OnePlus Buds 4 can be called the flagship killer earbuds of 2025. At a price of ₹5,999, they compete with AirPods Pro 2 and Samsung Buds 3 Pro in many cases. The experience was great.
At one point of time, OnePlus smartphones used to come with the tag of flagship killer. They were packed with such advanced hardware and software at a low price that the flagship phones of Apple and Samsung used to be outdone. With time, OnePlus phones became flagships instead of flagship killers, but their OnePlus Buds 4, launched on Tuesday, can be called the flagship killer earbuds of 2025.
I have been reviewing the OnePlus Buds 4, launched at Rs 5,999, for 2 weeks now. Before giving a detailed review of these, I can say that in many cases I found my Airpods Pro 2 and Samsung Buds 3 Pro to be weaker. Let’s stop beating around the bush and start giving information in detail on every aspect.
Table of Contents
Build and design
OnePlus Buds 4 come with a minimalist design and there is nothing odd in their design that no one will like. The build of the buds is quite solid and compact so that you can easily carry it in your pocket. Also, they come in special metallic texture and matte finish. They will be available in Zen Green and Storm Gray colors. We have the Zen Green color model of OnePlus Buds 4 for review. I personally liked it better than the gray color. A pairing button is also provided on the case of the earbuds, which makes it easy to pair the buds with a new device. They come with Bluetooth 5.4 and also support Google Fast Pair.
Apps and features
OnePlus Buds 4 support HeyMelody app and come with many amazing audio and AI features. We will talk about audio later. Talking about the app for now, apart from the Hey Melody app, if you use them with OnePlus, Oppo or Vivo phones, you will not need to install the app. In these devices, you will find all the controls of the buds in the Bluetooth menu itself.
The app of OnePlus Buds 4 is quite feature rich and you will be able to customize every aspect of the buds as per your wish. Here you get features like OnePlus 3D Audio, Sound Master EQ, Hi-Res mode and Golden Sound Profile. These buds also come with some special AI features. In these you will get the feature of AI Translate. You will be able to use features like Face to Face Translation and Live Translation. In my testing, both these features were found working well. You will also get the option of dual pairing in these buds. With this, you will be able to pair them with two devices simultaneously.
Sound Quality and Battery Life
Any device is called a flagship killer when it beats the flagship device of its category at a low price. Something similar is the case with OnePlus Buds 4. As soon as I took them out of the box and put them in my ears, the noise cancellation of the buds turned on by default and it impressed me a lot.
These buds offer 55dB of noise cancellation at the maximum level and you will be able to feel it as soon as you put them in your ears. I found their noise cancellation to be at the level of my Airpods Pro 2 and Samsung Buds 3 Pro. Although the transparency mode is not as strong as Airpods Pro 2 and Samsung Buds 3 Pro,
the buds beat the high-end TWS earbuds in terms of sound quality. They have coaxial dual-driver system Dual DACs. They also support Certified Hi-Res Audio Wireless with LHDC 5.0 codec. You will be able to feel the music with them. Although they have an 11mm woofer for bass, the bass works only where it is needed. It does not dominate your music. While using them, I reached another world while listening to Rishabh Sharma’s Chanakya in lossless quality on Apple Music. If you are a true music lover, then these buds will fulfill all your needs. They are not over loud either. This maintains the quality of your music.
My call quality experience with the buds was also good. The company claims that with the case, these will give 45 hours of backup. In my two weeks of testing, I did not have to charge them even once.
How many stars for OnePlus Buds 4?
OnePlus Buds 4 are truly flagship killers. Their sound quality and noise cancellation surprised me. I would like to continue using them as my daily driver. If you care about the overall music experience instead of just the bass, then these buds are for you. So that my words are not misinterpreted, let me tell you that you will get plenty of bass in these buds but only where it is needed. If there is any nitpicking, then I can say that the transparency mode of the buds is fine. However, I rarely felt the need to use it. I can give OnePlus Buds 4 4 stars out of 5.
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