Huawei FreeBuds Pro 3 Review vs the BEST (Galaxy Buds3 Pro, Bose, Apple, Nothing)
Is The Hype Real?
I’ve been told that the Huawei FreeBuds Pro 3 has one of the best microphones (if not the best) among truly wireless earbuds. But is that really the case? We’re going to find out by comparing them to some of the best earbuds for call quality, including ones that I’ve previously crowned ‘call quality king’, and also some new releases like the Samsung Galaxy Buds3 Pro.
From my time using these earbuds, I can say straight up that these are not the best at everything. It may be great at mic quality, but in some ways, the competitors are ahead.
Mic Test vs The BEST
I hate to break it to you but it appears that the Huawei’s mics are not the best overall, but they’re one of the best. Other earbuds seemed to be just as capable at reducing background noise, and my voice sounded crisper and a bit louder too. The Huawei also neutered the ‘S’ sounds in my speech. What it did do better is a smoother reduction of background noise with no artifacts.
👉 Have a listen to the mic pick up samples.
(Tested mic pickup in both quiet and noisy conditions using loud cafe noise and wind noise from a fan.)
However, in quiet situations, my voice on the Huaweis did sound smoother, less sibilant. Overall, it is definitely one of the best in the market. And when using calling apps that have their own noise reduction, like Zoom, the background can be even quieter, without sacrifice to voice quality.
👉 Here’s a short comparison between a Zoom call and using a voice recording app.
Active Noise Cancelling?
In terms of active noise cancelling, the Huawei FreeBuds Pro 3 is good in the sense that it can dumb down the sound of human chatter and handling rumble of low frequencies, but it’s definitely not the best.
Even with Ultra settings enabled via the AI Life app, it didn’t cut as much in the mid range frequencies as the best noise cancellers like the Samsungs, Bose, Sony or Apple.
👉 Listen to the samples recorded in the same noisy conditions as before.
Transparency Mode?
Its transparency mode sounds quite clear. Very usable for awareness and conversations. However, it does have quite a bit of white noise getting through, and just a tiny bit of occlusion in my voice and across the midrange spectrum. So it doesn’t sound as naturally transparent as the Samsungs or AirPods. But overall, not bad.
Sound Quality Analysis
As for sound quality on their default settings, they’re okay. It wasn’t what I preferred, I wanted more bass, heavier LFE rumble, more energy in the mids, because these sounded quite lethargic by default. I definitely preferred the Galaxy Buds3 Pro’s sound, which had a lot more crisp. The Sonys had a more powerful, thrilling energy, while the AirPods Pro 2 had more gravitas with a wider soundstage.
When running the frequency sweeps, the Huaweis are A LOT more muted in the bass registers compared to the rest, with some peaks that make the mids sound a little shouty.
However, it has the right fundamentals in terms of sounding clean, having great track separation, and above-average detail retrieval. Also, it’s very responsive to EQ.
So, I adjusted the graphic EQ and created this Aaron X setting which made the bass sound very muscular without overwhelming the mids. I also made the mids less shouty and more intimate, and finally, jazzed up the upper mids and highs. At this setting, it’s still not perfect. I would have preferred more air in the soundstage, more tail to the winds and strings, but it sounds a lot better now.
🎧 Have a listen to the sound samples before and after EQ.
Security Issues?
The AI Life app is available on iOS, but on Android, you’ll have to download the Harmony store APK from Huawei’s website first. As I understand it, this is due to the Google Play store being restricted from hosting Huawei apps.
Besides that, I was repeatedly warned about potential security issues installing the app. But without the app, you can’t access any custom settings or firmware updates. You also won’t be able to enable Sound Priority mode to use the hi-res LDAC codec, so I had to bite the bullet and do it anyway.
It’s also worth mentioning that exclusively on Huawei devices, you will have access to the HWA codec and spatial audio. Unfortunately, I couldn’t test that because I don’t have a Huawei phone.
It's Not The Best...
So here are my final thoughts. Much of its design and even their user interface is very Apple inspired, from the control scheme to the little speaker on the case that chimes. This is actually more like AirPods for Android than even the Galaxy Buds3 Pro. The main difference versus the Samsungs is, it’s fully supported on iOS. With the app, you can access all the settings and firmware updates, whereas the Samsung Wearables app is only on Android.
But overall as a product, the most important reason why you should buy these Huaweis is the mic quality. It’s easily one of the best mics in the market, better than the AirPods Pro 2, Bose and Sonys.
Apart from that, honestly, I wasn’t blown away by the other aspects of it. These are more than just decent, but as we saw, there are others with better performance in terms of noise cancelling, sound and transparency. Some of them also have a wider set of features, such as the Sonys with its suite of audiophile-centric options. But if mic pickup is more important for you and anything else, consider the Huawei FreeBuds Pro 3.
Check latest price:
Huawei FreeBuds Pro 3 - https://amzn.to/47grLvC
NOTHING ear 2024 - https://amzn.to/4aQCgXp
OnePlus Buds3 - https://amzn.to/3UXCF53
Samsung Galaxy Buds3 Pro - https://amzn.to/4fvUNLn
Sony WF-1000XM5 - https://amzn.to/3JGI1uN
AirPods Pro 2 USB-C - https://amzn.to/3UoeJG8
Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds - https://amzn.to/49TSg9K
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