix. In the song Escapsim. by RAYE & 079 Shake, the vocals lack detail and timbre in the pre-chorus. The highs are weak in the mix – they lacks character and depth but that’s common at this price. There’s some distortion in the audio when you push the volume levels above 80 per cent, so we suggest keeping it under that.

These earbuds are ones that bass-lovers will enjoy; audiophiles, not so much. OnePlus knows its audience though, and understands that most prefer a bass-heavy sound signature – so, for that, it’s perfectly serviceable. The bass is not extra muddy, and the vocals, while muted, don’t sound muffled.

The Nord Buds 2r feature dual microphones with AI noise cancellation. The mics are pretty decent; the user’s voice is clear on calls but the microphones aren’t able to effectively minimise ambient noise in calls.

OnePlus Nord Buds 2r Review: Battery life

I was impressed by the battery life of the OnePlus Nord Buds 2 and it’s no different with the Buds 2r. While the Nord Buds 2 is capable of 36 hours of total battery life without ANC turned on, the Nord Buds 2r goes a step further with a whopping 38 hours of total playback time, according to OnePlus. The buds alone have a playback time of 8 hours on a single charge, which is excellent as well.

In our tests, the buds lasted 7 hours and 42 minutes on a single charge, which is close to OnePlus’ estimate. The case provides 4 additional full charges with some juice left to spare. OnePlus strangely didn’t mention fast charging, but in my experience, the buds charged about as fast as the Nord Buds 2. So, a quick 5-minute charge provides almost an hour of playtime on the earbuds.

OnePlus Nord Buds 2r Review: Verdict

When I was first intimated about the launch of the OnePlus Nord Buds 2r and its pricing, I was a bit concerned. The pricing is extremely close to its older sibling (₹2,199 vs ₹2,999) and it was bound to drop features to lower the price. Thankfully, OnePlus hasn’t dropped too many features – ANC being the only one of note – so the ₹900 price difference seems justified. In the budget TWS segment, a ₹900 difference is substantial. Additionally, the ANC on the older Nord Buds 2 isn’t path-breaking. So, the OnePlus Nord Buds 2r is actually an excellent offering at this price that offers good bang for your buck. You get customisable controls and EQ, impressive battery life, and decent bass-forward sound which many will love. However, there are some misses – volume controls, lacking app support for iOS, and slightly inadequate fit which may stray users away from these.

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Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW Review: Musical but lacking on the feature front

If sound quality is your only concern, you can pick up the Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW. It is one of the best, if not the best, sounding pair of earphones you can buy under ₹8,000. However, for everything else – look elsewhere. In 2023, these earbuds provide minimal bang for your buck. You miss out on features such as Active Noise Cancellation and app support, and the battery life is mediocre, at best.

Tokyo-based Audio-Technica is a legendary name in the audio space. I’ve tested headphones and earphones from this brand and have usually come away impressed. This time around, the company has brought a new entrant to the competitive TWS space in India dubbed the Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW. These no-nonsense buds promise to deliver a musical experience, but this could come at the cost of features. At a similar price point, you get options such as the Jabra Elite 4 (review), Google Pixel Buds A-Series (review), and for ₹2,500 more, you can get even the shiny new Nothing Ear (2) (review). So, is the Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW worth its asking price of ₹7,490 and how does it hold up against the competition? Let’s find out in my detailed review.

Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW Review: Design and Fit

Audio-Technica has positioned the new ATH-SQ1TW as a stylish pair of truly wireless earphones; available for purchase in several colourways. Sadly, this is not the case in the Indian market where the Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW is only available in the Black colour variant, which honestly, looks quite bland compared to the suave looks of the Jabra Elite 4 and Google Pixel Buds A-Series. And of course, it looks nowhere as cool as the Nothing Ear (2). The matte texture of the case also gets scratched pretty easily.

However, there are some design flourishes of note. The earbuds sit in a square charging box with rounded corners and subtle Audio-Technica branding on the top. The matte black case looks decent for the price and the shape is quite unconventional, but as we mentioned before, there are better-looking truly wireless earbuds at the same price. The USB Type-C charging port is situated on the back alongside a white LED indicator.

When you open the case, you will see the buds neatly tucked into their assigned Right and Left slots which are clearly indicated via text. The magnets are strong and the buds don’t slip out easily. The hinge of the case, however, feels a bit flimsy and could be prone to breakage with rough usage, so be warned.

The earbuds follow the same squarish design language, as the charging case, and feature tiny Audio-Technica logos on the back (which also doubles as a touch sensor). There’s an extra fin-like area jutting out from each earbud which is merely ornamental and doesn’t help with the fit. Instead, it houses LED-lit R and L logos that light up when placed inside the case or when the case is opened. This looks pretty fancy. 

How these earbuds will fit you depends entirely on the fit you get from the ear tips. Audio-Technica has provided a total of 4 sizes of eartips, so most users should find a suitable fit. I found the fit to be quite snug and secure, but the earbuds go in very deep into your ears, which some may find uncomfortable. The buds need to be twisted and locked into place to get a solid fit. I could even go jogging with these buds without having to adjust them often and they also are IPX4 rated – which means you get resistance against sweat and splash damage. 

Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW Review: Features

For the asking price of ₹7,490, the Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW are surprisingly low on features. There’s no Active Noise Cancellation, no app support, no voice assistant control, no on-ear detection, no multipoint connection, and no wireless charging. Most of its competitors come with at least ANC and app support at this price, so sadly, the Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW feels very barebones.

Let’s talk about the features we do get. The Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW may lack ANC but it does come packing a Transparency Mode. This can be activated by long-pressing the right touch sensor. Sadly, this mode is not well-implemented. As soon as you turn it on, you will be presented with a soft static-like noise and the environmental sounds that are amplified sound very artificial. 

Since there’s no ANC, you mostly rely on passive isolation to drown out ambient sound when listening to music, and thankfully, the passive isolation is excellent – near perfect, in my opinion, since it is even more effective than some budget earbuds’ ANC.

The earphones also have touch controls on both earbuds, but when you pull them out of their case, these controls are disabled by default to prevent accidental taps. You simply have to tap the touch controls once on the buds to activate the controls. Since the Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW doesn’t come with companion app support, there’s no way to alter the controls. The default controls are not very intuitive and I personally took some time to get used to them. 

The earphones are powered by Bluetooth v5.0, which seems a bit dated in 2023, but we didn’t face any major connectivity issues. There’s Google Fast Pair support as well which quickens the pairing process quite a bit. The earphones also support Mono mode, where a singular bud can be used by itself while the other one is still in the charging case. There’s also a low latency mode which attempts to eliminate audio-video lag. Worked pretty decently during my testing, so kudos!

Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW Review: Performance

Equipped with 5.8 mm dynamic drivers, the Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW redeem themselves with their musical performance. The earphones have a balanced sound signature, a rarity at this price since most TWS earbuds veer towards the bass-forward sound signature. Sadly, the earphones only support the SBC audio codec, with support missing AAC and high-quality codecs such as aptX and LDAC. 

Despite this, the Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW are one of the best-sounding earbuds under ₹10,000. I compared the sound signature of these buds to the Nothing Ear (2) and Jabra Elite 4, and I found the Audio-Technica to be the best sonically. The bass response is punchy and consistent, with enough rumble to be enjoyable to listen to, but not excessively disruptive. 

As a result, the mid-range also sounds clean and precise and the notes present between 250 Hz to 500 Hz shine through despite heavy bass interference in some EDM and pop tracks. The vocals sound great but the detail is slightly better on the Nothing Ear (2). The highs are nice and sparkly but the drop-off is a bit sudden. Nevertheless, the dip at 4 kHz - 6 kHz kept the sound mostly sibilance free. The soundstage is surprisingly wide for a pair of in-ear TWS earphones and the imaging is excellent as well.

I really enjoyed listening to tracks such as Something from Nothing by the Foo Fighters where the instruments were accurately placed within the stage. Even pop songs such as Calm Down by Rema had good punchiness in the bass notes while still preserving the detail in Rema’s vocals. These are not the most detailed-sounding earphones, but if you get a good-quality FLAC file or listen to uncompressed audio, you can experience something truly musical.

The microphone on these earphones also impressed me a lot because of how clear my voice sounded on calls. There was tons of detail and clarity, which is often missing at this price. However, the microphone also picks up ambient sound, so don’t use these to attend meetings outdoors.

Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW Review: Battery Life

The Audio Technica ATH-SQ1TW’s battery life can be characterised as weak. It is not necessarily horrible, but it doesn’t match its competition. The earbuds are rated to last for 6.5 hours on a single charge, and the case provides 13 more hours of battery. This totals to 19.5 hours of battery life – without ANC – which is absurdly low in 2023.

In my testing, the earbuds lasted a cool 6 hours and 2 minutes on 70 per cent volume. The case offered another two full charges. In contrast, the Jabra Elite 4 is rated for 28 hours of total battery life while the Nothing Ear (2) can go all the way up to 36 hours in total, both without ANC turned on.

The case can be charged using a USB C cable and as far as I could tell, there’s no fast charging support. You also don’t get wireless charging support. In our tests, the Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW charged to full in about 1.5 hours, which is decent enough.

Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW Review: Verdict

If sound quality is your only concern, you can pick up the Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW. It is one of the best, if not the best, sounding pair of earphones you can buy under ₹8,000. However, for everything else – look elsewhere. In 2023, these earbuds provide minimal bang for your buck. You miss out on features such as Active Noise Cancellation and app support, and the battery life is mediocre, at best. The design isn’t particularly striking and the one black-coloured variant looks quite ordinary. Opt for the Jabra Elite 4 which brings in several additional features and better battery life. If you can spend ₹2.5K more, the Nothing Ear (2) really stands out.

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Amazon Echo Pop Review: Opening the doors with a bang

The Amazon Echo Pop is another solid addition to the Echo family of smart speakers by Amazon. Priced slightly below the Echo Dot (5th Gen), it makes for an interesting offering for folks who are looking to get started on their adventures with a smart speaker. The other standalone smart speaker that comes close to the Echo Pop is the Google Nest Mini, which retails at a much lower price than this. But, its limited capacity as a speaker and some knicks here and there make it lose ground in the race against the Echo Pop, which makes for a really interesting entry into the smart speaker market. Now, if you have the budget, I would say go for the more loaded Echo Dot (5th Gen), but otherwise, the Echo Pop should be enough for you.

