As a brand, Oppo has a pretty good track record when it comes to TWS earbuds. Their Enco Buds offered solid sound on a budget, and the Enco X were one of my favourite pairs of ANC earbuds last year. But now, they've launched something new--these are the Enco Air2 Pro, so are they the best next TWS earbuds from Oppo?
Fit & Comfort
The Enco Air2 Pro sit fairly shallow in the ears, and didn't seem to go as deep as most in-ear buds. They still provide a good passive seal and drown out a fair bit of ambient noise, even without active noise cancellation.
The default eartips were a little tight in my ears, so I was glad that Oppo includes a couple of different sizes in the box to get a better fit.
For the most part, the earbuds sat quite comfortably in my ears despite long hours of usage, probably because each earbud weighs next to nothing at 4.3g. They also didn't come loose in my ears at any point, even when I used them during a workout.
Design & Utility
The Oppo Enco Air2 Pro earbuds are designed quite simply, with long stalks and a round head for the drivers. They also get an IP54 dust and water resistance rating, which is good to see at this price point.
The stalks of the earbuds feature touch controls, that are triggered quite easily with just a tap. You can use them to change the music, control a voice assistant and enable the game mode.
You also get in-ear detection, which pauses playback when you remove an earbud and resumes when you pop it back in.
The charging case for the Enco Air 2 Pros is quite simple, like the earbuds themselves, but there's a translucent top on the lid that looks quite cool. Moreover, the case has been designed in a way that exposes more of the earbuds, making it easier to take them out of the case. The case is also pretty lightweight at just 42.8g, and it features a USB-C port at the back. There's no wireless charging though, which is worth pointing out.
Speaking of notable exclusions, there's also no Google Fast Pair here, but they are compatible with Instant connection to Oppo phones, and show up with this nice animation.
Also watch: Oppo Enco X TWS Review: best ANC earbuds under ₹10k?
Sound Quality
When it comes to sound quality, the Air2 Pro earbuds are quite decent. Thanks to 12.4mm dynamic drivers, they get fairly loud, and the sound signature is pretty balanced. The earbuds aren't bass heavy, and seem to be tuned to a more natural sound profile, with clear mids and balanced highs.
Apart from this though, you can tune the sound profile using presets but I'll explain more of that later when I discuss the partner app for these earbuds.
In terms of codec support, there's only SBC and AAC codecs supported, and no LDAC or Qualcomm's AptX.
Active Noise Cancellation & Call Quality
Active noise cancellation on the Enco Air2 Pro is better than I expected. It managed to drown out most ambient noise in an office setting like a noisy air-conditioner and people typing on a keyboard, but sudden, loud noises did make it through.
You can use the touch controls on the earbuds to cycle between active noise cancellation and transparency mode, in case you're in public and want to keep an ear out for announcements or traffic. I will admit though, that the transparency mode here does sound piped in and not as natural as I've heard on a pair of true wireless earbuds.
The Enco Air2 Pro earbuds really impressed me in terms of call quality, and offered good reception on both ends of the call. Thanks to dual-mic AI noise cancellation, everyone I spoke to using the earbuds said they could hear me clearly in moderately noisy environments.
Also watch: Oppo Find N first impressions: the best foldable smartphone?
Gaming & Transmission Lag
So, the Oppo Enco Air2 Pro earbuds support low-latency playback for gaming, which can be enabled on Oppo smartphones that run on ColorOS 11.0 and higher, and on other smartphones using the Hey Melody app. Latency goes as low as 94ms, and while playing games like Call of Duty: Mobile, I noticed very little transmission lag. I was very impressed by how in sync everything sounded, but of course, if you're a hard-core mobile gamer, you may want to opt for a wired connection.
Thanks to Bluetooth v5.2, there were no issues in transmission while watching movies and TV shows, and connection quality was strong with no skipping during music playback.
Battery Life
When it comes to battery life, the Oppo Enco Air2 Pro claim to offer up to 7 hours of playback on a single charge, and up to 28 hours with the charging case. In my usage, I got around 5-6 hours with the active noise cancellation turned on, which is impressive, and Oppo has included support for fast charging, that gets you up to 2 hours' worth of battery life in just ten minutes of charging.
App Support - Hey Melody App
In terms of app support, the Oppo Enco Air2 Pro aren't ready just yet. I'm reviewing a pre-launch product, which means Oppo hasn't configured its partner Hey Melody app to be compatible with these earbuds just yet. This means that so far, if I've wanted to use more than the default touch controls or tune the sound profile, I've had to use an Oppo phone.
Oppo has said that support for the Enco Air2 Pro will be rolling out to Android devices by the time you see this review, with iOS support also on the way. Currently, you'll have to rely on an Oppo phone running ColorOS 11.0 or higher to modify the touch controls, update the firmware and change equaliser presets.
Also watch: Oppo F21 Pro Review: microscope camera on a budget!
Price & Verdict
Priced at ₹3,499, the Oppo Enco Air2 Pro earbuds offer most modern features you'd expect, in a nice and simple-looking package. Sound quality is quite well balanced, and the battery life is also good, making these quite well worth the money.
