Rating: 3.5/5
OnePlus The Nord Buds series has helped the company gain immense popularity and growth in the hearable segment. The company is now all set to further strengthen its position in the TWS market with its latest affordable launch. OnePlus Nord Buds 3 ProThe affordable true wireless earbuds from OnePlus feature a compact design and come with active noise cancellation support. We used the beautiful looking earbuds for a while and here is our full review.
design
The OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro differs from its predecessor with a premium and distinctive design. Its look makes it stand out from other true wireless earbuds in the OnePlus lineup. The earbuds come with an oval-shaped charging case that is compact and lightweight. The charging case of the OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro features a stylish dual-tone design. The bottom has a speckled metallic finish, which contrasts brilliantly with the smooth, shiny top flap. You will find OnePlus branding and an LED indicator that glows red and green indicating the battery life of the TWS. The USB Type-C is placed at the bottom of the charging case along with the setup button.
Opening the charging case, you will find two slots with magnetic pins that hold the earbuds in place. The OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro are made of plastic and come with a combination of matte and glossy finish. The earbuds also have a slightly different design compared to other TWS available in the market. The Nord Buds 3 Pro have a bulbous stem that gives the user a better grip. Each earbud has three microphones at the front, back, and bottom. The lightweight earbuds come with optical sensors for wear detection and easy touch controls further enhance the user experience. The OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro also come with an IP55 rating that protects it from sweat and splashes. Overall, the earbuds have a compact and slightly different design.
Features and performance
The OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro comes with Bluetooth version 5.4 with AAC codec support. The earbuds come with Google Fast Pair functionality and to connect them to your smartphone you need to open the flap. You can also connect the TWS by pressing the button present on the charging case to connect them to your smartphone. The OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro also comes with dual connection functionality which means you can connect the earbuds to two devices at the same time.
The true wireless earbuds from OnePlus offer easy touch controls that you can customize to your liking. You can use the Hey Melody app to customize and personalize the OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro. The earbuds offer single tap, double tap, and triple tap functionality. You can use a single tap to play and pause music and a double tap lets you skip tracks or answer calls. You can go back to the previous track with a triple tap and enable noise cancellation mode with a simple press and hold gesture. You can customize all these controls for a better experience.
Just like its predecessor, the OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro feature a 12.4mm titanized dynamic driver. The earbuds deliver rich and crisp audio, with a strong bass response even without using the Basswave feature. Users can further enhance the bass with the new Basswave Enhancement 2.0 algorithm, which allows for customizable bass levels. The earbuds’ companion app offers four equalizer settings and also enables users to create their own custom EQ for a better audio experience.
Talking about noise cancellation, the OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro comes with an Active Noise Cancellation feature. The company claims that the true wireless earbuds can completely block out ambient noise and deliver a pure audio experience. You can also take this adaptive ANC to another level with a noise-cancelling profile tailored to you. Through a simple manual test, these earbuds can detect sound leakage and change the settings according to the specific shape of your ear canal, minimising any loss in sound quality.
Powered by the company’s in-house algorithm, Smart Noise Cancellation optimises the level and style of noise reduction based on the background noise. Leveraging the flagship triple stereo microphone setup on each side of the earbuds, the OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro can detect and analyse ambient noise in real-time. With three levels of ANC, Mild (15 dB), Moderate (25 dB), and Max (49 dB), these earbuds perfectly balance ANC effectiveness and convenience. Along with this, the anti-wind design of the earbuds enables you to enjoy uninterrupted music and calling experience when outdoors.
The Transparency mode on the OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro lets outside sound in, keeping you fully connected to the sounds around you. You can easily make out the surrounding sounds even while listening to music.
OnePlus claims that the Nord Buds 3 Pro can deliver up to 12 hours of music playback on a single charge. And with the charging case, the battery backup can go up to 44 hours. During our testing, the OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro managed to deliver up to 7 hours of music playback on a single charge. Along with this, the earbuds also come with fast charging support and with a 10-minute charge, the device promises to deliver 11 hours of music playback.
Decision
The OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro comes at an affordable price of Rs 3,299. The OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro earbuds offer a powerful audio experience along with quite effective active noise cancellation. For consumers looking for quality audio under Rs 5000, the OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro can be a good option.
