TWS true wireless earphones - under $25
FIVE STARS - Clear, balanced and pleasant to listen to. The Moondrop Space Travel is a great sounding pair of earbuds on a minimal budget - and it even throws in Active Noise Cancelling.
Moondrop Space Travel specs and features:
Bluetooth 5.3 with AAC codec
No waterproof rating
4 hours listening on a single charge
Charging case can charge earpieces fully 3 times
Comes with 3 sets of ear tips, USB-C cable, English manual
$25 - Buy on Amazon US, Amazon UK, other Amazon countries or AliExpress
Below this Moondrop Space Travel review, you will find comparisons of the Moondrop SpaceTravel vs Soundcore A20i, Soundcore Life P2i and QCY T13.
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Design, comfort and battery life
Much has been written and said already about the design of the Moondrop Space Travel. Frankly, it's rather bizarre that Moondrop took the effort to come up with an original design at this price point - and the package of the charging case with the earbuds in it looks very neat. It has a certain space age (or even Starfield, so you will) vibe, with a creme white base place and an either transparant dark grey or orange color on top. The writing on it is just the finish touch.
The transparant upper part houses the earbuds and doesn't have a lid. It isn't very convenient. Even after using the Space Travel for weeks, it can be tricky to slide the earbuds out of the case, and you will regularly have the right and left earbud mixed up, as you slid them out from the backside instead of the front from the case.
While some reviews state the earbuds get dirty or fall out easily of the lid-less case, that didn't happen in my weeks of regular use - even not when carrying them around in jeans pocket.
The earbuds themselves are straightforward. The oval earpiece falls easy and stays snugly in your ears, and is comfortable to wear for its average 4 hours of playtime on a single charge. An underwhelming score, but still a decent enough performance for most sessions.
Unfortunately, the charging case doesn't recharge the earbuds very quickly, and the earbuds also lack a waterproof rating. Style over substance? Perhaps - but they do look great for an ultra-affordable TWS.
Controls and connectivity
The Moondrop Space Travel continues its style with the voice prompts. While there isn't one on the case or package this time around, there's a waifu in your ears. The connected and sad disconnected voice prompts are actually quite adorable, and the ‘Hey!’ that indicates the talk-friendly Transparency mode and the ‘Ssshiii’ for the ANC mode are both fun and clever - even though they take a cut out of the music.
The control scheme is simple:
Tap L or R to play/pause
Hold L or R to switch between ANC and Transparency mode
Hold L or R longer to turn ANC off
Double-tap R to skip a song
Double-tap L to return a song
Triple-tap L or R to activate the voice assistant
Quadruple-tap L or R to (de)activate gaming mode
Unfortunately, there are no volume controls on the earbuds. The touch panels can also respond to heavy wind, rain or warmth underneath a hood sometimes, which can be annoying when you're commuting.
Connectivity is good, with a solid Bluetooth connection up to ten meters away from your device. Pairing is quick enough, while multipoint connection with multiple devices at the same time and auto-play and resume aren't supported. Not a shame for this price.
Phone and video calls
You shouldn't expect too much from earbuds on such a small budget when it comes to phone calls. Still, it's not all bad with the Space Travel. Your voice is clear and loud enough in easygoing surroundings, like a quieter office space, outside with the wind in your back, or when you're walking around the house.
Talking in the wind is a challenge and will often drown your voice, just like on most affordable and more expensive wireless earbuds.
Video and games playback
For some reason, video playback is a bit hit-and-miss on the Moondrop Space Travel. While audio synchronizes well with the video on your phone most of the time, there are some instances in which you need to pause the video player and resume playing to sync again - especially on iPhone.
Happily, there is a gaming mode that can be activated with four taps on either side (thanks, readers!). It syncs audio and video in videos better and works well for games too, synchronizing the action on your screen well with the audio in a more demanding game like Call of Duty mobile.
App Support of Moondrop Space travel
At the time of writing, the Moondrop Space Travel enjoys official app support on iPhone only. Moondrop Link isn't available in the Google Play Store for Android, although you can still get Moondrop Link for Android on this site.
The app is barebones but functional. Once you've selected the Space Travel in the menu - you have to do this every time, you can either assign functions to other touch controls (but not add volume controls), or choose from three sound presets.
That's pretty basic compared to the likes of comparably priced QCY models and especially the Soundcore A20i and P20i, which offer a dozen of equalizer presets and adjustable controls.
It is quality over quantity, however, as all three of the sound presets are spot on. More on that in the sound part of the review.
ANC Active Noise Cancelling of the Space Travel
The big surprise is that the Moondrop Space Travel throws in Active Noise Cancelling for its 25 dollars asking price. And, apart from the wind noise the mode induces, it's a welcome addition.
Hold the left or right earbud and you'll hear the ‘Hey!’ indicating the Transparency mode first, that lets you hear traffic and weather effects while you listen to music up to moderate volume. You probably won't be able to follow a conversation though.
Hold it again and the ‘Ssshiii’ introduces the Active Noise Cancelling. The ANC doesn't rule out sounds completely, and the same rain drops on a window roof or cars driving in the rain can still be heard. But it does bring back the volume of everything around you. Mid-sounds like keyboard clicks or people talking are softened well and the radio playing in the background moves even more to the background.
