TWS true wireless earphones - under $100
THREE STARS - The 1more ColorBuds 2 looks great on paper, but its below-average active noise cancelling and terrible call quality make it hard to recommend.
1more ColorBuds 2 specs and features:
Bluetooth with AAC and AptX Adaptive codec
IPX5 waterproof (rain and sweat resistant)
5,5 - 7,5 hours listening on a full charge (ANC on/ off)
Charging case can charge earpieces fully 3 times
Comes with 3 sizes ear tips, USB-C cable, English manual
$70 - Check price on Amazon US, Amazon Germany, other Amazon countries or AliExpress
Below this 1more ColorBuds 2 review, you will find comparisons of the 1more ColorBuds 2 vs 1more ComfoBuds Pro, Earfun Free Pro 2 and Redmi Buds 3 Lite.
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Design, comfort and battery life
The 1more ColorBuds 2 is a direct successor to the first ColorBuds, and you can't miss it. They look precisely the same. These are geared towards comfort, and they deliver. The earbuds have a small round inside that fits easily in medium-sized and smaller ears, and 1more's provides short rubber ear tips with them that don't stick as far in your ears as most competitors do.
The ColorBuds 2 are snug and comfortable to wear and look very subtle - the oval outside design barely sticks out of your ears. However, as 1more installs short ear tips, you can feel the plastic insides in your ears better than earphones with larger ear tips - which may be less comfortable than other very small earbuds like the Redmi Buds 3 Lite. You can take them out for runs and workouts without problems as well - the IPX5 waterproof rating makes them withstand sweat and rain.
The battery life is average, yet good enough for average daily use: the ColorBuds 2 delivers up to 5,5 hours of playtime with ANC on. You'll get slightly more if you have an iPhone that picks up the AAC codec; a bit less when you have an Android phone which picks up the AptX codec out of itself. ANC is off when you turn the earbuds on, and when you leave it like that, the 1more can reach up to a very respectable 7,5 hours of playtime.
Like the earbuds, the charging case is quite well-designed. It's small and feels of high quality, with its shiny dark-grey finish. A rubber mat underneath prevents the case from slipping and makes wireless charging possible. After being charged wirelessly or via USB-C, the case can charge the earbuds three times fully. A single LED light indicates the remaining battery status of the case.
Controls and connectivity
Unfortunately, the controls on the 1more ColorBuds are limited:
Double-tap L or R to play/pause music
Triple-tap R to skip a track
Triple-tap L to return a track
Hold L or R to switch between ANC and Transparency mode
That's all there is to it. You can swap the controls from the free 1more Music app, but if you want to activate the voice assistant or change the volume from the earbuds, it always comes at the cost of another control option.
Overall connectivity is good. The earbuds pair and connect fast when you take them out of the case, and the Bluetooth 5.2 connection holds up strong up to 9-10 meters away from your device. You can also swap between listening to one and two earbuds at all times. On top of it, music automatically pauses when you take a bud out - and resumes when you put it back in. It works well.
Calling and watching movies
It's not recommended to take a phone call with the 1more ColorBuds 2. Background noises like nearby traffic and chatter are reduced well, but that's the only good part. Your voice is too soft, sounds tinny, and with only a bit of wind, it's dragged away entirely. Calling with these may result in 'I can barely hear you' from the other end of the line more than once.
Microsoft Teams, Zoom meetings, and other video calls are undoable. Some moments, your voice has a nice fullness to it, but these moments are only weird volume peaks in the rest of the call. Most of the time, your voice is much too soft and thin, with a constant crackle and audible compression on the line.
In its manual, 1more advises to wear the ColorBuds 2 at a certain angle to improve the call quality - but to no effect during multiple tests. You don't want to use these for phone and video calls.
Video playback is flawless, with perfect synchronization between audio and video on both iPhone and Android. Unfortunately, there's no low-latency mode that speeds up the sound effects when you're playing games - there's a noticeable delay in these sounds.
