Honor Earbuds X6 Review: Best totally wireless earbuds under £40

On our agenda, we’re exploring the Earbuds x6 – a highly ambitious device billed as the best totally wireless earbuds under £40 by HONOR. Why ambitious? HONOR claims these earbuds deliver a balanced, high-quality sound, offer up to 40 hours of battery life, feature convenient touch controls, and introduce a superior level of noise reduction. Are these claims fact or fiction? Discover the truth in our Honor Earbuds X6 review.

Honor Earbuds X6 Review

Unboxing

The Honor Earbuds X6 comes packaged in a sleek, white square box, featuring an image of the earbuds on the front. The packaging is minimalist and elegant, featuring a matte silver brand and model inscription at the top. The only pop of color is a bright red label indicating “Golden Ear’s Product,” signifying that these earbuds were designed with input from individuals with absolute pitch. This collaboration ensures the earbuds can capture and distinguish the finest sound nuances, catering to even the most demanding listeners.

Inside the box, a sturdy white matte plastic holder secures the latest Bluetooth earphones, protecting them against mechanical damage. The earbuds, housed in a double-rounded cavity, come in a matte bag. They include a setup schematic in Chinese and English and a QR code to download the companion app. This thoughtful packaging ensures a straightforward and protected unboxing experience.

Design

The Honor Earbuds X6 come in an elegant, glossy white plastic that looks stylish. This choice of color conveniently masks small scratches and fingerprints, which would be more noticeable on darker colors.

The case boasts a nearly square design with soft rounded edges, giving it a compact form. Its dimensions of 53×54.5×24 mm allow it to fit easily into a small handbag or the pocket of tight pants. The build quality is solid, featuring a securely fitted lid with minimal wiggle and an almost imperceptible seam. Inside, it houses a 510 mAh battery.

Centered on the front of the case is the matte silver HONOR logo, just above an LED status indicator. Below, you’ll find a USB Type-C charging port. The back features a removable sticker with the model number and country of manufacture.

Despite lacking a specific notch, the lid is designed with a spring mechanism that tilts back easily with a slight push and stays open when tilted. The earbuds secure magnetically in the case, preventing accidental dislodgement, yet their prominent size allows for easy one-handed removal.

The earbuds are larger, specifically at the stem, which accommodates a 41 mAh battery and a sizable touchpad for controls. Crafted from the same glossy plastic, the assembly joints are visible. Each stem also features contact points and a microphone at its base.

The Honor Earbuds X6, lacking ear tips, feature an ergonomic design for a comfortable, secure fit during physical activities. This open design allows for prolonged wear without discomfort. The sound ports are protected by a recessed metal mesh, making them easy to maintain without special tools.

The IP54-rated earbuds offer comfort and durability with a secure fit, ideal for sports and long-term wear.

Connectivity

When you first unpack the Honor Earbuds X6, hold onto the instructions for a crucial initial setup step. Connect the earbuds by pressing their touchpads for three seconds while they remain in the open case. This will activate pairing mode, allowing the earbuds to appear on your phone’s Bluetooth device list.

These earbuds use Bluetooth 5.3 and do not support Multipoint connections, meaning they cannot connect to two devices simultaneously. For full functionality, download the HONOR AI Space app, available for both iOS and Android. The app enables you to view the battery levels of both the earbuds and the case, update firmware, switch between four equalizer settings, and customize controls.

A particularly helpful feature is the “Find My Earphone” function. If you misplace an earbud, pressing a button in the app activates a loud beeping sound from its speaker. This feature is ideal for finding it in indoor environments like homes or offices.

Sound

The primary appeal of headphones extends beyond their aesthetic design, battery life, or user-friendliness (though the Honor Earbuds X6 excels in these areas too); it’s ultimately about the sound quality.

Equipped with 10mm composite diaphragms and titanium-coated speakers, the Honor Earbuds X6 delivers outstanding sound quality, characterized by clear highs and rich mids. The bass’s depth depends on how well the earbuds fit in your ear canal.

When testing across various genres like rock, classical, and electronic music, the nuanced sound reproduction capability of these earbuds became evident. However, their performance with rap music highlighted their true strength; the Honor Earbuds X6 displayed an exceptional ability to capture every syllable and word clearly. This makes them especially suited for vocal-heavy music, as they can distinguish multiple voices with ease.

Video playback and gaming performance also deserve mention. There is virtually no lag when watching videos, ensuring perfect lip-syncing with on-screen characters. While gaming, genres that don’t depend heavily on precise sound localization, such as racing and single-player shooters, perform adequately.

Operating experience

The compact Honor Earbuds X6 are ideal for everyday use, designed for easy portability. Their user-friendly design allows for effortless operation with just one hand, enabling you to open the case, extract the earbuds, answer calls, and switch tracks seamlessly.

Their comfortable fit ensures you can wear them for extended periods without discomfort, offering an impressive 8 hours of continuous audio playback at 70% volume. This is a noteworthy achievement and speaks to their efficiency.

While the earbuds prioritize a smaller form factor, battery capacity has not been compromised. In fact, the case holds enough charge to recharge the earbuds three times over, culminating in a total of approximately 32 hours of battery life. Additionally, a quick 10-minute charge in the case can provide an extra 2 hours of playback, making them even more convenient for on-the-go usage.

Notably, the microphone quality is exceptional. The Earbuds X6 utilizes artificial intelligence for environmental noise cancellation (AI ENC), ensuring clear sound transmission. This is not merely a marketing claim but a tangible feature that enhances the user experience.

Final line

In budget TWS review, it’s common to weigh their strengths and shortcomings, often dictated by manufacturing compromises to lower costs. However, the Honor Earbuds X6 surprisingly deflects this norm with its impressive lineup of features. Highlighted for their superior sound quality, effective microphone noise reduction, commendable battery life, and affordability, these earbuds stand out significantly in the budget category.

Also see: Huawei FreeClip Review

In an extensive trial lasting several weeks, identifying significant flaws became a challenge. The only notable exception is the absence of a charging cable in the package. Despite this minor inconvenience, the Honor Earbuds X6 affirms its status as a formidable competitor in the TWS market. Not only do they rival more expensive counterparts in performance, but they also claim the title of the “best totally wireless earbuds under £40”.

Price and availability

In our “Honor Earbuds X6 review,” we delve into the significant advantages that make these earbuds the best totally wireless earbuds under £40. For those interested, these earbuds are available on Amazon.co.uk for just £39.99, embodying exceptional value for individuals in search of quality wireless audio on a budget.