Comparison Honor Earbuds X7 vs Huawei FreeBuds SE 2

Codecs and additional audio processing technologies supported by Bluetooth headphones (see “Connection”). Initially, sound transmission via Bluetooth involves fairly strong signal compression; This is not critical when transmitting speech, but can greatly spoil the impression when listening to music. To eliminate this shortcoming, various technologies are used, in particular aptX, aptX HD, aptX Low Latency, aptX Adaptive, AAC, LDAC and LHDC. Of course, to use any of the technologies, it must be supported not only by the “ears”, but also by the Bluetooth device with which they are used. Here are the main features of each option:

- aptX. A Bluetooth codec designed to significantly improve the quality of audio transmitted over Bluetooth. According to the creators, it allows you to achieve quality comparable to Audio CD (16-bits/44.1kHz). The benefits of aptX are most noticeable when listening to high-quality content (such as lossless formats), but even on regular MP3 it can provide a noticeable sound improvement.

- aptX HD. Development and improvement of the original aptX, allowing for sound purity comparable to Hi-Res audio (24-bits/48kHz). As in the original, the benefits of aptX HD are noticeable mainly on high-quality...audio, although this codec will not be out of place for MP3.

- aptX Low Latency. A specific version of aptX described above, designed not so much to improve sound quality, but to reduce delays in signal transmission. Such delays inevitably occur when working via Bluetooth; They are not critical for listening to music, but when watching videos or playing games, there may be a noticeable desynchronization between the image and sound. The aptX LL codec eliminates this phenomenon, reducing latency to 32 ms - such a difference is imperceptible to human perception (although for serious tasks like studio audio work it is still too high). aptX LL support is found mainly in gaming headphones.

- aptX Adaptive. Further development of aptX; actually combines the capabilities of aptX HD and aptX Low Latency, but is not limited to this. One of the main features of this standard is the so-called adaptive bitrate: the codec automatically adjusts the actual data transfer rate based on the characteristics of the broadcast content (music, game audio, voice communications, etc.) and the congestion of the frequencies used. This, in particular, helps reduce energy consumption and increase communication reliability; and special algorithms allow you to broadcast sound quality comparable to aptX HD (24 bits/48 kHz), using several times less amount of transmitted data. And the minimum data transfer latency (at the aptX LL level) makes this codec excellent for games and movies.

- aptX Lossless. The next stage in the development of aptX technology, which involves transmitting CD-quality sound over a wireless Bluetooth network without loss or compression. Audio broadcasting with sampling parameters of 16 bits / 44.1 kHz is carried out with a bitrate of about 1.4 Mbit/s - this is about three times faster than it was in the aptX Adaptive edition (see above). Support for aptX Lossless began to be introduced at the end of 2021 as part of the Snapdragon Sound initiative from Qualcomm.

- A.A.C. A Bluetooth codec used primarily in portable Apple gadgets. In terms of capabilities, it is noticeably inferior to more advanced standards like aptX or LDAC: the sound quality when using AAC is comparable to an average MP3 file. However, for listening to the same MP3s, this is quite enough; the difference becomes noticeable only on more advanced formats. AAC hardware requirements are low, and its support in headphones is inexpensive.

— LDAC. Sony's proprietary Bluetooth codec. It surpasses even aptX HD in terms of bandwidth and potential sound quality, providing performance at the Hi-Res level of 24-bits/96kHz audio; there is even an opinion that this is the maximum quality that it makes sense to provide in wireless headphones - further improvement will simply be imperceptible to the human ear. On the other hand, supporting this standard is not cheap, and there are still quite a few gadgets with such support - these are, in particular, Sony smartphones, as well as mid- and high-end devices running Android 8.0 Oreo and later versions.

- LHDC. LHDC (Low latency High-Definition audio Codec) is a high-definition, low-latency codec developed by the Hi-Res Wireless Audio Alliance and Savitech. In the vast majority of cases, its support is implemented at the hardware level in Huawei and Xiaomi smartphones. The codec is also known as HWA (Hi-Res Wireless Audio). When using LHDC, signal transmission from the phone to the headphones is carried out with a bits rate of up to 900 kbps, a bits depth of up to 24 bits and a sampling frequency of up to 96 kHz. This ensures a stable and reliable communication with reduced latency. The codec is optimally suited for high-end wireless headphones and advanced digital audio formats.

Headphones with voice assistant support the user interaction with the device to a new level. The call of the assistant. is carried out by pressing one of the control buttons on the headphones or by a specific voice command (for example, «Ok, Google» for the Google Assistant virtual apprentice). The assistant pauses playback, instantly changes the volume of the music, can notify the user of new alerts, helps to answer messages without the help of hands, and commands are given to the paired smartphone via voice control from the headphones.

The search function will come in handy if the headphones are missing somewhere and you cannot find them. It is implemented, as a rule, through a smartphone application. In the programme interface, just press the search button and both headphones will immediately start emitting a loud signal. The second option for implementing the headphone search function is to track the last location of the headphones according to GPS satellites.

