TWS true wireless earphones - $50 to $75
FIVE STARS - In an absolute bonkers move, Earfun released a new wireless earphone between the $50 Earfun Air 2 and $100 Earfun Air Pro 4 that's SO good, that is cannibalises the brands other models. Including the best gaming mode on wireless earbuds to date.
Earfun Air 2 NC specs and features:
Bluetooth 5.3 with AAC and LDAC codec
IPX5 waterproof rating (rain and sweat proof)
6,5 - 9 hours playtime on a single charge (ANC on/off)
Charging case can charge earpieces fully 3 times
Has: ANC, Transparency, app support, multipoint connection, gaming mode, wireless charging, spatial audio
Doesn't have: -
Comes with 3 sets of ear tips, USB-C cable, English manual
$70 - See price on Amazon US or your Amazon country
In and underneath this Earfun Air 2 NC review, you will find comparisons of the Earfun Air 2 NC vs Earfun Air Pro 4, Samsung Galaxy Buds FE, Realme Buds Air 6, and OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro.
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Design, comfort and battery life
The new Earfun Air 2 NC is an upgraded version of the $50 Earfun Air 2 released in February this year. The big upgrade is that this model has Active Noise Cancelling (ANC).
The new model costs about 70 dollars, so it's positioned right in between the Earfun Air 2 and the brands' $90 top model Earfun Air Pro 4, that was released only last month.
The Air 2 NC has a similar design to the regular Air 2. The charging case is slim and lightweight, making it easy to fit in a jeans pocket. However, the black version gets scratched easily. If you put it in your pocket with your keys, it will look worn quickly.
The case is sturdy and has a solid lid. It can recharge the earbuds three times fully before it needs a new charge via USB-C or wireless charging. A single LED-light on the front indicates the remaining case battery.
The earphones also look and feel the same as the regular Earfun Air 2. Both in the black and white edition of these earphones, the stem has a grey finish with the Earfun logo printed on it.
The earphones have the standard oval earpieces you see on almost every wireless earbud. These provide an easy, secure, and snug fit. As usual for the brand, Earfun mounts round rubber tips on them, which aren't as comfortable for smaller ears as oval ear tips. You may need to take them out every hour or so to relieve some pressure.
The Earfun Air 2 NC earbuds have above-average battery life: they reach around 6,5 hours on a single charge with ANC on, and up to 9 hours with the function turned off.
On top of that, a 10 minute recharging in the case, gets you another +- 1,5 hour of listening with ANC on.
The only downgrade from the regular Earfun Air 2, it that the 2 NC isn't IPX7 waterproof - which means they're less likely to survive a drop in the water. Instead, these are IPX5 rain and sweatproof.
The Earfun Air 2 NC may look a bit cheap, but with their solid battery life and wireless charging, these pack a punch for their price.
Controls, connectivity and app support
The Earfun Air 2 NC has nearly all of the connectivity features of the brands top model, the Earfun Air Pro 4.
You can connect the earbuds to two devices at the same time thanks to the multipoint connection. It then switches between those devices when you receive a call or when you pause on one device, and play on the other. It works seamless.
Sadly, it also has Google Fast Pair. While this gives a nice pop-up screen on Android phones, it sometimes forgets its connection after you've switched that phone off or after you've put it in flight mode.
The controls are great and fully customisable via the Earfun app, including volume controls. The touch panels on top of the stems register the number of your taps well.
Like the Earfun Air Pro 4, you hear a beep when you change volume, which goes through the music - but Earfun listened to feecback on the Earfun Air Pro 4: the sound effect is now quicker.
Music doesn't automatically pause when you take an earbud out.
