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‘Compute Equals Revenues’: Nvidia Needs Jensen Huang’s New Catchphrase to Be True

‘Compute Equals Revenues’: Nvidia Needs Jensen Huang’s New Catchphrase to Be True

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Nvidia reported earnings on Wednesday, and as expected, the numbers were good. Really good. The company gets more than 91% of its sales from its data center unit, which generated revenue of $193,737 billion, up 68% year-over-year.

“We have now scaled our data center business by nearly 13x since the emergence of ChatGPT in fiscal 2023,” Nvidia CFO Colette Kress said in the company’s earnings call on Wednesday.

While very impressive, the number is not all that surprising given that global AI spending is expected to reach $2.5 trillion this year, and Nvidia’s largest customers, the major AI hyperscalers Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, and Microsoft, all reported record capex figures earlier this month.

The hyperscalers also made eyewatering financial commitments for 2026 totaling nearly $700 billion, which came to the dismay of many investors who have been growing wary of AI spending.

Earlier this month, Evercore analysts warned that the huge capex could turn the hyperscalers’ cash flow negative.

And despite the record after record multibillion-dollar commitment made to scale AI infrastructure and grow the technology’s adoption across the American economy, the results are yet to fully materialize. A Goldman Sachs analyst recently said that AI contributed “basically zero” to U.S. GDP in 2025.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang spent most of his time in the investor call trying to justify that capex growth.

“I am confident in their cash flow growing, and the reason for that is very simple: we have now seen the inflection of agentic AI and the usefulness of agents across the world in enterprises everywhere,” Huang said.

AI adoption by enterprises beyond the tech world, and whether these companies actually see real productivity gains and revenue returns from AI integration, is really important to Nvidia, because that’s a major thing that the AI industry is currently lacking to quell worries over an AI bubble.

A recent survey found that despite 70% of firms employing AI, over 80% reported no impact on employment or productivity.

Last week, OpenAI COO Brad Lightcap told TechCrunch that his company had “not really seen enterprise AI penetrate enterprise business process.”

Some experts believe that Anthropic’s Claude Cowork unveiled earlier this month is going to be a turning point in AI’s penetration into the workforce, so much so that they believe it will lead to a mass extinction-level event for software companies, and maybe even white-collar work. Huang gave a special shout-out to Claude Cowork in the call as well.

Huang also had a technical explanation to justify the capex commitments.

“In this new world of AI, compute equals revenues,” Huang said, a phrase that he repeated many times throughout the call. Huang argues that tokens, aka the chunks of data that AI models process, are the most important part of a new AI economy. The more tokens a model uses, the more computing power and time it requires. So, as models are getting more complex, the demand for computing is also going up “exponentially,” Huang said. He argued that the capex commitments will go towards building this compute capacity, which will thus power higher-level models and translate to revenue.

“The amount of token generation capability that the world needs is a lot, more than $700 billion, and I’m fairly confident that we’re going to continue to generate tokens…fundamentally because every single company depends on software, every software will depend on AI, and so every company will produce tokens,” Huang said. “If the new software requires tokens to be generated and the tokens are monetized, then it stands to reason that their data center build-out directly drives their revenues.”

Huang’s justifications may not have immediately convinced the market. Even though shares rose at first in response to the report, after the call, gains eventually pulled back to less than 1%. That’s despite revenue that exceeded market expectations.

OpenAI and China are still blind spots

Throughout the call, Huang also tried to address rumors of a falling out with OpenAI, first spurred after a $100 billion Nvidia investment announced back in September 2025 reportedly failed to progress beyond the early stages after months. Then, two back-to-back reports claimed that Huang was privately criticizing OpenAI’s business approach while OpenAI was unhappy with the inference speed of Nvidia’s chips.

In the call on Wednesday, Huang repeatedly praised the AI giant’s offerings, but revealed that the investment was still not finalized.

“We continue to work with OpenAI toward a partnership agreement, and believe we are close,” Huang said on the call. The filing also refuses to give any assurance that “a transaction will be completed.”

Another piece of uncertainty weighing on Nvidia is China. The company shared that, as of this month, the Trump administration has finally allowed it to start shipping small amounts of its H200 chips to China, where it once held 95% of the market share before Trump first banned the chipmaker’s sales to China, sparking a saga of dizzying trade tit-for-tat between the two global superpowers. But executives still don’t know if the imports will be allowed in, and are not factoring it into the revenue they expect this year.

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The smart glasses industry has long been a tortured dream of Silicon Valley. The premise is appealing enough: What if, to enjoy the benefits of mobile computing, people didn’t have to stare at their phones all day long and could, instead, simply wear a lightweight computing device on their face? Science fiction fans (a demographic that is strong in the tech industry) can see this vision perfectly.

However, the industry has — for much of the last decade — resembled a financial black hole into which gargantuan investments have been sunk and from which little to no profit has ever emerged.

“Everybody’s losing money,” said Chi Xu, the founder and CEO of the smart glasses company Xreal, which is a longtime partner of Google. I met Xu at Google’s I/O conference in Mountain View last week, where he was promoting Xreal’s Project Aura. That’s its latest effort to create a set of functional XR glasses that people actually want to use.

“That’s because it’s very hard, what we’re doing,” he said.

For much of the industry’s existence, the problems of smart glasses have seemed somewhat obvious: bulky, uncomfortable, and socially awkward form factor, paired with negligibly beneficial software. Now, however, industry insiders — including Xu — feel like their business has turned a corner and may be reaching an inflection point.

That supposed inflection point has something to do with Meta, whose 2023 partnership with Ray-Ban launched one of the first lines of models that has actually managed to sell a lot of units. (It’s worth noting, however, that the division responsible for the glasses, Reality Labs, still operates at a massive loss.)

Now, as form factors shrink and software improves, Xu feels that Xreal can finally become a leader in the space. “You need all the key pieces ready — you need the hardware ready, the operating system needs to be ready, and then you need a great user interface,” Xu said.

Xreal’s newest model Aura is wired smart glasses that have OLED displays embedded within them, meaning that you can watch high-resolution videos within the frames themselves. Somewhat awkwardly, Aura comes tethered to a “puck” — essentially a phone-shaped mini-computer that powers the experience behind the glasses. When using it, you can ostensibly just slip it into your pocket.

But in exchange for the awkwardness of the puck, the user gets a wider variety of fun experiences with the glasses, including an immersive Google Maps app, VR YouTube videos, and a “painting app” that lets you — via the powers of hand tracking — create holographic imagery that only you can see. There are also reportedly games, playable (again) via hand tracking, and basic web surfing functionality.

“Whether you are following a floating recipe while cooking, setting up a private workspace at a coffee shop or on a flight, or watching a movie on a virtual big screen at home, the experience is seamless,” the company promises.

Xu also says that he imagines the device being used not just by the casual consumer but by professionals as well. “It’s not just about watching the NBA game in a hologram type of format, you could also go to a coffee shop and do some work,” he said.

Currently, the glasses are only available for developers, but the plan is for them to launch commercially later this year. Xreal is also working on an IPO that is expected to take place before 2026 is over, although Xu declined to say much about it.

In the meantime, the company is working on that whole turning-a-profit thing. Xu notes that his company has been raising its gross margin while lowering its costs for marketing and sales. “Next year is the year when we could actually break even,” he says.

When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn’t affect our editorial independence.

