Overview:
The True Wireless Stereo (TWS) earbuds market has exploded like anything in recent times. This is understandable as a TWS offers great convenience and portability which are great features in today’s fast-moving world. Also, with the smartphones doing away with the dedicated headphone jack, consumers do not have many options left. With this explosion, the market is flooded with multiple options at every price point. Before making a purchase decision it is only logical to read or watch product reviews.
Now coming to the product, I have purchased it for personal use and have been using this for a while now, so I have a fairly good idea of what this offers. Anker is a Chinese company mainly into charging technology globally which also happens to sell these audio-related products (under Soundcore sub-branding).
The R50i is an entry-level TWS that mostly retails at around INR 1,500 but is presently available for less than INR 1,000.
What is in the box:
Inside the box, you will find:
A pair of earbuds inside a case.
A small Type A to Type C cable.
Two sets of ear tips, small and large size (the buds come installed with medium-sized tips).
A quick start guide and other warranty/regulatory information.
What I liked:
Build quality: The product seems extremely well built and most likely will last a while. The outer case is made of solid plastic with decently strong magnets to keep the lid intact. There is a nice click while closing the lid which is reassuring. The buds are also secured in their place with strong magnets and do not fall or move out of their place. The case weighs 46 grams and each of the buds itself weighs close to 4.5 grams which is quite good. A point to note here is that some of the competitors’ products at this price range are slightly lighter in weight.
Rating: 8/10
Sound Quality: Out of the box, I found it to be slightly underwhelming when compared to my expectations (after watching all those YouTube reviews). The sound was a bit low and bass heavy and almost negligible highs. But then it comes with an app support where you can select from 22 presets. It took a bit of experimentation to get it right.
Rating: 7/10
Connectivity: The buds have the latest Bluetooth standard (v 5.3) so you can expect a stable connection. It connects to the device seamlessly; you just have to open the case and take out the earbuds to enter pairing mode. Then search for the same in the Bluetooth devices list on your phone or laptop and it is done.
One thing to note here is that it does not support multi-device connectivity which means that you can only connect to one device at a time.
Rating: 8/10
Battery life: The company claims 10 hours of life on a single charge and 30 hours with the case. In the real-world scenario, I got somewhere close to 7-8 hours on a single charge, and I was able to charge the buds 3 times, so a total of around 24-25 hours with the case. These are very good numbers in a real usage scenario. The overall package lasted for about a week with mixed usage. Of course, the charging will be more frequent with heavy usage.
Rating: 7/10
Warranty: The company gives a warranty of 18 months out of the box which is more than what others offer. We can add another 6 months by registering the product on the website, so a total warranty of 2 years. This is class-leading and gives consumers the necessary peace of mind. However, I cannot vouch at this point how efficient the after-sales would be as I have not had any problem with the product yet.
Rating: 8/10
App Support: The product is supported by an app by the name of “Soundcore” and this is available both for Android and IOS. After connecting to the app, you can check the battery of the individual buds (represented by a bar), change the equalizer using 22 presets (cannot customize), change the touch controls on the buds and toggle switch for gaming mode. The firmware can also be updated using this app. Another unique thing that you can do with the app is to find the buds if they are misplaced, it plays a sound which helps to locate the buds if they are close by.
Rating: 8/10
Water Resistance: The device is certified as IPX5 which means that it can withstand light splashes of water which is a good thing. Remember not to go swimming with it but yes it can withstand a shower or two. A point to note here is that it is not dust resistant.
Rating: 7/10
What I did not like:
Comfort: Yes, the buds come with different sizes of ear tips but surprisingly I could not find that comfortable fit. I could wear them at the most for a couple of hours before a slight pain started setting in. This could be very different for others, but I have mentioned it as a con based on my experience. Also, I could not find a perfect fit as the buds fall out with vigorous activity.
Rating: 6/10
Mic quality: If the primary objective of buying this product is taking calls then I would not recommend it. It comes with 2 mics without any claim of ENC/ANC (there is a separate one available with noise cancellation at a higher price). It is passable while indoors or in a quiet place but the moment you are outdoors, the outside noise/interference becomes unbearable. So, be clear about what your requirements are before getting into it.
Rating: 5/10
Sound quality: Surprised to see this as a con? Only if you are using it on a device where the app support is not there, like a Windows computer. I had mentioned the underwhelming sound out of the box, so that is what you will hear if you use it with a computer. To make it sound better, you will have to download additional equalizer software like FxSound but that is another topic altogether.
Rating: 6/10
Touch controls: Although it is appreciable to give touch controls on both the buds, I found them to be unreliable. You can do several things by doing a single tap, double tap and long pressing on the top of the stems. These controls are customizable using the Soundcore app but they do not work seamlessly all the time.
Rating: 6/10
Charging indicators: There is an LED light on the front of the charging case which blinks while the case is being charged and becomes stable when fully charged. But there is no indicator to show if the buds themselves are being charged. When you insert the buds into the case, it lights up for 3-4 seconds and then goes off. It would have been helpful if the indicator stayed on while the buds were being charged.
There are no indicators on the buds themselves as well. You will have to rely on the app to find out the level of battery but then it only shows bars and not a number percentage. Also, there is not even a bar indicator in the app for the case. Guess these things can be taken care of by a software update but till then it is a hassle. Even some of the cheaper options have these basic features.
Rating: 5/10
Summary:
Anker Soundcore R50i is a very decent and above-average entry-level TWS earbud. It presently retails at just around INR 1,000 which is a good deal for what it offers. With a decent sound quality, a good build and battery life and a class-leading warranty, it certainly makes an interesting buy but only if the cons mentioned above do not matter too much.
Overall Rating: 7/10