“With the Air Pro 4, Earfun proves (again) that no one needs to spend more than $100 on wireless earbuds.”
- Great sound
- Choice of hi-res codecs
- Excellent noise canceling
- Wear sensors
- Bluetooth Multipoint
- Auracast-ready
- Tons of customization
- Awkward LE Audio/Auracast setup
- Average name high quality with out Snapdragon Sound
When Earfun launched its first set of wireless earbuds, it redefined our expectations for sub-$100 merchandise. And each new mannequin has pushed these expectations additional. The firm’s latest wi-fi earbuds — the Earfun Air Pro 4 — are not any exception to this development. At $90, they continue to be among the many most inexpensive buds you should purchase, however their characteristic set and sound high quality problem (and in a number of circumstances, exceed) opponents from Sony, Apple, and Bose that price as a lot as thrice that worth. Moreover, they deal with the few downsides I famous on their predecessors, the Air Pro 3.
Whether you’re an iPhone person or an Android fan (in actual fact, particularly should you’re an Android fan), the Earfun Air Pro 4 are the best budget wireless earbuds on the planet. Period.
Before we get into the complete evaluation, let’s take a fast have a look at the Air Pro 4’s characteristic listing as a result of, frankly, it’s astonishing.
- Wireless charging
- Wear sensors (new)
- IPX5 water resistance
- Active noise cancellation (ANC) and transparency modes
- Bluetooth Multipoint
- Google Fast Pair (new)
- Bluetooth LE Audio with Auracast compatibility
- Sony’s LDAC hi-res codec (new)
- Qualcomm Snapdragon sound (aptX Adaptive hi-res codec, aptX Lossless CD-quality codec, low-latency mode, and HD voice transmission) (new)
- Up to 52 hours of playtime (new)
- 30 EQ presets, 10-band equalizer (new)
- App help with customization for EQ, controls, and earbuds locator
About the one factor that’s lacking is head-tracked spatial audio, and the jury remains to be out on whether or not that’s a characteristic folks truly need.
I’m not going to spend a lot time speaking concerning the design. If you’re conversant in Earfun’s earlier stem-based Air Pro lineup, or related merchandise just like the Apple AirPods Pro or Soundcore Liberty 4 NC, you realize the drill. It’s a really snug form that may simply keep put for many day by day actions.
Only these with essentially the most vigorous exercise routines might want to take into account one thing safer. The Air Pro 4 ship with a really beneficiant choice of 5 sizes of silicone eartips (yet one more than the Air Pro 3), roughly guaranteeing that everybody will get an excellent match. With IPX5 water resistance, rain and sweat gained’t be a difficulty — you possibly can even rinse them below the faucet.
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The charging case is a fundamental affair. Not fairly as pocketable because the AirPods Pro — however shut — and with the lid in its open place, it offers glorious entry to the earbuds. Wireless charging is normal, and also you get a brief USB-A-to-USB-C cable within the field for wired charging.
I suppose nowadays extra folks would favor a double USB-C cable, however I’m guessing you even have a number of of those mendacity round already. Indicator lights on the entrance let you know the case’s cost degree, and a second set of lights within the earbud charging sockets offer you suggestions on issues like pairing modes.
The Earfun app gives an amazing variety of ANC modes, together with a pair that declare to be adaptive and powered by AI. My feeling about these modes (on all wi-fi earbuds that supply them, not simply the Air Pro 4) is that they’re typically pointless.
My angle towards ANC is considerably binary: I wish to reject as a lot noise as potential or let in as a lot as potential. Having an AI determine which sounds to cancel and when is simply distracting. The solely exception to that is Apple and Bose’s fantastic loud-noise detection, which rapidly activates ANC when a doubtlessly dangerously loud sound occurs and also you’re in transparency mode.
The excellent news is that the usual ANC mode is superb — a giant enchancment over the Air Pro 3 — and the wind noise mode does precisely what it guarantees.
Transparency mode is blissfully freed from bizarre AI extras, and it’s superb at letting you hear your environment. I’d choose it embrace extra of my voice, which remained pretty muffled. This isn’t an Earfun weak spot. Every set of wi-fi earbuds I’ve tried that use Qualcomm ANC tech suffers from this drawback.
Here’s one factor that Earfun can and will repair: If you wish to swap between ANC and transparency with out biking by means of the conventional mode (ANC/transparency off), you may have that possibility. But good luck discovering it within the app. It’s buried within the app’s Customize Controls menu. To entry it, you might want to entry the Long Press gesture, then faucet on Noise Control — even when it’s already chosen — and that may convey up the choices.
The Air Pro 4’s sound high quality is likely to be one of many few areas that haven’t been considerably improved from the Air Pro 3. And but your means to maximise that sound high quality has elevated significantly. That sounds a bit of contradictory, I do know.
Here’s what I imply:
The new mannequin, similar to its predecessor, sounds nice. Especially since we’re speaking about earbuds that price solely fractionally greater than a tank of gasoline. (Assuming $3.45 per gallon for a 23-gallon F-150, for individuals who have been about to object.)
Clarity, element, soundstage definition, and bass response are all top-notch, although should you’re a real bass-head, it is best to look elsewhere. But getting access to so many non-compulsory hi-res audio codecs (LDAC or aptX Adaptive) and the extra EQ tweaks within the app will increase the probability that you simply’ll get the absolute best sound.
With both LDAC or aptX Adaptive, you’ll get higher element and nuance, and it reduces the sharpness of sure highs, as in comparison with the usual AAC codec. Sorry, iPhone customers, you’re caught with AAC.
