Alongside the OnePlus 9RT, the company also announced the second generation of its Z Series wireless earbuds, the OnePlus Buds Z2 is the successor to the last year’s OnePlus Buds Z. Features include 38 hours of long battery life, Active Noise Cancellation (ANC), 94ms ultra-low latency, 11 mm bass-tuned drivers, and more. Take a look at our OnePlus Buds Z2 review.
Design, Build & Ergonomics
The OnePlus Buds Z2 is an upper-midrange pair of earbuds with a lightweight design; comes in an oval-shaped casing, each earbud weighs 4.6 grams and 42 grams for its charging case. It comes in two color options – Obsidian Black and Pearl While.
Speaking of its design, it has a highly glossy finishing on its outer casing as well as on the buds. The two buds have long stems which you can see just by opening the case, the buds and the casing are made of plastic.
The case features an IPX4 rating while the earbuds offer an IP55 rating, both of them offer a water-resistant design as per their certifications. The backside of the case has a USB Type-C port that supports 10-min quick charging while the front side has an LED indicator that shows the power, battery charging, and low battery indication.
The silicone tips on the end can be changed as per your ear size (extra ear tips provided in the box). The overall design of the earbuds just looks good, the Nothing Ear (1) feels more premium if compared with the OnePlus Buds Z2.
You will find a total of six microphones (three on each bud), two on the stems, and one near the ear tip. You will also see two pins on the buds used for charging, the outer head offers touch gesture support for controlling the music, calls, and ANC feature.
The earbuds have in-ear detection which automatically pauses your music when you remove an earbud and resumes playback when you insert it.
Performance, Features & Connectivity
The OnePlus Buds Z2 comes with 11 mm bass-tuned dynamic drivers that deliver incredible sound with powerful bass and a balance of mids and highs, the audio is loud enough and performance is exceptionally great.
The OnePlus Z2 shares features from its Pro variant, the earbuds include a 40 dB Active Noise Cancellation alongwith Transparency mode, a 3-mic setup calibrated for wind and noise reduction, 94 ms ultra-low latency, and Dolby Atmos support.
The earbuds use SBC and high-quality AAC audio codecs over Bluetooth 5.2 connection within 10 meters. It doesn’t support other major high-quality codes like LHDC, Qualcomm’s aptX HD, Sony’s LDAC codecs, rather the ones mentioned above. The AAC is still the best and most widely used audio codec.
The active noise cancellation is effective and does silence the environment up to 40 dB, the performance of the noise cancellation is good. On the other hand, you can use the Transparency mode if you want to listen to the ambient noise or amplify the outside sound.
Pairing is easy, it uses Google Fast Pair for instant pairing and is compatible with the HeyMelody app which lets you access more features of the earbuds using your smartphone. The HeyMelody app lets you connect earbuds to your smartphone, use its features, and also enables you to download firmware updates. The app is available on Android and iOS platforms. The app also displays battery information and lets you customize gesture controls. You may use the touch controls to play/pause the music, switching between ANC, Transparency, and normal mode.
Battery Runtime & Charging
If there’s something to brag about, it’s the battery, the OnePlus Buds Z2 has an outstanding battery life with up to 38 hours (without ANC) in full charge (with the case). If ANC is enabled, the earbuds can last about 27 hours. The battery life on the OnePlus Buds Z2 is highly satisfactory and stands out in its class.
Speaking of the earbuds, each bud can last up to 7 hours without ANC and 5 hours with ANC enabled all in a single charge, although it varies according to your usage and volume levels. You will be surprised to find that identical battery runtimes are achieved on its Pro variant, the OnePlus Buds Pro.
The OnePlus Buds Z2’s charging case equips a 520 mAh capacity battery while each bud carries a 40 mAh battery. Talking about its fast charging capabilities, the earbuds can quickly charge in 10 minutes giving about 5 hours of battery (charging case + earbuds combined). No wireless charging is supported on the earbuds like its Pro variant.
Verdict
The OnePlus Buds Z2 shares identical features from its Pro variant, you get active noise cancellation, 94 ms ultra-low latency gaming needs, transparency mode, Dolby Atmos, and long-lasting battery life. The microphones work very well during phone calls and recording your voice, the three mics are calibrated for wind and noise reduction. The sound quality is bass-driven, good if you are a bass user, and you get app-based customizations for earbuds. We would suggest the OnePlus Buds Z2 for those who are looking for a pair of active noise-canceling earbuds with stunning battery life and bass quality sound.
