Being the type of guy who have had a series of experience with different true wireless earbuds in the past especially after testing out the inexpensive ones, I’ve come to the conclusion that not all of them are horrible after all.
One o the main reason why I changed my opinion about cheap wireless earbuds is after I tried out the SWZYOR A2 TWS earbuds which in contrast to its odd design and monstrous charging case design, the earbud performed excellently well and sounded very premium. But today’s not the day to laud more praise on the earbud but to look at one of the currently popular affordable TWS earbud in the mid-range space and that is the Moecen Honor Choice Earbuds X1.
One of the funny thing about this Chinese brands is the naming and since copyright infringement is an issue in China, I wouldn’t be surprised to see the name “Honor” being plastered on an earbuds brand despite another existing company called Honor which is Huawei’s sister company but anyway thre seems to be no issue.
So Moecen designed this beautiful AirPods Pro knock off with some design tweaks that makes it more unique and feels much more better and premium compared to the innumerable AirPods pro clones you’ll find on AliExpress.
The charging case of the Honor Choice Earbuds X1 is slightly thicker than that of an AirPods Pro and the earbuds themselves are also thicker but it feel very cool when held in hand nd perfectly in my ear when tried on.
When the package was brought, I unboxed the device and directly from the casing, you’ll be welcomed by the pair of TWS earbuds well locked into place within the plastic enclosure as well as the casing which has a glossy finish to it.
Performance: Great sound, Fast connection, Powerful battery and so much more
The output of the Moecen Honor Choice Earbuds X1 is pretty distinct from some of those affordable TWS earbuds I’ve tried in the past and one of the interesting thing about this one is the sound. It is pretty decent and crisp.
Although there were some noticeable inferiority when put right beside expensive earbuds like the Apple AirPods Pro, the Honor X1 Earbuds did pretty well but I don’t want to be the type of guy that says ‘Don’t expect too much from a US$35 earbuds” because you deserve the best value for your money after all.
Even though the earbuds doesn’t have an application like the premium ones and I honestly still do not know why these companies can’t make an application for their products, the connection is blazing fast and you don’t have to do to much.
Compared to the QCY T5 earbuds which has this “Game Mode” that can be activated when you’re playing games in order to enhance connection and reduce lag by every means possible, the Honor Choice Earbuds X1 doesn’t have such functionality which makes it a what you see is what you get.
But in terms of performances, if you want to know how well the earbuds measure with others in its price region, I’d say its due to its cool technology which includes the Bluetooth 50 capacity as well as touch control. There is also support for the AAC and SBC codecs with a 5hours solid battery life thanks to its bulky design which gives it advantage of housing a bigger pack of battery.
Connectivity
Open the lid and the Honor Choice Earbuds X1 starts pairing with one another and then with your smartphone and if you’re doing this for the first time, the process is also seamless meanwhile one of the biggest plus I see with this earbuds is that it doesn’t just disconnect and then reconnect like the SWZYOR A2 TWS earbuds which sometimes disconnect for no reason and quickly reconnect on its own as well as the Chinese lady that screams “Disconnected!” or “connected!” into your ear canal every time.
The subtle sound you hear based on the changes being made to the Honor Choice Earbuds X1 is calm and collected and it won’t hurt your ear when you lose connection because the earbuds is trying to warn you about connection problems.
Also much like the standard TWS earbuds out there, the connectivity range before you start getting breaks and cracks in connection is up to 10 meters. Although the Honor Choice X1 earbuds can also get farther but when its on a straight line with little to no obstruction, then it would be fine.
More like others I’ve tried, I found this one to being in the same realm as the rest in that I’m glued to my device but if I want to use the bathroom at home, there is obviously no problem in the connection even if the doors are closed but that’s due to the nearness of the bedroom and bathroom to one another.
Compared that scenario to my office for example, the restroom is quite farther from the main hall and usually there are about three doors leading into the male restroom and closing all three doors means connection loss or complete disconnection but reconnection happens immediately right after I come back out.
Another thing I noticed with the earbuds is that when I use it and then sleeping on one side, there is no signal loss compared to some that might have problem connection or maintaining the connection due to the close space. This was one of the biggest problems I had with the Bluedio T-Elf 2 which could disconnect even if my phone is in my tight jeans.
Calling with the Honor Choice Earbuds X1
This is one of the most crucial thing I consider when purchasing a new TWS earbud and that’s the call quality. Being a busy guy, I always want to be able to make/receive calls without having to interact with my phone whatsoever. I had this problem when I tried the HBQ Q32 TWS last year.
Probably due to it’s “Pill shape”, Making calls with the earbuds was horrible and to make things even worse, only one earbud work for the call while the other just sits silently in your ear.
The Honor Choice Earbuds X1 isn’t really bad for making calls especially when you’re in a quiet place because let’s face the fact, majority of the components used in making these “Affordable” TWS earbuds are cheap compared to those found in the likes of Beats, Sony or Bose.
Generally, I’ll rate call capability 5.5/10 which isn’t bad. I would prefer if the location of the mic can be located at the base of the earbud’s stem in order to allow user speak directly and then the earbud can pick easily more like the way smartphones do but these companies are fond of placing the microphone at the top of the earbuds’ body.
