OnePlus Buds Z2 in test: small headphones, powerful noise cancellation

OnePlus Buds Z2 are equipped with many features of the OnePlus Buds Pro, but cost less than the «Pro» cousin. However, they’re more expensive compared to their predecessor, the Buds Z. Having said that, the Buds Z are hard to come by these days and the Z2 offer more. Something I can confirm after OnePlus gave me a pair to test.

Quick setup, comfortable fit, long runtime

As soon as I open the charging case, my Pixel 6 recognises the OnePlus Buds Z2 and asks if I want to pair them. Thanks to «Google Fast Pair», all it takes is one confirmation to establish a wireless connection via Bluetooth. Fast pairing is not exclusive Google smartphones, but technically available to all devices with Android 6 or higher. In other words, chances are high that pairing with your smartphone will be fast, too.

Once connected, the buds fit my ears perfectly. I didn’t have to try either of the included rubber attachments for size. The Buds Z2 sit snugly in my ear. They’re comfy and don’t create any pressure pain in my small ears – not even after wearing them for a long time.

I like the protective cover of the OnePlus Buds Z2. It’s sits nicely in your hand and is small enough to comfortable carry in your trouser pocket. It contains a 520 mAh battery, which increases the earbuds’ battery life from an already very long seven hours by 31 hours. That’s a grand total of 38 hours. However, this only applies when noise cancelling is disabled. If it’s on, the runtimes are reduced to five hours for the earbuds and 27 hours in total. That’s still a huge improvement compared to the first generation of Buds Z. They only managed 20 hours. This runtime is also impressive compared to other true wireless headphones.

Together with the earbuds, the case should collect enough energy for a total of five hours of runtime. This happens via the USB-C port and should take ten minutes. If the earbuds sit in the charging case for ten minutes without further power supply, they should be able to run for two hours afterwards. I only roughly added up my personal usage times of the Buds Z2, but came up with similar values as the manufacturer.

Sweat and rain aren’t an issue. In line with IP55, the OnePlus Buds Z2 are protected against water jets, but not intended for submersion. The transport case only has splash protection.

Noise cancelling works, sound is good

It’s also thanks to the active noise cancellation of the OnePlus Buds Z2 that the good sound. Although it doesn’t manage complete silence, it eliminates background noise to a large extent. The traffic noise of a main road becomes so quiet, I can understand every analysis of NFL games by Adrian and Christoph on "Down, Set, Talk" without having to turn up the volume.

There are three microphones in each of the Buds Z2. This means that the headphones not only pick up your voice, but also ambient noise. They do so to filter them out for active noise cancelling. It’s a technology that’s also used for making phone calls. This makes my voice clear and easy to understand, even walking down that busy road.

The OnePlus Buds Z2 have two different strength modes for noise cancellation. The weaker one is said to reduce the ambient noise by 25 decibels – the stronger one by 40 decibels. Translated into relatable sounds, this makes a jackhammer sound like a normal conversation, when the feature is maxed out.

In addition, there’s a transparency mode that intentionally allows ambient noise to seep through. If you’re having a conversation, for example. You can also disable all these modes. Then the earbuds don’t amplify or reduce anything, they just play music or whatever else you’re listening to.

If you take out an earbud, the playback pauses. Pop it back in and it starts playing again. If you want to use just one of the earbuds, that’s also possible. The second one isn’t a must to resume playback. You operate the headphones via sensor surfaces on the outside. The Buds Z2 confirm a recognised input with a beep. This works like a charm.

OnePlus has installed an eleven-millimetre driver in each of the earbuds. They’re the ones that provide that clear sound. The trebles and mids aren’t blurry, and I can hear background details that are lost over the smartphone speaker. In this Christmas classic by No Doubt, it’s bells and chimes that tend to be overheard because of the horns, drums, bass and guitar.

In this example, the bass is lost in the rest of the instruments, but that’s the way it should be. But if the bass plays a more important role – in reggae or rap, for example – it’s clearly audible as a beat. Despite its voluminous sound, it doesn’t overpower the highs and mids.

The app for the Buds Z2

On OnePlus smartphones, the control of the Buds Z2 is integrated in the settings. On other smartphones, you have to install the HeyMelody app (Android/iOS).

The app individually displays the charging levels of the two earbuds and of the charging case individually. It also allows you to select noise cancellation. All four modes are available, but you can only switch between two of them by pressing and holding the sensor surfaces. You can select which two these should be in the app. Maximum and transparency mode are set by default.

In addition, HeyMelody allows you to change the commands after tapping the earbuds once, twice or three times. However, the selection isn’t very big. Alongside play and pause, next or previous song, there’s only the standard voice assistant of your smartphone as a fourth option. Volume control isn’t possible via the headphones.

HeyMelody also lets you check the fit of your earphones. The app plays a melody to test this and is supposed to detect whether you need to change the position of the buds. If a firmware update is available, you also install it via the app. This wasn’t the case during my test.

Verdict: effective noise cancelling, good sound. long battery life

With the Buds Z2, OnePlus has promoted its entry-level headphones to the mid-range. They impress with a beautiful sound quality, effective noise cancellation as well as a long runtime. The carrying case is compact and control works like a charm. The only thing I’m missing is volume control via the earbuds.

The improvements made to the OnePlus Buds Z2 compared to their predecessors are also reflected in the price. The recommended retail price has increased to 99 euros. There’s no price information for Switzerland, as the headphones haven’t yet been officially released here. But my colleagues are working hard to get their hands on this information.

Price-wise, the Buds Z2 are comparable to Nothing Ear(1) – earbuds I was very excited about. However, my enthusiasm decreases in view of the Buds Z2, as the two models are on a par.