Along with the new OnePlus 8T smartphone, the company has also announced its second pair of true wireless earbuds. Only. At 45.99, the price of the OnePlus Buds Z is even more aggressive and more affordable than the OnePlus Buds. And it also has a different design – now with silicone ear tips instead of stiff plastic like airpods, one-size-fits-most styling. Hopefully that is enough to prevent any problems at the border. OnePlus Buds Z will be available directly from OnePlus starting November 2, and will also be sold by Amazon.
Despite the budget price, OnePlus says it has packed a lot into Buds Z, including “Bass Boost Technology for Heart-Pounding Audio Dio” and Virtualized 3D Audio Dio, thanks to Dolby Atmos support. The earbuds are powered by 10mm drivers, use Bluetooth 5.0, and are IP 55 rated for sweat resistance.
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Image: OnePlus
“On a full charge, the OnePlus Buds Z offers impressive 20 hours of playback time, while the fast 10-minute top-up provides three hours of vibrant audio dio,” says OnePlus. That includes a 20-hour number of cases; On a single charge, the buds will last for five hours. It will be available in white and “Steven Harrington’s Special Edition Coloring”, with three sizes of silicone tear tips included in the bucks. BudsZ should also be well-rented on voice and video calls, as OnePlus says they feature environmental noise reduction to help increase your volume over the background noise around you.
OnePlus has created a “quick switch” feature in earbuds that will help you switch between two devices recently paired quickly and backwards. You can hold the earbud for just three seconds to hop between them. It’s a nice little trick and it’s much faster than going into Bluetooth settings.
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Image: OnePlus
This case cradles earbuds horizontally like some of the others we’ve seen from Kerkner and other brands. At this price, you are not going to get wireless charging, but it feels very compact and pocket. Stay tuned for more on OnePlus Buds Z in the coming weeks. For those whose ears don’t like hard plastic OnePlus buds, I look forward to seeing if this is a better option (and for less money).