#Xreal #Googles #smartglasses #partner #thinks #finally #mastered #notoriously #tricky #industry #TechCrunchGoogle,Google I/O,AI,SMART Glasses,XReal">Xreal, Google’s smartglasses partner, thinks it has finally mastered this notoriously tricky industry | TechCrunch The smart glasses industry has long been a tortured dream of Silicon Valley. The premise is appealing enough: What if, to enjoy the benefits of mobile computing, people didn’t have to stare at their phones all day long and could, instead, simply wear a lightweight computing device on their face? Science fiction fans (a demographic that is strong in the tech industry) can see this vision perfectly. However, the industry has — for much of the last decade — resembled a financial black hole into which gargantuan investments have been sunk and from which little to no profit has ever emerged. “Everybody’s losing money,” said Chi Xu, the founder and CEO of the smart glasses company Xreal, which is a longtime partner of Google. I met Xu at Google’s I/O conference in Mountain View last week, where he was promoting Xreal’s Project Aura. That’s its latest effort to create a set of functional XR glasses that people actually want to use. “That’s because it’s very hard, what we’re doing,” he said. For much of the industry’s existence, the problems of smart glasses have seemed somewhat obvious: bulky, uncomfortable, and socially awkward form factor, paired with negligibly beneficial software. Now, however, industry insiders — including Xu — feel like their business has turned a corner and may be reaching an inflection point. That supposed inflection point has something to do with Meta, whose 2023 partnership with Ray-Ban launched one of the first lines of models that has actually managed to sell a lot of units. (It’s worth noting, however, that the division responsible for the glasses, Reality Labs, still operates at a massive loss.) Now, as form factors shrink and software improves, Xu feels that Xreal can finally become a leader in the space. “You need all the key pieces ready — you need the hardware ready, the operating system needs to be ready, and then you need a great user interface,” Xu said. Xreal’s newest model Aura is wired smart glasses that have OLED displays embedded within them, meaning that you can watch high-resolution videos within the frames themselves. Somewhat awkwardly, Aura comes tethered to a “puck” — essentially a phone-shaped mini-computer that powers the experience behind the glasses. When using it, you can ostensibly just slip it into your pocket. But in exchange for the awkwardness of the puck, the user gets a wider variety of fun experiences with the glasses, including an immersive Google Maps app, VR YouTube videos, and a “painting app” that lets you — via the powers of hand tracking — create holographic imagery that only you can see. There are also reportedly games, playable (again) via hand tracking, and basic web surfing functionality. “Whether you are following a floating recipe while cooking, setting up a private workspace at a coffee shop or on a flight, or watching a movie on a virtual big screen at home, the experience is seamless,” the company promises. Xu also says that he imagines the device being used not just by the casual consumer but by professionals as well. “It’s not just about watching the NBA game in a hologram type of format, you could also go to a coffee shop and do some work,” he said. Currently, the glasses are only available for developers, but the plan is for them to launch commercially later this year. Xreal is also working on an IPO that is expected to take place before 2026 is over, although Xu declined to say much about it. In the meantime, the company is working on that whole turning-a-profit thing. Xu notes that his company has been raising its gross margin while lowering its costs for marketing and sales. “Next year is the year when we could actually break even,” he says. When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn’t affect our editorial independence.#Xreal #Googles #smartglasses #partner #thinks #finally #mastered #notoriously #tricky #industry #TechCrunchGoogle,Google I/O,AI,SMART Glasses,XReal

gargantuan investments have been sunk and from which little to no profit has ever emerged.

“Everybody’s losing money,” said Chi Xu, the founder and CEO of the smart glasses company Xreal, which is a longtime partner of Google. I met Xu at Google’s I/O conference in Mountain View last week, where he was promoting Xreal’s Project Aura. That’s its latest effort to create a set of functional XR glasses that people actually want to use.

“That’s because it’s very hard, what we’re doing,” he said.

For much of the industry’s existence, the problems of smart glasses have seemed somewhat obvious: bulky, uncomfortable, and socially awkward form factor, paired with negligibly beneficial software. Now, however, industry insiders — including Xu — feel like their business has turned a corner and may be reaching an inflection point.

That supposed inflection point has something to do with Meta, whose 2023 partnership with Ray-Ban launched one of the first lines of models that has actually managed to sell a lot of units. (It’s worth noting, however, that the division responsible for the glasses, Reality Labs, still operates at a massive loss.)

Now, as form factors shrink and software improves, Xu feels that Xreal can finally become a leader in the space. “You need all the key pieces ready — you need the hardware ready, the operating system needs to be ready, and then you need a great user interface,” Xu said.

Xreal’s newest model Aura is wired smart glasses that have OLED displays embedded within them, meaning that you can watch high-resolution videos within the frames themselves. Somewhat awkwardly, Aura comes tethered to a “puck” — essentially a phone-shaped mini-computer that powers the experience behind the glasses. When using it, you can ostensibly just slip it into your pocket.

But in exchange for the awkwardness of the puck, the user gets a wider variety of fun experiences with the glasses, including an immersive Google Maps app, VR YouTube videos, and a “painting app” that lets you — via the powers of hand tracking — create holographic imagery that only you can see. There are also reportedly games, playable (again) via hand tracking, and basic web surfing functionality.

“Whether you are following a floating recipe while cooking, setting up a private workspace at a coffee shop or on a flight, or watching a movie on a virtual big screen at home, the experience is seamless,” the company promises.

Xu also says that he imagines the device being used not just by the casual consumer but by professionals as well. “It’s not just about watching the NBA game in a hologram type of format, you could also go to a coffee shop and do some work,” he said.

Currently, the glasses are only available for developers, but the plan is for them to launch commercially later this year. Xreal is also working on an IPO that is expected to take place before 2026 is over, although Xu declined to say much about it.

In the meantime, the company is working on that whole turning-a-profit thing. Xu notes that his company has been raising its gross margin while lowering its costs for marketing and sales. “Next year is the year when we could actually break even,” he says.

When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn’t affect our editorial independence.

#Xreal #Googles #smartglasses #partner #thinks #finally #mastered #notoriously #tricky #industry #TechCrunchGoogle,Google I/O,AI,SMART Glasses,XReal">Xreal, Google’s smartglasses partner, thinks it has finally mastered this notoriously tricky industry | TechCrunch

The smart glasses industry has long been a tortured dream of Silicon Valley. The premise is appealing enough: What if, to enjoy the benefits of mobile computing, people didn’t have to stare at their phones all day long and could, instead, simply wear a lightweight computing device on their face? Science fiction fans (a demographic that is strong in the tech industry) can see this vision perfectly.

However, the industry has — for much of the last decade — resembled a financial black hole into which gargantuan investments have been sunk and from which little to no profit has ever emerged.

“Everybody’s losing money,” said Chi Xu, the founder and CEO of the smart glasses company Xreal, which is a longtime partner of Google. I met Xu at Google’s I/O conference in Mountain View last week, where he was promoting Xreal’s Project Aura. That’s its latest effort to create a set of functional XR glasses that people actually want to use.

“That’s because it’s very hard, what we’re doing,” he said.

For much of the industry’s existence, the problems of smart glasses have seemed somewhat obvious: bulky, uncomfortable, and socially awkward form factor, paired with negligibly beneficial software. Now, however, industry insiders — including Xu — feel like their business has turned a corner and may be reaching an inflection point.

That supposed inflection point has something to do with Meta, whose 2023 partnership with Ray-Ban launched one of the first lines of models that has actually managed to sell a lot of units. (It’s worth noting, however, that the division responsible for the glasses, Reality Labs, still operates at a massive loss.)

Now, as form factors shrink and software improves, Xu feels that Xreal can finally become a leader in the space. “You need all the key pieces ready — you need the hardware ready, the operating system needs to be ready, and then you need a great user interface,” Xu said.

Xreal’s newest model Aura is wired smart glasses that have OLED displays embedded within them, meaning that you can watch high-resolution videos within the frames themselves. Somewhat awkwardly, Aura comes tethered to a “puck” — essentially a phone-shaped mini-computer that powers the experience behind the glasses. When using it, you can ostensibly just slip it into your pocket.

But in exchange for the awkwardness of the puck, the user gets a wider variety of fun experiences with the glasses, including an immersive Google Maps app, VR YouTube videos, and a “painting app” that lets you — via the powers of hand tracking — create holographic imagery that only you can see. There are also reportedly games, playable (again) via hand tracking, and basic web surfing functionality.