The Amazon Echo Pop showed up at the Digit Test Centre a couple of weeks ago. A few days into the testing, I had written a first impressions article about the device, detailing my initial thoughts about the cheapest current-gen smart speaker in Amazon’s line-up of Echo devices. There were some doubts and questions I had when writing that article, which were all cleared up when I put the speaker through our rigorous test process. So, now having thoroughly tested the Echo Pop over the last couple of weeks, here’s what I think about the device –

Amazon Echo Pop: Build and Design

The build quality of the Echo Pop is solid, and it is aesthetically very pleasing, and it fits into my office desk setup with ease. If you are placing the device in an open environment, then the mesh of the device might collect some dust which can be easily cleaned off using a soft-bristled brush. When you are playing music, the feet at the bottom of the device hold it in place, and coupled with the weight of the Echo Pop, there’s negligible rattle.

I placed it on a variety of surfaces, played bass-heavy music at max volume, and the device did not rattle or move from its place at all. There were a couple of instances where the device was moved from its position unknowingly by the folks here at the Test Centre, but the cable stayed connected, and the device did not incur any damage. Apart from that, there was no visible degradation of any materials used in making the Amazon Echo Pop, and it looks like if maintained well, it would last you a while. Just make sure not to use any abrasive cleaners on its surfaces.

Amazon Echo Pop: Features

As mentioned in the first impressions article, the feature set on the Echo Pop is limited. When I tested the device thoroughly, it was established that these features are well implemented as well. The inter-device connectivity of the speaker is also solid, and when turned off and turned on again, it doesn’t take long to connect to the Wi-Fi network. I had mentioned in my first impressions article that the device at times had issues when communicating with other connected speakers, but over time, the issue seems to have resolved itself. 

However, there were a couple of instances where it was surrounded by multiple boxes and gadgets on my desk, and it took a bit longer to establish a connection with the Wi-Fi, but it did happen. I did not experience any unexpected drops in the connection as well.

The Echo Pop uses the Amazon Alexa app, which I spoke volumes about in my review of the Amazon Echo Dot (5th Gen, 2023). The same continues here. There are plenty of customisation options baked in which you can spend hours playing with and ensuring that the device is configured exactly to your taste. My only gripe with the app continues here – the interface can be slightly overwhelming for first-timers. Quoting from my other review – “There are instructions every step of the way for the most part, but when they are missing, people can find themselves looking for that one specific setting for a fairly long time.”

This is more of a thing that Amazon needs to pay attention to because this is the entry-level Alexa-powered smart speaker that they sell. So, there will be plenty of people buying the speaker who are starting out with smart speakers for the first time. This means that the chances of users finding themselves lost are higher than it was with the Echo Dot.

With that aside, the overall feature set is exactly what one would expect from a device that is positioned like the Echo Pop.

Amazon Echo Pop: Performance

In terms of performance, the Amazon Echo Pop matches up to the expectations set by its pricier cousins. Be it vocal-heavy tracks or ones belonging to genres like Bollywood, hip-hop, and EDM, the speakers output a sound that you would expect from a speaker of this size. One thing I felt during listening to some bass-heavy tracks was that despite the heavy advertisement from Amazon about the bass-heavy nature of the sound, the speaker’s sound signature lacked the bass.

This is out of the box experience that I am talking about. If you go into Amazon Alexa app and change settings in the equaliser, you can get some decent amount of bass in the audio, but otherwise, you will be left looking for that thump from the speaker. The speaker is loud enough to fill up a small room, but don’t expect it to be the primary audio source for your next party. Other than that, be it podcasts or music from the most popular genres, I doubt you will have anything to complain about with this speaker.

Now, coming to the Alexa functionality and its precision. Here at the Test Centre, we test smart speakers with the following parameters (for voice commands) – 

Human close to the speaker in a quiet room, Human close to the speaker with music playing from the speaker at 50 per cent volume, Human 10 feet away from the speaker standing in a quiet room, and Human 10 feet away from the speaker with music playing from the speaker at 50 per cent volume. 

In all these conditions, the speaker, as prefaced at the start of this section, lived up to the expectations I had, having tested its pricier cousin, the Echo Dot (5th Gen). The responsiveness was on point in each one of these scenarios, and apart from minor hitches here and there where I had to repeat the commands for the Echo Pop to pick them up properly, the speaker picked up all the commands I sent its way. I won’t be commenting much on the responses generated by Alexa, as it is a completely different story altogether. Let’s reserve that for some other day.

Amazon Echo Pop: Verdict

The Amazon Echo Pop is another solid addition to the Echo family of smart speakers by Amazon. Priced slightly below the Echo Dot (5th Gen), it makes for an interesting offering for folks who are looking to get started on their adventures with a smart speaker. The other standalone smart speaker that comes close to the Echo Pop is the Google Nest Mini, which retails at a much lower price than this. But, its limited capacity as a speaker and some knicks here and there make it lose ground in the race against the Echo Pop, which makes for a really interesting entry into the smart speaker market. Now, if you have the budget, I would say go for the more loaded Echo Dot (5th Gen), but otherwise, the Echo Pop should be enough for you.

