Realme Buds Air Neo review
Yes, it's true. At first glance, they look like Apple's AirPods. THE Realme Buds Air Neo, the earphones true wireless of the Chinese company, are clearly inspired by the Apple headphones. The similarities, however, stop at the design. In fact, we are talking about a decidedly cheaper product: only 39,99 € for these earphones.
The cost is therefore very affordable but what can we expect from such an affordable pair of headphones? To find out, we used them for a few weeks and now we are ready to tell you about our experience in this review.
Something new, something old
The similarity is evident: i Real Buds Air Neo reminiscent of the AirPods. The shape is almost identical, except for the stem which is less rounded and without the silver part at the base. Small details that catch the eye if you are passionate and / or experts in the sector but that a layman will hardly notice.
The body is made of plastic, there is the IPX4 certification (for sweat resistance) and lines are typical of true wireless non-in-ear headphones. Yes, you got it right. Technically, the Buds Air Neo are not in-ear headphones because there is no grommet that gets stuck inside your ear canal. The design however allows them to still remain anchored to your ear, although the feeling of stability is not that guaranteed by in-ear solutions.
At this point you will ask yourself: ok, but are they more or less comfortable? Depends. Personally I have always preferred the in-ear solutions for two reasons: 1) I don't have the constant feeling that they are about to fall 2) they can change the grommet to fit my ears.
On the other hand, there are those who find products of this kind annoying because they don't like having a small object stuck in their ear.
Know that both variants can work well and be comfortable. Where only to decide what you prefer.
But let's get back to Realme's headphones. Like any self-respecting true wireless product, they are accompanied by a compact case, designed to fit in your pocket and equipped with a front button that starts pairing with smartphones, tablets and PCs.
To disappoint are the connector cable. The first is a microUSB, now a bit old-fashioned; the second is really too short, so much so that, in the end, you prefer to use the ones you already have at home.
Realme Buds Air Neo review: how do they work?
Over the past year we have tried a number of wireless earbuds and the obvious conclusion is this: the higher the cost, the higher the quality. Not only constructive but above all sound.
So imagine our reaction to the arrival of the Realme Buds Air Neo. For 39,99 euros we didn't expect almost anything.
The headphones of the Chinese company, however, managed to prove us wrong: the acoustic experience is better than expected. The sound is balanced, the bass is not lacking, the voices are clear and clean and the volume is very loud.
The microphones on the other hand are disappointing. Expect good call quality only in rather quiet environments such as a home or office. As soon as you enter traffic, in a bar or in any noisy place, the situation will worsen in an evident way and your interlocutor will struggle to understand you.
Then there is no isolation from external noise, a direct consequence of the shape of these earphones, but on the other hand we have the low latency mode, which can be activated by pressing and holding both earphones for a few seconds. What is it for? To have a perfect synchronization between audio and video, avoiding the slightest discrepancy we are now used to. The difference is not very marked but improves the enjoyment of video games and films.
The function is therefore interesting and useful, it is a pity that Realme has associated the start of the car engine with its activation. Perhaps a voice that warns the user would have been more appropriate.
The Realme Link application
Strangely, low latency cannot be enabled via the application, called realme link. Available only on Android, the app is for update the firmware and allows you to customize the commands associated with double and triple taps and long press. The surface of Realme's headphones is indeed soft touch and allows you to control playback without much difficulty. You just have to decide what to associate with the different touches and individual earphones.
By default you will find these gestures:
- double tap, both left and right, to play or pause;
- triple tap, both left and right, to move forward;
- press for one second, both left and right, to call up the voice assistant.
Don't expect many other commands. The only one not used by default is Back. The rest is just a matter of finding the most comfortable combination.
Autonomy below average
Finally, we come to autonomy. The Real Buds Air Neo give you about 3 hours of music playback on a single charge, after which you can place them in the case for another 14 hours of use. In total then we have 17 hours of battery life, partially - but not entirely - justified by the small size of the case. In fact, the competition tends to reach and exceed 20 hours even without the use of bulky cases.
Realme Buds Air Neo review: buy them or not?
Leaving aside the lack of originality of the design, Realme's true wireless earbuds managed to convince us. With 39,99 euros you can take it home a well-made pair of headphones, with satisfying audio and useful low-latency mode.
All this assuming a purely recreational use. In short, if you just want to listen to music, play games or watch movies, TV series and videos of all kinds.
If, on the other hand, you are looking for something that allows you to converse on the phone and hold hours of conference calls, you should focus on another product.
Real Buds Air Neo
Pro 
- Excellent build quality
- Good sound quality
- Low latency mode
- Super tempting price
Cons 
- Old-fashioned microUSB connector
- Low performance microphones
