Motorola’s new Moto Buds Plus offer Bose-quality ANC and tuning at a budget price
Motorola has launched two new wireless earbuds that offer Bose audio tuning and best-in-class active noise cancellation at very competitive prices. It calls out the new earbuds: the Moto Buds and Moto Buds Plus.
The Moto Buds Plus are the standout earbuds of the two, as they have some impressive features you’d find in the best wireless earbuds for a budget price of just £129 (around $160 and AU$250, but we’ve yet to do get prices for other regions). There’s Hi-Res audio support, active noise cancellation and Dolby Atmos with Head Tracking technology to provide dynamic directional audio when listening to compatible continents.
The earbuds have two triple microphone systems, which help cancel noise and ambient noise when making and taking phone calls. There’s also what Motorola calls ‘CrystalTalk AI’ on board, which uses algorithms to reduce noise caused by windy conditions.
Eight hours of battery life is provided by the earbuds themselves, while the case offers up to 38 hours of playback. And you can get three hours of playback from just 10 minutes of charging, which can be handy if you’re the forgetful type who regularly leaves the earbuds out of the case. As a handy extra, the case offers wireless charging and the earbuds are water resistant.
The standout feature, however, is the audio tuning by Bose. Normally you’d have to look at the best noise canceling earbuds to find Bose’s audio prowess, but with the Moto Buds Plus you get EQ tuning from the audio giant, in addition to its expertise on the ANC front.
Depending on your audio playback tastes, Bose tuning can be a real boon or bust here. Having used Bose headphones before, I’m quite dependent on how the bass and mids are tuned. And Bose’s ANC matches Sony’s ability to crush external noise with the WH-1000XM5 series of headphones.
The caveat here is that Bose tuning on earbuds could become a marketing gimmick if the Moto Buds Plus’ dual dynamic drivers can’t deliver the punchy audio you expect from Bose. We’ll find out once we thoroughly test the Moto Buds Plus.
The Moto Buds Plus are available for purchase from today (April 16) in the colors ‘Forest Gray’ (actually smoky black) or ‘Beach Sand’ (a form of off-white).
Motorola’s Moto Buds: Key Specs
For those on a budget, Motorola has the £49 (about $61 and AU$95) Moto Buds. These earbuds don’t get the Bose tuning, but they still have hi-res audio support and ANC – which isn’t bad at all for the price.
Battery life is nine hours, with two hours of listening time after just a 10-minute charge. Combined with the power the case can hold, the Moto Buds provide up to 42 hours of playback time. And thanks to their water resistance, these earbuds can be good for sweaty workouts.
The Moto Buds are available in a quartet of color options called ‘Starlight Blue’, ‘Glacier Blue’, ‘Coral Peach’ or ‘Kiwi Green’. And they will be available from mid-May. Stay tuned for our reviews and further thoughts.