Last month, OPPO unveiled the OPPO Enco Buds TWS earbuds as the successor to the original Enco Buds (review), which debuted in September 2021.
At the beginning of this month, I received the review unit of the Enco Buds from OPPO. The Enco Buds come with several improvements over the original Enco Buds, like a new design, new audio drivers, and better battery life. At the time of launch, the earbuds were priced at Rs 1,799 (~$22). However, as of the time of writing, the price had been reduced to Rs 1,699 ($21) on OPPO India’s website. It comes with a 1-year warranty. After testing it for a couple of weeks, I am here with the Enco Buds 2 review.
OPPO Enco Buds 2: What’s in the box
The Enco Buds 2 come in a small retail package, which includes earbuds, ear tips (small and large), and a user manual. The earbuds come with medium-sized ear tips attached.
Design and Comfort
The original Enco Buds featured a pebble-like case and stem-less earbuds. It came only in white. The Enco Buds 2 sports a new design as it features a compact round-shaped case made from hard plastic with a diameter of 5 ½cm. It weighs 38 grams (on my weighing scale) and comes in black only in India. In some other markets, it is available in white. Enco Buds 2 have a dual-tone design with a matte finish, which does not attract fingerprints. It is black on the outside and sky blue on the inside.
The case has a matte finish with a glossy band running along its side. The glossy band houses a USB-C port, with an LED indicator sitting alongside. There is no physical button on the case that can be used to manually connect the Enco Buds 2 to another Bluetooth device.
The earbuds sport a new stem design with a matte finish. The stem measures 3.5cm in length and weighs 4 grams. The portion of the earbuds facing the ears has a glossy look with “R” and “F” markings. As shown in the image below, the top area of the earbuds is equipped with touch sensors. I haven’t tried stemless earbuds, but I think I will always prefer the stemmed ones as they offer a better grip.
The original Enco Buds carried IP5X dust and water resistance, but the successor model comes with an IPX4 rating, which brings protection against mild rain and sweat. Readers should note that there is no IP rating for the charging case.
The OPPO Enco Buds 2 fit firmly inside the ears with the stem extending out. You may have to readjust them a bit while running on the treadmill, but they are not likely to fall off.
The Enco Buds 2 is a pocket-friendly device. However, users should be careful not to place objects like keys and the Enco Buds 2 in the same pocket. Such objects can corrode the matte finish of the case. Ideally, you may consider buying a silicon case for the Buds 2.
Connectivity and Touch Controls
The Enco Buds 2 comes with support for Bluetooth 5.2 connectivity. It supports Bluetooth codes: SBC and AAC. It lacks support for the AptX codec, which is seen on costlier TWS earbuds. There is no support for connecting the earbuds to two devices simultaneously.
To establish a connection, users need to open the lid of the Buds 2’s case and scan for the earbuds on the device where they need to be connected. On OPPO phones, the process is seamless, since ColorOS instantly shows a pop-up for pairing. I did not face any issues connecting the Enco Buds 2 with Android, iOS, and Windows devices.
On non-ColorOS devices, users need to install OPPO’s HeyMelody app to access “Enco Live sound effects” options like original sound for natural sound, Bass Boost, and Clear Vocals. The app can be used to update the firmware version, turn on/off Game Mode, and customize earbud controls.
The touch controls are good as they respond well. On a side note, I purchased the Realme Buds Air 2 for Rs 3,299 (~$41) in July last year. While it is an overall good product, I always find myself struggling with its touch controls.
In the above screengrabs, one can see the default touch control settings. One nifty feature that I believe should come to entry-level earbuds is smart wear detection, which automatically pauses the song when the earbuds are removed from the ears and continues playing when they are put back in the ears. Being an entry-level model, the Enco Buds 2 lacks it.
For a lag-free audio experience while gaming, the Enco Buds 2 comes with support for 94ms low latency. There is a toggle available to turn it on or off through the HeyMelody app.
A cool feature available only on OPPO phones running on ColorOS 11.3 or later is the double-tap camera control feature. When the camera app is open, users can simply double tap on either earbud to take photos.
Audio Experience and Call Quality
There are several TWS earbuds with 10mm audio drivers in the same price range as the Enco Buds 2. What makes it a cut above the rest is that it comes equipped with a titanized diaphragm dynamic driver. Generally, titanized drivers can be designed to offer an accurate reproduction of sounds.
OPPO has focused on offering an impressive bass boost experience on the Enco Buds 2. For deeper bass, users can select the “Bass Boost” option through the Enco Live Sound Effects feature available on the HeyMelody app. For even richer bass, users can make use of the equalizer feature on third-party apps.
The increase in bass doesn’t suppress the vocals on the Buds 2. The treble is not too sharp, and the vocals sound good. Since it does not use the generic neodymium driver but titanized drivers that are light and strong, it manages to impress in the audio performance department given its price. The sound is quite loud. Using it at 60 to 70% volume should provide an enjoyable listening experience.
As far as the call quality of the Enco Buds 2 is concerned, my voice sounded slightly muffled to the recipients when I received calls outdoors. However, they were able to understand everything that I said and, also, they were not complaining about it. There was no issue with listening to what the other person was saying. The Enco Buds 2 lacks Active Noise Cancellation, which is rarely seen on TWS earbuds in its price segment.
According to OPPO, the Enco Buds 2 is equipped with “AI deep noise cancellation for calls.” It further mentions that “through dynamic tracking of human voices, AI deep noise cancellation for calls enables you to be heard easily and clearly even in noisy outdoor places.” I spoke to a friend in one of the test calls while walking toward a procession. I guess that OPPO’s AI kicked in to reduce the background noise, which allowed him to hear my voice. However, when I was right next to the procession, my voice and the procession noise sounded almost equal. To be precise, my voice was still audible to him even when I was at the place of the procession. I believe Enco Buds 2’s call quality will be much better than many of the other TWS earbuds in the same price range.
I have still yet to find a perfect pair of earbuds (even among the costlier ones) that are good for taking voice calls. Though there may be a couple of them on the market, I haven’t tried them. What I can say is that the call quality on the Buds 2 is good given its low price.
Battery and Charging
OPPO claims a battery life of up to 28 hours on the Enco Buds 2 with the charging case. According to the company, the earbuds can last up to 7 hours on a single charge The case has a 460mAh battery, whereas each earbud packs a 40mAh battery. I remember charging the Enco Buds 2 only twice from the time I received the review unit until I wrote this review.
It took approximately 14 minutes for the charging case to gain 20 percent battery juice from zero. The company states that 10 minutes of charging allows users to enjoy 1 hour of music playback. As far as full charging (earbuds + case) is concerned, it takes around 200 minutes.
The LED indicator next to the USB-C port glows while charging. As far as the charging status is concerned, users can check it through the HeyMelody app. If the earbuds are not inside the case, the app will not show the battery level of the earbuds. If any of the earbuds are inside the case, the app will also show the battery level of the case.
Verdict
To sum up, the entry-level Enco Buds 2 not only offers an impressive audio performance but also helps in building trust in OPPO’s other audio products. It is worth recommending to buyers looking for TWS earbuds between Rs 1,500 (~$18) and Rs 2,000 (~$25). At the time of writing this review, the Enco Buds 2 received 4.3 stars on Flipkart, which is quite good. Most of the users have loved it for its bass and battery backup.
In my OPPO Enco Buds 2 review, I mentioned a few features that are missing on the earbuds. Most of them are generally found on earbuds in higher price segments. Hence, to conclude, I could not find any major cons to the device.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this OPPO Enco Buds 2 review are entirely my own, based on my own experiences, with no editorial input from OPPO.
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