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Redmi Buds 4 Active Review: A pleasant surprise

My final word on the Redmi Buds 4 Active would be that you can go for it if you are looking for a pair of earbuds below ₹1,500. They are a well-rounded pair of earbuds. But you need to test out the controls if they work for you or not. In my experience, the controls could have been much more refined than what they are right now.

If that works out for you, I doubt that only a few other offerings would be able to match up to the looks, feel, and performance of these earbuds. At the time of launch, these are retailing for ₹1,199. Most other alternatives are either wired or neckband, with only a few TWS, like ones by Truke, coming close to them.

Amongst the thousands of TWS earbuds we have on offer in the ₹1,000 to ₹2,000 bracket, we have a new kid trying to make its way in. It is the Redmi Buds 4 Active. These TWS earbuds from the house of one o the most popular brands in India, Xiaomi, are trying to give their competitors from brands like Realme, Oppo, boAt, and the like a run for their money.

So, when the Redmi Buds 4 Active showed up at the Digit Test Centre (before launch), I started testing them, I made sure to draw parallels between these earbuds and similarly priced devices. I put these earbuds through our testing process, and here’s what I found out –

Redmi Buds 4 Active: Build and Design

As soon as you pull the Redmi Buds 4 Active earbuds out of the box, they scream simplicity. The case (on the outside) and the buds have a monotone design, which I love. When you open the case, you get a slight touch of dark grey inner cavity housing the earbuds, which is a nice touch. There’s a subtle glossy strip running along the circumference of the case, which also adds to the buds' overall appeal.

The case and the buds both have a matte finish, apart from that glossy strip that I mentioned. There’s no loud branding on the case apart from the back.

The case hinge is plastic and, much to my disappointment, isn’t as clicky and robust as I would like it to be. But, if you are into doing “cool stuff”, then you can hold the case, flick it, and the lid would open. I tried it several times to make sure that the buds didn’t go flying out of the cavity, and they didn’t, which gave me enough confidence to mention this trick here. But, again, keep in mind the hinge is slightly on the loose side out of the box and is made with plastic, so reserve the trick for special occasions ;-)

As for the fit and comfort of the buds themselves, they are lightweight and comfortable to wear for long periods of time. Even when you are going for a run or to the gym, stay assured that these earbuds will stay in place should not be issue. They are also rated IPX4, so they should be fine against light sweat and splashes of water.

As for the materials used, both the case and the earbuds are made of the same material, which during my time of use, resisted scratches and scuffs pretty well. There were minor scratches on the glossy part of the case, but overall the case and the buds held their own.

Redmi Buds 4 Active: Features

Like some of the earbuds that I have reviewed recently, the Redmi Buds 4 Active come with a limited yet robust feature set. There’s not much on offer with these earbuds, but whatever is baked in is solid for the most part. Why didn’t I end the sentence at solid? Well, you’ll know.

Let’s start with the good part first. It is the pairing. The process of getting these earbuds into pairing mode is easy. Not that intuitive, as you have to take these earbuds out of the case, put them on and then tap thrice on each of the two stems. But, once it is in pairing mode, the process is robust. Even fast pairing with compatible devices works like a charm. I have had experiences with pricier earbuds with Google Fast Pair implementation.

As stated earlier, these earbuds are IPX4 rated, so they are protected against light sweat and splashes of water. Pair that with their great fit, and you have a budget-friendly workout companion.

These earbuds also have ENC for listening, which works some software magic to identify any anomalous sounds in your environment and negate them. For the price that these earbuds are retailing at, this is a very welcome addition. When you pair it with the right fitting eartips, which you have three sizes to choose from, you can get surprising results.

Now, coming to the part which I have the biggest gripe, the controls. The controls of these earbuds is one area where I expected Xiaomi to put in much more effort and refine them. Right now, it is a hit-and-miss when you are changing tracks. The responsiveness is something that I expect the brand to work on when they release the next pair or a firmware update to make whatever we have with these earbuds better. The is no volume control on the earbuds either, which, again, strips one point off. I know that it is not that common at this price, but a bump of about ₹250 to ₹500 with better controls and adding a couple more features would have been nice to have for sure! Right now, it would be a dealbreaker for me, at least. 

In the app side, there's nothing to write much about. There's battery indicator and the toggle to turn low latency mode on and off.

As far as connectivity is concerned, that should not be an issue in daily use. The earbuds come with the latest Bluetooth 5.3 and do not have connection drops across three walls, as I found out when walking around the office with them on.

Redmi Buds 4 Active: Performance

When it comes to the sound signature of the Redmi Buds 4 Active, it is very similar to what we have come to expect and find in earbuds priced between the ₹1,000 to ₹2,000 mark.

As you can see in both graphs, there’s a very apparent boost in the bass frequencies. This is very normal for earbuds that are catered to the Indian masses as the taste is generally geared towards having a bass-forward sound signature. Given the boost, many would expect that it would get muddy and eat into other frequencies. But during my time with the earbuds, I did not feel that it impacted the mids and the highs that much.

