Realme Buds Air 3 Review: Solid all-rounder at Rs. 3999

Name: Realme Buds Air 3
Item: Realme Buds Air 3
Author: Amritanshu Mukherjee

The Realme Buds Air 3 sounds even better than before and with a myriad of smart features, it spares little reason to spend more on a pair of TWS earbuds.

By: AMRITANSHU MUKHERJEE
| Updated on: Aug 22 2022, 11:37 IST

Realme Buds Air 3 cost Rs. 3,999 in India and are available in two colour variants. (Amritanshu / HT Tech)

I still remember the day when I first got to saw the original Realme Buds Air back in late 2019. TWS earbuds had become common in those days but nothing in the sub- ₹5,000 segment could offer the same experience as the Apple AirPods, which was considered the gold standard. The Buds Air looked great and was convenient to wear all-day. It had its fair share of issues though and reliability was one of the biggest concerns. The Buds Air 2 came last year with massive improvements but it wasn't easily recommendable.

Hence, with the Realme Buds Air 3, expectations were high. Us critics simply wanted two things in the Buds Air 3 – good sound and better reliability. After spending over a week with it, I can assure Realme has done that and then some, making the Buds Air 3 the contender of being the best in its class. At Rs. 3,999, it is still affordable too.

Realme Buds Air 3 Design

Realme likes to copy Apple's product designs and similar to its ancestor, the Buds Air 3 resembles the Apple AirPods Pro (at least from the case). You see the same pebble shaped case design and this time, there is a stylized “Realme logo” on top of it. The glossy white look nice but as with all earbuds cases, it picks up scratches easily. Realme still retains the pairing button on the side, and you have your USB-C port for charging. Sadly, Realme still skimps on the wireless charging feature.

image caption — Realme Buds Air 3 (Amritanshu / HT Tech)

Open the lid and you see the two earbuds waiting to be taken out. The weird shape of the buds makes it difficult to pull them out but you could get used to it. The stems are long and the silver accent certainly looks stylish. The silicon eartips help with the ambient isolation but they haven't been helpful in enhancing the in-ear grip. In fact, with some rigorous jaw movement (laughing, talking), the earbuds easily slip out of the ear.

And yes, that customization bit with my name imprinted is cool and I hope Realme brings this an option for its accessories.

Realme Buds Air 3 Audio Performance

When it comes to the audio performance, the Realme Buds Air 3 has taken a massive leap over its predecessor. Realme has tuned the earbuds well for a wide soundstage, although it still leaves some area for Realme to offer an improved version later. Unless your ears are used to high-end audio gear, the Buds Air 3 sounds alive and rich, be it Bollywood, International pop, classical music, and country radio. The low end is a bit nuanced with special emphasis on bass, while the mids are the clearest with lots of clarity and details. The highs are good too.

You can tune the equalizer settings in the Realme Link app to your liking but the new Audio Tuning feature helps in getting it right just for your ears. It took me a couple of minutes to go through the process but the end result was a richer and lively experience than ever.

Helping the Buds Air 3 is the noise isolation measures. The passive noise isolation isn't very good here, despite the silicon eartips. However, the ANC system is stronger this time than before and it does a lot more to stop wind noise, distant puttering engines of vehicles, dimming aircraft noise, and barking dogs. You can choose the strength of the ANC system, with a Light setting to ease off the pressure build-up. There is also a transparency mode that does exact the opposite, let in as much noise it can into the ear.

Realme Buds Air 3 Special features

Similar to its predecessors, the Buds Air 3 also features a new Game mode. With 88ms of latency, I was able to enjoy some of these multiplayer games without major audio lags. There is some but most players won't mind it.

There are also a bunch of other smart features that you can manage from the Realme Link app. You get features such as Auto-answer, dual-device connection, earbuds fit test, customizing the touch buttons, wind noise reduction, and volume enhancer. Some of these features work as advertised and some aren't as effective. Maybe Realme can fix some of them via a future OTA update.

Realme Buds Air 3 Battery Life

The Realme Buds Air 3 promises good battery life and in my usage, I was able to make it last for 8-9 days without any charge. In this period, I wore it for 2-3 hours on an average, answered calls, and listened to music in equal proportions. The earbuds can go on until 5.5 hours while the case provides even more power backup. Note that this was with the ANC mode switched on. Charging takes almost two hours via a USB-C charger.

Verdict

The original Realme Buds Air were all about bringing the AirPods experience to the masses and with the new model, the focus in now on audio quality without skimping on the smart bits. The Realme Buds Air 3 sounds great for a pair of earbuds costing Rs. 3,999. The ANC system is more effective this year and there has been a notable improvement in battery life. Even the build quality is much better than before, which reassures of longevity with the third-gen model. However, I wish the passive noise isolation was a bit better and so was the in-ear grip.

That said, these are niggles that can be overlooked. The Realme Buds Air 3 then becomes one of our top recommendations in this segment. If you want a good bass-rich listening experience along with a solid ANC system and good battery life, look no further than the Realme Buds Air 3.

Rating

4 out of 5

Price

INR 3,999/-

Product Name

Realme Buds Air 3

Brand Name

Realme

Pros