Complete wireless earphone "Huawei FreeBuds 4" review.

　I purchased the completely wireless earphone "Free Buds 4" released by Huawei at the end of July last year. Among the myriad of earphones out there, it is a rare open type (inner ear type), but it is one of the few products that has the feature of noise canceling. I used it for about 3 weeks, so here's my review.

Index

• 1 Strange concept, forbidden "open noise canceling" revival.
• 2 Unpacking/Appearance
  • 2.1 Charging case
  • 2.2 Earphone body
• 3 Control app compatible with iOS version
• 4What is the power of noise canceling?
  • 4.1 Surprisingly usable, vulnerable to wind
  • 4.2 No external sound capture function
• 5 unfortunate battery
• Good sound quality with 6 bass
• 7 natural microphone sound quality
• 8 Simultaneous multi-connection experience that transcends even OS barriers is wonderful.
• 9 Operability
• 10 general comments

Strange concept, forbidden "open noise canceling" revival.

　First, I would like to organize the Free Buds series so far. This is not the first time for "open noise canceling", and Huawei has realized the world's first commercialization with Free Buds 3 in 2019. I like the inner-ear type, which puts less strain on my ears than the in-ear type, so I bought it. After that, Free Buds 3i, Pro, 4i followed by canal type earphones, and I compromised and used Free Buds Pro, saying, "Is it difficult to use noise canceling without canal type earphones?"

　However, this time, for the first time in two years, the "open noise canceling" is back. I decided to buy it when the legitimate successor came out, so I bought it without hesitation.

Unpacking/Appearance

　Simple and small package. Main unit, USB cable, quick start guide x 2, safety precautions, warranty and after-sales service information are included. As usual, there are many and thick explanation documents for multilingual support.

　There are two color variations: Silver Frost and Ceramic White. Silver Frost was first used in Free Buds Pro, and it has been adopted in subsequent products probably because it was overwhelmingly popular. I also chose this color.

charging case

　The case has an unusual round shape. There is an indicator on the front, a button on the right side, and a USB Type-C port on the bottom. I don't know about white, but silver is smooth and hard to get fingerprints, and it has a high-class feel and gives a good impression.　With a diameter of 58 mm and a thickness of 21 mm, it is compact enough to easily fit in a pants pocket.

earphone body

　In contrast to the matte case, the earphone body has a mirror finish and is very shiny . The transparent design is very cool, but the reflection is intense, and fingerprints are easy to get on. "Udon type" like AirPods. The pattern part is long.

　It looks like this when installed. Pretty noticeable. The tip of the handle is smoothed so you don't have to worry about it hitting your face.

　A feeling of light wearing only by the open type. I really like the open type because I don't like the feeling of closing the ear canal with the in-ear type. In this product, we studied more than 10,000 data and improved the shape. It is true that the force applied to the ear is evenly distributed, and the image is that it fits naturally without the feeling of being hooked.

　Even if you shake your head violently or run, it will not shift at all. In addition, it has IPX4 water resistance, so it can be used safely for running.

　It is said that the case and main body have been made smaller and lighter since Free Buds 3, but it is really light! The actual weight of the earphone and case is 46.3g, and the earphone itself weighs only 4.1g. There is almost no strain on your ears, and you might forget you're wearing them . Really comfortable with the shape.

　I will also compare it with Silver Frost's Free Buds Pro. Free Buds Pro weighs 71.7g and is large, so you can see the benefits of Free Buds 4's small size and light weight. I was surprised many times.　After all, Silver Frost is cool. It's an unusual color for earphones and can be matched with other devices with similar colors, such as smartphones and tablets.　The Free Buds 4 have improved ease of removal from the case and can be removed with light force. However, it is troublesome to have to turn it around because it is stored in the opposite direction. I want it facing inward like the Pro.

　The design of the case is matte and the earphone itself is glossy. I found one difference. That's the back hinge part. The Pro is glossy, but the 4 is matte. The gloss is cool, but it's easy to get scratches and fingerprints, so I'm personally happy with the change.

Control app compatible with iOS version

　On Huawei terminals with EMUI 10 or higher, a popup should appear just by opening the lid, but no matter how many times I try, it won't appear on my domestic version of P40 Pro (EMUI 11). why……. It is quite convenient to be able to check the remaining battery level with a popup when connecting, so I would like to ask for a fix as soon as possible.

　The app uses "HUAWEI AI Life". For Android, the Google Play Store version is not supported, so you need to install it from the Huawei official website or AppGallery. Regarding the iOS version, I thought that it would not be compatible with Pro and 4i when it was first released, but the iOS version of AI Life was also compatible.

　You can use the app to check the remaining battery level, switch to noise canceling, change operations, update, etc. Some functions are limited to the Android version and Huawei devices.

 

How powerful is the noise canceling?

Unexpectedly usable, weak against wind

　The main feature of this product is open active noise canceling (ANC). With Free Buds 3, I wasn't sure if it was working or not, and it was unclear how to adjust it. 4, the noise reduction level has greatly improved from 15 dB to 25 dB.

　When I turned on the noise canceling with my heart pounding, I felt the noise-cancelling peculiar feeling of quieting the surroundings. I am surprised that it works better than expected .

　I know it's weaker than in-canal type noise canceling (generally 35-40dB), but it still cuts almost all the noise of the air conditioner running and the weak rain noise. You can feel that the noise is reduced even in noisy places. Even though it feels light to wear, I feel that this level of noise cancellation is more than enough.

