There is no doubt that technology enters through the eyes. Later it stays in place thanks to its features, but seduction begins with the view, with the design. Brands like Nothing have opted for this and have achieved great success, but they are also those that maintain a design and focus exclusively on quality. Huawei’s Freebuds series falls into this category.
For several years now I have had the opportunity to test many of Huawei’s audio products, starting with the first generation of the FreeBuds Pro series. I still have the FreeBuds Pro 2 as my daily use headphones for reasons such as battery, comfort and reliability. Two generations later, Huawei’s audio elite has arrived with the Pro 4. The design, let’s be honest, has not changed much, there are details that give it the premium touch: a golden band that runs along the profiles, both in the black model (the one I tested), and in white or jade greenall of them with an almost velvety color texture (if that exists). In short: visually they are very attractive.
Is this enough? Let’s go in parts. As far as comfort is concerned (a fundamental section in those in-ear headphones that we will wear for hours), they graduate with honors. They are light (less than 6 grams), they adapt perfectly to the ear without disturbing and I recommend trying the four sizes of eartips available, it is worth being surprised, since Not only does comfort change, but also the sound thanks to its better adaptation to the ear canal.. Having used memory foam instead of the usual silicone, they generate a better fit and greater comfort after hours of wearing them.
For years, Huawei has dedicated itself with almost artisanal care to gadgets such as watches and headphones. The knowledge obtained during this period has resulted in a very high quality product. In this sense, the FreeBuds Pro 4 behave as expected from 200 euro headphones: excellent quality in the lowest ranges, very low distortion at maximum volume and crystal clear voices, both in audio and in calls. They have very little competition.
Of course, it should be noted that all premium configurations, such as The customization option available in AI Life is only available on Huawei devices. This means that those who have a home cell phone will notice differences compared to those who do not have a Huawei smartphone. Is it noticeable? If we only use them with an Android or an iPhone, we will not think that there are many better quality options, but the jump is noticeable upwards. But to do this you have to be an audio fanatic whose work has to do with channels, distortion and acoustic signals.
The other decisive factor is the battery: with the charging case I have almost 30 hours of playback, just over 20 with the active noise cancellation option. Without depending on the case, The figures reach 6 hours and 4.5 hours respectively. 10 minutes in the charging case is enough for us to have enough for a movie or several episodes of a series.
Regarding noise cancellation (ANC), Huawei does not surprise by keeping the standard high: reduces outside sounds and when traveling by train or plane, it behaves very effectively thanks to the pickup algorithms, the microphones (sensitive and well placed) and the aforementioned viscoelastic foam.
The most pleasant surprise, however, came in the calls. At both ends. On the other side of the phone my voice came through clearly, despite being in an airport and even abusing the systemwith a vacuum cleaner nearby. And the voice came without problems. On the opposite end, I received calls clearly without being close to the phone and with only one earpiece in place. Compared to the FreeBuds Pro 2, the jump is enormous and was an already complex task.
A defect that the series maintains is its difficulty in bringing sound quality and design to sport: they do not perform very well in jumping and racing. And that should be an order for Huawei: bring this quality to sports headphones.
Verdict:
Although we are in the early hours of 2025, we are looking at one of the best headphones of the year. Taking into account that they are much cheaper than the competition (Apple, Sony or Bose) and perform at least as well, unless you use them exclusively for sports, they are the best headphones of the moment.