The free and now well-functioning Earfun app for iPhone and Android phones lifts the Earfun Air 2 NC to great highs, with many useful features:
Check the battery status of each earbud and the case
Customize the controls entirely to your liking, for single-tap, double-tap, triple-tap and hold-controls
(De)activate the gaming mode
(De)activate Theater mode, Earfun's name for Spatial audio
Check and disable the connected devices
Choose from five Active Noise Cancelling settings
Choose from tens of sound presets or create your own EQ or sound profile
Find your earphones when you've lost them
Update the firmware
Change the voice prompt language (default is English) and volume
Choose the left, right or both microphones for calls
Choose an automatic shutdown time for when you're not connected
Android only: choose between the AAC and LDAC sound codecs
The homescreen of the Earfun app
You can setup the controls in EVERY way
While the LDAC codec for Android phones may appeal to audio lovers as it can in theory transfer more musical details wirelessly, activating the codec isn't worth it. Battery life, the Bluetooth connection, and audio-video synchronisation take a hit.
The Earfun Air 2 NC offers an amazing amount of features for its price. The only thing you may miss, is the option to automatically pause music when you take an earbud out.
Phone and video calls
Like other models from the brand, the Earfun Air 2 NC is good for phone and video calls - although not in all circumstances.
Your voice sounds natural and clear, and has plenty of volume.
It needs a moment to adjust to loud background noise, and your voice can dip an instant because of it. After that, the microphones re-focus on your voice perfectly.
The same goes for talking in the wind. The Air 2 NC reveals wind noise shortly, then filters it out of the sound. Talking in the wind does take away some clarity in your voice, but you're still audible.
Your voice doesn't seem to dip as much with wind as on the regular Earfun Air 2. Top model Earfun Air Pro 4 shows more wind and background noise, but keeps your voices’ clarity more consistent.
Call quality is at its worst when you move. Bowing down and doing all things around the house while you call, decreases the clarity.
It's mostly safe to take a phone or video call with the Earfun Air 2 NC.
Video and games playback
The Earfun Air 2 NC works flawlessly for playing videos on iPhone or Android, even when you're connected to two devices at the same time.
The synchronization can be worse when you're using the LDAC-codec on Android, however. That's why I recommend sticking to the standard setting.
The game mode rocks - again with the AAC codec on. You can activate it from the earbuds or the app, and it synchronizes the sound effects in the challenging Call of Duty mobile perfect with the action on your screen - on par with the equally capable OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro.
This is where it becomes awesome: with the Theater mode from the app, the sound feels fully around you and its (even) easier to register gunshots and explosions around you. The bass gets boosted, but not too much, and it also doesn't oversteer other parts of the sound.
The combination of the game mode and Theater mode give these wireless earbuds the most immersive gaming experience of all the 415 wireless earbuds I reviewed so far.
ANC quality of the Earfun Air 2 NC
Active Noise Cancelling (ANC) is the part where the top model Earfun Air Pro 4 still outperforms the cheaper Earfun Air 2 NC.
However: the ANC performance of the Earfun Air 2 NC is still good and can be compared to some of the better $100 performers of 2023.
Even when you're not playing any music, the ANC brings rest to your head as it takes away darker constant noises like fridges and electronic humming especially well. This also goes for more sudden darker sounds.
Middle and higher sounds are filtered less effectively. Keyboard typing, distant chatter and laughter, and wet tire noise are still audible when you're not playing any music.
The ANC mode applies little pressure to your ears: it's comfortable to use for hours in a row.
The Earfun app also has an adaptive ANC setting optimized for your fit, which can potentially block more noise. This was the case for me: it passes through less brighter noise than the regular ANC setting. Unfortunately, you can’t switch to Adaptive ANC mode from the earbuds directly. Let's hope Earfun releases a firmware update for this.
There's also a dedicated noise cancellation mode for wind, but I didn't find this necessary, as the default ANC shows minimal wind noise.
The Ambient sound mode has almost no effect, so don't expect to hear traffic or conversations through your music when you want it.
The Earfun Air 2 NC doesn't have the strongest Active Noise Cancelling, but it reduces a good amount of noise without applying much pressure on your ears.
Sound quality of Earfun Air 2 NC
The Earfun Air 2 NC has a warm and balanced yet engaging sound, beneficial for a lot of music genres.