“Whether you are following a floating recipe while cooking, setting up a private workspace at a coffee shop or on a flight, or watching a movie on a virtual big screen at home, the experience is seamless,” the company promises.

Xu also says that he imagines the device being used not just by the casual consumer but by professionals as well. “It’s not just about watching the NBA game in a hologram type of format, you could also go to a coffee shop and do some work,” he said.

Currently, the glasses are only available for developers, but the plan is for them to launch commercially later this year. Xreal is also working on an IPO that is expected to take place before 2026 is over, although Xu declined to say much about it.

In the meantime, the company is working on that whole turning-a-profit thing. Xu notes that his company has been raising its gross margin while lowering its costs for marketing and sales. “Next year is the year when we could actually break even,” he says.

When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn’t affect our editorial independence.

#Xreal #Googles #smartglasses #partner #thinks #finally #mastered #notoriously #tricky #industry #TechCrunchGoogle,Google I/O,AI,SMART Glasses,XReal
review. A few days back, the Chinese maker announced the all-new Enco Air 5 Pro, promising even better 55dB ANC, Bluetooth 6.0 support, and LHDC 5.0.

As expected, OPPO sent over the 5 Pro a couple of weeks back. Since then, I’ve made them my primary set of earbuds, taking them to the gym every day, using them while working, and also on a short flight to Delhi to test their ANC capabilities. Spoiler alert: They are my new favorite pair of earbuds. Here’s why.

OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro Review

Hisan Kidwai

Summary

The OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro are probably the easiest-to-recommend earbuds I’ve ever tested, simply because they don’t put a foot wrong. The design has been refined to feel even more premium, and the case no longer picks up smudges. Comfort is top-tier across all ear sizes. The sound feels super balanced, with clear vocals and controlled mids and highs. Not to mention the awesome ANC, which can dampen any aircraft noise without issues, helping you zone out into the music. Controls are intuitive and easy to understand for just about everyone.

Design & Comfort

OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro Review: My New Favorite Budget Earbuds What actually makes a good pair of budget earbuds? I’ll say it’s sound quality, mixed with simplicity, with a sprinkle of some useful features. In my years of reviewing tech, there has been just one brand that’s been following this recipe perfectly, and that’s OPPO. Their Enco earbuds, as people would say these days, hit the spot, and I’m a fan, so much so that I’m still daily driving the Enco Buds 3 Pro+ from the last review. A few days back, the Chinese maker announced the all-new Enco Air 5 Pro, promising even better 55dB ANC, Bluetooth 6.0 support, and LHDC 5.0. As expected, OPPO sent over the 5 Pro a couple of weeks back. Since then, I’ve made them my primary set of earbuds, taking them to the gym every day, using them while working, and also on a short flight to Delhi to test their ANC capabilities. Spoiler alert: They are my new favorite pair of earbuds. Here’s why. OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro ReviewHisan KidwaiSummaryThe OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro are probably the easiest-to-recommend earbuds I’ve ever tested, simply because they don’t put a foot wrong. The design has been refined to feel even more premium, and the case no longer picks up smudges. Comfort is top-tier across all ear sizes. The sound feels super balanced, with clear vocals and controlled mids and highs. Not to mention the awesome ANC, which can dampen any aircraft noise without issues, helping you zone out into the music. Controls are intuitive and easy to understand for just about everyone. Design & Comfort If you remember the previous Enco Air 3 Pro+, they were a pretty handy pair of earphones. They weren’t too big, and the matte finish looked pretty at first. But over the past few months, I’ve noticed permanent smudge marks on them that won’t go away. Very fortunately, that won’t be the case for the Enco 5 Pro. OPPO has redesigned almost every part, and I’m a fan. You still get the pill-shaped case, but OPPO has trimmed the dimensions. It’s now even more portable, which is great news. Next on the redesign list is the finish. It’s a soft-touch black powder coat that feels really nice in the hand. It only picks up small smudges, and they can be wiped away with a wet towel in seconds. The opening/closing mechanism is still super satisfying, meaning I was using it as a fidget toy. Thankfully, OPPO hasn’t done away with the physical pairing button, so you won’t have to perform finger gymnastics to pair with a new phone. Comfort has always been tricky for me. I have small ears, so anything that’s bulky just slips out after a few minutes. That’s exactly why I couldn’t daily drive the Noise Master Buds 2. Surprisingly, OPPO is the only brand that’s stayed in my ears just fine, and I’m glad to report the same about the Enco Air 5 Pro. They are lightweight and supremely comfortable, meaning I could wear them on a long flight without any hiccups and carry them out while doing my daily chores, forgetting they are in my ears. OPPO has also bundled a couple of differently sized tips, so if the pre-applied ones feel small or large, you can experiment with others. The buds are IP55 certified, meaning they’ll withstand a sweaty gym session without a hitch, but submersion will be a problem; keep an eye out for that. Sound Quality & ANC The OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro comes with 12mm Titanium-Coated Diaphragm drivers and support for LHDC 5.0, and Bluetooth 6.0. All my testing was done on the Ultimate Sound preset, but there are a couple of other presets available, along with a full equalizer, which we will talk about soon. To put the Enco 5 Pro through its paces, I started my listening session with Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean” and “Heartless” by The Weeknd. The earbuds are tuned to be balanced, irrespective of what song you listen to. The Hi-Fi vocals sound clear without distortion at higher volumes, and the background drums on Heartless have a little thump, which is always appreciated. The highs don’t screech your ears, and OPPO has even managed to hit the treble on point. I also found that all the instruments have very good separation, but if you’d like them placed all around you, OPPO has its Live Audio feature. I’m not the biggest fan of this tech, but I’d be lying if I said the experience was bad. The Enco Air 5 Pro places different elements perfectly around you. For all my movie fanatics, I watched a couple of episodes of Better Call Saul with the earbuds connected to my Mac. The latency wasn’t an issue, as the dialogue was in sync with the lips and the audio quality was clean. Calls have been improved quite a bit compared to the predecessor, with crisper audio and better noise reduction. As far as ANC is concerned, its biggest test is flights. That rumble of the jet engine can get annoying fast, and I absolutely don’t like it. Since I was due to attend an event in Delhi, I took the 5 Pro with me, and the experience did not disappoint. At 55dB of ANC, I’d say the buds canceled about 85% of the jet engine rumble, without any music on. That’s really good compared to the 3 Pro+, which were around the 40% mark. With any music on at around half volume, most engine noise disappears, and the experience is the same as if you were sitting in your living room. It is important to note that high-pitched noises, such as a couple arguing, will still make their way through. OPPO claims about 13 hours of battery life on a single charge for the earbuds, and while my 8 hours is less than the claimed number, it’s still plenty good, especially with ANC turned on at all times. The case provides a couple of extra charges, so the total output should be around 24-25 hours, depending on your use case. Still, battery life is great overall. Controls & Companion App Controls can, at least for me, make or break the experience. Thankfully, the Enco Air 5 Pro gets this right, which has some of the best controls I’ve tested so far. Headlining it all is the new volume adjustment settings, which lets you slide up/down on both earbuds to raise or lower the volume. It works super effectively and doesn’t mess up the fit much. Beyond that, you get the basics like double-tap to play/pause the music, triple-tap to skip forward/rewind, and tap and hold to turn on ANC. All of these are customizable to your liking. The earbuds can be controlled via the HeyMelody app or directly from the Bluetooth settings page if you’re using an OPPO or OnePlus phone. The app is slick and responsive, and this time OPPO has debuted the new Spotify Tap feature. For those unaware, it connects to your Spotify app and plays a song according to your taste whenever you tap your earbuds. I’m an Apple Music user, but I do see the appeal. There’s also Sound Space, which includes different white noises, like waves crashing on the shore, morning sunshine, and night camping. All of which can help you better concentrate at work or sleep better. Last but not least, a full 10-band equalizer lets you tune the sound output precisely to your liking. I did try it, but since I’m no musician, I left it in OPPO’s hands with the different presets. Verdict At ₹4,999, the OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro are probably the easiest-to-recommend earbuds I’ve ever tested, simply because they don’t put a foot wrong. The design has been refined to feel even more premium, and the case no longer picks up smudges. Comfort is top-tier across all ear sizes. The sound feels super balanced, with clear vocals and controlled mids and highs. Not to mention the awesome ANC, which can dampen any aircraft noise without issues, helping you zone out into the music. Controls are intuitive and easy to understand for just about everyone. They get a solid recommendation from me and should absolutely be on your radar. #OPPO #Enco #Air #Pro #Review #Favorite #Budget #EarbudsOppo,tws

If you remember the previous Enco Air 3 Pro+, they were a pretty handy pair of earphones. They weren’t too big, and the matte finish looked pretty at first. But over the past few months, I’ve noticed permanent smudge marks on them that won’t go away. Very fortunately, that won’t be the case for the Enco 5 Pro. OPPO has redesigned almost every part, and I’m a fan. You still get the pill-shaped case, but OPPO has trimmed the dimensions. It’s now even more portable, which is great news.

