TWS true wireless earphones - $75 to $100
FOUR STARS - The Anker Soundcore P40i has a charging case you can use as a phone stand, mind-blowing battery life and a gazillion features for its price, but it falls a bit short in one important aspect.
Anker Soundcore P40i specs and features:
Bluetooth 5.3 with AAC codec
IPX5 waterproof (water and sweat proof)
8 - 12 hours listening on a single charge (ANC on/ off)
Charging case can charge earpieces fully 5 times
Comes with 3 sets of ear tips, USB-C cable, English manual
$70 - Buy on Amazon US, Amazon UK or your Amazon country
In and underneath this Anker Soundcore P40i review, you will find comparisons of the Soundcore P40i vs CMF Buds Pro, Edifier TWS 1 Pro2, Soundcore Life A3i, and Soundcore Liberty 4 NC.
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Design, comfort and battery life
Even after reviewing 359 affordable wireless earbuds, the Anker Soundcore P40i has a nifty little feature I've never seen before. The charging case acts as a phone stand - it's as simple as it is brilliant.
When you've taken your earbuds out of the case, you can lift a little barrier on the inside of the case. You can then put your phone in between the barrier and the lid. It holds phones in a horizontal position perfectly. Even bigger phones. And because the bottom of the case is weighty and made of an anti-slip material, it doesn't slide or fall either.
It makes so much sense to have this movie stand while you use the earbuds, I truly want to see this on more models in the future.
There's more to the specs and features of the Soundcore P40i. It offers a whopping 8+ hours of playtime on a single charge, and that's with ANC on! Another battery life winner of Soundcore, after the more expensive Space A40 and Liberty 4 NC.
The earbuds have a traditional stem-shape seen on other Soundcores P-series, seen on the Life P2 Mini and Soundcore Life P3i before. If anything, this feels like a continuation from the Soundcore P20i, in both the square case and the earbuds. The earbuds provide a logical and snug fit, and thanks to the IPX5 waterproof rating, it's safe to use them for runs or workouts.
One little downside: you can feel them sitting in your ears a bit. Competitors like the Baseus M2s and QCY HT05 are a tad sleeker and more comfortable - although it doesn't differ much.
Controls, connectivity and app
The standout features of the Soundcore P40i don't stop at the charging case and battery life. The free Soundcore app for iPhone and Android has a ton of useful options too.
The P40i is likely the first Soundcore that lets you fully adjust the controls: the single presses, double presses, triple presses and holds on both sides. That's fantastic, as it allows you to setup the play/ pause, changing of tracks, adjusting the volume, switching between ANC modes or (de)activating the Gaming Mode just how you want it - I've never seen it done this good before.
Connectivity is a blast as well. The Soundcore P40i offers multipoint connection and lets you connect to two devices at the same time - a phone and a laptop, for instance. It switches automatically when you receive a call, and manually when you start playing music or a video on your other device. Have a third device with which you connected to in the past? Select the P40i in the Bluetooth list of that device, and the Soundcore will kick one of the current devices out. You can also (de)activate devices from the app - neat.
Other features of the app are selecting Active Noise Cancelling modes, (de)activating touch tones, (de)activating low battery sounds, a fitting test, changing the device name, updating firmware, setup the Auto Power Off time, more than a hanfdul of sound equalizers, custom EQing, and checking if your volume level is safe. You can even setup your safe maximum volume.
Soundcore always has the best app support, and on the P40, it's truly outstanding.
Phone and video calls
You shouldn't go for the Soundcore P40i if you like to take a phone call while you take a walk outside.
Even slight wind noise is audible on the line, and it can make your voice much darker, hard to hear in some dips even.
Indoor call quality for phone calls and video calls is fine as long as you're not in too crowded areas. Sound effects like door slams, keyboard clicks and chatter come through in calls, although your voice sounds clearer and louder than most of these sounds.