The Earfun Air 2 NC is very easy to listen to. It throws in a nice bass, has a warmer-than-neutral tonality, and it keeps the highs in tone. You won't be challenged by harsh or peaky bits in the music, even when Björk reaches her famously sharp outhauls in It's Oh So Quiet!
The only aspect that could be perceived as less comforting, is the slight splashiness around cymbals on higher volumes.
Music transforms from warm and smooth background listening to active listening at around 65 percent of the volume bar on iPhone and my Google Pixel 6A. From there on, it brings out vocals and treble more, opening up the music. That said, these don't have the most open sound.
The Earfun Air 2 NC can go loud on both iPhone and Android.
Like other models from the brand, the Air 2 NC lifts lower mid-tones heavily. Lower male vocals and darker instruments and electronic tones have a strong presence and give music warmth.
Center mid-tones have a subtle, warm tonality too. While most male vocals and lower female singers don't stand out far from instruments, they have a strong presence and feel full. Center-mid instruments also have a warm underlining, giving guitars and piano play a pleasant balance between warmth and clarity. Singer-songwriter songs and ballads come in strong.
The bass has a quick, uplifting pace. The mid-bass feels fast with its strikes. In the default setting, the mid-bass can bloom however, adding a certain fulness and longevity to its thumps - but also lack in tightness.
If you don't necessarily want the fullest bass, I recommend switching from the default equalizer in the app to the Natural EQ right next to it, which feels like the audiophile default. It reduces the bloom strongly and cleans up the entire bass section - increasing the impact of its quick slams.
The darkest bass tones you can feel as much as hear then? When a song also has mid-bass and other lows at the same time, the sub-bass loses a bit of texture, but by itself, it's a capable thing. In James Blake's great test track Limit to Your Love, the sub-bass is concentrated, deep and controlled.
While this isn't a very open sounding earphone, vocals and instruments are separated well from each other, with vocals also in the center and details subtly on your left and right.
The Theater mode does a tremendous job of adding space to the sound. The Spatial Audio mode is fantastic for movies and games, and it also puts music much more around you. Instruments have a precise and dedicated place around you, and it creates a small music-podium vibe by excessively boosting the lower tones. Unbalanced, maybe, yet very immersive.
Unlike competitors like the Soundcore Liberty 4 NC and the Realme Buds Air 6 Pro and even the Earfun Air Pro 4, cymbals and high hats aren't boosted in the Theater mode, so this feature is actually doable to listen to for longer periods of time.
The Air 2 NC has other sound variations as well, with 14 genre sound equalizers, 6 equalizers to tweak treble, 6 equalizers to tweak bass, and the option to create your own custom equalizer or your own sound profile based on what you can hear in the lowest and highest frequencies - a setting that doesn’t refine the sound.
It's doubtful you'll need any of those specific last sound tweaks. Although the bass could be a tiny bit slimmer, the Earfun Air 2 NC sounds very uplifting.
—> These are the best sounding wireless earbuds from $25 to $100
Earfun Air Pro 4 comparisons
Earfun Air 2 NC vs Earfun Air Pro 4: Which should you get?
The $70 Earfun Air 2 NC is so good, it's a question whether you should pay more for the $90 Earfun Air Pro 4.
Earfun Air 2 NC (left) vs Earfun Air Pro 4
Both earbuds sound excellent with their combination of bass power, warmth and pronounced enough yet comfortably rolled-off treble. The Air Pro 4 is more punchy and articulated in the lower end, and handles multiple basslines at the same time better. The Air 2 NC redirects some of Air Pro 4's attention to the lower-mids to the center-mids, bringing out vocals a bit more natural. These both sound spectacular - not just for their prices.
The Earfun Air 2 NC is more comfortable to wear as it puts less pressure on your ears, and its Theater mode is amazing for gaming.
But the Earfun Air Pro 4 offers up to 2,5 hours more playtime on a single charge. And its case also looks more premium, as it doesn't scratch so easily. It also boasts three convenient LED-lights instead of one.