The incontrovertible fact that the Air Pro 4 help all the main hi-res codecs is exceptional — even earbuds that price 4 instances as a lot can’t declare this. Since I occur to have one of many few smartphones that may truly help all three (a Motorola ThinkPhone) I used to be curious to see if I may inform the distinction amongst LDAC, aptX Adaptive, and aptX Lossless. There was certainly a perceptible distinction, however I’m nonetheless unsure which one I choose.
What I can say with confidence is that except you sequester your self in a really quiet house and provides your self a number of hours with lossless CD quality and hi-res audio sources, you gained’t discover a lot of a distinction both. In reality, these will be the solely circumstances the place you’ll have the ability to admire the distinction between AAC and any of those superior codecs.
With all that mentioned, after I in contrast the Air Pro 4 to Soundcore’s $100 Liberty 4 NC (utilizing LDAC for each), they have been extraordinarily shut.
The Earfun app now has 30 presets, and a 10-band equalizer for creating and saving your personal presets. There’s additionally a customized sound characteristic that makes an attempt to create a customized EQ profile based mostly in your means to listen to particular frequency bands. My luck with these personalizers has been blended, and I can’t say I beloved what this one did for the sound — your mileage might differ.
Another space the place your particular cellphone might have an effect on your expertise with the Air Pro 4 is name high quality.
Using an iPhone, name high quality was common. In noisy places, the earbuds struggled to maintain my voice clear, although they did an excellent job at blocking the sounds that made my atmosphere noisy within the first place. When issues have been quiet, my voice sounded a lot better.
However, as a set of Snapdragon Sound earbuds, should you’re utilizing a appropriate cellphone, you’ll get really clear voice copy.
What you gained’t get in both situation is the flexibility to change from ANC to transparency mid-call utilizing the earbuds’ controls. For that, you’ll want to make use of the Earfun app. And, similar to transparency in non-call conditions, your personal voice will nonetheless be fairly muffled.
Having Bluetooth Multipoint is a large comfort, and the Air Pro 4 help this helpful characteristic that permits you to keep linked to 2 units concurrently. To use it, although, you’ll must disable LDAC. AptX Adaptive/Lossless, against this, are appropriate with Multipoint.
I actually like that within the Earfun app’s dual-device settings display, you possibly can decide any two of your beforehand paired units for a Multipoint session.
Since we’re on the subject of Bluetooth, right here’s the great and the unhealthy in relation to Auracast on the Air Pro 4:
It’s nice that Earfun has added this characteristic. I firmly consider that Auracast isn’t solely the way forward for audio sharing, it’s additionally the way forward for public audio. By that I imply TVs in gyms, airport gate bulletins, translated content material each at reside occasions and films, and so forth. It’s actually cool.
But enabling Auracast on the Air Pro 4 requires some gymnastics.
You first allow LE Audio from throughout the Earfun app (which implies disabling LDAC and aptX codecs). Then it’s essential to return to your Bluetooth system listing and “forget” the earbuds. Then pair them once more. Then be sure you allow LE Audio within the earbuds’ Bluetooth settings. Finally, assuming your cellphone is even Auracast appropriate, you employ the “Find broadcast” characteristic to search for and hopefully be part of an Auracast transmission … which in my case, utilizing the Motorola ThinkPhone merely didn’t work.
Relying on a cellphone’s working system for the Auracast Assistant operate (the software program that scans for and connects the earbuds to an Auracast transmission) is — at this early stage within the growth of Auracast — a dicey proposition.
You’ll possible get higher outcomes in case your earbuds’ companion app has this performance built-in. I used to be capable of check this with an as-yet-unreleased set of wi-fi earbuds on my iPhone and it labored like a attraction. I’d let you know all about it, however I’ve been sworn to secrecy till September.
I’ll give Earfun the advantage of the doubt. Auracast most likely will work with the Air Pro 4 quickly. Just not fairly but. What I’m lots much less obsessed with is the complicated set of steps to make it work. Perhaps all earbuds that help hi-res codecs might want to do one thing related — it’s nonetheless too early to know.
On the Air Pro 3, I discovered the contact controls a bit of inaccurate, however the Air Pro 4 have confirmed very dependable. Better but, Earfun has added put on sensors to auto-pause your music while you take away an earbud. For some of us, that single enchancment will probably be value the additional $10.
The Earfun app enables you to modify 4 gestures per earbud — good for management freaks.
Earfun has all the time supplied greater than ample battery life on its earbuds, and the Air Pro 4 up the numbers additional. From seven hours per cost with ANC on (Air Pro 3), to 7.5 hours. With ANC off, it goes from 9 hours (Air Pro 3) to 11 hours. And whole ANC off time is now 52 hours (versus 45).
Keep in thoughts that your alternative of codec and quantity degree will have an effect on these stats. LDAC is extra power-hungry than aptX so should you use LDAC and adaptive ANC collectively, playtime drops to 6 hours per cost.
Wondering if you should purchase the Earfun Air Pro 4? Unless you personal the Soundcore Liberty 4 NC, don’t hesitate. With strong enhancements throughout the board, Earfun has delivered a whole lot of extras for under a tiny enhance in worth. There’s some particular weirdness across the implementation of Bluetooth Auracast, however I don’t assume that’s a purpose to keep away from them (it’s additionally very early days for this expertise). The Air Pro 4 are a wonderful worth and may simply be the perfect wi-fi earbuds below $100.