Next on the redesign list is the finish. It’s a soft-touch black powder coat that feels really nice in the hand. It only picks up small smudges, and they can be wiped away with a wet towel in seconds. The opening/closing mechanism is still super satisfying, meaning I was using it as a fidget toy. Thankfully, OPPO hasn’t done away with the physical pairing button, so you won’t have to perform finger gymnastics to pair with a new phone.

Design of the Buds Air 5 Pro

Comfort has always been tricky for me. I have small ears, so anything that’s bulky just slips out after a few minutes. That’s exactly why I couldn’t daily drive the Noise Master Buds 2. Surprisingly, OPPO is the only brand that’s stayed in my ears just fine, and I’m glad to report the same about the Enco Air 5 Pro. They are lightweight and supremely comfortable, meaning I could wear them on a long flight without any hiccups and carry them out while doing my daily chores, forgetting they are in my ears.

OPPO has also bundled a couple of differently sized tips, so if the pre-applied ones feel small or large, you can experiment with others. The buds are IP55 certified, meaning they’ll withstand a sweaty gym session without a hitch, but submersion will be a problem; keep an eye out for that.

Sound Quality & ANC

The buds lying on a table

The OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro comes with 12mm Titanium-Coated Diaphragm drivers and support for LHDC 5.0, and Bluetooth 6.0. All my testing was done on the Ultimate Sound preset, but there are a couple of other presets available, along with a full equalizer, which we will talk about soon. To put the Enco 5 Pro through its paces, I started my listening session with Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean” and “Heartless” by The Weeknd. The earbuds are tuned to be balanced, irrespective of what song you listen to. The Hi-Fi vocals sound clear without distortion at higher volumes, and the background drums on Heartless have a little thump, which is always appreciated. The highs don’t screech your ears, and OPPO has even managed to hit the treble on point.

I also found that all the instruments have very good separation, but if you’d like them placed all around you, OPPO has its Live Audio feature. I’m not the biggest fan of this tech, but I’d be lying if I said the experience was bad. The Enco Air 5 Pro places different elements perfectly around you. For all my movie fanatics, I watched a couple of episodes of Better Call Saul with the earbuds connected to my Mac. The latency wasn’t an issue, as the dialogue was in sync with the lips and the audio quality was clean. Calls have been improved quite a bit compared to the predecessor, with crisper audio and better noise reduction.

A person holding the OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro

As far as ANC is concerned, its biggest test is flights. That rumble of the jet engine can get annoying fast, and I absolutely don’t like it. Since I was due to attend an event in Delhi, I took the 5 Pro with me, and the experience did not disappoint. At 55dB of ANC, I’d say the buds canceled about 85% of the jet engine rumble, without any music on. That’s really good compared to the 3 Pro+, which were around the 40% mark. With any music on at around half volume, most engine noise disappears, and the experience is the same as if you were sitting in your living room. It is important to note that high-pitched noises, such as a couple arguing, will still make their way through.

OPPO claims about 13 hours of battery life on a single charge for the earbuds, and while my 8 hours is less than the claimed number, it’s still plenty good, especially with ANC turned on at all times. The case provides a couple of extra charges, so the total output should be around 24-25 hours, depending on your use case. Still, battery life is great overall.

Controls & Companion App

Controls can, at least for me, make or break the experience. Thankfully, the Enco Air 5 Pro gets this right, which has some of the best controls I’ve tested so far. Headlining it all is the new volume adjustment settings, which lets you slide up/down on both earbuds to raise or lower the volume. It works super effectively and doesn’t mess up the fit much. Beyond that, you get the basics like double-tap to play/pause the music, triple-tap to skip forward/rewind, and tap and hold to turn on ANC. All of these are customizable to your liking.

The earbuds can be controlled via the HeyMelody app or directly from the Bluetooth settings page if you’re using an OPPO or OnePlus phone. The app is slick and responsive, and this time OPPO has debuted the new Spotify Tap feature. For those unaware, it connects to your Spotify app and plays a song according to your taste whenever you tap your earbuds. I’m an Apple Music user, but I do see the appeal. There’s also Sound Space, which includes different white noises, like waves crashing on the shore, morning sunshine, and night camping. All of which can help you better concentrate at work or sleep better. Last but not least, a full 10-band equalizer lets you tune the sound output precisely to your liking. I did try it, but since I’m no musician, I left it in OPPO’s hands with the different presets.

Verdict

Earbuds on a table

At ₹4,999, the OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro are probably the easiest-to-recommend earbuds I’ve ever tested, simply because they don’t put a foot wrong. The design has been refined to feel even more premium, and the case no longer picks up smudges. Comfort is top-tier across all ear sizes. The sound feels super balanced, with clear vocals and controlled mids and highs. Not to mention the awesome ANC, which can dampen any aircraft noise without issues, helping you zone out into the music. Controls are intuitive and easy to understand for just about everyone. They get a solid recommendation from me and should absolutely be on your radar.