The mids come pretty close to our baseline reading of the pink noise, and the boost in the highs makes sure that in tracks across genres, you get as balanced of a sound as you can when you are spending just over ₹1,000 on a pair of TWS earbuds. After the testing ended, I moved away from our regular song suite and listened to some quintessentially Indian songs. And, in those tracks, the performance of these earbuds shined through.

I honestly did not expect these headphones to give me the experience that they did. In songs like Obsession which has been doing rounds on Instagram, the vocals, the bass response, and most instruments were clear, and the song felt well-rounded. 

Coming to the ENC, as prefaced earlier, it also was a pleasant surprise for me. I used the tips that came in out of the box (medium) as they gave me the optimal seal. And once that was set, the ENC made sure that around the 55 per cent volume mark, most of the ambient sounds, like that of an AC, were drowned out almost completely. The clicking of my mechanical keyboard was also very muted.

All in all, if you have a taste for hip-hop, Bollywood, and similar genres of music, you will thoroughly enjoy what these earbuds offer. The ENC is the cherry on top!

The low latency mode drained the battery on these earbuds, but during gaming and watching videos, a trained person would notice the improvement in performance that it brings. So, if you are willing to compromise a bit on the battery life of these earbuds, then you can essentially keep it on all the time.

Talking about the battery life, let’s move on to the penultimate section of the review before I get to the verdict.

Redmi Buds 4 Active: Battery

Xiaomi claims that these earbuds last about 5 hours on a single charge, with the case providing about six more rounds of charging, bringing the total battery life on the buds to 30 hours. In my time with the earbuds, testing them, I got 4 hours and 15 minutes of battery life, which is pretty close to the numbers claimed by the brand.

You can use a USB-C cable to juice these earbuds when you are out of charge. These earbuds sport fast charging, meaning they can provide about 90 minutes of playback on 10 minutes of charge. This again is a nice inclusion.

Redmi Buds 4 Active: Verdict

My final word on the Redmi Buds 4 Active would be that you can go for it if you are looking for a pair of earbuds below ₹1,500. They are a well-rounded pair of earbuds. But you need to test out the controls if they work for you or not. In my experience, the controls could have been much more refined than what they are right now.

If that works out for you, I doubt that only a few other offerings would be able to match up to the looks, feel, and performance of these earbuds. At the time of launch, these are retailing for ₹1,199. Most other alternatives are either wired or neckband, with only a few TWS, like ones by Truke, coming close to them.

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AIWA RS-X 150 Natsukasii Pro Review: Leaves a solid mark

The AIWA RS-X150 Natsukasii Pro is a great speaker in its own right. AIWA has positioned its speakers as premium offerings in this space, and this speaker stays true to that philosophy. Like its pricier cousin, the MI-X330 Meteor, the speaker boasts great sound quality with a fixed set of well-implemented features. The build quality also adds to the experience of owning the speaker, with control-cluster being the only let-down there.

If you are looking for a hassle-free and great audio experience, then the AIWA RS-X150 Natsukasii Pro should be on the top of your list of considerations. However, if you are looking for a similar experience with some added features, then Marshall Acton II should be your choice. And, if you want a middle ground between portability, outdoor use, and features, then Bose SoundLink Revolve+(Series II) and Sony SRS-XP500C should be the speakers that you look at.

It won’t be wrong to say that there is an abundance of Bluetooth speakers in the Indian market. With brands like AIWA, Marshall, JBL, Sony, LG, and the like bringing in offerings across budgets, it can be really tricky for buyers to make the right choice that would get them the best for their money. Even inside a budget segment, the positioning of products is so different that, at times, it becomes really difficult to pick the right one.

When the AIWA RS-X150 Natsukasii Pro speaker showed up at the Digit Test Centre, I wanted to know what the positioning of the speaker was. This is because even AIWA has offerings across budget segments. I spoke with Mr Ajay Mehta, Managing Director at AIWA India, to understand what the brand has been gunning for in India. With some clarity after the discussion (Read here), I dived into our testing, putting the speaker through our test process to see if it lives up to its price tag of ₹27,990. The speaker is priced pretty close to some offerings by brands like Sonos, LG, and Sony, which have fared pretty well in our testing in the past. So, the competition was going to be stiff for the Natsukasii Pro.

Here’s a look at how the AIWA RS-X150 Natsukasii Pro fared in our testing and whether it was able to live up to the expectations set by its pricier cousin, the MI-X330 Meteor, which had won the 2022 Digit Zero1 Award for being the Best Bluetooth speaker –

AIWA RS-X150 Natsukasii Pro: Build and Design

The AIWA RS-X150 Natsukasii Pro’s design can be described in a single phrase – all that glitters is not gold. When you look at the speaker from afar, you will instantly draw parallels with offerings by a closely competing brand *cough* Marshall *cough*. If you were to slap the other brand’s logo onto this, you could easily pass this as that brand’s product. I love the retro look it sports, and the colour choices made by AIWA’s designers fit in perfectly!

