© Marc Mitrani for Presse-citron
Are they at least as good as their predecessors ? How did Huawei improve on wireless earbuds that were close to perfection& nbsp;? And above all, do they send the competition, especially those of you-know-who, into the ropes ? To find out, we lived with the newcomers for a good month.
If there is one area where the FreeBuds Pro 4 do not change too much, it is the design and ergonomics. We are not complaining, to tell the truth, as they are so accomplished. The case and the earphones keep the same silhouette as the FreeBuds Pro 3.
There are however some subtle modifications, such as the appearance of a gold line on the case to affirm the premium positioning. It is also found on the edge of the earphones, accompanied by fine vertical engravings symbolizing the elegance of string instruments. Finally, we note the presence of the new “Huawei Music” logo, halfway between a treble clef and the letter H.
© Marc Mitrani for Presse-citron
Charging is done through the case via USB-C or induction (5 Watts). Huawei announces up to 7 hours of maximum autonomy when the earphones are used without active noise reduction (5 hours with). The battery of the case brings it to 33 hours (23 hours with noise cancellation activated).
In real life, where we do not stay stuck at 50% volume to listen to music, where we constantly use noise cancellation and where we make phone calls, the autonomy is closer to 4 hours 30. It is not the best at the moment, but it is still acceptable for most uses. Let's point out that it takes 40 minutes to recharge the earphones using the case and that the latter requires 60 minutes to reach 100%.
The touch controls have not changed and remain as complete as ever. We find the traditional pinching and sliding of the finger on the stem to adjust the volume or control playback. They are supplemented by two controls by head movement: nod to take a call and from left to right to reject it. To activate them, we must imperatively go through the companion application AI Life.
The app AI Life, precisely, is available on the Apple App Store, but not on the Google Play Store. We must download it from the Huawei App Gallery store or — more simply — by scanning a QR code in the instructions. It gives access to many useful functions and alerts you of the presence of updates. We can't recommend you enough to apply them, they solve a lot of annoying little bugs. It also allows you to manage the devices connected to the headphones, these can be connected simultaneously to two music sources.
© Marc Mitrani for Presse-citron
It also gives access to Huawei Sound, an equalizer whose preset modes can be enhanced with personal settings. Another important function is the eartip wearing test. Huawei provides different sizes of silicone eartips, as well as a pair made of memory foam that we immediately adopted. You just have to indicate through the app the type of eartips used in order to optimize noise cancellation.
200% Deposit Bonus up to €3,000 180% First Deposit Bonus up to $20,000We also appreciated the location of the earphones by the emission of a sound. This allowed us to recover one that we had accidentally dropped on a train.
Very good, but what the quality of the sound produced ? It is simply excellent ! Whether you’re listening to jazz, classical music, RnB or electro, the result is excellent. The highs are clear, the mids distinct and the bass pleasant, although a bit too present by default. This can be remedied by playing a little with the companion app’s equalizer.
In order to benefit from the best audio quality, it is essential to use a recent Huawei smartphone. With the Mate X6, the latest version of the in-house lossless codec L2HC will be available to you. Its bit rate of 2.3 Mbps is a dream. A notch below, the Pura 70 models benefit from the previous version of the codec. It ensures a maximum bit rate of 1.5 Mbps.
© Marc Mitran i for Presse-citron
Unfortunately, Huawei smartphones are losing ground in Europe since they can no longer use the Google services following the Yankee ban. You will therefore have to make do with a speed of “only” 990 kbps provided by the LDAC codec, still Hi-Res certified. In this case, the stereophonic scene turns out to be of a completely correct amplitude and we can even forgive the absence of spatial sound, reserved for the L2HC codec.
The active noise cancellation does an excellent job and barely alters the audio quality. We only notice a slight clipping on the high frequencies if we activate it in a quiet environment… which is not its primary purpose. Without yet reaching the excellence of a Bose, the noise cancellation of the FreeBuds Pro 4 is quite satisfactory.
For once, the most spectacular is where we don't expect it. Or, at least, not to this extent! During a telephone conversation, your interlocutor perceives absolutely no ambient noise. But be careful: when we say none, it is not said lightly!
Whether we were in the street, in the subway, on a train or even in a noisy bar, our correspondent heard absolutely nothing other than our voice. Better still: it remained natural and did not have the “robotic” sound that we sometimes observe. In the memory of the tester, this is the first time we have noticed this! We do not know how Huawei managed to obtain this result, but it is amazing.
Top ergonomics, advanced functions and excellent sound quality: the FreeBuds Pro 4 tick all the boxes… or almost. We would have appreciated a little more autonomy as well as the availability of spatial sound on non-Huawei smartphones.
Active noise cancellation is still progressing a little and offers appreciable comfort of use in noisy environments. But the most impressive remains the audio quality during telephone conversations. Whatever the sound environment, the interlocutor will only hear your voice.
This function, often neglected by manufacturers with a high street presence, is undoubtedly one of the most impressive aspects of the product. With a retail price of 200 euros at launch, the FreeBuds Pro 4 are a choice to consider for demanding users and phone conversation addicts.
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