#OPPO #Enco #Air #Pro #Review #Favorite #Budget #EarbudsOppo,tws">OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro Review: My New Favorite Budget Earbuds What actually makes a good pair of budget earbuds? I’ll say it’s sound quality, mixed with simplicity, with a sprinkle of some useful features. In my years of reviewing tech, there has been just one brand that’s been following this recipe perfectly, and that’s OPPO. Their Enco earbuds, as people would say these days, hit the spot, and I’m a fan, so much so that I’m still daily driving the Enco Buds 3 Pro+ from the last review. A few days back, the Chinese maker announced the all-new Enco Air 5 Pro, promising even better 55dB ANC, Bluetooth 6.0 support, and LHDC 5.0. As expected, OPPO sent over the 5 Pro a couple of weeks back. Since then, I’ve made them my primary set of earbuds, taking them to the gym every day, using them while working, and also on a short flight to Delhi to test their ANC capabilities. Spoiler alert: They are my new favorite pair of earbuds. Here’s why. OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro ReviewHisan KidwaiSummaryThe OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro are probably the easiest-to-recommend earbuds I’ve ever tested, simply because they don’t put a foot wrong. The design has been refined to feel even more premium, and the case no longer picks up smudges. Comfort is top-tier across all ear sizes. The sound feels super balanced, with clear vocals and controlled mids and highs. Not to mention the awesome ANC, which can dampen any aircraft noise without issues, helping you zone out into the music. Controls are intuitive and easy to understand for just about everyone. Design & Comfort If you remember the previous Enco Air 3 Pro+, they were a pretty handy pair of earphones. They weren’t too big, and the matte finish looked pretty at first. But over the past few months, I’ve noticed permanent smudge marks on them that won’t go away. Very fortunately, that won’t be the case for the Enco 5 Pro. OPPO has redesigned almost every part, and I’m a fan. You still get the pill-shaped case, but OPPO has trimmed the dimensions. It’s now even more portable, which is great news. Next on the redesign list is the finish. It’s a soft-touch black powder coat that feels really nice in the hand. It only picks up small smudges, and they can be wiped away with a wet towel in seconds. The opening/closing mechanism is still super satisfying, meaning I was using it as a fidget toy. Thankfully, OPPO hasn’t done away with the physical pairing button, so you won’t have to perform finger gymnastics to pair with a new phone. Comfort has always been tricky for me. I have small ears, so anything that’s bulky just slips out after a few minutes. That’s exactly why I couldn’t daily drive the Noise Master Buds 2. Surprisingly, OPPO is the only brand that’s stayed in my ears just fine, and I’m glad to report the same about the Enco Air 5 Pro. They are lightweight and supremely comfortable, meaning I could wear them on a long flight without any hiccups and carry them out while doing my daily chores, forgetting they are in my ears. OPPO has also bundled a couple of differently sized tips, so if the pre-applied ones feel small or large, you can experiment with others. The buds are IP55 certified, meaning they’ll withstand a sweaty gym session without a hitch, but submersion will be a problem; keep an eye out for that. Sound Quality & ANC The OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro comes with 12mm Titanium-Coated Diaphragm drivers and support for LHDC 5.0, and Bluetooth 6.0. All my testing was done on the Ultimate Sound preset, but there are a couple of other presets available, along with a full equalizer, which we will talk about soon. To put the Enco 5 Pro through its paces, I started my listening session with Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean” and “Heartless” by The Weeknd. The earbuds are tuned to be balanced, irrespective of what song you listen to. The Hi-Fi vocals sound clear without distortion at higher volumes, and the background drums on Heartless have a little thump, which is always appreciated. The highs don’t screech your ears, and OPPO has even managed to hit the treble on point. I also found that all the instruments have very good separation, but if you’d like them placed all around you, OPPO has its Live Audio feature. I’m not the biggest fan of this tech, but I’d be lying if I said the experience was bad. The Enco Air 5 Pro places different elements perfectly around you. For all my movie fanatics, I watched a couple of episodes of Better Call Saul with the earbuds connected to my Mac. The latency wasn’t an issue, as the dialogue was in sync with the lips and the audio quality was clean. Calls have been improved quite a bit compared to the predecessor, with crisper audio and better noise reduction. As far as ANC is concerned, its biggest test is flights. That rumble of the jet engine can get annoying fast, and I absolutely don’t like it. Since I was due to attend an event in Delhi, I took the 5 Pro with me, and the experience did not disappoint. At 55dB of ANC, I’d say the buds canceled about 85% of the jet engine rumble, without any music on. That’s really good compared to the 3 Pro+, which were around the 40% mark. With any music on at around half volume, most engine noise disappears, and the experience is the same as if you were sitting in your living room. It is important to note that high-pitched noises, such as a couple arguing, will still make their way through. OPPO claims about 13 hours of battery life on a single charge for the earbuds, and while my 8 hours is less than the claimed number, it’s still plenty good, especially with ANC turned on at all times. The case provides a couple of extra charges, so the total output should be around 24-25 hours, depending on your use case. Still, battery life is great overall. Controls & Companion App Controls can, at least for me, make or break the experience. Thankfully, the Enco Air 5 Pro gets this right, which has some of the best controls I’ve tested so far. Headlining it all is the new volume adjustment settings, which lets you slide up/down on both earbuds to raise or lower the volume. It works super effectively and doesn’t mess up the fit much. Beyond that, you get the basics like double-tap to play/pause the music, triple-tap to skip forward/rewind, and tap and hold to turn on ANC. All of these are customizable to your liking. The earbuds can be controlled via the HeyMelody app or directly from the Bluetooth settings page if you’re using an OPPO or OnePlus phone. The app is slick and responsive, and this time OPPO has debuted the new Spotify Tap feature. For those unaware, it connects to your Spotify app and plays a song according to your taste whenever you tap your earbuds. I’m an Apple Music user, but I do see the appeal. There’s also Sound Space, which includes different white noises, like waves crashing on the shore, morning sunshine, and night camping. All of which can help you better concentrate at work or sleep better. Last but not least, a full 10-band equalizer lets you tune the sound output precisely to your liking. I did try it, but since I’m no musician, I left it in OPPO’s hands with the different presets. Verdict At ₹4,999, the OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro are probably the easiest-to-recommend earbuds I’ve ever tested, simply because they don’t put a foot wrong. The design has been refined to feel even more premium, and the case no longer picks up smudges. Comfort is top-tier across all ear sizes. The sound feels super balanced, with clear vocals and controlled mids and highs. Not to mention the awesome ANC, which can dampen any aircraft noise without issues, helping you zone out into the music. Controls are intuitive and easy to understand for just about everyone. They get a solid recommendation from me and should absolutely be on your radar. #OPPO #Enco #Air #Pro #Review #Favorite #Budget #EarbudsOppo,tws

. A few days back, the Chinese maker announced the all-new Enco Air 5 Pro, promising even better 55dB ANC, Bluetooth 6.0 support, and LHDC 5.0.

As expected, OPPO sent over the 5 Pro a couple of weeks back. Since then, I’ve made them my primary set of earbuds, taking them to the gym every day, using them while working, and also on a short flight to Delhi to test their ANC capabilities. Spoiler alert: They are my new favorite pair of earbuds. Here’s why.

OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro Review

Hisan Kidwai

Summary

The OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro are probably the easiest-to-recommend earbuds I’ve ever tested, simply because they don’t put a foot wrong. The design has been refined to feel even more premium, and the case no longer picks up smudges. Comfort is top-tier across all ear sizes. The sound feels super balanced, with clear vocals and controlled mids and highs. Not to mention the awesome ANC, which can dampen any aircraft noise without issues, helping you zone out into the music. Controls are intuitive and easy to understand for just about everyone.