It works quite good when you're not listening to music, but even more so, the ANC here helps you to focus on the music. That's enough reason to use the function…
Also read: The best wireless earbuds under $50
Sound quality of Moondrop Space Travel
The Moondrop Space Travel delivers the most balanced and faithful presentation of music on entry-level wireless earbuds.
It's not Moondrop first rodeo. After the engaging and bright Moondrop Sparks, the Moondrop Nekocake already showed a clear and natural musical presentation in 2021. Two years later, the Space Travel brings Moondrops balanced sound to the lowest segment on the market - with the remark that the maximum volume may have been one tap higher.
The thing that stands out from other entry-level dollars earbuds, is the amount of clarity in the music - and how it's handled. Highs like violins and cymbals are crystal clear, but refrain from becoming overbearing or sharp. Female and higher male vocals sound crisp or breezy, but not light - they still have weight and have room for nuances.
While high outbursts can have a little harsh edge, there's an overall good separation between instruments even in crowded compositions - whereas a competitor like the QCY T13 quickly becomes flatter and harsher in challenging scenarios, and starts to feast on the other frequencies. That's not the case here.
In its pursuit of clarity, the Space Travel demands that the center-mids join in on the fun. Acoustic guitars and piano play can sound a little brighter than average, but they are rewarded with outstanding presence. Just like most male and lower female vocals are clear and forward. It's pretty much opposed to the background role center-mids often have in lower, often warmer and bassier offerings.
Bass performance is solid as well. Dependent on how much bass a song has out of itself, the mid-bass provides either tight slams or a friendly if a bit loose thumping. It's not the most uplifting performer, but bass convinces with cleanliness for the price. Meanwhile, the sub-bass (darkest bass tones you feel as much as hear) is controlled well, although it could dive a little deeper.
On top of that, the Moondrop Link app adds two good sound presets next to the Reference default. Monitor does a great job of neutralizing the sound some more, removing a bit of the bass rumble and taking the lower-mids down a notch, in favour of the center-mids - it can work really well for classical music. The other option, Basshead, isn't by far as cheesy as it sounds. It reduces the upper-mid emphasis a little without taking away the clarity, and boosts the lower-mids and bass in a tasteful way - meaning it doesn't increase the looseness of the bass, but does make thumps deeper and heavier.
The extra sound tunings are the icing on the cake of an already impressive sounding budget earphone. It's impressive how clean, clear and balanced the Moondrop Space Travel sounds and remains in more challenging songs.
Moondrop Space Travel comparisons
Moondrop Space Travel vs Soundcore A20i
The Soundcore Life A20i are joyful little, dirt-cheap earbuds with a battery performance that way outperforms Space Travel's 4 hours. The Life A20i offers up to 9 hours of playtime on a single charge, has an IPX5 waterproof rating, volume controls, and it has more extensive app support for controls and equalizers on both Android and iPhone. The Space Travel has clearer calls and throws in a Transparency mode and ANC, which the A20i lacks.
The Space Travel sounds cleaner and clearer than the Soundcore. The Moondrop gives more presence from the center mid-tones and higher, and separates instruments better. Its bass is tighter, but the Soundcore may have you tapping your foot quicker, as it entertains a thumpier bass and comes with a warmer, lower-mids heavy sound.
Moondrop Space Travel vs QCY T13 ANC
The Moondrop Space Travel may surprise with its Active Noise Cancelling for the entry-level price, it's not the only TWS to have it. The name of the $25 QCY T13 ANC says it all. Like the Moondrop, the ANC doesn't remove sounds but does reduce their volume. Moondrops Transparency mode is a bit more usable to locate traffic while you're listening to music, and it's more convenient for (indoor) phone and video calls as well. The T13 ANC has at least an longer battery life per charge, is IPX5 waterproof, and has more customisable controls via the app.
While QCY also aims for a clear and balanced sound with the T13 ANC, the Space Travel executes it better - with a more natural treble and better instrument separation. The Moondrop is also easier to enjoy, as the sound signature is the same in all ANC settings and the earbuds’ fit is easier.
Moondrop Space Travel vs Soundcore Life P2i
The current Scarbir.com top recommendation under $25, the Soundcore Life P2i, shows itself a bit more practical in daily scenarios. It has an IPX5 waterproof rating, actual buttons with volume controls, and 8 hours of battery life on a single charge. Moreover, it's more successful in phone and video calls; it's safer to enter a Zoom meeting or take a call when there are people around you. The Space Travel offers Active Noise Cancelling and a Transparency mode in return.
Once again, the Moondrop sounds cleaner and more natural than the Soundcore, with more separation between instruments and a tighter, slimmer bass. The latter is the Life P2i's highlight, with more powerful and a little bit faster bass slams - even though bass isn't deeper than the Moondrops.
Verdict
While the Moondrop Space Travel may not be perfect with its below-average battery life and lack of a waterproof rating, these feel like minor downsides at this price. For $25, the Moondrop Space Travel looks great and sounds even better.
Buy Moondrop Space Travel/ check price:
Buy on Amazon US
Buy on Amazon UK
Buy on other Amazon countries
Buy on AliExpress
I received the Moondrop Space Travel from the manufacturer to test and review. My reviews are 100% independent and non-commercial - read about it here.
Consider buying this earphone? I'd really appreciate it if you use the links in this article. It won't cost you extra, yet it will financially support me a bit in my ongoing quest for great affordable audio. <3
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