The capacity of the battery installed in the headphones of the corresponding design (see "Power").

Theoretically, a higher capacity allows to achieve greater battery life, but in fact, the operating time also depends on the power consumption of the headphones — and it can be very different, depending on the characteristics and design features. So this parameter is secondary, and when choosing it is worth paying attention not so much to the battery capacity, but to the directly claimed operating time (see below).

The capacity of the battery installed in the case (case) for headphones.

This parameter is relevant only for true wireless models (see "Cable type"). Recall that these headphones are charged from a case, which is usually equipped with its own battery and actually works in standalone power bank mode. Knowing the capacity of the battery in the case and in the headphones, you can estimate how many charges of the “ears” will last for one charge of the case. However, it should be taken into account that in the process of charging the headphones, part of the energy is inevitably spent on third-party losses, and the effective capacity of the case turns out to be somewhere 1.6 times less than the claimed one. This is the starting point for calculations: for example, a 300 mAh case will actually be able to transfer 300 / 1.6 = 187 mAh of energy to the headphones, and 30 mAh “ears” from such a battery can be fully charged about 6 times (187 / 30 ≈ 6).

The time required to fully charge the battery in properly powered headphones (see above).

In this case, we mean the battery charging time from 0 to 100% when using a standard charger (or a third-party charger with identical characteristics). Accordingly, in fact, this indicator may differ from the claimed one, depending on the specifics of the situation. However, in general, it is quite possible to evaluate different models and compare them with each other: headphones with a shorter claimed charging time will in fact charge faster (ceteris paribus).

Also note that an increase in battery capacity (and headphone battery life) inevitably implies an increase in charging time. To compensate for this moment, special fast charging technologies can be used — however, they affect the cost and require the use of specialized charger.

The maximum battery life of headphones on one full charge of the battery or replaceable batteries in talk mode. A long working time will be relevant for those who expect to regularly conduct long telephone conversations. Note that in talk mode, autonomy may be lower than when listening to music, since the use of microphones and clear voice transmission algorithms puts an additional burden on the hardware of the headphones.

The function reduces the charging time of the headphones compared to the duration of the standard procedure. For this, increased voltage and / or current strength is used, as well as a special "smart" process control. The capabilities and features of fast charging may vary depending on the specific implementation of the technology. Most often, accelerated charging implies the possibility of literally 5-10 minutes. extend the battery life of the headphones in the accompanying charging case by at least one hour of additional playback.

The headphones have special protection against moisture and dust; also, this clause may specify the level of such protection according to the IP standard.

Not all waterproof headphones allow complete immersion in water, but in this case this is usually not required — water protection is mainly intended for safe operation in the rain (or during sports activities when the user sweats a lot). But the specific degree of such protection in different models can vary markedly, and here it is most convenient to evaluate it by IP marking. This marking consists of the letters IP and two numbers; moisture resistance is described by the second, last digit, and in modern headphones you can find the following options:

— 2. Protection against vertical drops of water in the working position and when the device deviates up to 15 ° from this position. The minimum indicator that allows us to talk about resistance to rain (however, without strong winds).
— 3. Protection against splashes falling vertically or at an angle up to 60° from the vertical. Provides resistance to moderate rain and strong winds.
— 4. Splash proof from any direction. With such headphones, rain of medium intensity is not terrible, regardless of the strength of the wind.
— 5. Protected against water jets from any direction. Allows you to transfer already a combination of strong wind w...ith a downpour.
— 6. Protection against strong water jets. It is considered the minimum level that allows you to swim safely (with your head above the surface of the water) wearing headphones.
— 7. Possibility of short-term (less than half an hour) immersion under water to a shallow depth (less than 1 m); continuous operation in immersed mode is not expected. In such headphones, you can no longer only swim, but also dive under water to a shallow depth (plunge with your head), but they are not suitable for full-fledged diving.
— 8. The highest level of water protection actually found in modern headphones (although theoretically there is a higher level, level 9). Allows long-term (more than 30 minutes) immersion under water to a depth of 1 m or more, and even permanent work in a submerged position. And although the latter is not particularly relevant for headphones, however, this degree of protection makes it possible to swim and even dive safely. However, note that specific restrictions on use in such headphones may be different, they must be clarified according to the instructions.

As for protection against dust (it is indicated by the first digit in the IP marking), its level in modern “ears” is indicated mainly in cases where it corresponds to level 4 (protection against objects 1 mm thick or more), 5 (allowed a small amount of dust that does not affect the operation of the device) or 6 (complete protection against dust). Also note that this number can be replaced by the letter "X" — for example, IPX7; this means that no official dust certification has been carried out for this model. However, this resistance in many cases can be assessed by the degree of protection against moisture: for example, devices with a moisture resistance of 7 or 8, by definition, do not let water through — which means that they are also not afraid of dust.