But, on closer inspection, you start to see the differences. Let’s start with the control cluster at the top. To my disappointment, it is made of plastic and the kind that doesn’t fit into the premium build and design of the speaker. The dials have a nice step-by-step tactile feel to them, but apart from that, there’s nothing to write home about. For the price that one is paying, even a polished stainless steel casing for the dials and buttons would have been adequate. It is not like AIWA could not do this. The on-off flick switch that is there in the same cluster is metallic. And the difference in feel is very apparent. If you look past it, the control cluster has a solid selection of things that you can alter from there. For someone like me, who is a stickler for physical controls, this is a huge win!

As for the rest of the speaker, on the front, you get a small AIWA logo on the fabric front of the speaker, which looks and feels great! The body of the speaker is covered in a leather-like material. Such materials, in my experience, are prone to fraying if you don’t take good care. So, keep that in mind. The included handle also has the same material on the top, with the inside being velvet. It hooks onto the speaker using the two metal studs, which are sturdy, and you never feel that they’ll detach from the speaker.

Sometimes in speakers, the lack of robust feet can be a killer for the overall experience, especially for something that can get as loud as this one. However, when I was playing the speaker at about full volumes, there was minimal rattling. Props to the engineers at AIWA for that!

What you are getting for the money that you are spending on the AIWA RS-X150 Natsukasii Pro, in terms of the overall build and design of the speaker, is adequate for the price. Nothing out of the ordinary. I would have loved it if the speaker had a metallic control cluster. But the fact that it is plastic was a bummer for me, especially given that the rest of the speaker was solid!

AIWA RS-X150 Natsukasii Pro: Features

As was the case with the last AIWA speaker I tested, the features on the AIWA RS-X150 Natsukasii Pro are limited but robust. Let’s start with the connectivity and related features. One of the best things about this speaker is the ample amount of ports and connectivity options that it comes with. On the speaker, you will find – AUX-IN, USB, micro-SD and Bluetooth connectivity. Many Bluetooth speakers these days are limited to two connectivity options, AUX and Bluetooth. So, having an additional USB and a micro-SD card slot is always nice to have. Some of us still like to load up some of the classics on our USB drives and micro-SD cards and jam to them!

Additionally, with the TWS functionality, you also get the luxury of daisy chaining multiple speakers to create a stereo setup, which with this speaker, would be awesome! And, if you are connected using Bluetooth and are worried about the sound quality, then you can stay assured that you will not have to worry much. In addition to SBC and AAC, the speaker also supports LDAC codec.

Natively, the speaker can play the following four audio formats – MP3, WMA, FLAC, and WAV.

Given the popularity of smart assistants, most speakers these days come with support for them. However, this speaker does not have that. One of its closest competitors, Marshall Acton II comes baked in with the support for voice assistant, albeit Amazon’s Alexa specifically. I would have personally loved to see that included in the speaker. It is a quality of life addition, which many appreciate.

There’s not much that I could find to fit into this section. As I mentioned earlier, the speaker has a limited selection of features. However, those features have been implemented well. And where this speaker shines is what we will talk about next.

AIWA RS-X150 Natsukasii Pro: Performance and Battery Life

AIWA RS-X150 Natsukasii Pro lives up to the expectations set by the MI-X330 Meteor in terms of performance, in my opinion. The speaker has a three-diver setup – 5”x1 (woofer) and 2”x2 tweeters. There are louder speakers that you find at this price. However, finding something that sounds as crisp and detailed as the RS-X150 is rare. This is where the speaker gains the most amount of lost ground from the performance section.

We have a selection of tracks that we play when testing Bluetooth speakers. And, with every track that I played when testing this speaker, I could see heads peeping from across the office to see what monstrosity had walked in. The balance in the bass was shown when I played Uptown Funk and Hump de Bump. The champion-like performance of the speaker, with the balanced mids, shone through when I played Skyfall by Adele. And the speaker’s sparkly highs were put to show with utmost pride in tracks like Selkies by Between the Buried and Me. 

When pumped to full, the bass was enough to cause the objects around the speaker to rattle. I also tried watching a couple of videos when I was connected to the speaker, and the balanced mids and highs made sure that the vocals were always reproduced with ease and were clear at all times. There was no noticeable latency between the audio and video as well. 

If the out of the box, balanced sound, which is our benchmark here at the Digit Test Centre, is not something that you are fond of, then you can adjust the bass and treble on the fly. Whether you are a fan of pop, rock, hip-hop, or some niche genre of music, I am sure with some minor tweaks, you will find the sound signature that is perfect for you! I was also blown away by the connectivity of the speaker. There’s a long story how I discovered its range for the first time, but I can tell you this much the speaker was connected to my phone with four walls and a good 30ish feet of distance.

At the maximum volume, there was almost no distortion in the audio, which is also a rare find these days. There are some speakers which perform well up to the 70 per cent mark, but as soon as the audio peaks beyond that mark, there’s noticeable distortion. The 60 W sound output of the speaker is enough to fill a large room. And, if you are having to push the speaker to its limits, at max volume levels, then I don’t think that will be an issue as well. 