Design & Comfort

OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro Review: My New Favorite Budget Earbuds What actually makes a good pair of budget earbuds? I’ll say it’s sound quality, mixed with simplicity, with a sprinkle of some useful features. In my years of reviewing tech, there has been just one brand that’s been following this recipe perfectly, and that’s OPPO. Their Enco earbuds, as people would say these days, hit the spot, and I’m a fan, so much so that I’m still daily driving the Enco Buds 3 Pro+ from the last review. A few days back, the Chinese maker announced the all-new Enco Air 5 Pro, promising even better 55dB ANC, Bluetooth 6.0 support, and LHDC 5.0. As expected, OPPO sent over the 5 Pro a couple of weeks back. Since then, I’ve made them my primary set of earbuds, taking them to the gym every day, using them while working, and also on a short flight to Delhi to test their ANC capabilities. Spoiler alert: They are my new favorite pair of earbuds. Here’s why. OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro ReviewHisan KidwaiSummaryThe OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro are probably the easiest-to-recommend earbuds I’ve ever tested, simply because they don’t put a foot wrong. The design has been refined to feel even more premium, and the case no longer picks up smudges. Comfort is top-tier across all ear sizes. The sound feels super balanced, with clear vocals and controlled mids and highs. Not to mention the awesome ANC, which can dampen any aircraft noise without issues, helping you zone out into the music. Controls are intuitive and easy to understand for just about everyone. Design & Comfort If you remember the previous Enco Air 3 Pro+, they were a pretty handy pair of earphones. They weren’t too big, and the matte finish looked pretty at first. But over the past few months, I’ve noticed permanent smudge marks on them that won’t go away. Very fortunately, that won’t be the case for the Enco 5 Pro. OPPO has redesigned almost every part, and I’m a fan. You still get the pill-shaped case, but OPPO has trimmed the dimensions. It’s now even more portable, which is great news. Next on the redesign list is the finish. It’s a soft-touch black powder coat that feels really nice in the hand. It only picks up small smudges, and they can be wiped away with a wet towel in seconds. The opening/closing mechanism is still super satisfying, meaning I was using it as a fidget toy. Thankfully, OPPO hasn’t done away with the physical pairing button, so you won’t have to perform finger gymnastics to pair with a new phone. Comfort has always been tricky for me. I have small ears, so anything that’s bulky just slips out after a few minutes. That’s exactly why I couldn’t daily drive the Noise Master Buds 2. Surprisingly, OPPO is the only brand that’s stayed in my ears just fine, and I’m glad to report the same about the Enco Air 5 Pro. They are lightweight and supremely comfortable, meaning I could wear them on a long flight without any hiccups and carry them out while doing my daily chores, forgetting they are in my ears. OPPO has also bundled a couple of differently sized tips, so if the pre-applied ones feel small or large, you can experiment with others. The buds are IP55 certified, meaning they’ll withstand a sweaty gym session without a hitch, but submersion will be a problem; keep an eye out for that. Sound Quality & ANC The OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro comes with 12mm Titanium-Coated Diaphragm drivers and support for LHDC 5.0, and Bluetooth 6.0. All my testing was done on the Ultimate Sound preset, but there are a couple of other presets available, along with a full equalizer, which we will talk about soon. To put the Enco 5 Pro through its paces, I started my listening session with Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean” and “Heartless” by The Weeknd. The earbuds are tuned to be balanced, irrespective of what song you listen to. The Hi-Fi vocals sound clear without distortion at higher volumes, and the background drums on Heartless have a little thump, which is always appreciated. The highs don’t screech your ears, and OPPO has even managed to hit the treble on point. I also found that all the instruments have very good separation, but if you’d like them placed all around you, OPPO has its Live Audio feature. I’m not the biggest fan of this tech, but I’d be lying if I said the experience was bad. The Enco Air 5 Pro places different elements perfectly around you. For all my movie fanatics, I watched a couple of episodes of Better Call Saul with the earbuds connected to my Mac. The latency wasn’t an issue, as the dialogue was in sync with the lips and the audio quality was clean. Calls have been improved quite a bit compared to the predecessor, with crisper audio and better noise reduction. As far as ANC is concerned, its biggest test is flights. That rumble of the jet engine can get annoying fast, and I absolutely don’t like it. Since I was due to attend an event in Delhi, I took the 5 Pro with me, and the experience did not disappoint. At 55dB of ANC, I’d say the buds canceled about 85% of the jet engine rumble, without any music on. That’s really good compared to the 3 Pro+, which were around the 40% mark. With any music on at around half volume, most engine noise disappears, and the experience is the same as if you were sitting in your living room. It is important to note that high-pitched noises, such as a couple arguing, will still make their way through. OPPO claims about 13 hours of battery life on a single charge for the earbuds, and while my 8 hours is less than the claimed number, it’s still plenty good, especially with ANC turned on at all times. The case provides a couple of extra charges, so the total output should be around 24-25 hours, depending on your use case. Still, battery life is great overall. Controls & Companion App Controls can, at least for me, make or break the experience. Thankfully, the Enco Air 5 Pro gets this right, which has some of the best controls I’ve tested so far. Headlining it all is the new volume adjustment settings, which lets you slide up/down on both earbuds to raise or lower the volume. It works super effectively and doesn’t mess up the fit much. Beyond that, you get the basics like double-tap to play/pause the music, triple-tap to skip forward/rewind, and tap and hold to turn on ANC. All of these are customizable to your liking. The earbuds can be controlled via the HeyMelody app or directly from the Bluetooth settings page if you’re using an OPPO or OnePlus phone. The app is slick and responsive, and this time OPPO has debuted the new Spotify Tap feature. For those unaware, it connects to your Spotify app and plays a song according to your taste whenever you tap your earbuds. I’m an Apple Music user, but I do see the appeal. There’s also Sound Space, which includes different white noises, like waves crashing on the shore, morning sunshine, and night camping. All of which can help you better concentrate at work or sleep better. Last but not least, a full 10-band equalizer lets you tune the sound output precisely to your liking. I did try it, but since I’m no musician, I left it in OPPO’s hands with the different presets. Verdict At ₹4,999, the OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro are probably the easiest-to-recommend earbuds I’ve ever tested, simply because they don’t put a foot wrong. The design has been refined to feel even more premium, and the case no longer picks up smudges. Comfort is top-tier across all ear sizes. The sound feels super balanced, with clear vocals and controlled mids and highs. Not to mention the awesome ANC, which can dampen any aircraft noise without issues, helping you zone out into the music. Controls are intuitive and easy to understand for just about everyone. They get a solid recommendation from me and should absolutely be on your radar. #OPPO #Enco #Air #Pro #Review #Favorite #Budget #EarbudsOppo,tws

If you remember the previous Enco Air 3 Pro+, they were a pretty handy pair of earphones. They weren’t too big, and the matte finish looked pretty at first. But over the past few months, I’ve noticed permanent smudge marks on them that won’t go away. Very fortunately, that won’t be the case for the Enco 5 Pro. OPPO has redesigned almost every part, and I’m a fan. You still get the pill-shaped case, but OPPO has trimmed the dimensions. It’s now even more portable, which is great news.

Next on the redesign list is the finish. It’s a soft-touch black powder coat that feels really nice in the hand. It only picks up small smudges, and they can be wiped away with a wet towel in seconds. The opening/closing mechanism is still super satisfying, meaning I was using it as a fidget toy. Thankfully, OPPO hasn’t done away with the physical pairing button, so you won’t have to perform finger gymnastics to pair with a new phone.

Design of the Buds Air 5 Pro

Comfort has always been tricky for me. I have small ears, so anything that’s bulky just slips out after a few minutes. That’s exactly why I couldn’t daily drive the Noise Master Buds 2. Surprisingly, OPPO is the only brand that’s stayed in my ears just fine, and I’m glad to report the same about the Enco Air 5 Pro. They are lightweight and supremely comfortable, meaning I could wear them on a long flight without any hiccups and carry them out while doing my daily chores, forgetting they are in my ears.

OPPO has also bundled a couple of differently sized tips, so if the pre-applied ones feel small or large, you can experiment with others. The buds are IP55 certified, meaning they’ll withstand a sweaty gym session without a hitch, but submersion will be a problem; keep an eye out for that.

Sound Quality & ANC

The buds lying on a table

The OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro comes with 12mm Titanium-Coated Diaphragm drivers and support for LHDC 5.0, and Bluetooth 6.0. All my testing was done on the Ultimate Sound preset, but there are a couple of other presets available, along with a full equalizer, which we will talk about soon. To put the Enco 5 Pro through its paces, I started my listening session with Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean” and “Heartless” by The Weeknd. The earbuds are tuned to be balanced, irrespective of what song you listen to. The Hi-Fi vocals sound clear without distortion at higher volumes, and the background drums on Heartless have a little thump, which is always appreciated. The highs don’t screech your ears, and OPPO has even managed to hit the treble on point.

I also found that all the instruments have very good separation, but if you’d like them placed all around you, OPPO has its Live Audio feature. I’m not the biggest fan of this tech, but I’d be lying if I said the experience was bad. The Enco Air 5 Pro places different elements perfectly around you. For all my movie fanatics, I watched a couple of episodes of Better Call Saul with the earbuds connected to my Mac. The latency wasn’t an issue, as the dialogue was in sync with the lips and the audio quality was clean. Calls have been improved quite a bit compared to the predecessor, with crisper audio and better noise reduction.

A person holding the OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro

As far as ANC is concerned, its biggest test is flights. That rumble of the jet engine can get annoying fast, and I absolutely don’t like it. Since I was due to attend an event in Delhi, I took the 5 Pro with me, and the experience did not disappoint. At 55dB of ANC, I’d say the buds canceled about 85% of the jet engine rumble, without any music on. That’s really good compared to the 3 Pro+, which were around the 40% mark. With any music on at around half volume, most engine noise disappears, and the experience is the same as if you were sitting in your living room. It is important to note that high-pitched noises, such as a couple arguing, will still make their way through.

