When we got the new ones Oppo Enco Air for this review, looking at their elongated shape we couldn’t help but think about the AirPods. And during the tests, the fame of “Cheap AirPods”Started to make sense. They are not perfect earphones, but with a great microphone for calls, powerful audio and a competitive price may be perfect for any of you. So let’s understand what are the best features of Oppo Enco Air in our review.
Oppo Enco Air review: a familiar design
The new headphones from Oppo come in a box with the solo USB-C charging cable and protective case. The latter has a transparent plastic lid. Which we imagine its fans may have, but we didn’t like it very much aesthetically and it seems the less solid part of the light recharging “egg” in which you find the two headphones. The design of the headphones recalls that of the AirPods, with a small stem turned towards your mouth.
Silicone-free, the headphones rest very lightly on your ears. We found the headset’s “open” design to be less stable in the ear the first time we put them on. But the feeling of instability passes quickly: remain well anchored to the ear. Different speech during sports. Despite the IPX4 certification is enough to withstand sweat or a few drops of rain, during the run or more intense workouts we found ourselves adjusting the headphones all the time. On the other hand, they are good for the gym, if you don’t have to do particularly intense cardio workouts.
Overall, the headphones are there you seem light but well built. We’re not fans of the AirPods-style design (which nevertheless has clear advantages in calling, as we’ll see) but it seems to us that this Oppo headset hides the lower price well. They are a cheap product but of solid build quality.
Audio quality
During the review of these Oppo Enco Air, the sound quality did not impress us. This does not mean it is not of quality: in our technical tests with Audiocheck.net we have verified that the headphones lose little quality in the high tones and the bass ones are clean, although not particularly powerful. In this price range you won’t find many products that do better. But going up to around 100 euros, audiophiles will find a greater richness of detail and a fuller sound.
Trying to listen to “B ** ch, don’t kill my vibe” by Kendrick Lamar we hear the bass less deep than we would like, with the sound that does not envelop us. This is also due to the constructive decision not to choose an eartip design that fits snugly to the ear. But it is above all the lack of details striking, in a track that has so many. Moving on to reproduce “Africa” by Toto, the voice takes over a little too much compared to the melody and is a bit “detached” from the instrumental context. With “Blue in Green” by Miles Davis we feel the various instruments fairly faithful but it seems to us that the piano and winds do not envelop us as they should.
If you want to buy a pair of headphones that immerse you in music, maybe you need to aim for something else (and even raise your budget a little). But on the positive side, the headphones come to have a louder than average volume and that the voice in speech is very well understood: for podcasts you really can’t wish for anything better. Directionality is also very good on stereo tracks, which helps to empathize if you are listening to an audiobook with sound effects.
Oppo Enco Air review: commands and calls
The touch controls are located at the top of the “stem”, just above the headset. The good part is that they are quite responsive and are able to receive input well: we rarely have to repeat ourselves twice. And with touch controls it rarely happens, even with more expensive headphones. The problem is that the default commands are only: skip to the next track with two taps, activate the voice assistant with three, lower and increase the volume by holding down the left and right respectively. A command to pause is missing, and since there is no sensor to stop playback when you remove them from your ear, you have to pause from your smartphone. By downloading theapp HeyMelody you can fix it, adjusting as you prefer (and also downloading the new firmware).
The voice assistant works well (although there is no voice activation). But what we were impressed by the calls (both video and audio). The sound you hear in your ear is a bit muffled, but this is also because the software (inactive) noise cancellation tends to create this effect. But on the other hand they will hear you great. We have tested this feature several times and all of them have reported that they can understand each other distinctly and strongly. When we checked the effect ourselves, we were stupid: a lot of headphones that cost even more than double are not so clear.
Autonomy, charging and connectivity
The total autonomy with the case is 24 hours, which is average for headphones of this type. The earphones can resist up to 4 hours alone, which is not record-breaking but not bad. What is surprising is the fast charging with the USB-C port: charging for 10 minutes you can get up to 8 hours of autonomy. An extra convenience for those who forget to recharge their headphones.
We close by reporting that the connection is really good with the Bluetooth 5.2. Comparing with two other wireless headsets (both more expensive) the signal at a distance of about ten meters (maximum limit) was more stable with the Oppo Enco Air. The instant connection is convenient on both Android and iOS and never gave us any problems.
Oppo Enco Air review: are they worth buying?
We started the review by asking if the Oppo Enco Air were the budget version of the AirPods. And although the qualitative difference is evident, we can say that they do very well where AirPods excel. Solid connection, good battery and touch controls (once customized) but above all excellent call performance. If you use earphones especially to listen to podcasts and call without bringing the smartphone to your ear, at the current price of 69,90 euro they are a great buy.
On the other hand, those who love to hear an enveloping and richly detailed sound should think about raising the budget a little for something more complete (or take a pair of wired earphones). The Oppo Enco Air don’t sound bad, they are strong and well balanced. But the sound not passionate. That said, they are a really interesting product for this price range and are fully worth the list price. If you’re looking for headphones for everyday use and don’t need perfect sound quality, they’re a great buy.