For years now, earphones from Oppo and its sister concerns have been legit recommendable options in the affordable Indian TWS market. So, when one of them launches a new product, you have certain expectations. Let’s see if the newly launched Oppo Enco Air 5 Pro meets that. On paper, it brings 55dB ANC, Bluetooth 6.0, LHDC 5.0 support, AI-backed call noise reduction, and up to 54 hours of total battery life. I have tested the Enco earbuds for quite some time, and I find they are a well-rounded package.
But are they worth the asking price of Rs 4,999? Find that out here in my Oppo Enco Air 5 Pro review.
Our Enco Air 5 Pro review unit comes in a sober black colour. The oval-shaped case has a powdery smooth finish that feels good to touch, but the small, rounded form and this finish mean it can be a bit slippery at times. The matte black paint job attracts smudges and stains, but nothing a swipe can’t clean. And if you go with the white variant, this problem shouldn’t be there to begin with.
The compactness of the case means it is easy to carry in a pocket, and with finger gymnastics, you can open it one-handed. The earbuds are easy to take out and put back in with satisfactory suction.
The buds themselves look small and chic in their black colour. They look a bit similar to the OnePlus Nord Buds 4 Pro (review). The silicone in-ear tips stay put in the ear canal. I was confidently wearing them while rushing through crowded metro stations and trains. And since they are comfortable to wear, I would put them on even without music playing.
On the design front, one more thing worth talking about is its IP55 ingress protection. This allows them to withstand some dust and water. Good to have.
Overall, there is nothing flashy about the Oppo Enco Air 5 Pro other than the fact that it features a functional design.
While I would call my overall experience with the Enco Air 5 Pro quite good, I did have one gripe with the earbuds, i.e., it frequently won’t respond to a single tap to resume music playback, and one or two times it wasn’t working at all, even though it was active and connected. Putting it back in the case and taking it out again made it work.
But rest, the Bluetooth 6.0-based connection was strong. The pairing was quick with Google Fast Pair and Windows Swift Pair. The HeyMelody app is easy to set up.
Thereafter, it simply worked everywhere I went, even in the office basement and in the underground metro. Sometimes I would just stroll to the office pantry, a few meters away from my desk, where the playback device is, and face no drops or stutters.
Dual-device connectivity also works for a smooth transition between my personal MacBook, Windows work laptop and phone. You can control this setting and other things like ANC levels, transparency mode, EQ presets, gaming mode, touch gestures, and firmware updates from the HeyMelody app. It is a very user-friendly app, and if you have used any Oppo or OnePlus earbuds, then you’d be familiar with it already.
Coming to controls, the Enco Air 5 Pro has one of the most responsive gesture recognitions I have experienced. You tap, and you know it has registered, even if it takes a millisecond for action.
To face no delay in gaming and video playback, Oppo has given a Game Mode that claims up to 47ms of low latency. Slick.
At the core of the Enco Air 5 Pro is a 12mm titanium-coated dynamic driver with support for LHDC 5.0 high-resolution audio codec. I was using the Ultimate sound EQ profile. Like many earbuds in this segment, the tuning is for mainstream users who would listen to pop tracks and anything bass-oriented. You’ll have a good time headbanging. But, in some tracks, you’d want the bass thumps to be more precise and defined.
You may feel the sound staging isn’t very wide either. Enabling Oppo Alive Audio mode widens the room for the sounds and is a neat feature to try.
And vocals, albeit clear enough, don’t stand out as much as they do on the Realme Buds Air 8 (review). Both Sonu Nigam’s voice in Iss Tarah and Chinmayi’s voice in AR Rahman’s Muththa Mazhai (Reprise) are vanilla on the Oppo earbuds, while they are more real and eargasmic on the Realme earbuds.
Treble performance is decent but leaves you wanting more. Take MJ, and Paul McCartney’s Say Say Say, the vocals and instrumental high notes don’t touch the heights the Realme Buds Air 8 manages to.
Overall, in isolation, the Oppo tuning remains safe and easy to listen to for hours, which many mainstream users may actually prefer.
Also Read: Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 Pro review: A strong premium pick, especially for Galaxy users
Oppo claims up to 55dB ANC on the Enco Air 5 Pro, which is extremely ambitious and quite effective at the same time. Say you are sitting in front of a desert cooler, the Oppo earbuds dull down most of the noise coming from the fan and the moving chassis. But here also, the Realme earbuds are more aggressive.
Out of the different ANC (active noise cancellation) levels, the High one works the best. If you are in a Metro, in the High mode, most sounds are hushed, but you can still hear the guy standing beside you. But in the Moderate profile, you can hear people standing at a distance of about 5 meters. The metro rail noise will also be mildly audible. The High profile lets in sudden sounds, which is good while travelling.
Transparency mode doesn’t sound too artificial, which is good.
Call quality is another strong area. The six-microphone setup, combined with AI noise reduction, delivers a clear voice, and background noises are also prevented.
Battery life from the Enco Air 5 Pro can easily get you by a day. At 80% volume, ANC off, and AAC codec, the Enco Air 5 Pro ran for about 7 hours and was at 50% energy. So, the stated 13 hours is achievable. Coupled with the case, the runtime can last up to 54 hours.
The mileage may vary with ANC on and other settings changed. In any case, the fast charging claim of 4 hours of battery life from just 10 minutes of charging is also interesting. A full charge takes around an hour and a half for refuelling both the earbuds and the case.
The Oppo Enco Air 5 Pro has many things going in its favour, which makes it a well-balanced and fairly easy-to-recommend pair of earbuds under Rs 5,000. It has a clean design, the fit is comfortable for long hours, battery life is dependable, ANC is strong, connectivity is reliable, and the overall feature set feels complete.
The sound tuning also works well for mainstream listeners. It is bass-friendly and easy to listen to for extended periods without becoming tiring. The ANC implementation, too, feels effective.
However, the Enco Air 5 Pro doesn’t quite stand out because of the competition it faces, especially from its cousin, the Realme Buds Air 8. The Realme earbuds offer a more expressive and energetic sound signature, wider soundstage, sharper vocals and treble response, and a slightly more aggressive ANC experience. So while you cannot really go wrong with the Oppo earbuds, there also isn’t one defining feature that clearly separates them from the rest of the segment.
So, if you want a balanced pair of earbuds for everyday listening that is comfortable to wear, looks decent, lasts through a full day, offers enjoyable sound, strong ANC, and a healthy set of practical features, then the Oppo Enco Air 5 Pro at Rs 4,999 is a good buy.
It is just that the sub-Rs 5,000 TWS space has become extremely competitive right now, and some rivals simply feel more exciting or offer slightly better overall value depending on what you prioritise.
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