Oraimo is one of the many companies that focus on creating highly competitive value products. They embody the phrase “value for money” through and through. More than ever, you don’t have to leave your wallet high and dry to get a good pair of true wireless earbuds.
It’s doing it quietly, but Oraimo is producing really good earbuds, and the Oraimo FreePods 3 prove that yet again. It finally brought in new features while also rejigging the inside components, like the 13mm drivers and dual microphones, to deliver a more complete package at an appealing price.
That’s not much, but I still went into this review with my expectations moderately high. Here’s what I found out after using the Oraimo Freepods 3 True Wireless Earbuds for a few weeks.
Unboxing
Oraimo did a pretty good job with the presentation – the nice box and the neatly arranged package inside.
Lifting off the lid are two boxes – one containing the packet with the replaceable silicon rubber tips while the other has the user guide with the warranty certificate and a type A to type C charging cable.
The charging case is black with an oblong shape featuring the Oraimo branding, type-c charging port and LED light indicators.
Opening the case you will see the earbuds tucked neatly inside. You’ll lift them up and remove the protective film which you’ll need to unwrap and pop the buds inside to enter pairing mode.
They have a stem-like structure, and I like that the tips are subtle don’t protrude as much as some other earbuds.
Make sure your laptop, phone’s Bluetooth is turned on and the Oraimo FreePods 3 will show up and let you connect.
Next time you pop the case lid up, the Oraimo FreePods 3 will automatically connect to your device.
The earbuds turn off after 3 minutes when not connected to any device even when inside the case.
Design
Each bud has a very snug fit and sits right in the ear, tucked in tightly – the Oraimo FreePods 3 stay put and don’t move whatsoever. You can shake your way while listening to your favourite tunes or during workouts, and these earbuds won’t budge. This means you can run with them on without fear of losing either bud.
The buds feel extremely comfortable and never tired my ears at any point during my review period.
The head of each earbud has touch panels, and they’re more responsive and consistent. You can’t customize the controls, but the presets are comfortable to use.
- Tap twice on one earbud to play or pause media
- Tap and hold on the left earbud for 1.5 seconds to go to previous track, on the right bud to go to next track
- On a call, tap twice on an earbud to answer or end call
- Tap and hold on one earbud for 2 seconds to reject the call
- Taping three times on one earbud activates Google Assistant
- When earbuds are disconnected, tap three times on one earbud to clear pairing list and turn off.
The Oraimo FreePods 3 come with IPX5 rating which means you don’t have to worry about sweat or rain coming in the way when listening to your favourite tracks or podcasts.
Sound Quality
When it comes to sound quality, the Oraimo FreePods 3 are even more of a slam dunk than their predecessors.
The buds deliver a very enjoyable listening experience. They are bass-forward and pack enough punch for my favourite hip-hop and EDM tracks.
But the powerful low end also translates well to other genres like indie-folk. To my ears, these have a wider and richer soundstage than what the competition in the current market offers.
When it came to the highs, they were detailed without ever coming off as harsh regardless of what genre you’re playing.
Instruments like guitars, horns, keys, drums and vocals are nicely layered. The buds did a good job of keeping everything distinct in the tracks I bopped my head to.
The Oraimo FreePods 3 sound excellent and well-balanced to my ears, from my queued-up podcasts to Spotify’s playlists.
A good seal is crucial for the best passive noise isolation, and I was delighted with how the Oraimo FreePods 3 managed to subdue outdoor noise while lacking active noise cancellation feature.
Oraimo FreePods 3 come with two modes – the bass mode and the awareness mode which works when you remove the ear tips so that you don’t feel especially blocked off from the outside world when you’re outdoors.
Mic Quality
Another important thing is the mic quality. This time around the Oraimo FreePods 3 feature two microphones. I actually liked the previous FreePods 2 for their call quality, but the Freepods 3 do improve on that with more clarity, especially if there’s some noise going on around you.
The dual mic effect works in tandem with the Environmental Noise Cancellation tech the Oraimo FreePods 3 ship with that uses beamforming tech for tracking and providing the highest quality voice signal plus an AI Deep Neural Network algorithm to reduce more environmental noise.
This tech eliminates unnecessary ambient noise in the background.
Call Quality
Not only are the touch controls easy for handling calls, but the audio quality is crystal clear. I participated in a ton of phone calls and video chats recently, and everyone said I sounded perfectly crisp.
Call quality in the Oraimo FreePods 3 over their predecessor, significantly improving it to the point where clarity is paramount in each conversation.
Connectivity
The Oraimo FreePods 3 had rock-solid connection stability during my time with them. I didn’t notice any audio or video sync mismatches when watching or listening to content from Spotify, SoundCloud, YouTube, Netflix, or Showmax on my phone and laptop.
It’s worth noting that the Oraimo FreePods 3 have a range of 10m.
Battery Life
Oraimo managed to cram in a hefty amount of battery life in the FreePods 3. The battery life continues to hit the higher numbers. The earbuds last up to 8 hours per charge. Each bud has 45mAh battery.
The case has an extra four charges. You can pull a day with these buds and even more with the case.
The case has type-c charging and fast charging is convenient when you need some juice in a pinch.
5 minutes of charge can give you 40 minutes of play.
The bad
As much as I am taken aback by the Oraimo FreePods 3’s many upsides, there are some downsides to them as well. There is no dedicated companion app for your phone, so you can’t personalize the controls or cutomize around with the equalizer to personalize the sound.
Also, it would have been handy to have the auto-pause function when you briefly remove one of them.
Conclusion
Oraimo FreePods 3 are a great pair of wireless earbuds that are a perfect mix of all-around reliable earbuds at an affordable price that I was excited to put into my ears every day.
Compared to its past wireless earbuds, the refinement and strong performance of the Oraimo FreePods 3 demonstrate that the tech company has grown confident and comfortable in this market.
A good wireless earbud has to check four boxes for me: good sound quality, solid Bluetooth connection, comfortable fit without being too large, and enough battery life for at least four hours of continuous listening. And last but not least, a good microphone is a big plus especially for calls – all of which the Oraimo FreePods 3 tick.
That’s a pretty good menu for an affordable pair of earbuds.
There’s no shortage of competition at this price, but Oraimo has brought together a compelling mix of features, an attractive design and a pocket-friendly price.
Perfect execution
Taken as a whole package, the Oraimo FreePods 3 exceeded what I came in expecting. They’re a big improvement over the Oraimo FreePods 2 in both concept and execution – in terms of design, comfort and how they standout against their rivals on most core features. Plus, Oraimo has made impressive strides to the sound quality of its earbuds with the addition of bass boost.
When your budget is tight and you want real value for your money, it’s hard to argue against the Oraimo FreePods 3.
Pricing and Availability
Oraimo FreePods 3 are available for Ksh 3000 and you directly buy them here.
