Very affordable earphones with many functions

We test the new Xiaomi Redmi Buds 5, very affordable earplugs with noise cancellation and simultaneous wireless connection with two devices. But what is the sound like?

You can sometimes find the Xiaomi Redmi Buds 5 online for less than forty euros.

Still, they offer many features: automatic noise cancellation (ANC) up to 46 dB with three selectable transparency levels to let in ambient noise (normal, voice or ambient); suppression of wind noise during telephone conversations up to 6m/s; simultaneous Bluetooth 5.3 pairing with two devices, for example a smartphone and a laptop; automatically pause audio and video when you remove the buds from the ear; and a relatively long battery life, up to ten hours with fully charged caps and up to forty hours using the included hard charging case.

There are also disadvantages. Although the 12.4mm driver is made of titanium, the rest of the earphones and charging case are made of sturdy-feeling plastic. A better codec than the standard Bluetooth version is not supported (you need the more expensive Buds 5 Pro for that).

The Redmi Buds 5 are only dust and moisture resistant to a limited extent, up to IP54. So, for example, you cannot shower or swim with it. The charging box itself is not resistant to moisture at all. Wireless charging is not possible. A (short) USB-C charging cable is included, but you must provide your own USB charger.

These earphones each weigh 5.3 grams and therefore sit comfortably in the ear canal. Extra silicone plugs are included as standard, so you can choose the best fit yourself.

Commissioning

You must first remove the plastic protective material from the charging box. Only then can you charge the earphones and the case. The earphones are already partially charged at the factory, but it is still better to fully charge them the first time.

Android users can quickly connect the earphones thanks to Google Fast Pair. iOS users must do this manually via the Bluetooth settings and the ‘pair’ button on the side of the charging case.

If you want to connect a laptop or computer, you must first install the Xiaomi Earbuds app, because the multipoint connection is disabled by default. You enable this via the app. This also applies to in-the-ear detection.

Earbuds app

Using the Xiaomi Earbuds app requires registering an account with Xiaomi. Only then can you use some functions.

We already mentioned multipoint and in-ear detection, but you can also only control the operation of the touch-sensitive sides in the app. The same goes for things like configuring noise reduction and transparency mode, getting firmware updates, and setting the equalizer.

Practice

The automatic noise reduction is not super powerful. The difference with (much) more expensive earplugs such as the Poly Voyager Free 60+ we recently tested is clearly noticeable. But for use in noisy environments, these caps suppress the noise somewhat.

The sound itself falls into the “good enough” category. Don’t expect strong bass or hi-fi sound, a better codec than the limited standard Bluetooth codec is not supported. But within its category we find the audio quality more than acceptable.

Conclusion
The Xiaomi Redmi Buds 5 offer great value for money. If you don’t want to spend too much on earplugs, you can definitely consider these.

Average price
Less than 40 euros