OPPO claims about 13 hours of battery life on a single charge for the earbuds, and while my 8 hours is less than the claimed number, it’s still plenty good, especially with ANC turned on at all times. The case provides a couple of extra charges, so the total output should be around 24-25 hours, depending on your use case. Still, battery life is great overall.

Controls & Companion App

Controls can, at least for me, make or break the experience. Thankfully, the Enco Air 5 Pro gets this right, which has some of the best controls I’ve tested so far. Headlining it all is the new volume adjustment settings, which lets you slide up/down on both earbuds to raise or lower the volume. It works super effectively and doesn’t mess up the fit much. Beyond that, you get the basics like double-tap to play/pause the music, triple-tap to skip forward/rewind, and tap and hold to turn on ANC. All of these are customizable to your liking.

The earbuds can be controlled via the HeyMelody app or directly from the Bluetooth settings page if you’re using an OPPO or OnePlus phone. The app is slick and responsive, and this time OPPO has debuted the new Spotify Tap feature. For those unaware, it connects to your Spotify app and plays a song according to your taste whenever you tap your earbuds. I’m an Apple Music user, but I do see the appeal. There’s also Sound Space, which includes different white noises, like waves crashing on the shore, morning sunshine, and night camping. All of which can help you better concentrate at work or sleep better. Last but not least, a full 10-band equalizer lets you tune the sound output precisely to your liking. I did try it, but since I’m no musician, I left it in OPPO’s hands with the different presets.

Verdict

Earbuds on a table

At ₹4,999, the OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro are probably the easiest-to-recommend earbuds I’ve ever tested, simply because they don’t put a foot wrong. The design has been refined to feel even more premium, and the case no longer picks up smudges. Comfort is top-tier across all ear sizes. The sound feels super balanced, with clear vocals and controlled mids and highs. Not to mention the awesome ANC, which can dampen any aircraft noise without issues, helping you zone out into the music. Controls are intuitive and easy to understand for just about everyone. They get a solid recommendation from me and should absolutely be on your radar.

#OPPO #Enco #Air #Pro #Review #Favorite #Budget #EarbudsOppo,tws">OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro Review: My New Favorite Budget Earbuds

What actually makes a good pair of budget earbuds? I’ll say it’s sound quality, mixed with simplicity, with a sprinkle of some useful features. In my years of reviewing tech, there has been just one brand that’s been following this recipe perfectly, and that’s OPPO. Their Enco earbuds, as people would say these days, hit the spot, and I’m a fan, so much so that I’m still daily driving the Enco Buds 3 Pro+ from the last review. A few days back, the Chinese maker announced the all-new Enco Air 5 Pro, promising even better 55dB ANC, Bluetooth 6.0 support, and LHDC 5.0.

As expected, OPPO sent over the 5 Pro a couple of weeks back. Since then, I’ve made them my primary set of earbuds, taking them to the gym every day, using them while working, and also on a short flight to Delhi to test their ANC capabilities. Spoiler alert: They are my new favorite pair of earbuds. Here’s why.

OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro Review

Hisan Kidwai

Summary

The OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro are probably the easiest-to-recommend earbuds I’ve ever tested, simply because they don’t put a foot wrong. The design has been refined to feel even more premium, and the case no longer picks up smudges. Comfort is top-tier across all ear sizes. The sound feels super balanced, with clear vocals and controlled mids and highs. Not to mention the awesome ANC, which can dampen any aircraft noise without issues, helping you zone out into the music. Controls are intuitive and easy to understand for just about everyone.

Design & Comfort

OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro Review: My New Favorite Budget Earbuds What actually makes a good pair of budget earbuds? I’ll say it’s sound quality, mixed with simplicity, with a sprinkle of some useful features. In my years of reviewing tech, there has been just one brand that’s been following this recipe perfectly, and that’s OPPO. Their Enco earbuds, as people would say these days, hit the spot, and I’m a fan, so much so that I’m still daily driving the Enco Buds 3 Pro+ from the last review. A few days back, the Chinese maker announced the all-new Enco Air 5 Pro, promising even better 55dB ANC, Bluetooth 6.0 support, and LHDC 5.0. As expected, OPPO sent over the 5 Pro a couple of weeks back. Since then, I’ve made them my primary set of earbuds, taking them to the gym every day, using them while working, and also on a short flight to Delhi to test their ANC capabilities. Spoiler alert: They are my new favorite pair of earbuds. Here’s why. OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro ReviewHisan KidwaiSummaryThe OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro are probably the easiest-to-recommend earbuds I’ve ever tested, simply because they don’t put a foot wrong. The design has been refined to feel even more premium, and the case no longer picks up smudges. Comfort is top-tier across all ear sizes. The sound feels super balanced, with clear vocals and controlled mids and highs. Not to mention the awesome ANC, which can dampen any aircraft noise without issues, helping you zone out into the music. Controls are intuitive and easy to understand for just about everyone. Design & Comfort If you remember the previous Enco Air 3 Pro+, they were a pretty handy pair of earphones. They weren’t too big, and the matte finish looked pretty at first. But over the past few months, I’ve noticed permanent smudge marks on them that won’t go away. Very fortunately, that won’t be the case for the Enco 5 Pro. OPPO has redesigned almost every part, and I’m a fan. You still get the pill-shaped case, but OPPO has trimmed the dimensions. It’s now even more portable, which is great news. Next on the redesign list is the finish. It’s a soft-touch black powder coat that feels really nice in the hand. It only picks up small smudges, and they can be wiped away with a wet towel in seconds. The opening/closing mechanism is still super satisfying, meaning I was using it as a fidget toy. Thankfully, OPPO hasn’t done away with the physical pairing button, so you won’t have to perform finger gymnastics to pair with a new phone. Comfort has always been tricky for me. I have small ears, so anything that’s bulky just slips out after a few minutes. That’s exactly why I couldn’t daily drive the Noise Master Buds 2. Surprisingly, OPPO is the only brand that’s stayed in my ears just fine, and I’m glad to report the same about the Enco Air 5 Pro. They are lightweight and supremely comfortable, meaning I could wear them on a long flight without any hiccups and carry them out while doing my daily chores, forgetting they are in my ears. OPPO has also bundled a couple of differently sized tips, so if the pre-applied ones feel small or large, you can experiment with others. The buds are IP55 certified, meaning they’ll withstand a sweaty gym session without a hitch, but submersion will be a problem; keep an eye out for that. Sound Quality & ANC The OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro comes with 12mm Titanium-Coated Diaphragm drivers and support for LHDC 5.0, and Bluetooth 6.0. All my testing was done on the Ultimate Sound preset, but there are a couple of other presets available, along with a full equalizer, which we will talk about soon. To put the Enco 5 Pro through its paces, I started my listening session with Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean” and “Heartless” by The Weeknd. The earbuds are tuned to be balanced, irrespective of what song you listen to. The Hi-Fi vocals sound clear without distortion at higher volumes, and the background drums on Heartless have a little thump, which is always appreciated. The highs don’t screech your ears, and OPPO has even managed to hit the treble on point. I also found that all the instruments have very good separation, but if you’d like them placed all around you, OPPO has its Live Audio feature. I’m not the biggest fan of this tech, but I’d be lying if I said the experience was bad. The Enco Air 5 Pro places different elements perfectly around you. For all my movie fanatics, I watched a couple of episodes of Better Call Saul with the earbuds connected to my Mac. The latency wasn’t an issue, as the dialogue was in sync with the lips and the audio quality was clean. Calls have been improved quite a bit compared to the predecessor, with crisper audio and better noise reduction. As far as ANC is concerned, its biggest test is flights. That rumble of the jet engine can get annoying fast, and I absolutely don’t like it. Since I was due to attend an event in Delhi, I took the 5 Pro with me, and the experience did not disappoint. At 55dB of ANC, I’d say the buds canceled about 85% of the jet engine rumble, without any music on. That’s really good compared to the 3 Pro+, which were around the 40% mark. With any music on at around half volume, most engine noise disappears, and the experience is the same as if you were sitting in your living room. It is important to note that high-pitched noises, such as a couple arguing, will still make their way through. OPPO claims about 13 hours of battery life on a single charge for the earbuds, and while my 8 hours is less than the claimed number, it’s still plenty good, especially with ANC turned on at all times. The case provides a couple of extra charges, so the total output should be around 24-25 hours, depending on your use case. Still, battery life is great overall. Controls & Companion App Controls can, at least for me, make or break the experience. Thankfully, the Enco Air 5 Pro gets this right, which has some of the best controls I’ve tested so far. Headlining it all is the new volume adjustment settings, which lets you slide up/down on both earbuds to raise or lower the volume. It works super effectively and doesn’t mess up the fit much. Beyond that, you get the basics like double-tap to play/pause the music, triple-tap to skip forward/rewind, and tap and hold to turn on ANC. All of these are customizable to your liking. The earbuds can be controlled via the HeyMelody app or directly from the Bluetooth settings page if you’re using an OPPO or OnePlus phone. The app is slick and responsive, and this time OPPO has debuted the new Spotify Tap feature. For those unaware, it connects to your Spotify app and plays a song according to your taste whenever you tap your earbuds. I’m an Apple Music user, but I do see the appeal. There’s also Sound Space, which includes different white noises, like waves crashing on the shore, morning sunshine, and night camping. All of which can help you better concentrate at work or sleep better. Last but not least, a full 10-band equalizer lets you tune the sound output precisely to your liking. I did try it, but since I’m no musician, I left it in OPPO’s hands with the different presets. Verdict At ₹4,999, the OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro are probably the easiest-to-recommend earbuds I’ve ever tested, simply because they don’t put a foot wrong. The design has been refined to feel even more premium, and the case no longer picks up smudges. Comfort is top-tier across all ear sizes. The sound feels super balanced, with clear vocals and controlled mids and highs. Not to mention the awesome ANC, which can dampen any aircraft noise without issues, helping you zone out into the music. Controls are intuitive and easy to understand for just about everyone. They get a solid recommendation from me and should absolutely be on your radar. #OPPO #Enco #Air #Pro #Review #Favorite #Budget #EarbudsOppo,tws

