Although Huawei’s “smart” mobile phones have lost momentum as they lack Google services, other Huawei products, such as laptops and wireless Bluetooth headsets, continue to attract attention. Among the latter, the Huawei FreeBuds 5 are one of the latest additions to their catalog, and they promise great sound quality seasoned with a very striking design. Are they an AirPods 3 alternative worth considering? We put them face to face to know their characteristics, differences and prices.
Features AirPods 3 and Huawei FreeBuds 5
|
Features |
apple airpods (3rd generation) |
Huawei FreeBuds 5 |
|---|---|---|
|
Dimensions and weight |
3.08 x 1.83 x 1.93 cm and weight of 4.28 grams |
3.24 x 1.76 x 2.28 cm and 5.4 grams |
|
SOUND TECHNOLOGY |
|
|
|
SENSORS |
Skin sensor, accelerometer with motion detection, accelerometer with voice detection and pressure sensor |
Accelerometer, infrared sensor, Hall sensor and touch sensor |
|
MICROPHONES |
Two microphones with beamforming technology and inward-facing microphone |
three microphones |
|
CONNECTIVITY |
Bluetooth 5.0 and H1 chip |
Bluetooth 5.2, dual connection and supports proximity pairing notification and wear detection (HUAWEI devices with EMUI 10.1 or later) |
|
CONTROLS |
|
|
|
Battery |
|
|
|
endurance |
Sweat and water resistant (IPX4) |
Water and dust resistance (IPX4) (not the case) |
|
price |
From 209 dollars |
159 dollars |
HUAWEI FreeBuds 5 Wireless Bluetooth 5.2 Headphones, iOS and Android, Hi-Res Certified, Open Design, Dual Connection, 30 Hour Battery Life, IP54, White
Apple AirPods (3rd generation) with Lightning charging case (2021)
- Design: Many Bluetooth headphones sold borrow from Apple’s AirPods, but Huawei designed the FreeBuds 5 to stand out from the crowd. This design is also designed to provide comfort with its open cut and breathableoptimized through tens of thousands of ergonomic simulations.
- sound technology: Apple reserved active noise cancellation for its AirPods Pro, although it equips this third generation of spatial audio with dynamic head tracking and adaptive equalization. The Huawei FreeBuds 5 have dynamic equalization, active noise cancellation and noise cancellation in calls using artificial intelligence.
- connectivity: The Huawei FreeBuds 5 are compatible with iOS and Android, although to get the most out of them you must download the Huawei AI Life app; The best experience is with HUAWEI devices running EMUI 10.1 or later, as proximity pairing and wear detection features are unlocked. They have Bluetooth 5.2 and dual connection. For its part, the AirPods 3 have the Bluetooth 5.0 and H1 chip for a faster and more efficient connection with Apple devices, since were designed to be used with them, not with Android or Windows.
- Battery: The 3rd generation AirPods don’t have active noise cancellation, so their battery life is more or less always the same: up to six hours per charge and 30 hours with the charging case. However, with spatial sound with dynamic head tracking that drops to five hours of playback per charge. The Huawei FreeBuds 5, according to the brand, promise up to five hours of music playback with noise cancellation turned off (up to 30 hours with the case), and if activated it is up to 3.5 hours, which is little compared to other alternatives on the market.
- Endurance: both proposals can be used for sports since they are IPX4 certified, therefore resistant to water and dust.
- Price: AirPods 3 start at 209 dollars, while Huawei FreeBuds 5 have an RRP of 159 dollars.
Huawei FreeBuds 5 VS Apple AirPods 3, ¿qué auriculares Bluetooth comprar?
The Huawei FreeBuds 5 have several points in favor against Apple AirPods:
- Active noise cancellation
- Bluetooth 5.2
- iOS and Android compatibility
- Price
Active noise cancellation is one of the most sought-after features of wireless Bluetooth headphones.. In the cheap models it usually does not do a good job and is more of a tool to attract attention, but those that have it, like the Huawei FreeBuds 5, do their job after a certain price. And it is that to access this functionality it is necessary to opt for the AirPods Pro, whose price is significantly higher than those of Huawei (even the 3 already have a higher PVP to take into account).
However, the Huawei FreeBuds 5 also have their buts. The main one is that there are two functions that are only available when paired with branded products, which are the Proximity matching and wear detection. And if you have an Android phone, you must first download the Huawei services to be able to access the AI Life application if you want to make settings (this is not the case on iPhone).
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