Tronsmart Onyx Ace: The best Earbuds you Have Never Heard Of

With big name manufacturers putting no end to the release of expensive truly wireless earbuds, Xiaomi has gained attention for its Xiaomi Mi Air 2 SE - but unfortunately, while they were cheap, they were not great. Now, with the release of the Tronsmart Onyx Ace, we finally have hope that consumers can get a solid listening experience without breaking the bank.

You may have never heard of Tronsmart, but upon first impressions with the Onyx Ace, you may feel like they’ve been in this game for a while. With a glossy finish, and a compact form factor, the Onyx Ace not only feels more premium than the Xiaomi Mi Air 2 SE, but more substantial. Coming from an entirely plastic-made build, this is a very welcomed change that may make customers feel as if they have gotten their money’s worth.

But the premium design isn’t limited to the earbuds themselves, as the same rules apply to the case that will be keeping your earbuds powered and secured on the go. Not only does the Tronsmart deliver in the looks, even offering extremely affordable cases that give the product an extra bit of flair, but minor touches such as ta battery charge indicator goes a long way too.

Besides looking better, the Tronsmart Onyx Ace also delivers in the sound department. Upon letting our self-proclaimed audiophile friend test both, he surmised his experience the Xiaomi Mi Air 2 SE as “Something I’d thank you for giving me, but then instantly put in the sock drawer,” but the “lifelessness” he identified with the Air 2 SE is not a problem for the Tronsmart Onyx Ace. Delivering “Rich” and “distinct” sound, users can expect to fully enjoy their songs with less obvious compromises.

Yet even as the Xiaomi Mi Air 2 SE may seem clearly defeated, the Tronsmart Onyx Ace come for the last punch in the functionality department. With a full range of controls from playback, volume and voice assistant without the need of any apps, the Tronsmart Onyx Ace is perfect for just about anyone right out of the box. The same cannot be said with the Xiaomi Mi Air 2 SE, which promises customisation through an app that to this day still does not exist.

With the release of the Xiaomi Mi Air 2 SE, our hopes of having a cheap, equally capable pair of truly wireless earbuds as those made by bigger brands was nearly dead, but the Tronsmart Onyx Ace not only refills these hopes - it sets a new standard on how budget truly wireless earbuds should be.

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The OnePlus Buds Reach High but Disappoint

With the release of the One Plus Nord, the company has once again generated a lot of excitement for the brand. Along this wave of hype, the company has decided to release its own take on the widely popular Airpods - but the end result isn’t only slightly underwhelming, but it also goes against the company’s “value first” philosophy.

Before criticising the product, here are some aspects that we think the OnePlus buds shine: The company has maintained its beautiful design language with this product, the ability to automatically pair with any OnePlus device is definitely convenient, and lastly, the inclusion of IPX4 should leave those who buy this product as an exercise companion fairly pleased.

With that said, despite having a few fundamentals done well, OnePlus missed the mark on a few more noticeable parts of the overall experience. Most importantly, with a custom chip powering the device, OnePlus has managed to not only miss the powerful audio and latency controls that are usually offered by Qualcomm, but it also excluded the wealth of touch controls seen in other cheaper offerings.

With just average audio and the lack of touch control, the OnePlus Buds experience suffers severely. At the price range, users may expect a way to customise their controls through a companion app, or to be able to double tap their earbuds for pause and play controls - unfortunately, unless you currently own a OnePlus device, neither of these things are possible, and even if you do have a OnePlus device, the software update that brings you this companion app has not yet been released!

With this lack of control, and not enough features to make OnePlus owners feel like they are getting an amazing device that is made for them, we are left wondering if this device truly matches the company’s philosophy. For a manufacturer that has garnered so much attention for including the best specs for a low price, this pair of earbuds seems like a failed attempt to get consumers to spend more on what’s ultimately less.

If the company aims to ever release a second generation buds, taking a look at Samsung’s offering, the galaxy buds, could help OnePlus solve a lot of the problems this device presents. Whether you own a Pixel or a Xiaomi device, the Samsumg Buds allow you to download a comprehensive app that can make the best use of your new earbuds. If you own a Samsung device however, you get extra access to a low latency and better audio mode that truly takes the Galaxy Buds experience to the next level. This easy inclusion not only makes the Galaxy buds the superior device for any smartphone owner, but it also gives Samsung owners just enough additional features to make them feel as if their loyalty is justified.

