Warm Winter Good Thing Award
Wireless headphones are evolving at a fast pace. Edifier's NeoBuds Pro was released in 2021, but in terms of technology, that was a long time ago. Now, the company has released a sequel to the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2, and just like Apple's latest AirPods Pro, it's a solid evolution of what is already pretty good.
Like the original, these are true wireless earbuds with active noise cancellation. Unlike the original, these headphones add a new trick in the form of spatial audio, a feature usually only found in high-end earbuds. While this is a cool new feature, this headset is not more expensive than its predecessor.
The Edifier doesn't always live up to expectations, but we were really impressed with the company's products before. Will the NeoBuds Pro 2 do the same thing?
While it's been a few years since the original NeoBuds Pro was released, the NeoBuds Pro 2 doesn't look much different. Like the original, the overall design borrows from the Apple AirPods Pro, but the Neobuds Pro 2 are more angular and use sharper edges in favor of the curves of the AirPods.
If you're often having a hard time finding the right wireless headphones, then the NeoBuds Pro 2 might be a better fit for you. You can choose from five different sizes of ear tips instead of the standard small, medium, and large ear tips that come with most ear tips. Medium-sized earbuds usually fit my ears perfectly and work well here as well, but if you have smaller or larger ears, the extra size can be useful.
During testing the NeoBuds 2, I found them to be very comfortable. While the edges made them look difficult to wear, I quickly forgot that they were in my ears many times.
Similar to high-end earbuds and in-ear***, the NeoBuds Pro 2 features a hybrid driver design. This means that they have balanced armature drivers in addition to the standard dynamic drivers found in many of the more affordable earbuds. In this case, the dynamic driver handles the low and mid frequencies, while the balanced armature handles the high frequencies.
This isn't the only high-end touch in these mid-range earbuds. In addition to the common SBC and AAC codecs, you can also get Sony's LDAC codec as well as LHDC, which is designed to deliver 192kHz 24-bit audio via Bluetooth.
The dual-driver nature of the earbuds makes it sound clearer and higher-end than I'd normally expect from headphones in this **range.
Spatial audio is the main difference from many other earbuds in the same price range, and while it's not as effective as Apple's attempt, it's pretty close, considering the differences. As with the AirPods Pro, this effect works best for me*** That is, there is a slight delay in tracking on the Neobuds Pro 2, while there is no such delay on the AirPods Pro.
Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) has become a must-have feature for earbuds, but it can be difficult to use correctly. That said, the ANC in the Neobuds Pro 2 is impressive, almost eliminating the low rumble of my stove – something that many earbuds struggle to do. While it's not as impressive at higher frequencies, it's still more effective than many other similar** "headphones" I've tried.
The Edifier boasts of its beamforming microphone, which isn't bad at blocking out background noise, but I've noticed a big difference in its pickup in a quiet room compared to outdoors.
Both earbuds have a capacitive touch surface that allows you to control the earbuds with a tap of your finger. I've never had any of my earbuds work reliably, and it seems like I'm not the only one experiencing such issues. This is obvious, as there is a feature in the Edifier Connect app for Android and iPhone that lets you adjust the sensitivity, or at least as it should be.
Dig deeper into the app and you'll find the "Tap Sensitivity" setting, which is supposed to affect how clicks are registered. No matter what I do with this setup, I can't get the earbuds' controls to feel appropriately responsive. Luckily, many of the features are easy to control in the app anyway.
You'll find some basic features, such as the ability to switch between ANC and Ambient (transparent) modes, although Edifier's ANC settings are hardly necessary. You can choose between low, medium, and high noise cancellation, as well as ambient sound and wind reduction modes.
Similarly, you can also switch between **, gaming, and spatial audio modes within the app. There are also some novel features, such as the ability to change the color of the lights on the charging case.
Truly wireless headphones have reached the point where we expect a battery life of about 6 hours on a single charge. The NeoBuds Pro 2 has a battery life of up to 55 hours, but only if you are willing to give up the ANC. On the other hand, if you wish to keep noise cancellation on, you can only charge for up to four hours at a time.
The charging case can recharge the earbuds 3 times, providing up to 16 hours of battery life with ANC and 22 hours without ANC. When it's time to charge the charging case, you'll need to use the included USB-C cable, as this is the only way to charge the charging case – there's no wireless charging feature here. Luckily, they support fast charging, and you can listen for two more hours with just 15 minutes of charging.
The Edifier Neobuds Pro 2's sonic signature doesn't quite match the Apple AirPods Pro, but its proximity is impressive, considering the difference of around $120. In terms of other features, this headset doesn't quite match up with the competition's ANC, Transparency Mode, or Spatial Audio. The lack of wireless charging is the biggest regret here.
While they don't fit into the Apple ecosystem like AirPods, they do integrate well with Android devices. It doesn't just depend on the integration either, just like if you use an Android phone, you get access to better codecs, specifically LDAC that is not supported by Apple devices.
If you like the idea of AirPods, but mostly Android users, the Edifier NeoBuds Pro 2 can offer many benefits at a much lower**. There are better options, but certainly not this one**.