OnePlus Buds Pro 3 Review: Premium Audio Experience with a Modern Design Twist

OnePlus Buds have gained a lot of buyers over the past few years and are not limited to the budget version. The Buds Pro series offered remarkable features and performance that made it attractive to many and the new Buds Pro 3 seems to offer a lot more in its existing package. Buds Pro 3 Rs. 11,999 launched at the same price as its predecessor but with a new design overhaul, audio upgrade and hardware changes that will put it on par with Samsung’s Galaxy Buds 3 and other premium TWS earbuds in the market. So, does the OnePlus Buds Pro 3 offer enough in the tank to make it an attractive choice for buyers once again? We used the device for a few weeks and got our answers.

New buds, new design
The Buds Pro 3 is getting a new charging case that looks more attractive than the Buds Pro 2. Finishing has also improved with leather-like materials now available in both white and gray variants. The USB C charging port is now on the bottom but the new design means the case doesn’t rest on a surface like its predecessor.

The pairing button is located on the right side of the case. The case doesn’t have an IP rating this year, but the buds come with an IP55 rating that makes them splash resistant. The case supports both wired and wireless charging which is never a bad thing. As for the buds, these are a bit heavy but you don’t feel the weight while wearing them which is comfortable for long periods of time. The buds fit snugly in the ear and we didn’t feel like they were going to fall out or slip off even while working. The stem-like design is still preferred and we are fine with minor changes made to the buds.

Major upgrades to audio and sound
Buds Pro 3 now features dual DAC drivers aimed at improving sound quality and giving you more output. The Buds Pro 3 do both of these things effectively, and the wide soundstage is immersive and rich thanks to support for spatial audio with head tracking available through the Hey Melody app.

OnePlus is also using DynaAudio for sound engineering on the Buds Pro 3 like the other variants and the sound performance should keep most people happy as it covers all popular genres. When it comes to codec support, the Buds Pro 3 offers LHDC but the LDAC codec is strangely ignored by the brand.

Now, coming to the sound quality, we found the deep bass on the Buds Pro 3 to be not overpowering but definitely punchier than the Buds Pro 2. We played our favorite test tracks to gauge its versatility and compared it to the Buds’ output. Pro 2 to see the differences. We also noticed an increase in ANC level which makes it effective in most situations. However, we felt that the sound didn’t stand out completely in larger environments. You can change settings and try other modes from the app. Another important change is the quality of audio calls through the Buds Pro 3 which is evident from the additional mix and voice pick up bone sensor. We didn’t face any issues listening to callers and the two-way channel audio was clear without any stuttering or network breakage.

Does it last long?
OnePlus claims that the Buds Pro 3 can last up to 43 hours on a single charge, can we justify those numbers that the Buds Pro 3 falls short of? During our time with the Buds Pro 3 we noticed some improvement on the battery front which was better than the Buds Pro 2 but not as much as we would have liked. After filling the tank with the case we got the buds going for over 3 hours. That’s where the fast charging support comes to the rescue and gets you plugged in quickly.