Design: Basically an AirPods Pro knock-off
Even though I’m not an Apple fan boy, it’s quite obvious that companies around the world have been trying hard to outright copy Apple’s product designs. Samsung, Huawei, Xiaomi and a bunch of nameless manufacturers in China who make product under many brands.
The good thing though about the Honor Choice Earbuds X1 is that despite borrowing majority of its design from the Apple AirPods Pro, it still took some unique approach into fine-tuning the look to make it more unique and can be branded to it’s own identity.
Bluedio despite making some of the “Not-so-good” TWS earbuds in the market have a great branding strategies as well as maintaining that look and feel that’s pretty distinct from the sea of TWS earbuds on places like AliExpress or Amazon.
The short stem of the Honor Choice Earbuds X1 is pretty decent and it’s not invasive like the first-gen AirPods knock-offs you see in the market. Those ones are so terribly designed that the earbud feels like you’re wearing a cigarette in your ears.
The Honor Choice Earbuds X1 is pretty compact and doesn’t budge out too much allowing for that perfect fit into the ear allowing it to isolate ambient noise around the surroundings since it has no Active Noise Cancellation technology. I don’t think there is any earbuds with that technology under the US$100 price mark.
If you remember earlier I spoke about always wearing tight jeans that’s because I like wearing tight jeans but the reason I’m saying that again is that the charging case of the Honor Choice Earbuds X1 is pretty small and fits right well in my inner pocket depending on how big it is in the jeans I’m wearing but overall, it fits very well into the hands and in your pocket if you don’t want to hurl it in a purse.
Though I’m an average guy with 179 CM height, the earbuds come with three ear tips and the medium size is the perfect fit for me probably due to my height. My girlfriend on the other hand is around 167 CM So she opted for the smaller ear tip but there was a little budge when she wore it on her ear which justifies the thickness compared to the slender AirPods Pro.
Battery life
This is another part where the Honor Choice Earbuds X1 excels well and that’s a big plus for heavy users like myself. Whenever I put the earbuds in my ears, I just want to listen to something maybe Joe Rogan’s podcast on the go or play some Travis Scott’s track while I’m working.
The point here is that the 5 hours mark is pretty decent and one of the contributing factors to the longevity of the battery’s life includes the volume of the sound being played as well as what you’re doing exactly – making calls or just listening to music, playing games or watching videos all which will impact the battery life.
Then there is the charging case which is petty decent also. It took me about 1hr 30 minutes to get the charging case to 100% including the earbuds themselves which is also pretty standard.
The Honor Choice Earbuds X1 has no support for wireless charging compared to some AirPods Pro knock-offs in the market but like I said, the earbuds is pretty standard and there is nothing much spectacular about it.
So if you’re buying it, you can expect the battery life to last you a pretty long time and if you’re a very heavy user, it can go on for about 12 hours altogether and that is 4 hours of continuous playback then 1hr 30 minutes of charging in-between.
Specifications of Honor Choice Earbuds X1
S/No | Specifications | Values |
---|---|---|
1 | Impedance | 16 ohms |
2 | Drigver Unit | 7 nm Dynamic |
3 | Connectivity | Bluetooth 5.0 |
4 | Frequency Response | 20 – 20000Hz |
5 | Bluetooth Protocol | AAC and SBC |
6 | Battery | 55 (500) mAh |
7 | Charging time | 90 minutes |
8 | Connection | USB Type-C |
9 | Wright | 4.3 (38.5) grams |
10 | Music Playback time | 5 hours |
Verdict
The Honor Choice Earbuds X1 is a pretty decent earbuds and it’s amazing. Although there are some downside to it which includes the lack of multiple color options as well as appliation or maybe I’m asking too much but that’s not too much.
The earbud has won the heart of many and mine as well and if you are the type of person that basically want an earbud that gets things done for you, then you can opt for the Honor Choice Earbuds X1.
Great battery life is one of the interesting things about the earbud and it also support the new USB Type-C connection. With its high frequency connectivity, this is a pretty device that you can grab at a minimal price point.
Honor Choice Earbuds X1 versus
Even though this is a pretty decent TWS earbud and it took the internet by storm which is how it got my attention, it’s definitely worth trying out but if by any means you still want a much better experience or you don’t want to own an earbud that looks like an AirPods Pro knock off or you don’t like the color then you can opt for the alternatives below.
QY T5 TWS earbuds
This is one of the best affordable TWS earbuds out there that I can recommend in case you don’t want to purchase the Honor Choice Earbuds X1. The matte finish on the earbuds as well as its high-premium-level tech makes it even more interesting.
Then there is the gaming mode which is meant to further help reduce latency and enhance audio output. The QCY T5’s battery lasts for 4 hours and the charging case is pretty minimal and it also support Bluetooth 5.0. Pricing is about US$40 to US$45.
Whizzer TP1S
If you have about US$100 that you can spare then I’d advise you get the Whizzer TP1s which is pretty decent. It’s also in the premium region and offer a premium quality sound as well as its own unique design which is distinct from the kock-offs you see everywhere on AliExpress.
Battery life is pretty great and the connectivity is blazing fast. Great audio quality is where the Whizzer TP1s stands out nd the durability is top-notch.
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