OnePlus Buds 4 review: Underpromise and overdeliver

The wireless earbud market is packed with options, but every once in a while, a pair comes along that punches far above its weight. The OnePlus Buds 4 fall squarely into that category.

Launched at ₹5,999, the Buds 4 offer a surprisingly premium experience for their segment. OnePlus seems to have borrowed just enough from its flagship Buds Pro 3, trimming features in the right places to deliver a well-balanced product that doesn't feel like a compromise.

Sound Quality That Surprises

Let’s start with what matters most: the sound. The Buds 4 feature a coaxial dual-driver setup (11mm dynamic woofer + 6mm planar diaphragm tweeter) and a dual DAC architecture, which is not typically found in earbuds at this price point.

In real-world use, the audio is rich and layered. The bass hits hard but doesn’t drown out the mids, and the highs have that crisp clarity often missing in budget earbuds.

ANC That Holds Its Own

Active Noise Cancellation is rated up to 55dB, and while real-world performance may not reach that figure, it’s more than adequate for daily commutes and office chatter. What surprised me the most was how effective it was on flights, drowning out the hum of the aircraft with ease. It’s not quite Bose or Sony territory, but it’s not trying to be, and for the price, the ANC is genuinely impressive.

The transparency mode, however, is where the trade-offs start to show. It’s serviceable but not particularly natural-sounding. While I did switch to it when I wanted to speak to someone, I couldn't use it for extended periods of time. 

Subtle Design

Design-wise, OnePlus has gone for subtle elegance. The earbuds are lightweight, with an ergonomic fit that’s comfortable even during longer sessions. The stems are a bit chunky, but that helps with grip when adjusting them.

The charging case is compact, pocketable, and has a matte finish that resists fingerprints. The earbuds carry an IP55 rating, while the case is IPX4 splash resistant, making them gym and commute-friendly.

Features That Actually Matter

There are a handful of thoughtful additions that make the Buds 4 more versatile than their price suggests. The 47ms latency helped when I was playing games like COD Mobile which require low latency audio.

However, the EQ customisation is pretty basic, unless you're on a OnePlus phone. Also, the touch controls can be hit-or-miss in responsiveness.

Battery Life

The Buds 4 are rated for 11 hours on a single charge, with the case pushing total playback to up to 44 hours (without ANC). With ANC enabled, real-world usage typically falls closer to 5-7 hours, which is still very respectable.

Fast charging is a big win here, with a 10-minute charge giving you almost 3 hours of use.

Verdict

The OnePlus Buds 4 aren’t perfect, but they don’t need to be. What they offer is excellent audio, strong ANC, impressive battery life, and smart features. These features make them one of the best sub-₹6K earbuds on the market right now. In fact, the OnePlus Buds 4 are good enough to make you question whether you really need to spend more money on TWS earphones at all.