Fairbuds XL review: when sustainability sounds good

The Fairbuds XL consist of nine individual parts. These can be replaced if damaged. All you need is a screwdriver. The noise cancellation works splendidly and the sound is on par with other over-ear headphones in this price range.

Headphones

EUR209,–

Fairphone Fairbuds XL

ANC, 26 h, Wireless

62

Headphones

EUR214,63

Fairphone Fairbuds XL

ANC, 26 h, Wireless

62

Uncomplicated setup and a wonderfully intuitive joystick

You connect the Fairbuds XL to your smartphone, computer or other playback device in the classic way. Press the joystick, which I find very comfortable to use, on the right ear cup for a few seconds to start pairing mode. The headphones will then appear on the playback device.

For wireless connectivity, the Fairbuds XL use Bluetooth 5.1. That’s perfectly fine, but still, 5.3 would be even nicer as a slightly better standard. A wired connection is possible with the USB-C port, but I didn’t try it.

The headphones are controlled via the joystick and another button. Use the button above the joystick to switch between active noise cancellation, no noise cancellation and ambient noise. Use the joystick to adjust the volume, switch to the next or previous track, and control playback. Accepting and ending calls also works.

The Fairbuds XL are protected against sweat and water spray according to IP54. A little rain shouldn’t harm them. The faux leather used on the earpiece and ear cup, however, doesn’t look like it’ll be comfortable when I’m sweating all over it while exercising.

Sustainable thanks to its materials and easy repair

As with the Fairphone, the manufacturer also focuses on sustainability with the Fairbuds XL. This should be noticeable in the materials used, the design focusing on easy repairability and the working conditions during production.

The aluminium used is apparently fully recycled. Same goes for 80 per cent of the plastic. Its modular design ensures that separate parts can be replaced individually. In case of damage, the entire headset doesn’t have to be thrown away. In total, the Fairbuds XL consist of nine individual parts that can be exchanged. All you need is a suitable screwdriver for the small Phillips screws and minimally dexterous hands. I’ll show you what that looks like in moving pictures:

Good sound ensuring a long life

The Fairbuds XL sound pretty great, also contributing to sustainability. If they sounded bad, they’d quickly be replaced by conventional headphones after initial disappointment.

The Fairbuds XL contain two 40-millimetre dynamic drivers. They support three widely used codecs in aptX-HD, AAC and SBC.

I’ve used the Fairbuds XL to listen to various genres of music, podcasts, and audio dramas, as well as to make phone calls, and I’m very pleased with their sound. The stereo sound makes me feel like I’m in the middle of the action. The trebles are clearly audible. The mids feel pleasant and further round out the soundscape. The bass is noticeable, but remains subtle. But that isn’t a bad thing, even if the bass booms more in other over-ear models.

The Fairbuds XL microphones ensure I’m easily understood by the person I’m talking to on audio or video calls. However, this doesn’t apply in noisy environments. You shouldn’t make phone calls on a busy main road.

Even without active noise cancellation (ANC), the Fairbuds XL muffle your surroundings. This gets even better with ANC. In the office, for example, colleagues in calls no longer bother me. Whoever wants to talk to me has to tap me or wave. I don’t feel that music is particularly loud. The active noise cancellation also works wonderfully on noisy roads. I can listen to podcasts or audiobooks at a comfortable volume here.

In the Fairbuds app (Android/iOS), you have four equaliser presets to choose from. They're named after cities and each has a short description of its sound. For the presets, Fairphone works with Sonarworks, which they call an «audio tech innovator». You can't make any changes to the equaliser settings yourself. Apart from a short manual for the headphones, references to the support, newsletter and data protection regulations, the app is only used to install firmware updates on the Fairbuds.

Replacing a battery without tools

The Fairbuds XL battery has a capacity of 800 mAh. The headphones are supposed to run for 28 hours with it – even 30 if you deactivate active noise cancellation. In the course of my test, that’s about my specified runtime – with breaks in between. This is average for over-ear headphones, maybe even slightly above. Charging via USB-C takes about three hours when the battery is completely empty.

You could also get a second battery and replace it with a few simple steps. However, there’s no external charger, so you would need to charge the second battery in the headphones as well. It’s more likely that you’ll only replace the battery when the first one weakens after intense use.

Verdict: not only good on my conscience

The idea behind the Fairbuds XL is appealing, and unlike the Fairphone, you don’t have to make any technological compromises. You get a comfortable pair of headphones with decent battery life, effective noise cancellation, and good sound. As a bonus, there’s the prospect of being able to replace the battery or damaged parts yourself. Since Fairphone manages to reliably keep spare parts for its smartphones in stock, I’m also confident about the headphones.

In terms of price, the Fairbuds XL with their recommended retail price of 249 euros/francs are in the same range as, for example, the Sony WH-1000XM4 or the Bose QuietComfort 45. Some of these may offer better sound, but they originally came to market at a higher price. That’s fallen over time – years rather than months. Since progress in over-ear headphones is slow, they can also still be recommended – which definitely isn’t something I’d say about a three-year-old smartphone. The competition thus offers reasons that make sustainability weaker as an argument for the Fairbuds XL.