OnePlus Nord Buds hands-on: Unbeatable at first glance

OnePlus Nord Buds in a nutshell

The OnePlus Nord Buds were released on May 19, but pre-order starts only on May 31 in the US, and only through the official OnePlus store. The starting price of these earbuds is $39, which is really competitive when we look at the quality-to-price ratio.

The Nord Buds follows the philosophy of the Nord smartphone series, namely to offer as much as possible at super affordable prices. So, according to OnePlus, these wireless headphones are built with some of the brand's most popular features, such as 12.4mm titanium dynamic drivers, Dolby Atmos support, and 30 hours of combined playback on a single charge.

With an original look that makes a good impression from the moment of unboxing the headphones, this $39 device does not lag behind many of the more expensive options available on the market. In addition, battery life and audio quality are highlights here.

In Europe, the OnePlus Nord Buds will go on sale starting May 24, 2022. Pre-orders can be placed from OnePlus.com and on local Amazon sites starting May 19, 2022.

Sleek look and comfortable experience

The Nord Buds are available in Black Slate color and have a metallic look, this is thanks to the non-conductive vacuum metallization according to the manufacturer-just like we have on the OnePlus Buds Pro. Weighing only 4.82 grams, the headphones are super discreet as well. In addition, they offer an IP55 rating against water and sweat, with a hydrophobic, sweat-resistant nano-coating that protects against corrosion.

With ergonomic design, the OnePlus Nord Buds are really comfortable. There are few headphones that do not cause pain in my ears within the first few days of use, and the Nord Buds are on that select list. Even wearing the headphones for hours on end, I didn't notice any discomfort. In addition, they feel quite stable and secure in the ears, unlike the model I was previously using, the Honor Earbuds 2 Lite, which uses a design quite similar to Apple's AirPods.

What I liked:

• Original design-not everything is AirPods!
• IP55 certification and protection against corrosion by sweat.
• Size and weight.
• Super secure in the ears.

What I didn't like:

• -

Besides the intermediate tip (M) that comes installed on the headphones, we have two other tip sizes in the box-small (S) and large (L). Fortunately, I didn't have to remove the standard tip, but if you want to change, it is very simple to remove and add each of the size options.

The charging case is also discreet, even though it is more rectangular in size than my Honor ANC headset which is more square. It is 67.9 x 35.5 x 28.68 mm from the OnePlus versus 45.5 x 61.2 x 25.35 mm from the Honor, but it still fits very well in my fanny pack.

Controls that are easy to remember

To control the OnePlus Nord Buds is pretty simple, we have three touch options that work on either side of the earbuds. There are no physical buttons here, just touch sensitive ones. In the table that follows you check out what each of the actions offers:

You can customize each of the touch functions of any of the earbuds on your phone to use different commands. However, this only works for OnePlus devices. In my test with an iPhone, it was not possible to do this.

Connectivity and Latency

As far as connectivity goes, the OnePlus Nord Buds are Bluetooth 5.2 equipped, and according to the manufacturer feature an ultra-low latency mode that decreases delays to 94ms when paired with OnePlus devices with the Pro Gamer mode enabled. Honestly, during the time I spent with the headphones, latency was nothing I had to worry about.

And for those already using a OnePlus smartphone-for OnePlus 6 or later-the OnePlus Fast Pair function is available. Android users interested in the Nord Buds can download the HeyMelody app from the Google Play Store. Unfortunately, I was not able to add the headphones to the HeyMelody app on iOS, even though it is available for download from the Apple App Store.

Good audio experience

On paper, the OnePlus Nord Buds feature 12.4 mm titanium dynamic drivers designed for "rich bass response and razor-sharp highs." Added to that, the Nord Buds are equipped with 4 microphones to filter out unwanted background noise during phone calls and feature AI-powered noise cancellation algorithms.

In practice, the sound quality is good, respecting bass and highs, and offers good performance in different music genres. In short, it is really enjoyable to listen to music with this headset. However, we do not have any kind of noise cancellation here, so depending on the volume setting, expect interference from the surrounding environment.

What I liked:

• Above-average sound performance for low-cost TWS headphones.
• Precise volume.
• Support for equalization app on Android/OnePlus.

Dislikes:

• Poor microphone audio in noisy environments.

By way of comparison, the Honor Earbuds 2 Lite uses 10mm drivers, and despite the Honor buds being more expensive and relying on ANC, the Nord Buds' audio experience pleases me more. Also, set to volume zero, the Nord Buds goes completely silent, which Honor's device does not offer, even though it costs twice as much in Germany, where I live.

We also have Dolby Atmos spatial audio technology here for a surround audio experience. OnePlus offers support for the SBC and AAC codecs whose frequency range is from 20 to 20,000 Hz. As you might expect, we don't have any high-quality codecs on board. However, using the companion app HeyMelody it is possible to play around with different equalization options.

OnePlus highlights the 4 microphones present in the Nord Buds, as well as noise cancellation algorithms powered by the company's AI, however, the quality here is questionable. Indoors and in low-noise environments, audio recording proved to be good, however, when we are outside, with wind, even voice messages on WhatsApp proved to be a challenge.

Battery life: 30h on a single charge

According to OnePlus, the Nord Buds provide up to 30 hours of combined audio playback on a single charge , that's counting the charging case. On their own, the earbuds offer 7 hours of playback on a single charge. In addition, thanks to OnePlus' Flash Charge technology, we get 5 hours of audio playback with just 10 minutes of charging time.

Unfortunately, with only one day of use, it is difficult to express an opinion about this, however, I can say that the power consumption was quite stable. A USB-C charging cable is included in the box, however, as my MacBook Pro has no USB-A port, it was of little use to me. Therefore, any USB-C cable will work in this case.

What I liked:

• 7 hours of playback on a single charge.
• Flash Charge.

What I didn't like:

• USB-C/USB-A charging cable is outdated.

OnePlus Nord Buds technical specifications

	Technical specifications
Product	OnePlus Nord Buds
Illustration
Design	In earbud weight: 4.82 g (per earpiece) / 41.7 g (housing) | port detection | touch controls
Audio	12.4 mm dynamic drivers | 102 dB ± 3 bB @ 1 kHz | Microphones: 4 (2 per earbud)
Frequency response	Bluetooth: 20-20,000 Hz
Special Features	Dolby Atmos support | Sound Master Equalizer | Compatibility with HeyMelody app | AI noise cancellation calls
Bluetooth	5.2 | SBC, AAC codecs | Wireless range 10 meters | OnePlus Fast Pair
Battery life	7h Playback | 3.5h Calls 30h Playback with the box Fast Recharge 10 min = 5h autonomy (charging case + earbuds combined) Battery capacity: 41 mAh (per earbud) + 480 mAh (charging case)
Price	$39