OnePlus Buds Pro 2 review: Wireless ANC headphones with awesome bass and long battery life

OnePlus have revamped their premium wireless headphones with the Buds Pro 2. The successor to the Buds Pro has returned with adaptive Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) and Audio ID. According to the Chinese manufacturer, ambient noise can be reduced by up to 48 dB thanks to the headphones' 4,000 Hz ultra wide-band cancellation.

In contrast to the Buds Pro, the audio playback of the second generation OnePlus TWS is provided by dual drivers, namely 11 mm dynamic and 6 mm planar membrane drivers. The Buds Pro 2, which were made in collaboration with Danish speaker manufacturer Dynaudio, come in at a recommended retail price of $179.99 (see here on Amazon).

Similar to their predecessor, the colour options of the Buds Pro 2 are limited to two colours, namely Obsidian Black and Arbor Green. Not much has changed about the matte NCL coating and the high-gloss, touch-sensitive tips. The earbuds' cases are fully plastic with a high-quality finish and have a water resistance certification of IPX5. The charging case is IPX4 certified.

The OnePlus headphones sit comfortably in your ear canal and come with three different sizes of antibacterial earplugs, so you can find the perfect fit for you. The Buds Pro 2's light weight of 4.9 g per earbud means that even during periods of extended wear they can hardly be noticed.

The charging case is also made of matte plastic and together with the earbuds they weigh in at around 57 g in total. The quality of the charging case is also very acceptable - due to its magnetic closure, the lid barely wobbles and is shut securely.

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The OnePlus Buds Pro 2 are controlled via the touch-sensitive tips on the earbuds' cases. The recognised gestures include short taps as well as a long touch option. The touch inputs are generally recognised well and incorrect entries are rare. Touch gestures can be customised by heading to the settings of the official app HeyMelody. The app can be downloaded on the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store.

Straight out of the box, the OnePlus in-ear headphones can easily be connected to our test smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra - thanks to Google Fast Pair. Pairing is enabled via Bluetooth 5.3 and users have the option to connect up to two Bluetooth devices simultaneously (multipoint compatible). An ear scan and a hearing test are conducted upon first use of the headphones, as enabled by OnePlus Audio ID 2.0. This is supposed to improve the quality of your personal audio profile - for this, however, the HeyMelody app is required. And as a matter of fact, we do hear a considerable improvement in tone after completing the Audio ID 2 test.

The OnePlus Buds Pro 2 offer three levels of noise cancellation (mild to max), which supposedly filter out ambient noise between 25 dB and a maximum of 48 dB. When set to smart mode, dynamic noise cancellation is activated. Those wishing to enhance the outside world instead of suppressing it can do so using the transparency mode. In our test, this worked well when used in conversations or when listening out for announcements on public transport.

OnePlus have even developed a mode for those wanting more relaxation in their day-to-day lives. With the Zen Mode Air, you can switch between different modes that aid relaxation by suppressing outside noises and providing soothing music and sounds.

The Chinese manufacturer promises a wide range of spatial audio compatible devices in the future - however, currently, only those with the OnePlus 11 get to experience this feature. The same goes for a feature called Neck Health, which will apparently become available through an OTA. Neck Health aims to aid in improving posture. The OnePlus Buds Pro 2 use built-in IMU sensors to remind users when to correct their posture.

The OnePlus TWS headphones rely on 11 mm dynamic and 6 mm planar membrane drivers with a coaxial dual driver setup to deliver their sound. According to the manufacturer's notes, the headphones cover a range from 10 Hz to approximately 40 kHz. Aside from Dolby Atmos, the Buds Pro 2 support the following Bluetooth codecs: AAC, SBC, LC3 and LHDC 5.0 via Bluetooth 5.3. At the time of testing, the OnePlus headphones only supported LHDC 4.0 - this should be resolved in a future update.

Now coming to the most important feature of the headphones - sound quality. The OnePlus headphones offer a wonderful sound experience with intense bass. The in-house developed BassWave algorithm can be individually customised and gives the Buds Pro 2 consistent and precise bass levels, which makes for a fun experience when listening to songs with low frequencies. However, when listening to music with pronounced highs and less bass, we find other TWS headphones in this price range perform better, such as the Xiaomi FlipBuds Pro. One thing that the Buds Pro 2 definitely excel in is voices - these are very clear and pronounced. Alongside an equaliser, users can switch between five different sound profiles - although we find there is minimal difference in tone between them.

Additionally, the Buds Pro 2 feature wear detection, which pauses music or film playback when the earbuds are removed. In everyday use, this works exceptionally well. An important aspect for many users of the headphones is the ANC function. The Buds Pro 2 effectively filter out unwanted background noise, however, some noises manage to penetrate through. The earphones aren't as good at filtering out shrill noises such as ambulance sirens or car horns. On the other hand, monotonous, low-frequency sounds like the sound of cars driving past seem to be filtered out well. All-in-all, the difference between the various ANC modes is barely noticeable. Subdued background noise becomes very effectively muted when highest setting of ANC is activated - this is a job well done by OnePlus. However, at the end of the day, we don't see the active noise cancellation as a particular highlight of the headphones.

In use with a OnePlus phone, the Buds Pro 2 show minimal latency of 54 ms, which makes them fit for gaming use. Even using the Galaxy S23 Ultra, we didn't notice any lag between video and sound.

Next to music playback and watching videos, we also tested the true-wireless headphones as a headset. During our calls, the three microphones on each earbud made for decent voice output - our conversation partner noted very clear audio quality when tested in quiet surroundings. When the wind picks up, however, there is a noticeable whooshing in the background of the call. Alongside clear voice transmission, the microphones also assure that unwanted background noise is filtered out.

In combination with the charging case, which has a 520 mAh battery, the battery life of the premium headphones can supposedly reach up to 39 hours when listening to music. The in-ear headphones themselves have a 60 mAh battery and managed to last over 8.5 hours during our test when used at a volume of around 60 per cent and using the AAC codec. This matches the manufacturer's notes, which claim the battery lasts 9 hours without ANC switched on. With active noise cancellation switched on, our test sample managed around 5 hours - slightly below the advertised 6 hours.

Alongside a fast charging option, which enables a playback time of 10 hours after only 10 minutes of charging, the case of the Buds Pro 2 supports wireless charging and features a coloured status LED. In our test, the headphones used up around 30 per cent of the charging case's battery to reach a complete charge. This means you can get around three charging cycles in a day's use - which makes OnePlus' advertised battery life without ANC well within reach.

The OnePlus Buds Pro 2 are good-looking audio companions with long battery life and some excellent features. Unfortunately, several of those features remain reserved for those with a compatible OnePlus phone. The dual driver system is not unique when it comes to TWS headphones, other premium headphones like the Huawei FreeBuds Pro 2 also have two drivers per earbud. Even so, it is a step in the right direction in terms of audio quality when compared to the Buds Pro 2's predecessor.

If you love lots of bass and are prepared to pay the premium MRSP, take a closer look at the OnePlus Buds Pro 2.

Admittedly, the MRSP of the Buds Pro 2 is slightly higher than the Buds Pro ($149.99), which cements the former within the premium headphone market. Due to the deficits in tone and ANC, it all comes down to personal preference in other areas when deciding whether the Buds Pro 2 are the ideal headphones for you. Especially since some aspects haven't entirely been well thought out, such as the missing option to control the volume via the earbuds.

The present review sample was made available to the author as a loan by the manufacturer or a shop for the purposes of review. The lender had no influence on this review, nor did the manufacturer receive a copy of this review before publication. There was no obligation to publish this review.