The Soundcore P40i fares better than the Edifier TWS1 Pro2, which performs worse outdoors, but can't match the clarity and loudness of the Baseus M2s.
Video and games playback
Video playback on the Soundcore P40i is flawless on iPhone and Android phones, with great synchronization in all major video apps. The Gaming Mode, which can be activated from the app or earbuds controls, synchronizes the sounds in games well with the action on your screen - although there's still a minor delay in challenging games like Call of Duty mobile.
The Gaming Mode is dubbed as an ‘Immersive Experience’ in the app. There's also a Movie Mode which doesn't do anything for synchronization, but does boost vocals and brighter sounds. The effect is awful, making every brighter sound too metallic and / or too piercing.
ANC quality on Soundcore P40i
The Soundcore app offers a plethora of Active Noise Cancelling options for the Soundcore P40i, but none offers groundbreaking performance.
There's a mind-blowing four ways you can use the ANC mode in. By default, the P40i has an Adaptive ANC mode that listens to your surroundings and adjusts how much noise reduction is needed and implemented. You can also opt for a Multi-Scene ANC setting, so you setup your ANC for transport, outdoor, and indoor. And then there's a Manual Mode, which lets you select the ANC strength from 1 to 5. It comes with an extra option to personalize the function for your ears.
Despite all these options, the Active Noise Cancelling isn't that great - even in the strongest settings. The function reduces darker constant sounds well, and it dampens the lows from background music and conversations as well. Sudden middle sounds do still come through however; laughter, birds chirping, door slams, but also your own keyboard ticking are always audible when you aren't playing any music, and even come through music playback up to moderate volume.
There's a trick that actually helps to improve the ANC: switching manually to Transparency mode and then returning to the Noise Cancelling. That's when the earbuds truly calibrates to noise around you; middle sounds will be reduced much better afterwards. Let's hope there's a firmware upgrade coming up that can improve the ANC without this step.
Happily, the ANC side-features are quite good already. The Transparency mode emphasizes middle sounds in a natural way when you need it, and thanks to a Wind Noise Reduction slider, wind noise isn't annoying when you cycle or run.
Competitors like the Edifier TWS1 Pro 2 and the CMF Buds Pro offer stronger ANC from the get go, and the P40i is outperformed by the more expensive Soundcore Liberty 4 NC as well.
Also read: The very best sounding earbuds under $150
Sound quality of Soundcore P40i
The sound is where things start to fall apart for the Soundcore P40i… if you love your music loud.
In total brand tradition, the Soundcore P40i boosts the bass big time. The mid-bass slams heavily with full and strong thumps, and the sub-bass (darkest tones you can feel as much as hear) can rumble fiercely.
It's more of a quality-over-quantity thing, however. The hefty bass thumping in your ears can be entertaining, but it can also feel too full in songs that demand a little subtlety or have multiple basslines. Sometimes, the sub-bass is just a constant, heavily pumped-up background blubber, and while competitors like the CMF Buds Pro and Edifier TWS1 Pro 2 have a less dark sounding bass, they show more texture on both acoustic and electronic basslines.
The P40i lifts lower mid-tones like darker electronic tones and male vocals, and music feels full and weighty because of it. Center-mid tones like guitar and piano play play along with these lower tones; they sound warmer than average and play a bit of a background role as a result.
The same can't be said of the treble, which is all but shy. Female and higher male vocals are placed forward and are prominent, and not just those: brighter instruments are elevated strongly as well. While you could describe this approach as lively on regular volumes, the treble completely derails on loud listening volumes, or on music recordings with lots of treble out if itself.
There were times and songs when I loathed the sound of the P40i. On the louder levels, everything in the upper-mids and highs can be hissy and harsh, urging you to lower the volume instantly. After all this time, treble still appears tricky for the brand.
