Oneplus Buds Pro 2 Review: Volume Warning!

Robert Thorne
Robert Thorne
• • 12 min read

Another Day, Another Set of Wireless Earbuds — the Market Is So Saturated Right Now That If a New Model of Earphones Comes Out, It Better Have a Unique Selling...

Oneplus Buds Pro 2 Review: Volume Warning!
Another day, another set of wireless earbuds — the market is so saturated right now that if a new model of earphones comes out, it better have a unique selling point. Be it value for money, sound quality, or a unique feature.

OnePlus has a track record of hunting for that golden balance between reasonable pricing and high quality. The latest OnePlus 11 is a very good phone for a $699 asking price, and it launched together with the new $179.99 OnePlus Buds Pro 2.

That's no small amount of money for wireless earphones — sure, it's cheaper than the Apple AirPods Pro 2 or Samsung's Galaxy Buds 2 Pro, but more expensive than the regular Galaxy Buds 2 or even OnePlus' own other offers — the Buds Z2 and Nord Buds.

All of the aforementioned models have excellent sound, but here's what sets the OnePlus Buds Pro 2 apart:

OnePlus Buds Pro 2 in a nutshell:

  • Dual drivers - 11 mm and 6 mm - tuned by Dynaudio
  • Android Spatial Audio support
  • Customizable sound — EQ and automatic Audio ID 2.0
  • Up to -48 dB noise reduction

OnePlus Buds Pro 2 specs

Color optionsArbor Green, Obsidian Black
Audio11 mm woofer, 6 mm tweeter; Dolby Atmos, Spatial Audio
Noise cancellationUp to -48 dB
ConnectivityBT 5.3, BT multipoint (dual device), Google Fast Pair
Battery life39 hours total without ANC / 25 hours total with ANC
On paper, the OnePlus Buds Pro 2 are very promising — decent battery life, dual drivers, Spatial Audio, and Bluetooth multipoint. Of course, we had to dive deeper!

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OnePlus Buds Pro 2 design and colors

The design here is the same as the OnePlus Buds Pro from 2021, but that's very much OK. They are rounded and soft with relatively short microphone stems, and provide a good fit and seal when in use. My ears are typically quite picky with earbuds and their comfort. With the OnePlus Buds Pro 2, I could feel some discomfort after an hour's use, with wearing fatigue coming in about 2:30 to 3 hours of non-stop use. By my standards — this is pretty acceptable, I would continue using them daily and recommend them to anyone looking for a comfortably-fitting set to try.

As usual, there are three tip sizes inside the box to customize your fit, and their proprietary app will test if you have a proper seal when the Buds Pro 2 are in, which is nice.

The stems provide media playback control via squeezing. One squeeze for play/pause, two times for forward, and three times for back. Press and hold to toggle ANC, hold longer to enter the special Zen Mode Air — more on that later. There's no way to control volume, which is not ideal, but we do like squeeze controls over touch controls, as you don't get accidental taps while adjusting the earphones' fit.

The case itself is pretty nice — it's a horizontal design in a pretty compact shape, made of soft touch plastic. The hinge feels upgraded over the original OnePlus Buds Pro as it opens and closes in solid, smooth motions.

The OnePlus Buds Pro 2 are available in two colors, matching the new OnePlus 11 phones — Arbor Green and Obsidian Black. 

Robert Thorne

Robert Thorne

Automotive & Future Transportation Editor
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Robert Thorne covers electric vehicle innovations, autonomous driving systems, global mobility trends, and automotive engineering developments.

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