Gadget
Manufacturers quote battery life under ideal conditions — full charge, medium volume, no Bluetooth codec overhead, ANC off. Reality looks different. We tracked five pairs of true wireless earbuds through daily commutes, video calls, and gym sessions from August 2025 to February 2026. Every model cost under £80 at purchase.
Battery tests were run with a standardised 75 dB SPL target through a GRAS 45CC ear simulator. ANC attenuation was measured against pink noise at 65 dBA. Call quality was assessed with an Earthworks M30 reference microphone and Ableton Live level analysis.
Six-month battery degradation
| Earbuds | Rated Battery | Day 1 Measured | Day 180 Measured | Degradation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EarFun Air Pro 4 | 9 h | 8.6 h | 7.9 h | -8% |
| Anker Soundcore Liberty 4 NC | 10 h | 9.3 h | 8.1 h | -13% |
| Jabra Evolve2 Buds (consumer) | 8 h | 7.7 h | 7.2 h | -6% |
| 1MORE Fit SE Open | 11 h | 10.1 h | 8.4 h | -17% |
| Nothing Ear (a) | 9.5 h | 8.9 h | 8.3 h | -7% |
The 1MORE degraded most sharply — 17% in six months is notable for a product that claims an open-type design specifically reduces cell stress. In contrast, the Jabra held within 6% of its day-one capacity, consistent with Jabra’s focus on professional-grade durability.
ANC: depth and frequency response
Active noise cancellation is measured in decibels of attenuation, but the frequency range matters as much as the peak number. Cheap ANC performs well at low-frequency drone (100–500 Hz) but collapses above 1 kHz, where office chatter and human speech live. We measured across five frequency bands.
| Earbuds | 125 Hz | 250 Hz | 500 Hz | 1 kHz | 2 kHz |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EarFun Air Pro 4 | -28 dB | -24 dB | -18 dB | -9 dB | -4 dB |
| Anker Liberty 4 NC | -32 dB | -27 dB | -20 dB | -11 dB | -6 dB |
| Jabra Evolve2 | -30 dB | -26 dB | -22 dB | -14 dB | -8 dB |
| 1MORE Fit SE | -12 dB | -8 dB | -4 dB | -2 dB | -1 dB |
| Nothing Ear (a) | -26 dB | -22 dB | -16 dB | -8 dB | -3 dB |
The 1MORE Fit SE uses an open design intentionally — no ANC, no isolation seal — so its numbers are expected. The surprise is how much the Jabra Evolve2 beats the Nothing Ear (a) in the speech-critical 1–2 kHz range despite costing a similar amount.
Call quality
Call microphone performance splits into two problems: background noise rejection and voice frequency response. The EarFun Air Pro 4’s six-microphone array captures voice clearly but adds a processed “phone call” quality that some contacts find unnatural. The Jabra’s microphone response is flatter — less aggressive noise suppression, but the voice sounds more like you rather than an AI-cleaned version of you.
We played a 65 dB pink noise track 1 metre from the wearer and recorded the output. Anker’s call noise suppression was most aggressive, attenuating 41 dB of ambient noise — the best in the group. Nothing Ear (a) attenuated 33 dB but with less voice colouration.
Sound quality assessment
Without lab-calibrated listening tests, sound quality comments are subjective — so we note our observation: the EarFun Air Pro 4 has a V-shaped frequency profile (boosted bass and treble, recessed mids) that sounds impressive on first listen but obscures vocal detail. The Nothing Ear (a) applies a flatter default EQ, which suits podcasts and calls but sounds thin on bass-heavy tracks without manual EQ adjustment via the app.
Our verdict
If calls and office use are your priority: Jabra Evolve2 Buds — the long-term battery retention and mid-frequency ANC performance justify the cost. For music and general use on a tighter budget: EarFun Air Pro 4 covers most needs with the lowest six-month degradation in its price tier. Avoid: the 1MORE Fit SE Open unless you specifically want an open-ear design — its battery degradation rate and lack of isolation make it a poor general-purpose choice.