OPPO recently launched its OPPO Enco Buds2, successor to its last year’s entry-level earbuds. This has a new stem design, features new 10mm dynamic drivers and up to 28h total playback, while retaining Bluetooth 5.2 with AAC audio codec. So, are these the best budget true wireless earbuds? Let us find out in this review.
Box Contents
- OPPO Enco Buds2 in Black colour
- Ear tips (Small, Medium (Pre-installed) and Large)
- Quick start guide
Starting with the design, the headset comes in a round charging case with a matte finish that doesn’t attract fingerprints, and is smooth to touch. It is compact, fits in your pocket.
The indicator is actually present on the bottom, next to the USB Type-C port. There is a bar running along the side that has a glossy finish. This looks attractive, but it is prone to fingerprints and scratches. The charging case measures 57x57x25.6 mm and weighs just 38 grams, making it bigger, but lighter than the predecessor.
The headset also has a plastic finish, but it has a matte finish on the outside, and on the inside, it has a glossy finish which is prone to fingerprints and scratches. These feature an in-ear design and also come with medium-sized ear tips pre-installed. You can change to bundled Large or Small sized ear tips if you wish.
Overall, the headset offers a decent build quality for the price and fits your ears perfectly so that they don’t fall off your ears easily during workouts, running or cycling. OPPO says that silicone ear tip design is based on in-ear testing on the pressure of the earbuds on the ear (the tragus, cavum conchae, auditory canal, etc.) to effectively block out external noise while ensuring comfortable wear and an immersive listening experience. Passive noise cancellation is good.
The earbuds also have IPX4 water-resistant rating to prevent splash, rain, and sweat in everyday use scenarios, but the first Enco Buds had IP54 ratings for dust resistance as well.
Connectivity, Pairing, and Controls
The OPPO Enco Buds 2support Bluetooth 5.2 with AAC, high quality audio codec. The connection range and quality is good. The pairing process is very easy, simply open the case with the earbuds. Now open the Bluetooth settings on the phone, and it shows up as OPPO Enco Buds2, and you can connect to it. The touch controls are easy to access.
| Function | Left earphone (L) | Right earphone (R) |
| Answer call / Hang calls | Double tap | |
| Play Previous track | Triple tap | |
| Play Next track | Double tap | |
| Increase volume | Touch and Hold | |
| Decrease volume | Touch and Hold | |
It retains volume controls from the predecessor. The headset doesn’t have Smart wear detection, so it can’t automatically pause the music when taken out and resume when you put back, which is again a feature that is rarely present in a headset in the price range.
You can customize the controls from the settings in the Hey Melody app on Android or iOS. This works without a separate app in OPPO phones running ColorOS 11 or later. Single-tap and double tap controls can be customized. You can also switch triple tap controls and swap touch and hold gesture for volume control or disable them.
Audio Quality and Call Performance
The OPPO Enco Buds pack a 10mm dynamic Titanized driver that are rarely used in its price range. This offers a bass driven sound, so this offers a punchy bass, but the mids and highs are just average, same as the predecessor. Sound from the earbuds are loud, so even a 60% volume should be fine, but this depends on the audio you are listening.
There are Enco Live Stereo Sound Effects, featuring three types of effects: Original Sound, Bass Boost, and Clear Vocals. Original Sound focuses on enhancing audio naturally for an authentic experience, while Bass Boost,
as its name suggests, amplifies bass performance to maximize those hard-hitting beats. For those who want to hear the immaculate vocals of each performer, Clear Vocals would be the perfect. I prefer Clear Vocals for podcasts and switch between Original Sound and Bass Boost depending on the music genre. It also makes use of Dolby Atmos, if it’s present in the phone.
The low-latency gaming mode is useful when gaming since it reduces the latency. The company says that the latency is reduced to 94ms in the gaming mode during internal testing. You can customize controls to launch the gaming mode. You get a notification when you enter and exit the mode.
The earbuds have AI deep noise cancellation for calls. This uses noise cancellation algorithm simulates the human binaural hearing system based on a deep neural network (DNN) to dynamically track human voices and
separate them from background noises in real-time.
The Voice clarity was good for calls indoors, but it doesn’t cut out wind noise or traffic noise when you use if for calls outdoors, but it is better than the older Enco Buds. Overall, these have good audio quality and average call quality for the price.
Battery Life
The earbuds pack a 40mAh battery that promise about 7 hours of standalone battery life. During my use with AAC, I got over 6 hours of battery life in 60% volume. If you make a lot of calls, then the battery life will be less. It takes about one and half hours to charge the earbuds. There is fast charging, so 10 minutes of charging offers one hour of playback. If the earbuds are not connected to a phone for more than 5 minutes, it enters the power saving mode.
With the 460mAh charging case, bigger than the 400mAh in the predecessor, it promises up to 28 hours of battery life. I got over 3 additional charges. It takes over to 3 hours to charge the case fully with the earbuds over USB Type-C. Even though the case doesn’t pair with the phone, you can see the charge left in the case in the app when you place at least one ear buds in the case.
Conclusion
Overall, the OPPO Enco Buds2 is a good entry-level Bluetooth true wireless earbuds for Rs. 1799 that is cheaper than the first Enco Buds. It offers loud, bass driven audio, has customizable controls, including volume controls and a long battery life. Wish it had retained the IP54 ratings.
Thge OPPO Enco Buds2 comes Black colours, is priced at Rs. 1,799 and, will be available from OPPO online store and Flipkart from August 31st.
Pros
- Bluetooth 5.2 with AAC, Dolby Atmos
- Good audio quality
- Long battery life
Cons
- Call quality could have been better
- IPX4 ratings compared to IP54 in Enco Buds