So is there a real reason to spend more? Yes. One. The Earfun Air Pro 4 has stronger ANC, which filters out middle and higher sounds noticeably better. You decide if that's worth the extra money for you.
Around $90 on Amazon US or your Amazon country
Earfun Air 2 NC vs SoundPEATS Pro3 Capsule+
The SoundPEATS Pro3 Capsule+ costs slightly more than the Earfun Air 2 NC and doesn't have the same capable gaming performance. It also has worse app support on Android. But it is an alternative worth considering, with comparable battery life, waterproof rating and call clarity.
The SoundPEATS has stronger ANC and in the sound department, it trades in some of Earfuns smoothness for more prominent upper treble and a tighter bass - although these factors mostly become noticeable when you play music loud. The Earfun has a thicker, more lower-mid boosted sound; the Capsule3 Pro+ more air on top and a bigger sense of detail.
Earfun Air Pro 4 vs Samsung Galaxy Buds FE
The Samsung Galaxy Buds FE ruled the sub-$100 wireless earphone market for a few months, but its features look more and more barebones.
The Earfun Air 2 NC rocks 1 hour more battery life per charge, is IPX5 waterproof instead of IPX4 splashproof, comes with multipoint connection, more and fully customisable controls, and clearer calls when there's a bit of wind. The Earfun has comparable ANC strength and a more immersive game mode too.
Sound has been the Galaxy Buds FE's forte, and here, it's close. The Samsung has a thicker, rumblier and more expansive bass, and it puts vocals more forward than the Earfun - which especially benefits center-mid voices, which feel more detailed and are separated from instruments a bit better. The Earfun can sound a little more straightforward in the mids, while its bass is more articulated.
Around $80 on Amazon US, Amazon UK or other Amazon countries
Earfun Air 2 NC vs Realme Buds Air 6
Realme also has a model placed just underneath its $100 flagship offering Realme Buds Air 6 Pro: the $60 Realme Buds Air 6.
It's cheaper than the Earfun Air 2 NC, but the Realme misses wireless charging and multipoint connection: you can only connect the Air 6 to one device at a time. The Earfun also has 1,5 hours more battery life per charge and a way better gaming mode, with better audio-video sync and more immersive sound thanks to the Theater mode.
The Realme is more comfortable to wear thanks to its oval ear tips, although it needs to be twisted in a little to approach the same ANC strength as the Earfun.
When it comes to sound, the Realme Buds Air 6 puts more emphasis on treble than the Earfun. The sound has more air on top, vocals are clearer, and higher instruments are more textured and sound livelier. The Earfun Air 2 NC sounds more comforting, pleasantly warmer, has a fuller and deeper bass, and has less splashiness than the Realme.
Around $60 on Amazon US, your Amazon country or AliExpress
Earfun Air 2 NC vs OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro
The brand new OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro is a direct competitor to the comparably priced Earfun Air 2 NC.
The OnePlus is more comfortable thanks to its oval rubber tips, and its case looks a bit more polished with a sparkled finish. The Nord Buds Pro 3 also has stronger ANC than the Earfun, although you can hear your breathing perhaps too clearly when it's activated.
The Earfun rocks an 1 hour longer battery per charge, supports wireless charging, and its Theater mode makes gaming even better than the already great experience on the OnePlus. The Earfun has more customisable controls as well, and its calls are much clearer - with easier removed background and wind noise.
Sound-wise, the Earfun has a quicker bass, and presents lower female and male vocals fuller and with more detail and vibrancy. The OnePlus has more options to tweak the bass.
Around $70 on your Amazon country
Verdict: Earfun Air 2 NC
Earfun cannibalises its own top model that was only released last month. The $70 Earfun Air 2 NC has usable Active Noise Cancelling, clear and natural calls, great battery life, wireless charging, multipoint connection, and great sound.
On top of that, these earbuds are hands-down the best choice for gaming. Stunning value for money.
5 STARS - Excellent
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I received the Earfun Air 2 NC from the manufacturer to test and review. This doesn't influence my judgment. My reviews are 100% independent and non-commercial - read about it here.
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