1more ColorBuds 2 app quality
The ColorBuds 2 is supported by the free 1more Music app for iPhone and Android, which gives some neat features:
Check the battery status of the earbuds and case
(De)activate automatic pause/play when you take an earbud out or put it in
Change the controls for the double-tap and triple-tap
Personalize your sound via SoundID
Activate your SoundID personalized sound from the app
Update the firmware of the earbuds
Read the manual
'Listen to soothing sounds'
While app support is always nice, the control options are limited (as stated in the control section of this review), and the soothing sounds-section is an insult. It's a small library of sounds like rain and a thunderstorm, but these are two second-samples that repeat over and over again, and have to download every time you start the section.
You can't switch ANC off from the app
Soothing Sounds? 2-5 second samples - an insult.
Switching between SoundID off and on always takes time
The ColorBuds 2's unique feature is SoundID equalizing. It's not an equalizer you can set up yourself, but a change 1more makes to the sound by letting you hear multiple varieties of the same song fragment. You constantly give your preference - do you like the segment with more bass or less? With a warmer or clearer undertone? With more upfront or laidback vocals? After choosing a set of variations, SoundID generates a custom sound profile for you.
It's a neat feature, but the execution of SoundID is flawed. You can only switch from the original and SoundID sound on a specific page from the app that requires a loading time every time; there's no shortcut. What's more, is that you can't redo the process. You can't change your personalized sound after you set it up the first time - so when you regret a choice, you're pretty much screwed.
Apart from the SoundID tuning, there are no EQ presets or custom equalizing options.
ANC Noise cancelling test of ColorBuds 2
Unfortunately, the noise-canceling features of the 1more ColorBuds 2 barely add anything to the package.
ANC quality: The ANC mode is activated when you hear the quicker beeps, not the slower ones, as they announce the Transparency mode. This is handy to explain because you may not be able to notice the difference when you're playing music on them.
The active noise cancelling reduces some background sounds when you're not playing music. Distant traffic and chatter are less noticeable, and you may hear your internal breathings emphasized a bit instead. Closer sounds aren't reduced well at all, however. Humming from a fridge or heater, maybe, but accelerating vehicles, nearby voices, slamming doors or laughter come through very audible. If you're commuting by train or bus, expect to hear nearby sounds even when you're playing music. The difference between this and the comparably priced 1more ComfoBuds Pro is staggering - ANC on the latter is much stronger. The level of noise cancelling on the ColorBuds 2 is also achieved by well-fitting earbuds without ANC.
Transparency mode quality: As the ANC mode fails to reduce many sounds around you, switching to the Transparency mode - which should let sounds come through loud and clear on moments you need it - doesn't really make sense. The mode slightly emphasizes the mid-frequency of car tires to locate traffic around you better, but as you can still hear your surroundings like a supermarket or traffic with the ANC on as well, switching isn't necessary.
Noise reduction: ANC is turned off by default on the ColorBuds 2, and it's best to make it stay that way, as you can't turn it off once you've turned it on. The ANC off mode is the mode that lets in the least amount of wind noise, although the 1more do pick up and pass through some wind in your music in all scenarios.
Also read: The best wireless ANC earbuds
Sound quality of 1more ColorBuds 2
With SoundID the 1more ColorBuds 2 gives you one shot at personalizing the sound for yourself. It builds upon a clear basis - if a little clinical.
Out of the box, the ColorBuds 2 paves the way for treble, and it gives the 1more a bright tonality. Things are wonderfully controlled, so sharp and harsh peaks are avoided, but vocals and instruments sound brighter, lighter than average. Female and higher-pitched male vocals are clear and forward, but they reach the higher notes a lot easier than lower ones. Even Leonard Cohen sounds a bit light on the 1more.
The same goes for instruments from the mid-tones on up, like guitars, piano play, trumpets, violins, and so on. For instance: higher tones on acoustic guitars are represented well and sound natural, so you can get that lovely shaky effect in Beatles' songs. But hop over to John Mayer's ballads, and you'll miss the satisfying weight of the lower guitar strings being pulled.
There's little emphasis on the lower frequencies. Lower electronic tones are underrepresented, making some dance and electronic tracks a little clinical - a bit distant. It also causes the ColorBuds 2 to have a colder than average tone; it lacks a bit of warmth.
