TWS true wireless earphones - under $25
THREE STARS/ FOUR STARS - QCY just released two wireless earbuds with a half-in-ear design. With differences in size, sound quality, and battery life, which is the best cheap AirPods-alternative?
QCY T7 specs:
Bluetooth 5.0
4 hours listening on a full charge
Charging case can charge earpieces fully 4 times
Comes with USB-C cable
Buy QCY T7 on AliExpress (or browse cheapest price)
QCY T8 specs:
Bluetooth 5.0
3,5 hours listening on a full charge
Charging case can charge earpieces fully 4 times
Comes with USB-C cable
Buy QCY T8 on AliExpress (or browse cheapest price)
Summary - The differences between QCY T7 and T8
Size: the stems of the QCY T7 are 2mm longer, measured from the part that goes into your ears
Battery life: 3,5 hours on QCY T8; 4 hours on QCY T7
Sound quality: The QCY T8 is smoother, the T7 more engaging
I've added a general link to AliExpress instead of a direct product link, as stocks and prices change rapidly between sellers. Sorry for the inconvenience.
Below this QCY T7 and QCY T8 comparison and review, you will find comparisons of QCY T7 vs Xiaomi Mi Air 2 SE, Fiil CC, TaoTronics SoundLiberty 88 and Tronsmart Onyx Ace.
Design, comfort and battery life
It seems that QCY designed the QCY T7 and T8 together, yet some differences separate them from each other. The QCY T7 has a more original design - the T8 tends more towards Apple's AirPods.
QCY T7:
All-white wireless earbuds: they just look sexy. The QCY T7 case has the same white matte finish as the Xiaomi Mi Air 2 SE and Edifier X3. While the case is hardly any bigger than the AirPods one, it's rounded-square design makes them look a tad larger. They stand up straight without a problem, even though there's a USB-C charging port underneath. On the front, a single LED-light indicates battery status.
The case repowers the earbuds three times before needing new power itself, providing them with a pleasant 4 hours playtime per charge.
The matte-white earbuds may look a bit cheap, but their design happily differs from the AirPods. The ear-part is placed 'on top' of the stem, with a small round touch panel on the side. Unlike the T8, you may need to adjust them a little bit to reach the ideal fit and the best looks, where the stems follow the line of your cheeks. While only slightly longer, the hard-cut bottom makes the earpiece look bigger in your ears than the T8.
QCY T8:
It's easy to mistake the QCY T8 for Apple's original AirPods, or the countless generic clones that are on the market. The case has the same dimensions as the T7, but since all corners are rounded, it looks more compact. On the front, you find the same single LED-light to indicate battery status, and here too, you'll find the USB-C port underneath.
The earpieces resemble the AirPods even more than the case. They have the same shiny finish as Apple's trendsetter and come with a single gold-coloured line seen on the Haylou T19 before. They're extremely comfortable: just 'hang' them in your ears, and you won't even notice them after a while. With its clever corner in between the stems and the ear-parts, the earpieces cling on your ears and stay in perfectly - without hassling with the fit.
The stems of the T8 are 2 millimeters shorter than the T7-ones, and remarkably, that costs half an hour of battery life. The QCY T8 has only 3,5 hours playtime per charge. The box can top them up three times before needing power itself.
Connectivity and controls
Both QCY's have the same simple control scheme. It isn't possible to change volume, but the functions that are there, respond well.
Double-tap to play or pause music, triple-tap to activate the voice assistant on your phone. You skip a track by holding the right earpiece and return a song by holding the left one.
Happily, it's possible to change the controls via the QCY-app available for Android and iPhone. While you can't add more functionality, but you can sacrifice the existing controls for increasing or decreasing volume.
The difference between the QCY T7 and T8 is the position of the touch panel. The T7 has the touch panel on the side, the T8 has it on top of the stem - you control it by tapping on top of the earpieces. Happily, both sit perfectly still when you control them.
Connectivity on the T7 and T8 is also comparable, and good. The Bluetooth 5.0 signal keeps stable up to ten meters, and both sets automatically pause when you take on earpiece out of your ears. The T8 automatically resumes playing when putting them in again; the T7 doesn't and needs a double-tap to continue first.
On both models, you can switch seamlessly between mode and stereo mode - meaning you can listen to one earpiece while charging the other, and then instantly listen in stereo again when you put the charged earpiece in.
Calling and watching movies with QCY T7/ T8
Now, on to the bad part. Both the QCY T7 and QCY T8 are terrible at handling videos on both Android and iPhone. While serviceable on video services like Netflix and Amazon Prime, there is a fierce delay in the YouTube-app sound.
While QCY delivered low-latency Gaming Modes on some models like their excellent QCY T5, don't look for it here. Sound effects in games have a huge delay.
Happily, calling with the QCY T7 and T8 fares better. It's safe to take a phone call indoors, where your voice sounds clear. It's also doable to take a call outside, as long as there are mostly darker and steady sounds around you - like distant traffic, humming, and heavy engines accelerating. However, brighter sounds do come through, making it hard to take a call with other people talking nearby.
—> Also read: The best TWS under $25
QCY T7/T8 app review: Change the controls
Like the QCY T6, QCY T4 and QCY T9S, QCY's newest half-in-ear wireless earbuds also support the QCY app for Android and iPhone. It adds a good control option, but that's it.
