On the lookout for an awesome pair of wi-fi earbuds? Look no additional. The Air Professional 4 represents EarFun’s greatest effort to this point, combining first-rate audio with a laundry record of nice options, all for lower than $100. It is a no-brainer new addition to our record of the best AirPods Pro alternatives and a very good possibility for Android customers. All that is lacking is spatial audio, a function that has but to make its method into any EarFun earbuds. That may make this a home-run product. Because it stands, it is a stand-up triple. Here is my EarFun Air Professional 4 evaluate.
Rick Broida/Yahoo
VERDICT: Fashionable, comfy earbuds with extremely good sound for the value, commendable ANC and superb battery life. They’re additionally unusually novice-friendly because of clear printed directions.
- Good printed setup and operation directions
- Wealthy, balanced sound, superb at this worth
- Above-average noise cancelling
- Excellent battery life
- Helps two totally different lossless audio codecs (however just for Android)
- Helps each USB-C and wi-fi case charging
- No spatial audio
- Video games and movies require use of particular audio mode
- Contact controls a bit gradual to reply
- Questionable long-term reliability
EarFun Air Professional 4: Setup and design
Like all fashionable earbuds, these pair together with your telephone, pill or PC through Bluetooth; in addition they help multipoint, that means they’ll join to 2 units as a substitute of only one. There’s an EarFun app that helps you handle these connections in addition to varied settings; it is extraordinarily nicely designed and, blissfully, does not drive you to create an EarFun account.
The field consists of one of many higher earbud instruction manuals I’ve seen, with easy, easy steps for putting in the app, getting the appropriate earbud match, pairing a second machine and so forth. It is slightly temporary total, with considerably small print, however nonetheless higher than most.
There’s nothing particular or uncommon concerning the Air Professional 4’s design: They’re pipe-style earbuds, just like AirPods (besides in shade), with silicone ear suggestions that assist to create a sound-isolating seal inside your canals. EarFun provides 5 sizes, which ought to make sure you discover the proper match. I’ve pretty common ears, and so the already-installed “medium” suggestions match me completely (and, I am pleased to say, comfortably).
When not in use, the earbuds reside in a compact plastic case that additionally recharges them. The case itself recharges through USB-C or Qi wi-fi, your selection. EarFun estimates as much as 11 hours of listening time on a cost, plus practically 4 extra prices from the case, for a whopping grand complete of 52 hours. That is undoubtedly higher than common for wi-fi earbuds, however remember that’s with ANC turned off. With it on, you are extra prone to get 7.5 hours per cost (nonetheless spectacular). AirPods Professional are rated for about six hours with ANC on.
EarFun Air Professional 4: Options
As famous above, these are some critically feature-packed earbuds, particularly contemplating the sub-$100 price ticket. I am going to begin by spotlighting the one factor that is lacking: spatial audio. This creates a form of digital point of interest for music and movies — hardly important, however one thing I actually like. Alas, I’ve seen only one earbud under $100 that offers spatial audio: the 1More Aero.
Apart from that, every little thing you may want is right here: adaptive ANC, in-ear detection, multipoint connectivity, Bluetooth 5.4 (the most recent model of that spec) and IPX5-rated water resistance. Would IPX7 be higher? Sure, but it surely issues provided that your earbuds sink to the underside of a pool (and keep there awhile). IPX5 affords full safety in opposition to sweat, rain, even your brother prank-dousing you with the water hose.
These are particularly good earbuds for Android customers, beginning with Google Quick Pair: A suitable Android telephone will routinely detect the Air Professional 4 the primary time you convey the case close by, thus saving you the step of fidgeting with Bluetooth settings. (Apple AirPods customers have lengthy loved a equally straightforward setup course of.)
The Android crowd can even leverage two superior audio codecs: AptX Lossless and LDAC Hello-Res Audio. (Test your telephone and most well-liked music-streaming app to see in the event that they’re suitable with one or each.) Sometimes, music transmitted through Bluetooth is compressed, and due to this fact not heard at its full, most constancy. Lossless codecs successfully overcome that situation, arguably delivering the absolute best audio expertise.
How essential is that this, actually? And can iPhone customers discover the Air Professional 4 to be sub-par? Learn on
EarFun Air Professional 4: How do these earbuds sound?
I am a longtime iPhone person, in order that’s the place I carried out my testing. I’ve all the time thought of sound high quality to be pretty subjective, with some fairly slender margins between “good” and “nice.” To my ears, these earbuds fall into the latter class — and that is with none form of lossless codec within the combine. Plain previous Spotify streamed over plain previous Bluetooth. Every part I listened to sounded lush and well-balanced, and that was with out messing with any of the quite a few preset choices within the app.
Talking of which, that is the place you will discover the earbuds’ ANC (energetic noise-cancellation) settings — all 5 of them. That is most likely overkill, and I struggled to know the variations between “AI Surroundings Adaptive ANC” and “AI Ear Adaptive ANC,” however not less than there’s slightly data icon for every mode you possibly can faucet to be taught extra about it. In the long run, I largely used the default “Robust ANC” possibility, which labored fairly nicely total and did not negatively influence audio high quality.
As famous above, in case you’re an Android person, there’s probably even higher audio high quality awaiting you — however I am hard-pressed to think about an enchancment over what I heard on my iPhone. Possibly hardcore audiophiles have a extra discerning ear, however I think these listeners might be taking a look at Bose or Sony earbuds as a substitute — albeit at two or thrice the value.
I additionally suspect the overwhelming majority of on a regular basis customers might be happy as punch with the sound — and ANC — delivered by the EarFun Air Professional 4.
EarFun Air Professional 4: What I do not like
For those who use the earbuds to play video games or watch movies — Netflix, TikTok, and so forth. — you are prone to discover a slight lag within the audio. There is a workaround for this — simply toggle Sport Mode within the app — however why is it there to start with? AirPods haven’t got this situation. And why is it referred to as Sport Mode when it is also essential for movies?
One other app grievance: The equalizer presets are organized in a slow-scrolling carousel reasonably than a listing, which makes deciding on one much more tedious than it must be. And do we actually want 12 totally different enhance/discount selections for treble and bass?
The earbuds’ contact controls are only a bit gradual to reply. For instance, once I faucet an ‘bud to boost or decrease quantity, there is a beat (no pun supposed) earlier than it beeps in acknowledgement and one other earlier than it truly makes the change. A double-tap to play/pause additionally does not register immediately. Not a giant deal, only a minor annoyance.
Lastly, I’ve had a number of reliability points with EarFun over time. The Air Professional 2 I examined some time again had been nice at first, however failed after about six months of fairly heavy use. (One earbud would now not maintain a cost.) And in case you peruse the person evaluations for varied EarFun merchandise, you will see a smattering of comparable stories.
Granted, such failures can occur with any digital machine, particularly these with price range costs. And these earbuds are coated by a one-year guarantee, so in case you run into such an issue, you should not have any hassle getting a substitute.
EarFun Air Professional 4: Do you have to purchase it?
For those who’re on the lookout for an AirPods Pro alternative with nice sound, stable ANC and just about unequalled battery life, I’ve no qualms about recommending the Air Professional 4. These are trendy, comfy earbuds with the options I contemplate most essential. (Nonetheless, fingers crossed for spatial audio within the Air Professional 5.)
They’re additionally prone to be discounted as regularly as EarFun’s different earbuds. At this writing, for instance, there’s 20%-off coupon knocking the $90 worth all the way down to $72 — and this regardless of the earbuds hitting the market only a couple weeks in the past.
Learn extra: The best wireless earbuds for 2024
