Which smartphone manufacturer does not offer its home headphones? Motivated by the success of AirPods from Apple, Samsung, Huawei, Xiaomi, OnePlus and others are embarking on the adventure of wireless headphones with varying degrees of success. There is something for all tastes and all budgets. So inevitably, realme, a new very dynamic player in the smartphone market, had to put its stone to the building.
True to its credo, the manufacturer is attacking the market by focusing on good value for money. The Buds Q (that’s their name) are available in two colors (white or black) and will be available on August 14 at a price of 29.99 euros, almost ten times cheaper than AirPods Pro.
At this rate, realme must therefore make concessions. No active noise reduction technology, just passive noise reduction due to the in-ear format of the headphones. The manufacturer has all the same associated with a great fashion designer to imagine the design of the Buds Q and ensures that they have paid particular attention to the audio quality. You start to know me, I inevitably wanted to check all this. So I used the Buds Q daily for a few weeks. Here is my opinion.
Design and ergonomics
To design your Buds Q, realme design studio has teamed up with designer José Levy. This name means nothing to you ? Cooperative designer of Hermès, this reference in the fashion world also collaborates with Cacharel and Nina Ricci. Among his most famous works: the black leather horse emblematic of the Hermès brand. realme therefore does not do things by halves and ensures that it has taken particular care in the design with the wish of “Mix ‘natural’ and ‘technology'”.
José Lévy was therefore inspired by his childhood memories, in particular pebbles from the Normandy beach. This is indeed what comes to mind when you take the case of the Buds Q. Rounded and very compact (more than that of the AirPods Pro), it takes the format of a pebble that fits in the hollow. in the hand and slips easily into the zippo jeans pocket. The headphones themselves reproduce this shape on a smaller scale, which is as pleasing to the eye as it is to the hands.
Still, realme had to cut back on costs to offer its headphones at 30 euros. Also, this is felt from the first moments. The thin plastic used seems very fragile, the opening / closing mechanism of the case ready to break at the slightest fall or too sudden manipulation. The micro-USB charging port also demonstrates a desire to contain costs.
This very medium quality plastic is also used for headphones. As a result, the choice of this material has a significant advantage: Buds Q are particularly light and very comfortable to wear every day. Moreover, realme provides two pairs of additional ear tips (bigger and smaller) to adjust the good fit of the headphones in the ears.
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If the Buds Q therefore do not breathe the high-end product (logical in view of their price), realme did a nice job in terms of ergonomics, also you will be able to chain hours of listening not without a certain comfort. Best of all, you can be surprised by a downpour IPX4 waterproof certification ensuring splash resistance.
Simple and efficient
Despite their contained price, Buds Q connect quickly to different devices (4.2 seconds ensures realme). Pairing is done quite simply: long press the realme logos with the headphones in the box and you’re done. To mute the music, simply put them back in the case.
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Buds Q also ensure phone conversations which, I must say, do not shine in their clarity. Enough for short calls, but forget about long speeches. Note also that the headphones can be controlled by customizable gestures in the application realme Link. Single press, double press, long press, there are plenty of options, so you can « remapper » gestures at will.
Audio quality
Despite a contained price, the Buds Q integrate a homemade R1Q chip promising a latency reduced to 119 ms, “Like wired headsets” assure realme. This chip comes with a « Large Drive » 10mm diameter promising more dynamic bass as well as a diaphragm made of PEEK, the thermoplastic considered to be the strongest and most efficient in the world, for clearer highs. Buds Q supports the AAC audio codec and… that’s it. No LDAC, aptX, aptX HD or any other high definition codec.
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realme may multiply the superlatives about them, we can not say that the Buds Q are headphones designed for audiophiles. Their price does not deceive anyone. But for everyday use, they should be more than enough for ordinary people, provided, of course, always take into consideration its price placement. So don’t compare them to AirPods Pro, which are sold almost 10 times more expensive.
In reality, I must admit that Buds Q pleasantly surprised me. If the sound delivered lacks character, the whole remains rather balanced. In any case, realme does not fall into easy traps. The sound is therefore far from bad. Even though the bass is sorely lacking in punch, I never felt a lot of treble distortion even with the volume at 100%. As for the mediums, they are rather mastered especially at the level of the voices. Listening to podcasts, for example, is quite pleasant with a warm and round sound.
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Like Apple or Huawei, realme opts for a consensual sound and takes no risks. L’application realme Link will not change anything, the manufacturer not having integrated an equalizer or listening profiles. You will just be able to activate a game mode of which I have not been able to perceive the interest. As for the latency, I didn’t have a particular problem when watching videos.
Unsurprisingly, the Buds Q are not among the benchmarks of audio. Nevertheless, the quality of sound delivered by these in-ear devices at 30 euros pleasantly surprised me, especially since passive noise reduction is particularly effective.
Autonomy and recharging
As with the competition, the ultra-compact size of the Buds Q limits the space available for the battery. realme therefore does not work miracles and announces an autonomy of 4:30 in music listening and up to 3 hours in call.
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In the facts, the headphones rather last 3:30 in the first scenario and 2 to 2:30 in the second. As always, the autonomy will vary according to your uses, for my part I carried out my tests with the volume at 80%. Thus, the Buds Q are not particularly enduring since they display a range comparable to that of Apple’s AirPods Pro with active noise reduction, which consumes more energy. Fortunately, The case can extend the fun for 20 hours with a single charge.
Charging, in fact, is not one of the strengths of the Buds Q. realme either, does the minimum necessary by providing a USB / micro-USB cable (without power supply). No USB-C, fast charging and even less wireless system. Logic.
My opinion
As I expected, the Buds Q don’t play in the same court as the AirPods Pro, Sony WF-1000-XM3, and other high-end in-ear headphones. At 30 euros, the opposite would have been surprising. However, do not be fooled by their ridiculous price: the Buds Q are very comfortable to wear on a daily basis, elegant and discreet (even if fragile) and their audio quality, aided by an effective passive noise reduction, will surprise more. ‘a. I would have liked to find an equalizer in the app realme Link to complete the whole but for 30 euros, the copy returned by realme remains more than correct. Of course audiophiles will go their way, but if you are on a budget and primarily listen to music streaming while on the road, while working out or doing a bit of sport, I can only recommend these Q Buds.
realme Buds Q
0.00
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Autonomy and recharging
7.5/10
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Price-quality ratio
9.0/10
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WE love
- Sleek, understated design
- Lightweight and comfortable to wear headphones
- Very good audio quality
- Excellent value
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We like less
- A little cheap finishes
- Fragile housing
- Autonomy a little tight
- A little realme equalizer please?
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