EarFun FreePro 3's review - Fun doesn't have to be expensive

 

General/Info/Packaging/Comfort

For those who are not aware who or what EarFun is, here’s a snippet from EarFun’s site: “EarFun was established in 2018 by an experienced group of industrial designers, acoustic engineers and music enthusiasts who shared the goal of creating next-generation wireless audio devices. The EarFun team is driven by a passion for music and a commitment to delivering solutions that use the latest technology to improve sound for audio products.”

Packaging of FreePro 3 is rather minimal yet functional, no wastage in terms of space within the box. Inside the box, it contains a charging cable, several sizes of the silicon fin (for the earpiece to stay secured on your ears when you are working out), several sizes of eartips, and also the TWS and the charging case itself.

The TWS itself is very small and it fits very well for my ears, i even tried it without the silicon fin and it does stay in without wobbling around, but if i were to do any intense sport, i will put on the silicon fin for the extra grip. 

Specifications

• Bluetooth version: V5.3 

• Bluetooth frequency: 2.402GHz-2.480GHz 

• Bluetooth profile: A2DP, AVRCP, HFP, HSP 

• Maximum working range: 15m (without obstacle)

• Battery capacity: 40mAh x 2(earbuds); 420mAh (charging case)

• Charging time: 1 hour (for earbuds); 2 hours (for charging case via USB-C); 3.5 hours (for charging case via wireless charger)

• Playtime: ANC OFF--Up to 7.5hours, Total 33 hours with the charging case; (varies by volume level and audio content) ANC ON--Up to 6 hours, Total 27 hours with the charging case; (varies by volume level and audio content)

• Input: DC 5V / 1A

• Dimensions: 67mm x 26.5mm x 30mm

• Weight: 41.5g

• Codecs : aptX adaptive, AAC, LC3, SBC

Gears Used for testing

• iPhone 15

• Macbook Air M2

EarFun App’s Features/General Features

The FreePro 3 is supported by the EarFun’s app, it offers a plethora of features for the FreePro 3

• Firmware update

• Customizable EQ, Presets are also available (Rock, Pop, Vocal, etc)

• There’s also one notable present which is the Oluv Signature, there’s a natural’s curve vs boosted curve for you to select

• ANC mode selection with Ear Adaptive, i’m not exactly sure how this features work as i tried switching between the Default, Ears 1 - 3 but didnt not notice any difference in terms of the noise cancelation performance, also, you’re able to turn on wind noise cancelation as well

• Ambient Sound will have two modes, which is default, and fully transparent, and lastly, Normal mode, which has neither ANC or Ambient sound

• Game mode is available as well (Reduce latency)

• ANC performance after the firmware update (0.23) is noticeably better, frequencies from higher registers seems to be cancelled out a little bit more compared to prior the firmware update, but if i were to nitpick, the ANC performance is still a little lacking, again, i am nitpicking here

• The touch control is very sensitive, but the actions of the touch control are customizable from the APP itself

Battery Life

• Battery life generally is lasting close to as advertised from EarFun, i get approximately 6 hours ish run time with ANC on with volume level set to around 50% on my iPhone 15 (AAC Codec)

• The battery life might vary if running on different codec as well as volume level, do take that into consideration as well

Sound Impression (based on AAC codec and stock tuning)

The tuning of FreePro 3 is certainly tilting towards the fun sound of spectrum, the emphasis on the bass can be clearly heard, mids has good textures to it, treble on the other hand is a little lacking in my opinion, but if you have a different preference and you don’t like the stock tuning, EarFun’s app is here to the rescue, which offers customizable EQ profiles, as well as several presets. Let’s take a look at the break down below:

Bass

• Bass is thick and thumpy, generous in terms of quantity

• Mid bass is punchy while sub bass does rumble when the track calls for it, certainly nowhere near basshead level, but again, you can EQ it if you want to

Mids

• Male vocal has good texture to it, artist with lower vocal register sounds a little thin, but generally, most of the male vocal has good texture to it

• Female vocal is sweet sounding as well, also bearing a good texture to it

• Lower mids transitioning to upper mids are smooth, non shouty at all

• 
  

Treble

• Treble is generally safe, to my ears, they have enough energy while remaining smooth, not to the point of being dark sounding

• Sufficient amount of air

Soundstage/Imaging

• Soundstage is quite good for the asking price, slightly out of your head with fairly good depth perception, a little lacking for the height but i’m just nitpicking here

• Imaging is average, in most of the tracks, the instruments can be identified easily from left / right, but when the track gets busy, it does suffers a little

Comparison (Edifier Neobuds Pro 2)

• Neobuds Pro 2 has lesser bass quantity but tighter in terms of control

• Treble on the Neobuds 2 pro is a little hot on certain tracks, this gives the impression of good detail retrieval, but on certain tracks, where a lot of instruments from upper registers are playing, it can be very fatiguing to listen to

• Two drivers (1DD+1BA) vs 1DD from FreePro 3

• Battery life is a lot weaker compared to FreePro 3, 4 hrs approximately with ANC vs 6 hrs with ANC

• Supports a variety of features ( Head tracking for spatial audio) and LHDCX( lossless wireless codec)

Final Thoughts

Having tested the FreePro 3 for several weeks, it’s safe to say, the FreePro 3 offers a lot for the asking price, a fun sounding stock tuning with the ability to customise it to your preference from the app itself, and generous battery life with ANC on. The ANC prior to firmware .023, it is not that good, but after i updated it to 0.23, i do hear some improvement or rather optimisation on the noise cancellation’s performance, i do hope EarFun will keep pushing out updates to further optimise it as well as offering some other features as well. Recommended!

*FreePro 3 was sent over by EG Tech (EarFun MY) for the purpose of this review. I thank them for the opportunity. All thoughts are of my own

Head over to the following store if you’re interested in getting one for yourself

EarFun FreePro 3 Official Store Shopee - Non affiliated

EarFun FreePro 3 International Page