Buds Air 5 Pro review: Realme's best earbuds yet

Realme made some important strides in India’s smartphone business, securing one of the top five spots in the chart. A lot of its business also comes from the mobile accessories it sells. The personal audio business, particularly, took off because of good quality and affordability. I can easily recommend a pair of Realme wireless earbuds to my friend looking for good earphones on a budget. The latest ones, Buds Air 5 Pro, are even more preferred by me. These earbuds are stylish, cost less than Rs 5,000, and bring a lot to the table for that price. You get active noise-cancellation (ANC), support for lossless LDAC codec, and support for spatial audio — all for Rs 4,999. That price makes it a compelling option in the sea of wireless earbuds, but is it any good and can it be a worthy wedding gift? I have an answer for you in this review.

Realme Buds Air 5 Pro design

The conventional design for earbuds has not changed much over the years. That is because it works and is convenient for most customers. Realme’s new earbuds continue with the oval-shaped cradle design that we have seen on previous models. It might come across as boring, especially to people who have used previous Buds Air Pro models. But that is not to say it is bad. It is one of the most comfortable designs I have come across. The oval shape makes it handier than some other earbuds, which have a squarish or round shape. I always dropped the earbuds into my pocket recklessly and its shape compensated for my lack of care, in a way.

You get the Buds Air 5 Pro in two colours. The one you see in this review and I have used is called Astral Black and the other one, which is a variation of white, is called Sunrise Beige. I like the variant I have been using because black is my favourite colour. But that aside, the astral patterns on the design of the charging cradle make it stand out. It, however, may be a bit gaudy for some. If you are finicky about the hygiene of your gadgets, you should avoid this Astral Black variant because it catches fingerprints easily. Both variants have a pairing button on the right side and a USB-C port on the bottom.

The case is well-built, opens with one hand easily, and gives a satisfying click sound. Anyone thinking that the Buds Air 5 Pro uses filmy lids because the price is low will be impressed by how sturdy it is. The entire cradle is lightweight and the individual earbuds are ergonomic. They fit all ear sizes, provided you go for the best ear tip fit. I usually wear earbuds while working out or running so when I used the Buds Air 5 Pro, I did not have to worry about them getting drenched in sweat. The earbuds easily ward off water or sweat splashes and can last for hours. You may even shower with earbuds on if you are into wacky experiments.

I think the Buds Air 5 Pro have a run-of-the-mill design but that is not a bad thing because it offers convenience like you would expect.

Realme Buds Air 5 Pro performance

The Buds Air 5 Pro earbuds are designed for the likes of Indian users, I think. I am saying that because the signature sound output is bass-heavy. It is turned on by default, and most customers will not have to fine-tune it. But those who are not into bassy sounds have an option. The Realme Link app lets you equalise the sound. Apart from the four presets you get, you also have the option for granular control of the highs, mids, and lows. If you keep the tendency of the earbuds to belt out bassy sounds aside, you will mostly like the acoustic. I loved listening to some songs because of how wide the soundstage of the earbuds is. I have experienced this range on most premium earbuds, such as those from Sony and Bose. The 11mm bass driver and 6mm micro-planar tweeter offer a detailed package of music, which I liked. Sure, they cannot be perfect for all sorts of genres, but if you listen to Bollywood and English Pop music at optimum volume levels, you will love the earbuds.

Realme has managed to offer 360-degree spatial audio on the Buds Air 5 Pro, as well. This feature, which is mostly available on high-end earbuds, gives customers, willing to spend around Rs 5,000, a new experience. Spatial audio covers the entire aural dimension so you can figure out the direction of an instrument. Realme’s implementation of spatial audio is not perfect. It sometimes feels underwhelming and works with select phones (mostly Realme, Oppo, and OnePlus). I would still not discount it because you get to experience the feature on a Rs 5,000 pair of earbuds. There is also support for LDAC, which is a lossless codec allowing you to listen to uncompressed audio from eligible streaming platforms, such as Apple Music. While it is not very relevant to casual listeners, it can be a great help to professionals and audiophiles — especially at its price.

Another feather in its cap is the support for ANC. While ANC has become mainstream over the years, it can be good, bad, or average depending on how much you are willing to spend on earbuds. Considering the Realme Buds Air 5 Pro’s price, expectations are somewhat low but make no mistake. With noise cancellation for sounds up to 50dB, the Buds Air 5 Pro are among the most powerful earbuds for their price. What does that mean for you? If you are wearing these earbuds with noise cancellation turned on, you can easily listen to music and talk over the phone without the background noise of the office or home. If you are walking on the road with the earphones on, you are likely to hear the feeble sounds of a car honking, which was not so intruding for me.

If you have never used wireless earbuds before, you will be amazed to see how easy it is to pair the Buds Air 5 Pro. Thanks to Google Fast Pair, the prompt to pair the earbuds shows up on eligible Android phones the moment you open the lid. On the iPhone, you, however, will have to take the old route of connecting the earbuds. I had no issues connecting the earbuds and throughout my usage, I never experienced any drops. The earbuds also support simultaneous connections with two devices, which is one of the most useful features. I could take calls on my iPhone and listen to a video on my Windows laptop without hassle.

Although I do not often use gestures to control the earbuds because I like managing the music playback from my phone, people who often rely on gesture input will find the experience slightly unpleasant. The taps sometimes are not recognised so I ended up tapping twice or even thrice. I think the shape of the earbuds has a lot to do with the unresponsiveness.

Realme Buds Air 5 Pro battery

I absolutely loved how long these earbuds have lasted for me. On a single charge, the total backup of the Buds Air 5 Pro goes up to 30-35 hours. Turning off noise cancellation increases battery life. If you are someone who uses earbuds for about two hours a day, the charging case easily lasts for a week without needing juice again.

Realme Buds Air 5 Pro verdict

If you ask me what is the best pair of wireless earbuds for about Rs 5,000 right now, I would instantly recommend the Realme Buds Air 5 Pro. That is because they offer some top-class features such as LDAC support and spatial audio for a low price. Most customers will like the default sound signature of these earbuds, tuned to sound according to Bollywood music. And those who like to tinker have enough options to customise the sound according to their preference. The finish on the cradle and inconsistent touch controls could be offputting for some customers but these, I think, are the tradeoffs you will have to make.