TWS true wireless earphones - under $150
4.5 STARS - With an app that lets you tweak the sound, 7 hours of battery life, great fit and comfort, and excellent call quality, the Anker Soundcore Liberty Air 2 could probably grant all your wishes.
Anker Soundcore Liberty Air 2 specs:
Bluetooth 5.0 with AptX codec
IPX5 water proof (heavy rain and sweat resistant)
7 hours listening on a full charge
Charging case can charge earpieces fully 4 times
Comes with 7 sets ear tips and a USB-C charging cable
$130 on Amazon US, Amazon Europe, Amazon UK or AliExpress- check current price!
Below this review you can find direct comparisons between the Anker Soundcore Liberty Air 2 vs Soundcore Liberty 2 Pro, Edifier TWS NB, Edifier TWS6, Fiil T1X and SoundPEATS TrueDot.
Design, charging and comfort
Soundcore positions itself as a challenger for more expensive brands like Sony and Apple at around half of their prices, and with this presentation, it's justified.
The Soundcore Liberty Air 2 has a beautiful box, claiming things like 'diamond coated sound drivers' and 'loved by over 10+ million people'. In tests of mainstream consumer tech sites, you often see Soundcore competing against way more expensive products, and getting high rankings. But how does the Liberty Air 2 fare against cheaper wireless earbuds - the ones tested on this site?
The Liberty Air 2 doesn't have the wow-factor of the samely priced Liberty 2 Pro, with its distinctive shove-open case and it's sporty looking earpieces. It still impresses though. The white charging case has a subtle stone-like pattern on it, and feels a little rough by design. It's seen before on the Whizzer E3 - but it's still a nice trick.
On the front of the case, three LED-lights indicate the battery status and which earpiece is charging. You'll find the USB-C connection on the underside, and it's also possible to charge the Liberty Air 2 wirelessly. Each charge gives the earpieces 7 hours playtime, and the case can recharge the earpieces four times fully. Quick charging is also available: charge ten minutes for 2 hours of listening. Great specs.
The earpieces itself are white, with a 'brushed-steel' like inlay and subtle red-orange details on the underside of the stem and in the rubber ear-tips. The part that goes into your ear is round and compact, ensuring a deep and also a snug fit. These won't fall out of your ears quickly, nor do they brush your cheeks while wearing them.
Connectivity and controls
The Soundcore Liberty Air 2 has excellent connection strength, with the Bluetooth 5.0 signal holding up strong to about ten meters, even when there are walls in between your ears and the device.
It has two great features. If you take an earpiece out, the music automatically stops playing (although it doesn't automatically play again when you turn it back in). It's also easy to swap between one and two earpieces. The other one will just continue playing while the other one charges.
Out of the box, it's not possible to change the volume on the earpieces of the Liberty 2 Air. But there's a trick.
Standard, playing, and pausing is done with two taps on the right earpiece. Two-tapping the left bud, skips a track. Holding one of the earpieces for two seconds activates the voice assistant of your smartphone (left), or returns a song (right).
You can change the controls with the app, however - and sacrifice the voice assistant function and returning-track option for increasing and decreasing the volume with two second-presses on the sides. Never use the voice assistant or return a track, like me? Then the controls are spot-on.
Calling and watching movies
'Flawless call quality' is the biggest text you will find on the box of Liberty Air 2, with the addition of 'via four mics with noise reduction'.
The call quality indoor is, indeed, outstanding. It's pleasant to have an extended phone call with these. The other end of the line will hear you crystal clear, even while you're busy doing something else. Surrounding noises are reduced heavily, even when they are close: the Liberty Air 2 perfectly focuses on your voice.
This remains the case outside. The other will hear a slight white noise underneath your voice, but it's a great tradeoff, as noises from your surroundings are almost entirely gone, and your voice itself sounds clear. Wind noise does come through when you're walking or cycling directly into it, but this is a great performer for phone calls, Skype, WhatsApp calling, Hangouts, or otherwise.
Watching videos with the Soundcore Liberty Air 2 works great. Audio-video synchronization is spot-on on both iPhone and Android, including the ever-challenging YouTube-app on iPhone. There is a noticeable delay in the sound when playing games, though.
Also read: The best true wireless earphones under $100
Review: App of Soundcore Liberty Air 2
The Liberty Air 2 has access to Soundcore's great app, which works flawlessly and looks stylish.
It lets you update the earpieces, it shows the battery status of the earpieces and lets you choose between 16 equalizers. You can also set up different equalizers yourself, by altering the 100, 200, 400, 800 Hz and 1.6, 3.2, 6.4 and 12.8 kHz frequencies.
And then there's HearID.
HearID is a hearing test with soft beeps sounding in your left and right ears. If you hold the screen when you hear these sounds, HearID creates a personal sound profile you can then activate. To me, it made the lower-mids sound a bit warmer - but your mileage may (and should) vary.
More handy options are switching off the auto-pause function by removing one of the earpieces and changing the controls to have volume control right on your ears.
Sound quality of Soundcore Liberty Air 2
Let's skip Soundcore's claim of 'diamond coated drivers' and have a listen. How well do the Soundcore Liberty Air 2 actually sound?
The Liberty 2 Air has a big emphasis on vocals and brighter mid-tones. Both female vocals and higher-pitched male voices take center stage in musical pieces. They come through clear and detailed, with nuances and gasps audible in the singing within the music. At times, you'll hear sibilance - loud sss's in vocals, but it's not too disturbing.
Instruments operating around the same frequencies, such as guitars, violins, and pianos, enjoy a likewise emphasis. They also sound clear and with a pleasant amount of detail.
