OnePlus has officially announced its upcoming Buds Pro, a $150 competitor to the similarly-named AirPods Pro and Galaxy Buds Pro. With their unique design, Dolby Atmos support, wireless charging, a big battery, and an ANC mode that adapts to your surroundings, the Buds Pro looks like OnePlus’ first attempt to really stand out in the audio market.
Adaptive ANC (or “smart adaptive noise cancellation”) is the most unique feature here, and it seems like a great solution to the impact that aggressive noise cancellation can have on sound quality and battery life. OnePlus says that each Buds Pro earbud uses three microphones to detect ambient noise levels and adjust ANC accordingly, utilizing up to 40dB of noise reduction if you enter an especially loud environment.
Some earbuds allow you to adjust your ANC level in-app or through touch controls, which is a bit of a hassle. Even if you ignore the befits that adaptive ANC may have for sound quality and battery life, it still sounds like a major convenience. (Assuming that it works!)
Other OnePlus Buds Pro features are par for the course—aside from Dolby Atmos, of course. Wireless charging is also a nice addition, and the OnePlus Buds Pro 38-hour battery life (with the charging case) is compelling, considering the AirPods Pro’s 24-hour total battery life.
Oh … can I say it? It’s also nice to see a pair of OnePlus Buds that don’t look too AirPods-like. Remember when 2,000 units of the original OnePlus Buds were seized at customs for looking too much like AirPods? Good times.
Anyway, OnePlus plans to launch its Buds Pro on September 1st. You can sign up for release alerts on the company’s webstore to get a first chance at the Buds Pro when they go on sale.