As for the battery life, AIWA claims that this speaker can last for 11 to 12 hours at 50 per cent volume. In my time with the speaker, I found that the speaker missed the claimed mark of 11 hours by one hour. It lasted for 10 hours. Now there are a ton of factors that could affect the battery life of the speaker so that you could still get the claimed duration of playback, possibly even higher with this speaker. When the speaker is out of charge, you can juice it up using the USB-C cable that is included in the box.

AIWA RS-X150 Natsukasii Pro: Verdict

The AIWA RS-X150 Natsukasii Pro is a great speaker in its own right. AIWA has positioned its speakers as premium offerings in this space, and this speaker stays true to that philosophy. Like its pricier cousin, the MI-X330 Meteor, the speaker boasts great sound quality with a fixed set of well-implemented features. The build quality also adds to the experience of owning the speaker, with control-cluster being the only let-down there.

If you are looking for a hassle-free and great audio experience, then the AIWA RS-X150 Natsukasii Pro should be on the top of your list of considerations. However, if you are looking for a similar experience, with some added features, then the Marshall Acton II should be your choice. And, if you want a middle ground between portability, outdoor use, and features, then Bose SoundLink Revolve+(Series II) and Sony SRS-XP500C should be the speakers that you look at. 

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Audio-Technica ATH-M20xBT Review: Special in its own right

Should you go for the Audio-Technica ATH-M20xBT? Yes, if you are out looking for a pair of headphones that will serve you well for years, you don’t mind playing around with EQ settings on third-party apps to bring back the missing low bass and are looking for headphones that could be your gateway into the world of professional headphones and audio.

Now, if you are looking for an experience that has a lot of features, ANC, and app support, with a design that looks more in tune to be worn in public, then you can look at the offerings by Sennheiser, Jabra, Sony, and JBL. These include Jabra Elite 45H, Sennheiser HD458 ANC, JBL Tune 760NC, and Sony WH-CH720N. All these headphones come with loads of mainstream features and have a sound signature that is more in tune with what is loved by many.

The Audio-Technica ATH-M20xBT is the legendary audio brand’s entry into the mid-range segment of the Bluetooth headphones market. However, it is not like the others that are out there. It stands out with the pro-audio badge slapped right next to its name. It is because the headphones have their roots in Audio-Techncia’s pro audio headphone lineup. It’s essentially a pair of wired entry-level headphones bearing the ATH-M badge. While this is the factor that helps it stand out from the rest, it also puts it in a weird spot.

When the ATH-M20xBT showed up at the Digit Test Centre, my first question was, what is the positioning that the brand is looking for in the market with these headphones? Has the brand given it a similar treatment as it had to the M50XBT, making the sound signature a bit bass-heavy to cater to a wider audience that isn’t limited to the studios? And if that is the case, then why did they not include features like ANC and app support? I got answers to most of these questions, but some others also came along the way. If you are to look at the imagery on the website and the way they are positioned, it is made very clear these are not targeted particularly at “professionals”, rather young individuals that are out and about, but also care a bit about the sound quality.

Here’s what I found it while testing the Audio-Technica ATHM20XBT –

Audio-Technica ATH-M20xBTBuild and Design

Just like always, we start by talking about the build and design of the Audio-Technica ATH-M20xBT. And, just like always, Audio-Technica did not let us down with this pair of headphones. While the build quality may look a bit off when you get a first look at these headphones, when you start using them, the excellent build quality shines through.

With a head size that is slightly on the higher side, I always find it difficult to get a pair of headphones that get me the perfect fit. And these headphones shone through in that regard. During my time using these headphones, I never found myself feeling the headband or the earcups digging into my skull. The headphones are lightweight and stay on my head well. I also passed them around to the folks in the Test Centre, and they resonated with my opinions of the fit. The clamping force might be on the lower side for some. However, if you are sitting around, it won’t bother you much. Plus, there’s the swivel in the earcups, which makes up for the inherent lack of clamping force on these headphones.

Another thing that caught my attention when testing out the fit of these earbuds was the metallic headband. This instilled quite a bit of confidence in me when I was using these headphones, especially when people were around and I had to adjust one earcup and put it to the side of my head. Not only that, when stuffing these in my bag, I never felt that the headband would give out. And, as I already pointed out earlier, the headband has a decent amount of padding. Even the earcups also have a decent amount of padding on them, which aids in not only the fit, but also prevents a lot of sound leakage when you are playing your favourite tunes. So, during extended mixing sessions, you won’t have the headphones bother you or the people around you.

In terms of the materials used, they are not at the level of my daily driver, the M50XBT. However, at ₹8,490 it is definitely bang on. Our lead reviewer of audio, Dhriti, did her signature “creaking test”, and these headphones passed with flying colours in her test. The earcups are mostly plastic and have very few points of failure if you are planning to stress these out to the max when using them. Another point in the bag for the ATH-M20xBT.

The controls are on the left earcup, with the 3.5mm audio jack and the USB Type-C charging port making an appearance next to them. The same earcup also has an indicator LED, which also does its job well. 

The only thing that you will need to take care of when using these headphones is the exposed wire connecting the two earcups. It can get caught up on something or the other or experience significantly more wear and tear than the other parts, giving out earlier than they should and ruining the headphones. So, be careful of that.