The bass is rather shy as well. Drums and electronic mid-bass tones have a steady slam and are tight too, but the bass rolls off quickly and misses a bit of punch and texture. The sub-bass (darkest bass tones you can feel as much as hear) rumbles controlled, but like the mid-bass, it doesn't sound very deep.
Of course, there's the SoundID feature, which gives you one shot at personalizing your preferred sound:
I tried to get a sound that compensates for the brighter flatness the 1more displays. I opted for a bit more bass and more weight in the lower mid-tones, while choosing for upfront vocals over recessed ones to make the sound entertaining rather than laidback. The result is certainly catchier. The bass has a bit more impact, and vocals dip into the lows slightly better, at the cost of splashier-sounding claps and cymbals.
Take your time to do the soundID test properly - it's important to improve the sound; it can add balance and engagement to the ColorBuds 2's bright and cold basis.
1more ColorBuds 2 comparisons
1more ColorBuds 2 vs 1more ComfoBuds Pro: What a difference!
It's hard to believe that the ColorBuds 2 and ComfoBuds Pro come from the same brand and are offered around the same price. The ColorBuds 2 may be more comfortable - what's in a name - but the ComfoBuds Pro is on another level in all important functions. The ComfoBuds Pro with stem-design has much stronger active noise cancelling and effectively reduces surrounding noise from all frequencies. Its Transparency mode passes through traffic and voices clearer, and the ComfoBuds Pro is even one of the best sub-$100 earbuds for phone calls and video calls. Your voice is always loud and clear. The difference between these two is huge.
Regarding sound, 1more's ColorBuds 2 has clearer treble and extends highs further than the ComfoBuds Pro. The 2 emphasizes higher-pitched vocals and instruments more, and along with the center-mids, they appear more detailed, if a bit colder in tone. The ComfoBuds Pro is flatter in its upper-mids and brighter vocals, but does have a heftier and more entertaining mid-bass, deeper sub-bass, and adds a little more weight to the lower mids. The ColorBuds 2 is more natural; the ComfoBuds Pro is more engaging.
1more ColorBuds 2 vs Earfun Free Pro 2
Are you looking for small wireless earbuds with ANC? The Earfun Free Pro 2 is a good alternative to the 1more ColorBuds 2, providing a more sports-proof fit thanks to the rubber ear tips. The ColorBuds 2 offers an hour longer battery life with ANC on, but the Earfun puts all desired controls straight on the earbuds - including volume controls. It makes you sound clearer in calls, has a low-latency mode, and while its ANC performance is a bit inconsistent, it's more powerful than 1more's. The Earfun focuses more on bass and lower-mids than the ColorBuds 2, giving it a warmer and more pleasant yet less balanced sound. The 1more sounds colder, but also more natural, clearer, and is more detailed in higher instruments and vocals.
Earfun Free Pro 2 review ($70)
1more ColorBuds 2 vs Redmi Buds 3 Lite
The TWS market is crazy competitive, and that's why it's no shame to pit the $80 ColorBuds 2 against the $20 Redmi Buds 3 Lite. It's a very reasonable comparison. With its small round insides, the Redmi blocks as much surrounding noise as the 1more, without actually offering ANC. It only has half an hour less battery life on a single charge, it has clearer call quality and a low-latency mode. Both earbuds put most of their effort into the treble and sound a tad brighter and clearer than average. The Redmi has more and looser mid-bass and injects more lower-mids. The ColorBuds 2 brings higher center-mids like guitars more naturally. The Redmi can be a bit sharp in vocal outbursts, and as voices are a bit more recessed on the ColorBuds 2, it gives the 1more a more balanced, laidback and fluent sound.
Verdict
The 1more ColorBuds 2 has enough battery life for average daily use, a comfortable fit, and a natural sound improved by SoundID. Thanks to its lackluster active noise cancelling and terrible call quality, it's still tough to recommend.
Three stars - Worth considering
Buy 1more ColorBuds 2/ check price:
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Buy 1more ColorBuds 2 on AliExpress
I received the 1more ColorBuds 2 from the manufacturer to test and review. My reviews are 100% independent and non-commercial. I test and review all audio products equally honest - read about it here.
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