If you’re taken in by Huawei’s P20 Pro (and let’s face it, Jason and I definitely are), there’s a treat in store when you buy at JB HiFi. A pair of Bluetooth earbuds valued at $149.
Now, usually I disregard most bonus inclusions, because almost always they turn out to be rubbish. However, over the weekend I opened up the box with the Huawei Sport Bluetooth Headphones (which are actually earphones) and tried them out, and I was presently surprised.
You see, I have a love/hate thing with Bluetooth earphones in particular. I love the idea, but too often, the implementation sucks. Google’s PixelBuds for example. Great idea, poorly executed. They fall out of the ear because they use an insecure means to stay in, and the neck cord is rather tacky (by this I mean sticky) and all you need to do is turn your head once or twice and you’ll rip the earbuds from your ears. Razer’s Bluetooth Earbuds I tried recently were one step worse, where the earbuds would fall out even if you didn’t move .. but that’s another thing.
With this in mind, I had low expectations for Huawei’s sports buds, but I gave them a try and I was pleasantly surprised.
The in-ear fit is comfortable. The neck-cord doesn’t get caught on your neck when you turn your head, so the earbuds don’t fall out. The in-line remote does volume and power. It has a stylish blue cord. Need I go on? They weigh just 17g, are comfortable to wear pretty much all day, and though they don’t have active noise cancelling, the isolation they provide from the outside world is more than enough to make a train trip pleasant.
The sound quality is great too, though I’m far from a serious music connoisseur. The tiny-sounding 110mAh battery on board can be charged in two hours or so, and Huawei quotes up to two hours play time, though at the time of writing, I’ve exceeded this and they’re still reporting a full charge.
For those that actually use sports earbuds to work out with, Huawei’s Sports Bluetooth earbuds claim to be water and sweat proof too, and I’m pretty sure they would be from their design.
A nice feature that I discovered somewhat by accident is that the earbuds themselves are magnetic; clip them together around your neck for example and the music stops. Unclip them (and presumably, put them in your ears) and the music restarts. Keep them around your neck and unclip them to answer phone calls too. It’s pretty neat.
I get the impression that this isn’t exactly a new product, but it is a very good one. If you’re looking for good earbuds that aren’t rubbish (and let’s be clear here, many, many Bluetooth earbuds are precisely rubbish), this is a damned fine option, and at $149, they’re not especially expensive either (and they’re free if you buy a new P20 Pro as well).
Better still, if you head online, you can grab them from GearBest for just $58.50 (plus a little for shipping, I guess).
Bravo, Huawei.
Hi guys, I can’t see the free wireless earphones advertised on JB Hifi’s website for the Huawei P20 PRo. Was this a limited introductory offer or is it available all the time with purchase of this phone?
Looks like the limited offer has ended.
“you can grab them from GearBest for just $58.50”
So, they’re really worth less than half of Huawei’s advertised “value”. Probably sounds better than the “free” headphones that came with mu Samsung S8+ (which I’ve never used).
Actually i use the ones supplied with my S8+ and found them to be very good as far as buds go . .
And as a rule i hate ear buds with a passion and usually refuse to wear them .
I might add ,apart from sounding pretty decent , these are about the only ear buds that sorta stay in the ears for a good period and don’t give my mr spock ears ear ache.
I got a pair with my p20, actually sound great. At least as good as my Beats X