　The noise canceling can be turned on or off by tapping or using the app, but it is inconvenient that it does not turn on just by taking it out of the case and putting it on your ear. Previous products had it turned on automatically.

　In Free Buds 3, the adjustment method was to operate from the application and find the optimal effect by yourself, but in 4 it was abolished. In addition to detecting the wearing state and automatically adjusting it, you can select two modes, "standard" and "relaxation" from the application. Certainly, there is a feeling that the noise canceling effect will be corrected after a few seconds if you tweak the mounting method a little. White noise can be annoying in a quiet place, but you can reduce it by setting it to "Relax".

　The downside is that it is weak against wind. When the wind blows, the noise canceling becomes weaker. I'm worried about what will be fixed after a few seconds.

No external sound capture function

It does not support the external sound capture function　that is often attached with noise canceling. Unlike the in-canal type, it is unnecessary because you can hear the surrounding sounds if you turn off the noise canceling.

bad battery

　The continuous use time (nominal value) of the earphone alone is 4 hours with noise canceling OFF and 2.5 hours with noise canceling ON, which is quite short. Not an improvement from its predecessor.

　When I actually measured it with the noise canceling ON, it decreased by 37% in 1 hour. It's almost the same as the nominal value, but the battery runs out quickly, so I wanted you to extend the playable time more than reducing the size and weight. When not in use, I try to store them properly in their cases instead of leaving them lying around. Wireless charging supported by Free Buds 3 and Pro. This product is not compatible with wireless charging and has been degraded.

　Apparently there seems to be a model that supports wireless charging overseas. Although the domestic version is not compatible, there is a description on the Japanese official website that says Free Buds 4 supports wireless charging.

　The case increases from 66% to 80% in 10 minutes of USB Type-C wired charging. It can be fully charged in just over an hour.

Good sound quality with low bass

　Equipped with a fairly large dynamic driver of 14.3 mm . However, when I actually listened to it, I thought it was somehow hollow, but it was a problem of how to attach it. After wearing it normally, if you bring the handle part to the earlobe side, it will sound well.

　The low-pitched sound is pleasant and makes you want to listen to it all the time. Not only that, but I was surprised that even the weakest sounds were well expressed with a remarkably high resolution. Very immersive and very satisfying.

　The solid feeling is comfortable, and if you listen to it at a high volume, you may be worried about sound leakage because it is an open type, but thanks to the fit, there is no sound leakage even near the person listening. I don't think you need to worry.

　This is the first time the AI ​​Life app has an equalizer function. However, it is a fairly simple one with only two "bass emphasis" and "treble emphasis". If you want to make fine adjustments, you need to do it in each music app.

　Only SBC and AAC codecs are supported. I've watched delay confirmation videos on multiple devices, but the delay doesn't bother me much, so I don't think there's a problem with playing music or watching videos, aside from playing games.

natural mic quality

　The official website claims that compatible Huawei smartphones can record at a sampling rate as high as 48kHz.

　When I set AI Life to a mode that emphasizes the voice and recorded it using the standard voice recorder app, the voice was certainly clear with no noise. It's definitely less mechanical than the Free Buds Pro, which has a maximum of 20kHz, and sounds closer to nature. I feel that it is also suitable for calling.

Simultaneous multi-connection experience that transcends even OS barriers is wonderful.

　A new function called "Connection Center" has been added to the app from this product, and a list of connected devices is displayed. If you want to switch the connected device, just select from here. And it switches instantly. And 2 devices can be connected at the same time.

　It's so convenient that you don't have to put it in the case, press buttons or open Bluetooth settings. You can feel the uniqueness of Huawei, which announced HarmonyOS, which emphasizes cooperation between multiple devices.

　Operation from the connection center is not limited to Huawei products, but supports Android, iOS (iPadOS), Windows, and macOS. I would like other companies to follow suit, not just limited to our own products. I actually tried to connect all of them, but I couldn't connect normally because it was not compatible with macOS, repeatedly connecting and disconnecting. I can't help it, so I'm operating from the control center of the Mac.

　Connection Center is currently only available for Android apps, but it seems that it will be added to iOS apps in the future. In addition, Free Buds 4 was not recognized by iOS version AI Life in M1 Mac.

Operability

　A touch sensor is mounted on the handle. There is an image that touch sensors are prone to erroneous operations, but Free Buds 4 does not assign operations to single taps, so erroneous operations have never occurred.

　With the AI ​​Life app, you can choose to play/pause, forward/backward tracks, and activate the voice assistant by double-tapping the left and right sides (“Answer” when receiving an incoming call). Long press operation is only noise canceling ON / OFF ("Reject" when receiving a call).

You can also swipe up and down to adjust the volume. FreeBuds Pro is useful because it is very convenient to be able to adjust it at the ear). One swipe doesn't change much. It may be an advantage that you can fine-tune it, but personally, the number of swipes increases, and it is a little inconvenient. General specifications to operate the volume of the terminal were good. It also has a wearing detection function that　automatically stops playback when you remove the earphones and restarts when you put them back on. It worked fine on both Android and iOS.

Overall review

I am very satisfied with the practical noise-canceling performance, the light and comfortable fit, and the excellent multi-device connection, etc., even though it is an open type. It is highly recommended for those who like open type. However, it's a pity that the short battery life makes it impossible to wear these earphones for a long time.

　Even though in-ear earphones are getting better and better, they still don't compare to the comfort of the Free Buds 4. I really like it and will continue to use this product. If you feel that the canal type does not suit you, please try it.