The problem is, is that the emphasis is a tad too much. To realise the clarity in these higher notes, the Liberty 2 Air shifts to an audible hiss surrounding vocals and instruments. There's always a level of ground noise - a white noise-like sound, around music on the Soundcore, but it increases when upper-mids and vocals kick in. Not so much as on the Liberty 2 Pro, but still quite present.
The Soundcore Liberty 2 Air has a nice soundstage with decent instrument placement and good separation. Those last two start to suffer a bit in crowded musical pieces with lots of upper-mids and highs, however, as the sound can then get a bit shouty and crowded.
Of course, the Liberty 2 Air comes with the app mentioned above. Selecting the Treble Reducer-equalizer solves a bit of the problem, happily.
Overall, the Soundcore Liberty Air 2 sounds impressive. In the lows, the bass and drums deliver a sweet kick, without being anywhere near aggressive. The bass, rumbling sub-bass, darker electronic tones, and heavier male vocals - they all have plenty of weight and pack a punch. The sound has a lovely airy feeling, too.
As stated, Soundcore positions itself as a contender to more renowned brands with higher asking prices. It has every right to do so. The Liberty 2 Air's vocal presentation, level of detail, and instrument tonality are impressive. Lovers of precise instrument placement and a more balanced presentation may browse further, however - even among cheaper offerings.
Selected comparisons
Soundcore Liberty Air 2 vs Liberty 2 Pro
Anker Soundcore has two wireless earphones in the same price range. The Air is more focused on calls - and indeed handles them better; the Pro is more concentrated towards sports lifestyle. However, due to the tight fit of the Air, both are usable for sports. Battery life on both models is excellent.
The Liberty Air 2 sounds like an updated version of the Liberty 2 Pro. They share the same basics: they both sound impactful on all frequencies and deliver thick mids and elevated upper-mids. The Air handles upper-mids better, however, with less (!) hiss surrounding those frequencies. When higher-pitched vocals and instruments kick in on the Liberty 2 Pro, it goes together with a loud white noise floor, causing a hiss over the mids and the entire song. The Liberty Air 2 still has this, but much more minimal, and still forwards mids.
Further, the Liberty Air 2 sounds a bit more natural and has a more controlled bass, whereas the Pro can have just too much of an ever-present rumble. Both earphones support the great Soundcore-app, however, and let you adjust the sound to your wishes. The Air does have a better fundament underneath it. Along with the better call quality, it makes sure the Liberty Air 2 is the better Soundcore.
Soundcore Liberty Air 2 vs Soundcore Life P2
So what are the differences between the Soundcore Liberty Air 2 and the Soundcore Life P2, which costs only half around $55? The Life P2 isn't supported by the wonderful Soundcore app, but it's still a solid allrounder. Its call quality is great indoor and doable outside as well. The Life P2 sounds darker than the Air 2, with way more emphasis on the bass and lower frequencies. It has a less airy sound and lacks the details of the Air 2. Battery life, build quality and connectivity are comparable, however - making the Life P2 a good cheaper alternative for everyday use.
Soundcore Liberty Air 2 vs Edifier TWS NB
The Edifier TWS NB is a direct competitor to the Liberty Air 2, for the same $130-150 price. The Edifier has much bigger earpieces but does offer excellent ANC active noise cancellation, which the Soundcore lacks. The Edifier sounds warmer than the Liberty Air 2, with fuller lower-mids and more outspoken drums and bass-guitar lines. The Liberty Air 2 has more emphasis on the vocals and mid-tones and offers more space in its sound. The Edifier sounds a bit more closed-in, the Soundcore resolves more detail. Soundwise, the Edifier delivers a more relaxing experience. Comfort-wise, the Liberty Air 2 wins that battle.
Soundcore Liberty Air 2 vs Edifier TWS6
With the very basic TWS6, Edifier has another samely-priced competitor to the Liberty Air 2. The TWS6 has even fewer controls than the LA2 and doesn't offer the same call quality. Its small earpieces compete on comfort-level, though. The TWS6 has a rather cold tonality from itself, but with its added emphasis on the lower frequencies over the LA2, it still sounds fuller. The Soundcore offers more warmth, more clarity - and this app to control the music.
Soundcore Liberty Air 2 vs Fiil T1X
The Fiil T1X, with its 40-60 dollars price tag, is the current best-sounding true wireless earbuds under $100. It sounds better on a couple of aspects than the Liberty Air 2. It has a better representation of lower-mids, which seem more prominent, but still behave well against the other frequencies. The LA2 has more presence in the center-mids, with pianos and guitars sounding louder than on the T1X. The T1X shows more spacial details in its soundstage, but in easier going songs, the Liberty Air 2 can sound cleaner.
Soundcore Liberty Air 2 vs SoundPEATS TrueDot
Comparing the $25 SoundPEATS TrueDot to the $130 Soundcore Liberty Air 2, it becomes apparent... that there isn't much difference between these two. The Liberty Air 2 gives mids and a more prominent place, while the TrueDot mostly emphasized the lows and the upper-mids, causing darker male singers to sound less forward - but also creating more space, separation, and detail in the sound. The TrueDot delivers better instrument placement and tonality within its soundstage.
Verdict
With its clear music presentation, 7 hours of battery life, great comfort and excellent call quality, the Anker Soundcore Liberty Air 2 could just be your ideal wireless earphones for everyday use.
4.5 STARS - great
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This is a totally honest test and review of the Soundcore Liberty Air 2. I bought the Anker Soundcore Liberty 2 Air for testing and reviewing purposes myself. I test and review all audio products equally honest - 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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