If you remember the previous Enco Air 3 Pro+, they were a pretty handy pair of earphones. They weren’t too big, and the matte finish looked pretty at first. But over the past few months, I’ve noticed permanent smudge marks on them that won’t go away. Very fortunately, that won’t be the case for the Enco 5 Pro. OPPO has redesigned almost every part, and I’m a fan. You still get the pill-shaped case, but OPPO has trimmed the dimensions. It’s now even more portable, which is great news.

Next on the redesign list is the finish. It’s a soft-touch black powder coat that feels really nice in the hand. It only picks up small smudges, and they can be wiped away with a wet towel in seconds. The opening/closing mechanism is still super satisfying, meaning I was using it as a fidget toy. Thankfully, OPPO hasn’t done away with the physical pairing button, so you won’t have to perform finger gymnastics to pair with a new phone.

Design of the Buds Air 5 Pro

Comfort has always been tricky for me. I have small ears, so anything that’s bulky just slips out after a few minutes. That’s exactly why I couldn’t daily drive the Noise Master Buds 2. Surprisingly, OPPO is the only brand that’s stayed in my ears just fine, and I’m glad to report the same about the Enco Air 5 Pro. They are lightweight and supremely comfortable, meaning I could wear them on a long flight without any hiccups and carry them out while doing my daily chores, forgetting they are in my ears.

OPPO has also bundled a couple of differently sized tips, so if the pre-applied ones feel small or large, you can experiment with others. The buds are IP55 certified, meaning they’ll withstand a sweaty gym session without a hitch, but submersion will be a problem; keep an eye out for that.

Sound Quality & ANC

The buds lying on a table

The OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro comes with 12mm Titanium-Coated Diaphragm drivers and support for LHDC 5.0, and Bluetooth 6.0. All my testing was done on the Ultimate Sound preset, but there are a couple of other presets available, along with a full equalizer, which we will talk about soon. To put the Enco 5 Pro through its paces, I started my listening session with Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean” and “Heartless” by The Weeknd. The earbuds are tuned to be balanced, irrespective of what song you listen to. The Hi-Fi vocals sound clear without distortion at higher volumes, and the background drums on Heartless have a little thump, which is always appreciated. The highs don’t screech your ears, and OPPO has even managed to hit the treble on point.

I also found that all the instruments have very good separation, but if you’d like them placed all around you, OPPO has its Live Audio feature. I’m not the biggest fan of this tech, but I’d be lying if I said the experience was bad. The Enco Air 5 Pro places different elements perfectly around you. For all my movie fanatics, I watched a couple of episodes of Better Call Saul with the earbuds connected to my Mac. The latency wasn’t an issue, as the dialogue was in sync with the lips and the audio quality was clean. Calls have been improved quite a bit compared to the predecessor, with crisper audio and better noise reduction.

A person holding the OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro

As far as ANC is concerned, its biggest test is flights. That rumble of the jet engine can get annoying fast, and I absolutely don’t like it. Since I was due to attend an event in Delhi, I took the 5 Pro with me, and the experience did not disappoint. At 55dB of ANC, I’d say the buds canceled about 85% of the jet engine rumble, without any music on. That’s really good compared to the 3 Pro+, which were around the 40% mark. With any music on at around half volume, most engine noise disappears, and the experience is the same as if you were sitting in your living room. It is important to note that high-pitched noises, such as a couple arguing, will still make their way through.

OPPO claims about 13 hours of battery life on a single charge for the earbuds, and while my 8 hours is less than the claimed number, it’s still plenty good, especially with ANC turned on at all times. The case provides a couple of extra charges, so the total output should be around 24-25 hours, depending on your use case. Still, battery life is great overall.

Controls & Companion App

Controls can, at least for me, make or break the experience. Thankfully, the Enco Air 5 Pro gets this right, which has some of the best controls I’ve tested so far. Headlining it all is the new volume adjustment settings, which lets you slide up/down on both earbuds to raise or lower the volume. It works super effectively and doesn’t mess up the fit much. Beyond that, you get the basics like double-tap to play/pause the music, triple-tap to skip forward/rewind, and tap and hold to turn on ANC. All of these are customizable to your liking.

The earbuds can be controlled via the HeyMelody app or directly from the Bluetooth settings page if you’re using an OPPO or OnePlus phone. The app is slick and responsive, and this time OPPO has debuted the new Spotify Tap feature. For those unaware, it connects to your Spotify app and plays a song according to your taste whenever you tap your earbuds. I’m an Apple Music user, but I do see the appeal. There’s also Sound Space, which includes different white noises, like waves crashing on the shore, morning sunshine, and night camping. All of which can help you better concentrate at work or sleep better. Last but not least, a full 10-band equalizer lets you tune the sound output precisely to your liking. I did try it, but since I’m no musician, I left it in OPPO’s hands with the different presets.

Verdict

Earbuds on a table

At ₹4,999, the OPPO Enco Air 5 Pro are probably the easiest-to-recommend earbuds I’ve ever tested, simply because they don’t put a foot wrong. The design has been refined to feel even more premium, and the case no longer picks up smudges. Comfort is top-tier across all ear sizes. The sound feels super balanced, with clear vocals and controlled mids and highs. Not to mention the awesome ANC, which can dampen any aircraft noise without issues, helping you zone out into the music. Controls are intuitive and easy to understand for just about everyone. They get a solid recommendation from me and should absolutely be on your radar.

#OPPO #Enco #Air #Pro #Review #Favorite #Budget #EarbudsOppo,tws

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