Now, the Soundcore app lets you create your own EQ or choose from 20 sound equalizers. Just the Treble Reducer EQ preset does enough to tone down those pesky highs on high listening volumes, letting you enjoy that thick, full bass in all its guilty pleasure-glory. But it isn't the holy grail, as videos in this setting often have way too many lows and too little vocal presence. You could counter that with the Immersive Movie Mode from the same app, but yeah - that instantly makes treble too metallic and harsh again.
The bottom line is: the Soundcore P40 sounds energetic, full and fine on easy to regular listening volumes - but those on the lookout for loud, active listening, should look further.
Soundcore P40i comparisons
Soundcore P40i vs Edifier TWS1 Pro 2
It's not a phone stand, it only has half the battery life, and it doesn't have the multipoint connectivity of the Soundcore P40i. Yet: the Edifier TWS1 Pro 2 sounds better. Vocals are smoother and more open at the same time, center mid-tones sound more natural, and the bass is more precise and textured. Active Noise Cancelling on the TWS1 Pro is also stronger than that of the P40i out of the box; the Soundcore doesn't repress voices, footsteps and door slams as well. The P40i handles outdoor phone calls better.
Around $50 on Amazon US, Amazon UK, other Amazon countries or AliExpress
Soundcore P40i vs CMF Buds Pro
The CMF Buds Pro, going for $50 from Nothing phone's more affordable subbrand, also fares better in the music department than the Soundcore. While it doesn't reach the level of texture of the Edifier, the bass is more detailed than the Soundcore. The Soundcore packs more bass punch, even though you can up the CMF-bass strongly in the Nothing X app. Lighter vocals sound a little bit thinner on the CMF, while overall treble is controlled better than on the Soundcore. The CMF shows a bit more space in the sound as well.
CMF's ANC is slightly stronger and filters mid-sounds better but it misses out on multipoint connectivity. The Soundcore offers 1,5 times the battery life and, well, its phone stand on top of it.
No separate CMF Buds Pro by Nothing review yet
Around $50 on Amazon US, Amazon UK or other Amazon countries
Soundcore P40i vs Baseus M2s
The Baseus M2s is one of the best budget wireless earbuds for office uses and that doesn't change against the Soundcore P40i. Phone and video calls are clearer on the Baseus, with much better wind resistance. The inclusion of multipoint connection also means you can connect them to both your laptop and phone at the same time - just like on the Soundcore.
Both offerings are pretty close in ANC performance, although the Soundcore blocks brighter sounds better. The P40i has up to 3 hours longer battery life on a single charge, while the Baseus are a bit more comfortable to wear. In the sound departmant, both are mediocre, with the Soundcore delivering a stronger bass, and the Baseus more openness and naturalness. Both lose some control in more crowded tracks, especially songs with a strong treble.
Around $60 on AliExpress
Soundcore P40i vs Soundcore Liberty 4 NC
As a more expensive sibling, the Soundcore Liberty 4 NC outperforms the Soundcore P40i in almost all aspects, apart from the phone stand feature - that is. The Liberty 4's ANC is stronger and filters out higher notes and middle sounds better. It makes it more effective and more usable overall. Its Transparency is more metallic and also more effective than that of the P40i, and indoor calls sound clearer as well - while both have trouble with wind noise in calls. Multipoint connectivity is just as versatile on both.
When it comes to sound, the Liberty 4 NC sounds more open and fuller at the same time - it's more immersive. Like the P40i, its performance is best on lower to moderate volumes. Treble can be messy and hissy on high output. On these volumes, the Liberty bass shows more texture, while the P40i bass, surprisingly, is tighter.
Around $80 on Amazon US, Amazon UK or other Amazon countries
Verdict
The Soundcore P40i has a charging case you can use as a phone stand, mind-blowing battery life and a gazillion features for its price, but could use some more polish. The heavy bass and treble are hit-and-miss, and the Active Noise Cancelling could be stronger straight out of the case.
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I bought the Soundcore P40i by Anker for myself to test and review. My reviews are 100% independent and non-commercial - read about it here.
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