With Huawei announcing the Freebuds Studio at the end of last year, the new Freebuds Studio are the logical next step over-ears wireless headphones with built-in noise cancellation that adapts to the situation.

The sale of headphones like that is on the rise, not only because of the commute but also because working from home with a whole family in the background becomes so much more bearable. Yes, that ‘Buds’ in the name is reminiscent of earphones, but this is a real headphone with big cushions.

Of the many noise-cancelling headphones we tested, the FreeBuds Studio is without a doubt one of the most elegant. The beautiful black version of the Huawei Freebuds Studio is very comfortable. The weight of 260 grams of the Huawei amplifies subjective plume weight impression, thanks in part to that thin metal connection between headband and driver enclosures.

A nice design element is how that hinged rod fits into the housing. Also with the weight distribution, it is fine, so you do not have a pressing feeling on your crown. Add nice and soft ear cushions and an inside of the headband that is well padded, and you get headphones that we could wear for hours without any problems. In terms of comfort, the Studios are among the best.

From the specs, we learn and we also notice when used that the battery lasts 24 hours if you do not use noise cancellation. With NC it is a lot shorter; Sony is the strongman in this area. A plus is that the FreeBuds Studio supports fast charging. This way you can listen for another five or eight hours with ten minutes of charging (with or without noise cancellation).

With the Huawei earphones, you use the AI Life app to set up the Studio completely correctly, it does a fine job and is clear. To be honest, in AI Life, you’re probably just going to come and set up the Studios the way you want. It can be used, for example, to enable noise-cancelling and choose an NC mode, but you can do these things faster via the buttons on the headphones themselves. In addition to just keys, the Studio also has a touchpad; in the app, you set what happens when you tap and swipe.

Controlling music and volume is possible, as is managing a call. The touchpad reacts very well, although we certainly noticed at the beginning that you easily accidentally activate a function while you touch the NC button.

On the side of the headset, you can control the device

Noise-cancelling on a top model must be dynamic, intelligent. In fact, it always comes down to a noise cancellation that adapts to the situation in terms of efficiency. For example, when you walk around you want a little less noise-cancelling so that you are not accidentally mowed down by a ringing cyclist.

The FreeBuds Studio also switches to an appropriate noise-cancelling level, but you can also do that manually. On ‘Ultra’, noise around is suppressed to the maximum. In addition, there is an Awareness mode, supplemented as desired by a Voice function that allows voices to pass through.

With the Studio is clearly a thoughtful pair of headphones, also in terms of playback. Apart from the slightly fatter basses, the Studio is just very ear-friendly and balanced tuned.

The Studio is clearly a thoughtful pair of headphones, also in terms of playback. Apart from the slightly (but certainly not excessively) fatter basses, the Studio is just very ear-friendly and balanced tuned.

Normally with typical NC headphones, you can expect those lows to distort a little or drown out the details, here those bass tones remain quite natural and there is no trace of resonance.

Conclusion

Huawei may not be a top of mind brand when you go shopping for headphones. Unjustified, because it has been working very well for a while and knows how to propose better and better products. I can say a lot of positives about the FreeBuds Studios, and a few negatives. The headphones look elegant, sit very lightly on your head and perform very well in terms of sound quality. The noise cancellation is also very good and comes very close to the market leaders. Priced at £229.99 from Huawei Store or from Amazon UK.

TNC Score

4.6/5.0