a definite success in terms of quality, price and noise reduction

realme today announced the arrival of the realme Buds Air 2 in Europe, as well as the realme 8 Pro. We spent several days testing the headphones to tell us how the experience went.

Really includes Buds Air 2

• Conductors: Carbon fiber 10 mm.
• Codec: AAC, SBC.
• Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.2.
• Processor: R2 for noise cancellation.
• Drums:
  • Headphone autonomy: 4 hours with active noise cancellation (5 hours without cancellation).
  • Case: up to 25 hours of battery life.
  • Charging time: 2 hours.
• Other:
  • Active noise cancellation.
  • IPX5 (splash and sweat resistance).
  • Gesture control.
  • Intelligent wear detection.
  • 88 ms latency.
  • Google Fast Pair.
• Weight:

More original than the first generation

When we tested the first-gen Realme Buds Air, it was a product we really liked, even though its design was irremediably reminiscent of Apple’s AirPods, a design that, while excellent, makes real headphones.

The main changes would be two: the incorporation of a rubber to improve hearing isolation and an aesthetic change in the cylinder, which turns silver in the white model and makes it particularly striking.

The charging case is oval and you can see the realme logo on the front with a battery indication LED for the case.

On the side we have a button that, if we keep it pressed, will allow us to activate the binding mode.

And at the bottom, the USB C port. In this model, we don’t have wireless charging.

The headphones are very light and that’s something we like in use. They adapt e asily to the ear and are very comfortable to wear during the hours of use that we take them with us.

Sound quality and latency to enjoy any content

In its category, you can see that I really put a lot of effort into getting headphones that sound great, always taking into account their small size, bluetooth connectivity, and low price. The sound is balanced, but if we want it we can activate the Bass Boost + technology to get more powerful bass.

One of the main issues with wireless headphones is usually sound latency, that is, the time which elapses between the moment when the sound should be emitted and the moment when it ends up playing in the headphones.

When you listen to music, this is not a problem, but it is when we are watching videos or playing video games, where there must be the best possible synchronization to avoid feeling that the picture and the video are out of date.

This was already one of the strengths of realme in its previous models and in this product it remains. We can enjoy almost any type of content without perceiving noticeable latency (you can notice this if you are very aware, but if you focus on the game or movie you are watching it becomes imperceptible).

As for the battery, realme says that with a single charge we achieve 5 hours of music or 4 hours with active noise cancellation. In our tests, lasted between 3 and 3½ hours of battery life on a single charge, competent figure but without boasting.

Active noise cancellation is capable of reduce up to 25 dB of ambient noise, something below the 35 that high-end headphones tend to cut, but that’s understandable given the price tag. With the right rubber bands, cancellation, and active music, you won’t have a problem isolating yourself in various situations. In public transport, they lose some efficiency, but nothing serious considering its price.

Competent software experience in areas for improvement

Pairing the realme Buds Air 2 is very simple, and when you open the case for the first time, a notification will appear to invite us to pair on our mobile. This is possible thanks to Google Fast Pair technology.

Beyond the quick pairing, this mode offers us some advantages such as the possibility of checking the battery level of each headset and of the case from the notifications, as well as being able to search for the device, with the last one. location where it was connected to the mobile.

Although the experience is simply pleasant, it is highly recommended that you install the realme Link app. From this app, we can improve the experience by personalizing various aspects, such as:

• Choose the sound mode:
  • Noise cancellation.
  • Normal.
  • Transparency mode.
• Activate game mode: By activating this mode we sacrifice a little quality to obtain exceptional latency, ideal for games.
• Intraural detection: When this function is active, the music stops when we remove the headphones and resumes when we put them back on. It’s on by default, but if we don’t like it, we can turn it off.
• Bass amplification +: Boost the bass, ideal when you’re looking to get the music going.
• Gestures: We can customize double and triple tap on each earbud for multimedia actions, activate voice assistant, or just switch between noise cancellation and transparency modes.
  • The gestures did not convince us much, since they do not always recognize the double touch well, and the triple touch much less.
• Software Updates: These headphones can improve the user experience through software updates, fixing bugs, improving battery consumption, or even adding new functions in the future.

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Extremely competitive in quality and price

While these are exceptional headphones in many ways, there are some reasons you might not want these headphones. These are all absences that lie in the small details, but it is important to mention them.

• Dislikes the design: While most headphones in this category tend to follow similar design lines, on a personal level I’m not convinced by the silver cylinder of the white model and prefer more similar designs to the Galaxy Buds. This is not a compelling reason and ultimately it is a matter of taste.
• In search of an extraordinary battery: 3.5 hours is more than enough battery life for most users and possible use cases, but if you’re one of those people who wear headphones all day long. If your degree of excellence is around these numbers, you will surely have to opt for models of higher category.
• You want a case with wireless charging: It’s a difficult absence to justify given that the first generation incorporated it. It’s worth it if they are 10 dollars cheaper and have ANC noise cancellation, but it’s a feature we’ve lost.
• Gesture control is important to you: The touch controls are so horrible it’s like they don’t exist.

While we’ve been picky in mentioning most of the flaws, there are many cases where you may not care about one of them. If you are looking for headphones that sound great, have good enough sound latency to play, these are headphones with a spectacular value for money.

The realme Buds Air 2 will be available from March 31 in Europe in 2 colors: Closer White and Closer Black. The price of the helmet is 49.99 dollars, although as an introductory offer they can be purchased for just 39.99 dollars between March 24 and March 30 on the brand’s website.