For 109 Canadian dollars, the OnePlus Buds are a well designed, exercise proof set of truly wireless earbuds that struggle to take the experience to the next level. With more customisation options, and a better usage of audio chips already available on the market, OnePlus could potentially release a second generation product that could truly match the company’s long established value first philosophy.

Will you be purchasing the OnePlus Buds? Let us know in the comments below

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To read an article on the OnePlus Nord, click here

The One Plus Nord Seriously Challenges Xiaomi's Main Philosophy

The smartphone market grows at extreme paces, and a company that does wonders today may not be as glorious tomorrow. With the announcement of the One Plus Nord, One Plus has shaken up Xiaomi’s philosophy that cheap hardware always wins.

The One Plus Nord, which is gaining more and more praise by reviewers as time goes on, introduces the same great hardware that customers have become accustomed to in 2020, and shakes it up with a buttery smooth version of Android that is very similar to Google’s own. While this is great news for consumers looking for an Android smartphone, it is not great news for Xiaomi, which has struggled to leave reviewers satisfied due to one key feature: software.

Photo found on ZD Net

Since the Mi lines of phones has been given to western reviewers, many have been impressed by what the company can do in terms of hardware, but the IOS like interface has generally been declined by reviewers and consumers alike. For many years however, western consumers have lived with this issue due to the ability to easily install a launcher or custom ROM on any Xiaomi devices.

This may change lately, as companies like Apple, Samsung, Google and now One Plus are all introducing products that easily integrate with their phones, kick-starting a new age of smartphones where users not only want a good device, but one that feels fast out of the box.

Despite Xiaomi’s heavy software being considered an easy fix by many, this isn’t the full picture. Based in a country where the heavy, fully featured launcher is appreciated, introducing a new, more western version of Android to Xiaomi devices could alienate Xiaomi’s Chinese consumer base.

To solve this issue, many have turned to the Pocophone line of products, which features a MIUI like version of Android that includes more western features such as an app drawer - but as development goes on, could Xiaomi’s Poco Launcher be the company’s secret to thriving in western markets? Only time may tell.

Do you think Xiaomi can fight back One Plus’ success? Let us know below

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To read an article on Xiaomi’s new astrophotography mode, click here

Xiaomi's New Astrophotography Mode Brings Pro-Features to the Masses

First revealed by XDA developers, Xiomi’s MIUI 12 is supposedly a long-exposure mode, allowing users to capture long-trail photos of moving objects. Despite being called the “Astrophotography” mode, long-exposure shots have been proven to have many uses from capturing large crowds of people, traffic at night, water movement and much more.

Furthermore, in the same leak, XDA developers has unveiled photos of the feature already being utilised in a beta build of MIUI 12 running on a Redmi K30 Pro. The screenshots shows many different settings users may choose in order to get the best results possible, ranging from light painting, silky water to a starry sky mode.

While other phone manufacturers - specially in the higher end market - have already implemented this feature onto their devices, Xiaomi’s implementation brings us new excitement. For the first time, users who own entry level devices will be able to perform camera tricks that have been long locked behind a pay wall.

This announcement does not only bring a pro feature to the masses, but reassures us that Xiaomi’s main goal remains the same: accessibility. In a time where the company has aimed to innovate its design language, using more premium construction techniques and offering increasingly expensive devices, this announcement shows us that Xiaomi still cares to offer top of the line features for a lower place.

Or at least we hope so - besides the existence of this feature, not much is known in terms of which devices will and will not support this feature. If the company’s history of introducing features such as night mode across their entire range of devices is anything to consider however, then we can’t see this new Astrophotography mode being any being.

Does this announcement excite you? Let us know below!

