[hardware] Anker Soundcore Liberty 3 Pro review

[#Hassan.]

Trying to define value-for-money in the true wireless earbud market is odd, but Anker has done a decent job figuring it out. It’s not something that can be identified by looking at a spec sheet. For example, the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2 have only 6mm drivers inside, compared to the beasty 10.6mm drivers you will find in the new Soundcore Liberty 3 Pro. And yet the price of the former is higher and the sound quality is superior.

You can only really figure out what is and isn’t a good value by using them. On the face of it, the Liberty 3 Pro seems to address the key missing pieces in the Liberty 2 Pro — that being active noise cancellation and a 30% smaller design — for an additional $20 (£30), but do they translate into a continually good value?

You can order a pair of Soundcore Liberty 3 Pro in Midnight Black, Frost White, Fog Gray and Dusk Purple. Prices are set at $169.99 USD, £139.99 GBP, $199.99 CAD and €159.99 EUR.

This is $40 more than the Soundcore Liberty Air 2 Pro, more than double the price of the Soundcore Life P3 and $70 more than the Nothing ear (1), which puts them at the higher end of the mid-range tier price bracket.

At 0.7 x 1.1 x 1.1 inches, the Soundcore Liberty 3 Pro benefit from the removal of the stem found on typical earbuds like the Liberty Air 2 Pro (1.4 x 0.9 x 0.9) and Nothing ear (1) (1.1 x 0.8 x 0.9). Fortunately, these new buds are 30% smaller than the Liberty 2 Pro and, at 0.2 ounces, they’re lighter too. They’re still slightly heavier than the competition (Soundcore Liberty Air 2 Pro weigh 0.18 ounces and Nothing ear (1) are a featherweight 0.16 ounces), but with the self-contained stem-free construction, this isn’t such a problem.

Looking past these numbers and buzzwords like “Fusion Comfort” technology, the new lightweight design translates into a stylish pair of earbuds that are comfortable to wear. The variety of tip and ear wing sizes ensure a snug fit regardless of whether your ears are more Gary Lineker-sized like mine, and the IPX4 water resistance makes them durable even when exercising.

The case is a slim, lightweight pebble at 2.8 x 2.2 x 1.1 inches with a weight of 1.6 ounces — smaller than Nothing ear (1) (2.3 x 2.3 x 0.9 inches) and lighter than the Soundcore Liberty Air 2 Pro’s (1.8 ounces). Plus, Anker seems to have worked on its sliding door mechanism, with this one feeling stronger than the Liberty Air 2 Pro case.

Anker Soundcore Liberty 3 Pro: Controls and digital assistant

You’ve got the use of four different tap inputs on each side, from single to triple taps and a tap and hold that can alter the volume, skip tracks and switch between ANC and transparency mode. Once you’ve figured out the tap speeds, these are easy enough to operate, but weirdly, the hold interactions are hit-and-miss — some gestures are not recognised whatsoever. Hopefully, this is something that can be fixed with a firmware update.

And of course, you can tweak the controls to activate your digital assistant of choice, which picked up my requests just fine both in and outdoors. That’s particularly baffling given the poor call quality, but more on that later on.

link :

https://www.laptopmag.com/uk/reviews/anker-soundcore-liberty-3-pro