With the official QCY app for iPhone and Android, you can give the QCY earbuds some extra options once you've registered an account. In order to use the app, you have to put the earpieces back in the charging case and take them out again until you no longer see the message on the screenshot right.
The app unlocks the opportunities to update the firmware (none were available while writing this review), and change the controls as described in the connection/ controls part.
QCY's application on Android also lets you find the earphones nearby with a Bluetooth-powered find function. On both iPhone and iPad, the app also and has an equalizer with six presets.
Forget the addition of the app equalizer. It is a laugh, with the slightest manual change destroying the balance in the sound of the earphone, and the Bass, Pop, and other preset frequencies also ruining the frequencies and left-right separation in the sound.
It's good to be able to change controls, but it would have been better without an app and more extended controls.
Sound of QCY T7 vs T8: engaging vs smooth
It's easy to hear that the QCY T7 and T8 come rolling down the same manufacturing line. Still, it's the sound quality that marks the biggest difference between the T7 and T8.
QCY T8 sound review: Just like AirPods
It turns out the QCY T8 doesn't just look like Apple AirPods; they sound remarkably similar too. It means the bass isn't the tightest, but there's a gentle bass thump that still manages to give music their beat. The sound has a smooth approach with a warm undertone. Both male and female vocals are part of the rest of the sound - meaning they don't stand out between instruments and electronic tones. The latter play the main role here, as lower-mids enjoy some emphasis.
Still, that doesn't mean that drums, darker piano pieces, or bass-guitars are allowed to shine on the QCY T8. While balanced and smooth, music on the QCY T8 sounds closed-in and a bit muffled. Just like the AirPods then - so it will be passable for most, and at a far better price.
QCY T7 sound review: Better than T8!
There isn't a lot of difference between the QCY T7 and QCY T8 sound, but it's easy to say that the differences are in favour of the T7. The T7 doesn't lay the same emphasis on the lower mid-tones, meaning darker electronic tones don't get the upper-hand in the music. This clears up the sound noticeably.
Don't expect a fierce bass-slam on the QCY T7, but the bass is tighter and more alert than on the T8. It has a bit more body to it. Vocals are more forward on the T7, separating themselves from instruments and sound effects, and making the sound more engaging. Both male and female vocals come with more detail on the T7, and as every so often, a bigger emphasis on upper-mid tones, also means the T7 has a bigger soundstage. The music feels airier, more around you than on the T8.
With its tighter mid-bass and clearer upper-mids, the QCY T7 sounds more cleaned-up and more engaging than the T8.
Selected comparisons
Because the QCY T7 has better battery life and sound quality than the QCY T8, most comparisons will be with the QCY T7.
QCY T7 vs Xiaomi Mi Air 2 SE
Before QCY, Xiaomi already has half-in-ear wireless earbuds in sleek matte-white design. The Xiaomi Mi Air 2 SE earpieces are longer and thicker, but comfort is just as good. It has more clarity in the sound than the T7, with further extended highs and more prominent vocals. Male voices do sound smoother on the T7, but with it's more defined and harder-hitting bass and added detail, the Mi Air 2 SE sounds better. Further, paying around $5-10 extra for the Mi Air 2 SE will get you a much more all-round product, with clearer call quality, good video playback, and half an hour longer battery life.
QCY T7 vs Fiil CC
Coming in at $60, the Fiil CC costs three times the QCY T7, but granted, it gives you better call quality both indoor and outside and a much sleeker design. The CC has super-slim, matte-grey stems, while providing just as much comfort and a tight fit. Its sound is a bit colder, but also more balanced. There's more emphasis on the mid-tones, which a lot more detail in the sound - and individual instruments a lifelike texture. The bass is tighter and dives deeper as well. The QCY wins a round on battery life, however, delivering around half an hour more playtime.
QCY T7 vs TaoTronics SoundLiberty 88
As the TaoTronics SoundLiberty 88 comes in black, it can't be mistaken for AirPods like the QCY models. Soundwise, it's a different beast too. The SoundLiberty 88 has a warmer sound, with more emphasis on and detail in the lower-mids and a more pumped-up bass, that delivers a tighter slam. While the QCY resolves more detail in the mid-tones, the TaoTronics sounds both smoother AND more engaging. It is almost double the price of the QCY's, however.
QCY T8 vs Tronsmart Onyx Ace
Feature-wise, the QCY T8 and Tronsmart Onyx Ace are true competitors. The Onyx Ace has better battery-indication on the case; the QCY T8 stays in your ears better due to a tiny corner in the design. For the rest, these go head to head. They both have 3,5 hours playtime on a single charge and decent call quality. The Tronsmart has a thicker bass delivering a steadier thump, and more forward vocals, but in full songs, it can sound more muffled than the QCY T8, which comes across smooth instead.
Verdict: QCY T8
The QCY T8 is a cheap AirPods-alternative that doesn't do anything special to stand out from the crowd. While comfort is great and call quality is acceptable, the sound fares between smooth and muffled, and video playback is terrible.
Three stars - worth considering
Verdict: QCY T7
The QCY T7 is a good priced pair of half-in-ear wireless earbuds with 4 hours battery life, good call quality, and a clean, engaging sound. It may not be the best allrounder, but it's good value.
Four stars - very good
Buy QCY T7 and QCY T8/ check current price:
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I bought the QCY T7 and QCY T8 myself for testing and review purposes. I test and review all audio products equally honest - read about it here.
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