To watch a video on this announcement, click here

To read an article about whether or not the Mi Airdots are worth your money in 2020, click here

Xiaomi Just Destroyed GCam's Night Mode

A Real Alternative To GCam

Xiaomi is currently beta testing a new photo mode on its cameras. This new xiaomi long exposure mode is aimed directly at Gcam and Google’s astro photography mode. Xiaomi gives users a couple of different options. Xiaomi is allowing it’s users to take advantage of long exposures and using a tripod with a variety of different features, modes and other options. Here are some examples

Xiaomi Long Exposure Mode

GCam Nightmode

Xiaomi Long Exposure Mode

Stock Night Mode On Xiaomi Camera

Xiaomi Long Exposure

Download Full Resolution Samples

Xiaomi Mi Airdots in 2020: Worth Your Purchase?

About a year ago, Xiaomi took its first stab at the truly wireless earbud market with the Xiaomi Mi Airdots, a journey that would bathe the company in controversy as well as set it on a direct path to becoming a sizeable player in this market space. Now, just a year later, I have bought myself the Xiaomi Mi Airdots at its lowest price yet, and despite having its flaws, I do not regret my purchase.

A Design that Hasn’t Aged Too Well

Upon first unboxing my earbuds, which I bought in the black colour, I found a minimal, stylish looking earbud and case. From the very first moment I saw it, I knew that this was a product that I was willing to use in public without the fear of it impacting my style, the same of which I cannot say of Xiaomi’s latest efforts, which all look too big and bulky in my opinion.

Despite looking like an expensive set of earbuds, the Xiaomi Mi Airdots unfortunately don’t feel very premium in the hand. In the age where many companies, Xiaomi included, have moved on to using more careful construction and more expensive materials, the plastic construction of this device feels very “first generation”. I knew from the very first touch, that this device would be one that would be prone to scratching in no time.

Yet another area where the design has not aged so well is in the case’s charging method. In the era where using a single USB C cable for all your products is possible, having to carry around a micro USB cable feels very outdated. What’s worse is that, at least in the “basic”edition that I purchased in Hong Kong, a charging cable was not included, and as I have tried to USB C all things, I had to purchase a new cable separately. Considering that this device is sold in many regions of the world where the micro USB charging method is still the standard, some users may not experience this same frustration, but it would certainly be nice to see a revision of this device that uses the USB C standard.

Overall, in terms of design, the Xiaomi Mi Airdots look stunning, featuring a minimal design language that would make anyone assume it is worth more than its cost. Unfortunately, it is once you touch it that the product starts to show its age, with a build quality that isn’t anything impressive, and a charging method that feels lacking when compared to modern offerings.

Functionality That Holds Up

But perhaps you don’t care for looks, and in terms of functionality, the Xiaomi Mi Airdots still hold up. In a market that is saturated with expensive earbuds full of customisation, companion apps and touch controls, the Mi Airdots keeps to the basics and just work. They are not impressive, but they are a no risk solution, and I adore that!

Take Xiaomi’s latest for example, the Mi Air 2 SE, it is a much better sounding pair of earbuds, but the price is way higher all thanks for the product’s ability to connect to a phone app, which at the time of our review did not even work. But with the Mi Airdots, that isn’t a concern - you’re buying them because they’ll connect to your phone and just work.

On the sound front, as I just stated, Xiaomi’s latest offerings will sound much better than this one, but for the casual user who just wants a cheap way to listen to music without the wires, I have no complaints. If what you’re looking for however is a great way to join voice calls, stay away from this product. The microphone quality is just terrible, and on most instances, the people who I was calling said they would rather have me use no microphone at all.

Another thing that is certainly worth mentioning is this product’s durability. When it was first released, Xiaomi received a lot of criticism because the earbuds would either physically break or stop working altogether. I am glad to say that neither of these issues have happened to me after roughly a month of very frequent usage. Perhaps I got lucky, or maybe the latest production units are built to a higher standard, but if my experience is anything to judge by, you should have a pleasurable experience using these earbuds for years to come.

Conclusion

What was originally Xiaomi’s decent but untrustworthy entry into the truly wireless earbud market has now become a cheap, accessible way to buy yourself a truly wireless set of earbuds. In a market full of extra features, the Xiaomi Mi Airdots strip down to the very basics, offering a pleasurable experience only hindered by the already outdated build quality. For its price, I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this product to anyone simply looking to listen to some music on the go without the hassles that come with wires.

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