We live in an age of wireless technology which goes beyond our internet connections. Most of the gadgets we use these days seem to be capable of wireless use (phones can even charge wirelessly); game console controllers, phone chargers, doorbells, security cameras, speakers, headphones and earphones. Bluetooth connections are becoming increasingly popular wireless connections, especially due to their low power consumption. A very popular example of Bluetooth wireless technology is in truly wireless earbuds – Edifier have a very good range at pocket friendly prices that are every bit as good as a wired pair and kindly sent me their X3 True Wireless Stereo Earbuds for review.
The Edifier X3 True Wireless Stereo Earbuds are the cheapest truly wireless earbuds in their range of earbuds, but whilst they are their cheapest at £32.99 they are by no means cheap – I prefer to describe them as low cost rather than cheap as cheap gives connotations of poor quality in both build and sound quality and these are anything but.
For me, wireless earbuds are a must. They enable cord free listening (and talking if connected to your phone) so there are none of the associated problems with wired earphones or headphones – no tangled wires or knots to undo, no wires to get caught in your clothing resulting in the earbud popping out of your ear (or worse, breaking a wire). If connected to your phone you can walk whilst you talk, making and receiving calls, again without the microphone getting caught up or muffled by clothing.
The Edifier X3 are the budget end of Edifiers range of truly wireless earbuds, offering less playback time than their others at approx. 6 hours (I have tried the TWS1 and TWS5 which both offer approx. 8 hours of playback time). The charging case on the X3 is also smaller giving another 18 hours worth of playtime time as opposed to the 24 hours of the TWS1 and TWS5. That aside, with 24 hours worth of playback time that is more than enough for your journey to work and back, your evening jog and anything else that you may do during the day.
The Edifier X3 True Wireless Earbuds are equipped with Bluetooth v5.0 with Qualcomm Chipset to create a wireless connection with a range of up to 10m (30ft) and lower power consumption. They feature One-Step Pairing for a faster connection and have an ergonomic, compact design making them lightweight and small. They also have an IPX5 rating making them water/rain and sweat resistant. The use High-Fidelity aptX decoding technology for CD quality sound and have a CVC V8.0 Noise Cancelling Isolation Microphone for clearer sound during telephone calls.
X3 Main Features:
- High-Fidelity aptX decoding technology and finely tuned by a professional acoustic team.
- Bluetooth V5.0 with Qualcomm Chipset to provide a better signal transmission at a distance of up to 10m.
- Lower power consumption for 6 hours playback time and extra 18 hours with charge case.
- CVC V8.0 Noise Cancelling Isolation Microphone.
- Ergonomic, compact design with IPX5 rating.
- One-Step Pairing for a faster connection.
In the box:
- 2x Wireless Earbuds
- 1x Compact Charging Case
- 1x microUSB Charging Cable
- 3x Silicone Ear Tips in S, M & L sizes (1 already fitted to the earbuds)
So for a low cost pair of entry level earbuds with a price of just £32.99 are the Edifier X3 True Wireless Earbuds any good?
Well first up, they come in a small slim and compact charging case that will easily fit comfortably into any pocket or bag. Charging takes approx. 1.5 to 2 hours and the case will give 3 full charges to the earbuds, giving a total of 24 hours use (6 in the earbuds and an additional 18 in the case) before having to plug into the mains power – no worrying about having to find somewhere to charge them whilst out and about and not in use. From a full charge of the earbuds you will get approx. 6 hours of use – more than enough to get to work or travelling about.
The earbuds themselves are very light, so light if fact you really can’t feel any kind of significant weight in your ears when wearing them – they weigh around 4g each (the total weight of the two earbuds and charging case is only 32g). Despite the lightweight feel, ergonomic design and their low profile size they are excellent quality, fit really well and are very snug, are so comfortable to wear and do not have that cheap feel.
Each earbud features touch controls to play, pause, skip and answer calls (single tap of either earbud will Play/Pause, Answer/End Calls; double tap on the left earbud is Previous Track; a double tap of the right earbud is for the Next Track), the only time you need your phone or tablet is to change volume as the earbuds to not have volume control on them. The Voice Assistant feature can be accessed by triple tapping either earbud. They are even rated IPX5 so are water and sweat resistant ensuring that going out for jog or getting caught in a rain shower isn’t a problem.
They are very easy to pair to a device and have one-step pairing for fuss free use (the earbuds automatically pair to each other and the last paired device for a faster connection when removed from the charging case).
The sound quality is excellent. The X3 earbuds feature Bluetooth 5.0 and the Qualcomm aptX codec, delivering CD-quality sound with good bass and crystal clear audio, all without any stutter or delay.
You can also use them with your phone to make hands-free calls. The small microphone within them has CVC V8.0 noise cancellation technology and automatically reduces background and environmental noise to pick up the user’s voice accurately and ensure high clarity audio transmission with richer details. This works extremely well and the calls were clear and the person receiving the call could hear me loud and clear.
Overall, the Edifier X3 True Wireless Earbuds are a very good quality, low cost pair of earbuds. The sound and build quality is excellent, they are very easy to use, the fit is very snug and comfortable and the charging time is very good. My only niggle, and I have found the same on several wireless earbuds from other manufacturers, is that they do not have any volume control on the earbuds.
The Edifier X3 are available in two colour options, black or white, and are priced at a very pocket-friendly price of £32.99, making them extremely affordable for teenagers and adults whilst still having the quality to compete with higher priced brands.
Rating: 4.5/5
RRP: £39.99
For more information, visit www.edifier.com. Available to buy from Amazon here.
Disclosure: I received this item for free for the purpose of writing an honest and impartial review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
