Stuff - UK (2020-02)

GROUP TEST WIRELESS BUDS

Huawei FreeBuds 3 Price £170 / stuff.tv/FreeBuds3

STUFF SAYS Innovative noise-killing buds, but steer clear if you’re an iPhone owner ++++,

BEST FOR

AIRPOD

APING

What’s the story?

Huawei is fearless when it

comes to hardware. While

manufacturers like Apple and

Google bide their time and

launch new tech once it’s

failed a few times first, we

have to give the politically

precarious Chinese tech giant

credit: it innovates, hard.

Huawei’s third generation

of AirPod rivals are the world’s

first active noise-cancelling

earbuds with an open-fit

design, meaning they rest

gently in your ear openings

rather than being jammed

in tight. They also promise

high-quality audio skills and

zippy charging.

Are they any good?

Let’s gloss over the fact that

these appear to be direct

copies of Apple’s true wireless

creations and focus on the

good bits: like how well they

stayed in our sweaty lugholes.

We went jogging, had a few

workouts and went on a

couple of long-haul flights

without them budging. At 4.5g

each they’re light too – over

1g lighter than Samsung’s

Galaxy Buds, although they

don’t feel fragile.

The microphone isn’t

particularly good at drowning

out background din, but active

noise-cancelling up to 15dB

does help with clarity when

on the receiving end. Better

still, the Huawei AI Life app

(Android only) allows quick

changes to the targeted

frequencies, so sound

suppression can be optimised

for the environment.

Thanks to a neatly designed

and lightweight case, Huawei’s

buds power up twice as fast as

second-gen AirPods, with a

charging time of 30 minutes.

When full, they deliver four

hours of playback time,

though this time drops if

noise-cancelling is fired up...

and you will be wanting to

activate that, as the sound

experience delivered by

these buds is fantastic when

distraction is minimised.

Tech specs

O 4hrs + 20hrs with case

O No waterproofing

O Bluetooth 5.1

O 4.5g

Apple bye

They are compatible

with iPhones, but the

AI Life app isn’t on iOS

so you won’t be able

to customise the

touch controls or

tune the ANC.

Finger buffet
Double-tapping
the buds on either
side carries out a
predefined action,
which can be set
and adjusted in the
accompanying app.