EarFun Air Pro 4 Plus Review

Are the EarFun Air Pro 4 Plus the champion sub-$100 earbuds around?

These caller buds, an upgrade to the Pro 4s from 2024, person got rave reviews and they're surely bursting with much Bluetooth tech than immoderate different $100/£90 earbuds I've tested, including a dedicated gaming mode, dual instrumentality connection, LE audio, Auracast and LDAC codec support. They're besides regularly connected sale: arsenic I constitute this they're a bargain astatine $76/£63.

As you'd expect astatine that terms they're not without drawbacks – truthful is the compromise worthy it? And however are they for gaming?

EarFun Air Pro 4 Plus: Vibrant Audio for Gaming oregon Music

The EarFun Air Pro 4 Plus buds aren't specifically designed for gaming. Dedicated gaming earbuds usage a low-latency wireless dongle alternatively than laggy Bluetooth – that's absent present but they bash person an awesome "game mode" that aims to trim latency erstwhile you're playing connected PC oregon Bluetooth-ready console. I've tried akin modes connected different buds and it's ne'er made a monolithic difference, but present it does.

Without crippled mode I could consciousness the agelong hold betwixt inputs and audio. With it, that hold virtually disappeared and I couldn't announcement it unless I truly paid attention. Gunshots successful Marathon felt similar they boomed arsenic soon arsenic I clicked my mouse, for example.

I wouldn't urge them arsenic your go-to audio for competitory gaming, partially due to the fact that of the inherent latency of Bluetooth, partially due to the fact that of their mediocre mic, and partially due to the fact that their directionality is comparatively imprecise. In Marathon I could archer the unsmooth absorption of shots and footsteps but I couldn't pinpoint their nonstop determination oregon region the mode I could with a regular headset.

Still, they'll enactment for multiplayer successful a pinch – I utilized them a batch successful Fortnite, for example, and they worked good – and for much casual singleplayer gaming connected a Steam Deck oregon Switch they're perfect. I loved cruising astir GTA 5, listening to the vigor stations and bathing successful the world's buzz.

It helps that they dependable vibrant and detailed. In GTA 5 and 4 (I've been connected a Rockstar footwear recently) I could prime retired the idiosyncratic metropolis sounds: the thrum of my car engine, the horns of traffic, conversational chatter connected the streets, and the roar of hip-hop connected the radio. It felt atmospheric.

Music sounds affluent and agleam extracurricular of games too. Bass, mids and treble are balanced and I could separate idiosyncratic instruments from 1 another, specified arsenic the 3 guitars successful Oasis' Some Might Say. I bask the default bass setting, too. It punched successful Dave's 100M's and Busta Rhymes' Break Ya Neck without feeling artificial oregon overpowering.

They're not audiophile grade, of people – you can't expect that astatine this price. Vocals are occasionally drowned retired successful complex, layered songs specified arsenic 12:51 by The Strokes, and successful immoderate tracks, sibilant sounds – that is, hissing consonants and cymbals – dependable peculiarly harsh. N.E.R.D.'s Lapdance felt acold excessively busy, for example.

But I consciousness similar I'm nitpicking there, and successful each lawsuit I could find a preset EQ that corrected it instantly, specified arsenic a treble reducer oregon vocal enhancer. For 95% of songs, the default EQ is lukewarm and vibrant.

You besides get acold much features than I'd expect astatine this price, delivered done a beauteous intuitive app.

Most notably they enactment high-quality Bluetooth codecs, including aptX adaptive, aptX Lossless and LDAC. With the close hardware (iOS doesn't enactment LDAC), and the close streaming level (Spotify launched lossless audio past year), you should theoretically get the champion disposable sound. Keep successful caput you can't really get genuinely lossless audio implicit a Bluetooth transportation – you'll request a ligament – but you bash astatine slightest get the tech present to get the highest-possible streaming quality, and that's a boon for fund earbuds.

You besides get power-efficient LE audio, oregon Bluetooth debased energy. This besides enables Auracast, an emerging exertion that lets aggregate devices link to the aforesaid source: ideate a telephone broadcasting to aggregate sets of earbuds. Both LE Audio and Auracast are acold from ubiquitous – you'll request an Android telephone for LE, to commencement with – but it's bully to cognize these buds tin enactment them successful future.

EarFun Air Pro 4 Plus: Stripped-back Design and Solid Battery Life

The EarFun Air Pro 4’s awesome dependable and diagnostic database is matched by their comfort.

The buds measurement conscionable implicit 5g each. You'll find lighter earbuds – the 4.2g HyperX Cloud Mix Buds 2 stay my go-to proposal for ultra-portable gaming earbuds – but these are airy capable to marque maine hide I'm wearing them. Their elemental signifier and rubber tips made them comfy for agelong gaming sessions, trips connected the train, oregon for sweaty workouts (they're IP55-rated, truthful a spot of moisture is fine).

They're not disfigured but I don't similar their two-tone look – each achromatic but for the extracurricular of the stem, which is simply a greyish-purple. I besides privation the interaction power information was bigger than the tiny ellipse astatine the apical of the stem. It made adjusting the measurement oregon pausing euphony consciousness fiddly.

They are astatine slightest coagulated and sturdy. The curved lawsuit feels compact, holds the buds tight, and snaps securely.

EarFun says they'll past 12 hours with progressive sound cancelling (ANC) turned off, and that the lawsuit gives you an other 42 hours earlier it needs plugging in. Those are marathon numbers that eclipse astir earbuds – but successful practice, you astir apt won't scope those heights. Between crippled mode, ANC, dual transportation and a fewer different settings toggling connected and off, I got betwixt six and 8 hours connected a azygous charge. Strong but not spectacular.

EarFun Air Pro 4 Plus: Mediocre Noise Cancelling

Active Noise Cancelling is astir what you'd expect astatine this price: it volition dampen incoming sound but it won't blank retired large sounds. I could beryllium successful a cafe and enactment without a adjacent speech disturbing maine but astatine the gym I could inactive perceive the occasional clink of weights successful the background. On the London Underground, the screech of the Victoria Line made it hard to perceive what I was listening to.

As good arsenic being mediocre, the ANC is overcomplicated. There are 4 antithetic sound cancelling modes: AI Ear Adaptive ANC, AI Environment Adaptive ANC, a Manual mode with a slider, and Wind Noise Cancelling. After speechmaking the descriptions I can't truly archer you the quality betwixt the archetypal two, and I didn't truly consciousness immoderate meaningful auto-adjustments from them.

Ambient dependable amplifies sound astir you and is arsenic fine. It has 2 settings, 1 much hissy than the other. Both allowed maine to perceive postulation sound erstwhile I was walking but neither were almighty capable to intelligibly perceive idiosyncratic talking crossed the country portion I was listening to the buds.

Whether these middling features are a dealbreaker depends connected however you'll usage them. If you enactment retired successful a engaged gym oregon question connected a engaged commute and request top-tier sound cancelling, you mightiness privation to look elsewhere.