Audio-Technica ATH-M20xBT: Features

As for the features, these are not the most feature-packed headphones. Like most other brands who have a ton of experience making headphones and other good quality audio products, Audio-Technica has gone for the quality over quantity approach.

The controls on the left earcup, which I mentioned in the last section, are responsive and intuitive. The pairing process is simple, and the audio indicators, when triggered, do their job well. When you plug in the 3.5 mm cable that is supplied along with the headphones, they automatically turn off, and when you remove the cable, if the headphones were on, they turn back on again.

Additionally, Audio-Technica has included multi-point connectivity on these headphones, which makes sure that you can switch between your devices easily. There’s also a low latency mode, which gamers would love. Although, I could not figure out how to trigger it, as the official Audio-Technica app available in India does not support these headphones.

That is where the features list of these headphones ends.

There’s no ANC or any other features that are generally seen on Bluetooth headphones around this price which could be a deal breaker for many. And this brings me to my first question. What is the positioning of these headphones in the market? The lack of features clearly pushes these headphones to the bottom of the list of headphones that are preferred by the masses. And, if you are someone who is looking for a pair of proper studio headphones, then you’d probably go for the wired variant of these headphones, which is available at almost half the price.

We’ll get to this at the end of the article, but keep this in mind as you read ahead. 

Audio-Technica ATH-M20xBT: Performance

When it comes to performance, the Audio Technica ATH-M20xBT shows its true colours. The headphone has a sound signature that many of us have come to expect from Audio Technica’s professional-grade headphones. It is not something that you’d compare to their flagship products or for that matter, some other similarly priced headphones that are made by brands like Sony, JBL, and the like. The sound coming from the ATH-M20xBT has its own nature, which you will understand as you look at the graph and read through.

As you can see in the simplified and full spectrum graph, the sound signature is not something that would appeal to purists or audiophiles. The dip in the low frequencies means that the sound that you get from these headphones will lack that thump. The bass hasn’t completely been neutered, but in the low-bass frequencies, there’s a significant drop, which would eat into your experience of watching explosions or backing sounds of kick drums in some tracks.

It is not something that should deter you from considering these headphones, though. For many, they are perfectly fine. If you are someone looking to get your taste of how studio headphones sound without breaking the bank, then you should definitely go for these headphones. The sound signature of these headphones sufficiently close to neutral. If you are listening to podcasts, the boost in the mids also ensures that you get crystal-clear vocals despite the presence of a backing track in podcast recordings.

In my real-world usage, all this was reflected as well. When listening to tracks like Uptown Funk, and Motherjane, I found the bass to be slightly on the lower side, meaning that it lacked the punch, which would have added a lot of character to the sound. But, when I switched to vocal heavy tracks like Rescue Me, the headphones shone through. Ideally, we love to have a balance across the board, but at this price, it is a difficult find. One thing that is a major letdown though, is the codec support. These headphones support only SBC and AAC codecs. We’d have loved it if it had additional codecs, at least aptX.

As for the microphone, it is nothing special. It is serviceable for calls and will hold its ground when you are on conference calls but don’t expect anything out of the ordinary, which is there in the headphones around this price point. 

There is no ANC, which means that you’ll have to rely on the fit of these headphones to get you that passive isolation. And it will vary from person to person. For me, it did hold up well. However, for Dhriti, the experience was completely different. The fit will also dictate the amount of sound leakage. The better the fit, the lesser the sound leak would be, and vice versa. Also, one more effect that the fit would have on your experience would be on the sound signature. The better the fit, the closer the sound will be to what the brand intended.

Audio-Technica ATH-M20xBT: Battery Life

Audio-Technica claims that these headphones can last up to sixty hours on a single charge. In our tests, the battery life came pretty close to the claimed numbers. To be precise, it was about 56 hours, at 50 per cent volume. And depending on your use, the number can be higher or lower. If you are in a crunch situation, then you also get fast-charging capabilities. 

The brand claims that in a 10-minute charge, you can get up to three hours of listening time. The connector type is USB-C, so most of your chargers, if they are of the exact wattage or are PD capable, will be able to juice up these headphones easily.

Audio-Technica ATH-M20xBT: Verdict

Now, let’s get back to the questions. What is the positioning of the Audio-Technica ATH-M20xBT headphones in the market? It is hard to give a definitive answer. On one hand, the line of headphones they come from makes it feel that they are meant for professionals who are on the go and do not want to be tethered to their source by a wire. But, the pricing and the marketing of these headphones suggest otherwise. This is again contradicted by the sound signature, with the boosted mids and the underemphasised low bass. 

Should you go for it? Yes, if you are out looking for a pair of headphones that will serve you well for years, you don’t mind playing around with EQ settings on third-party apps to bring back the missing low bass and are looking for headphones that could be your gateway into the world of professional headphones and audio.

Now, if you are looking for an experience that has a lot of features, ANC, and app support, with a design that looks more in tune to be worn in public, then you can look at the offerings by Sennheiser, Jabra, Sony, and JBL. These include Jabra Elite 45H, Sennheiser HD458 ANC, JBL Tune 760NC, and Sony WH-CH720N. All these headphones come with loads of mainstream features and have a sound signature that is more in tune with what is loved by many. 

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