Paired up with the release of the OnePlus 11 was also a new pair of earbuds called the OnePlus Buds Pro 2. Like the OP11, the Buds Pro 2 want to get you a chock full of premium features at a decent price point. They are crafted to be the ultimate pair of earbuds for the OP11, but are they in the long run any good?
Style
Right away the Arbor Green colorway of the OnePlus Buds Pro 2 is quite the looker. It is reminiscent of forest green that provides a matte coating all over the case. It has OnePlus etched on top with the Dynaudio brand printed underneath. The case has a USB-C charging port, but it also supports wireless charging as well. The earbuds feature that same matte finish and are pipe-style with a slight curve to fit in the ear but the bottom stem is a polished shiny green with indium materials. They are light coming in at just 4.9g while the case is 47.3g. They do also come in Obsidian Black colorway as well. As far as protection the Buds Pro 2 has IP55 water resistance on the buds while the case is IPX4.
OnePlus Buds Pro 2 come with a USB-C Cable and various ear tips.
Features
Controlling the Buds Pro 2 is easy you can squeeze the stems for controls. There is a quick squeeze, double squeeze, triple squeeze, or a squeeze and hold. These can be customized for play/pause controls, ANC/transparency adjustments or voice assistant. If you are looking for white noise hold for 3 secs to activate Zen Mode Air. They also have sensors so when removed from your ears audio pauses and resumes soon as you put them back in.
If you are pairing this with a OnePlus 11 for instance you can access the options for the Buds Pro 2 in the Bluetooth section. Using with say an iPhone or another device(heck even OP11) you can download the HeyMelody app which will take you right to the laundry list of options at your disposal. I did find it works better on iOS though as it takes you right into the earbuds options rather than the 2-3 steps you have to do on Android.
You have access to different levels of noise cancellation and can even get that personalized. Sound Master EQ can give you different levels of hard-hitting bass while BassWave intensifies it even more. You can create your own custom EQ too. If you want to go deeper you can do their “Golden Sound” test which takes you through three minutes of listening queues syncing to your best listening. Spatial Audio if utilized right can give you some theater filing sound. It really depends on if you select the right support content and helps if you find Spatial Audio or Dolby Atmos related stuff.
OnePlus Buds Pro 2 support dual pairing so I can have my iPhone 14 Pro and OnePlus 11 connected at the same time.
Sound
These little earbuds are hiding dual MelodyBoost drivers that are 11mm + 6mm. This is where Dynaudio comes in as they fine tuned these drivers to give off vibrant bass and crisp highs. Playing tracks like “Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See” you can feel the emphasis on bass with these earbuds. You can still get a nice feel for the vocals though. A track like “Closer” has those vocals pushed to the forefront which isn’t a bad thing. Take in mind this is me listening to tracks in Hi-Res audio.
Using spatial audio with music and movies gives you a wider atmosphere but once again really depends on the content you are applying. Some songs sound splendid like Billie Eilish’s Ocean Eyes on Apple Music, and “Come Together” by The Beatles on Tidal. But you must really go thru tracks and play around and see what you like. It helps some apps like Tidal has different formats of their audio.
Experience
Using them the past month I found the OnePlus Buds Pro 2 to hold their own. I mostly had them paired with the OnePlus 11 to take full advantages of the features. The ANC has been great on my daily train commutes keeping me isolated from my surroundings. Its transparency mode is okay but not the best I heard. I did find it a bit annoying when gaming with music and jumping to another app(i.e. texts, browser) and the audio would cut for a sec. It only occurs with these earbuds as I have tried other headphones. Battery life has been stellar on these as I can’t even remember really charging often.
Verdict
These earbuds have so many features going for it, they are likely to catch someone’s ears. Whether it’s the long battery life, comfortable fit, decent ANC, support high-res codecs or Spatial Audio. They sound good using with my iPhone but are a great companion for the OnePlus 11. Audio is nice and everything from the sound quality to even the spatial audio can be customized.
OnePlus Buds Pro 2 are currently on sale for $179.99
You can check our quick unboxing of the OnePlus 11 on YouTube Shorts, Instagram, and TikTok.
