OnePlus Nord Buds 2 review: good sound quality and ANC make it a no-brainer at Rs 2,999

With its flagship and Nord lineups, OnePlus has been trying to ensure that its user base has a smartphone to choose from in almost every important price segment. The brand has also managed to do something similar in the audio segment – with the OnePlus Buds Pro 2 as the current flagship TWS earbuds and now the Nord Buds 2 as the go-to budget TWS earbuds. The original Nord Buds offered surprisingly good quality for their budget price tag of Rs 2,799. The OnePlus Nord Buds 2 has been launched at a marginally higher price tag of Rs 2,999, which is impressive considering the brand has included a much-needed feature: Active Noise Cancellation.

Design and comfort

OnePlus hasn’t tinkered with the design of the OnePlus Nord Buds 2, and the new earbuds and the case look identical to their predecessor. The earbuds are quite basic to look at and are completely made out of plastic. The stem has a matte finish and there’s a glossy disk on the surface for touch controls. The bulbous part of the earbud is also glossy. The earbuds have silicone ear tips and you get a few different sizes in the box to suit your ear.

The charging case is still pill-shaped like before but the edges are now curved rather than flat. This curvy look makes the case easier to hold and carry around. That said, the size of the case makes it sit rather uncomfortably inside the pocket. I would have preferred the oval-shaped case of the Nord Buds CE. It would also have been nice to include a little slit to make it easy to open the case.

The first-generation Nord Buds were quite light at around 4.8 grams. OnePlus has managed to make the new Nord Buds 2 lighter at 4.7 grams. Well, the lighter the better because it just means you’ll be able to keep the earbuds in your ears for longer durations at a time. And sure enough, I was able to have the earbuds on me for hours at a stretch during work days or while travelling without feeling any sense of discomfort.

The OnePlus Nord Buds 2 earbuds are equipped with an IP55 rating for water and dust resistance, enabling you to use them outdoors without concern for rain, sweat, or dust particles damaging the earbuds.

How does the OnePlus Nord Buds 2 sound?

Similar to the original Nord Buds, the OnePlus Nord Buds 2 come equipped with 12.4mm Titanium drivers and prioritises bass in its sound profile. With these earbuds, you can expect a prominent thumping bass that complements most music genres. However, what sets the Nord Buds 2 apart from other bass-heavy TWS earbuds in this category (including the original Nord Buds) is that they strike a good balance between bass and vocals, as well as other lighter instruments. The result is a more refined audio experience that doesn’t sacrifice the clarity and detail of the other elements in the music. You can also download the HeyMelody app to tweak the EQ settings to your liking if you’re not a fan of the default bass-heavy preset.

That being said, some music genres sound better on the Nord Buds 2 than others. To make things easier to understand, I checked out some popular and personal favourites across various genres. Here’s a quick look at which songs sounded good and which ones just didn’t work for me.

Song	Genre	Quality
Tell Me Baby (RHCP)	Rock	Good. Flea’s bass guitaring is prominent but doesn’t drown out other instruments and vocals.
Dakiti (Bad Bunny)	Reggaeton	Very good. The song largely relies on a thumping beat and a synth riff that is highlighted well.
Belly Belly Nice (DMB)	Jam Rock	Average. The narrow soundstage makes the layered instruments lack distinction and clarity.
Eyes Closed (Ed Sheeran)	Pop	Good. While the buds don’t offer a wide soundstage, Sheeran’s vocals and guitar plucking sound clear.
Renegade (Jay-Z & Eminem)	Hip-Hop/Rap	Very good. The buds deliver thumping keyboard-driven beats while also allowing the rappers to sound loud and clear.

The OnePlus Nord Buds 2 have a pronounced bass response, but it’s the nice kind of bass that also maintains balance with the mid and high frequencies. The earbuds excel in genres like electronic and hip-hop, where bass is essential, but they also perform surprisingly well with rock songs. While the earbuds handled some classic rock songs well, their narrow soundstage resulted in an underwhelming experience with tracks that featured layered instruments. Overall, the earbuds are best suited for songs that have minimal instruments in the background. If bass-heavy genres are what you prefer, then the Nord Buds 2 won’t disappoint.

How’s the ANC on the Nord Buds 2?

The biggest new feature on the OnePlus Nord Buds 2 is the addition of Active Noise Cancellation. The first-generation Nord Buds missed out on the feature which disappointed some. Looks like OnePlus heard you and added a rather impressive ANC for its price that provides 25dB of noise reduction. The Buds 2 managed to reduce construction-work drilling and hammering noise that was going on opposite my house. They can decently block out general conversations happening around you in the workplace and some environmental sounds while travelling. Overall, the ANC won’t completely blow your mind but they work well enough to give you some concentrated listening time. You can’t really complain if you’re getting ANC in TWS earbuds under Rs 5,000.

Connectivity and touch controls

The charging case has a button on the back (next to the Type-C port) to enable pairing. OnePlus Fast Pair is supported for quick pairing with OnePlus phones. The earbuds also support Bluetooth 5.3 and the default SBC and audio codecs. Unfortunately, there’s no aptX support that could have offered improved audio quality and latency.

By default, a single tap on the left or right earbud’s glossy disk can play or pause music. Double tapping will switch to the next song while triple tapping will head to the previous song. You can touch and hold the disk to enable ANC or Transparency mode. All of these controls can be customised through the HeyMelody app.

Regarding call quality, the OnePlus Nord Buds 2 is quite average. The caller on the other end and I both experienced a lack of clarity in audio quality during calls. Although your voice won’t sound muffled to the receiver, you may find yourself needing to repeat certain things.

Battery life

According to OnePlus, each earbud has a battery life of up to 7 hours with ANC off, which drops to around 5 hours with ANC enabled. In my experience with the earbuds, I found these claims to be mostly accurate. The battery life is impressive, and you can expect to get about 2 to 3 full charges from the case before it needs recharging. Additionally, OnePlus states that just 5 minutes of charging time can provide 5 hours of battery life, which is convenient.

Verdict

The original OnePlus Nord Buds were already impressive TWS earbuds, delivering good, bass-heavy sound quality with a comfortable design and solid battery life. However, the Nord Buds 2 takes things up a notch by incorporating active noise cancellation and offering even better battery life. Priced at Rs 2,999, the Nord Buds 2 are a no-brainer for those seeking bass-heavy truly wireless earbuds with the added benefit of ANC. In fact, I would say that they are among the best affordable TWS earbuds with ANC on the market, managing to deliver above-average sound quality as well. That said, if you’re looking for something with a more polished design, you have the OnePlus Buds Z2 available at Rs 4,999. You also have options like the Realme Buds Air 3 and OPPO Enco Air 2 Pro that offer ANC, but these alternatives are slightly higher than what the Nord Buds 2 costs.

Editor’s rating: 3.5 / 5

Pros:

• Good sound quality for its price
• Lightweight and comfortable design
• Impressive ANC

Cons:

• Case design could be better
• Narrow soundstage
• Average call quality

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