OPPO launched Enco X, the company’s new true wireless earphones in India a couple of months back as the successor to the Enco Free that was launched last year. The earbuds feature IP54 splash-resistant body, Hybrid Active Noise Cancellation, Bluetooth 5.2 and Wireless charging. Does it live up to the expectations? Let us dive into the review to find out.
Box contents
- OPPO Enco X in Black Colour
- USB Type-C charging cable
- Ear tips in Small and Large sizes
- Quick start guide and Safety guide
Design and Build Quality
Starting with the design, the headset comes in a round charging case that fits in your pocket. You can see the charge indicator on the front that glows in green, white and red colours. The case is shiny and attracts fingerprints. The white version gets dirty easily, so I would prefer the Black colour. The charging case measures 66.3x49x21.7mm and weighs just 42.5 grams. With the headset in the box, the case weighs 52.5 grams.
There is a function key on the right side. OPPO branding is on the top, DYNAUDIO branding on the back and the USB Type-C port is on the bottom.
The headset has a plastic finish that is shiny which is prone to small scratches. The earbuds weigh about 4.8 grams, which is light. The earbuds feature an in-ear design and also come with medium-sized ear tips pre-installed. You can change to bundled Large or Small sized ear tips if you wish. There is an Optical Sensor for Wear Detection so that it can automatically pause the audio when you remove it from your ears and play when you put it back. Since the headset is small, you might lose it.
There is a microphone on the back of the headset for noise cancellation and the bottom microphone is used for calls. You can also see the contacts for charging in the stem.
Below the microphone there is a touch-sensitive area on the outer surface, to control play/pause, open Google Assistant and attend or disconnect calls. Overall the headset offers a good build quality and fits your ears perfectly so that they don’t fall off your ears easily even when running or cycling. The earphones also have IP54 ratings for dust and water resistance, so it can withstand splashes or light rain, but you can’t use it when swimming. I didn’t have any issue using the headset during my marathon in rain last month.
Connectivity, Pairing, and Controls
The OPPO Enco X supports Bluetooth 5.2 with LHDC Hi-Res audio codec for HD sound quality on supported devices, it also supports AAC codec that works in phones that have it. The connection range is around 10 meters, which is common in most headsets, but the connection quality is good. The pairing process is very easy, simply press and hold the function button on the case for 3 to 5 seconds until the status light blinks white, this means that the headset is now ready to be paired to a device. Now open the Bluetooth settings on the phone, and it shows up as OPPO Enco X, and you can connect to it. As soon as the connection is established, the blinking LED should go off. You can take the earbuds out of the case and start using.
Since it has fast pairing mode that supports compatible OPPO phones, it automatically pairs to the phone when you bring the case with the headset close to the phone with Bluetooth turned on. We tested it on the Mi 10T Pro, Redmi K20 Pro, Redmi Note 10 Pro Max, and the Samsung Galaxy A52, and never faced any pairing related issue. Since the phone pairs with the case and not the headset, you will need the case if you want to reconnect it, but you can turn the headset on with a long press if it’s disconnected from the phone. The touch controls are easy to access and are very sensitive to touch.
| Function | Left earphone (L) | Right earphone (R) |
| Answer call / Hang calls | Double tap | |
| Switch between max noise cancellation and Transparency | Touch and hold for 1 second | |
| Play previous or next track | Double tap | |
| Launch voice assistant | Triple tap | |
| Increase / Decrease volume | Slide up / down | |
| Switch between two most recently connected devices | Touch and hold for 3 seconds | |
You can customize the controls from the settings in the Hey Melody app on Android. You can change the double tap to play / pause and the slide on the earbuds to switch track. You can also choose any two options from Noise cancellation off, Transparency, Noise cancellation and Max noise cancellation, when you touch and hold either earbud. However, you can’t change the triple-tap option which is set for voice assistant and long touch and hold which is set to switch devices by default.
The Earbuds fit test option plays music to ensure that your ear tips make a good seal with your ear canal for better noise-cancelling. You also get frequent firmware updates for the headset that improves the quality and adds new features.
Audio Quality, Call Performance and Noise Cancellation
The OPPO Enco X pack a 11mm dynamic driver + 6mm balanced membrane driver with new DBEE 3.0 Sound System with new materials, new technologies, and a new structure. It is tuned in collaboration with Danish HiFi brand Dynaudio. With the LHDC enabled, audio quality is good with clear vocals and good amount of bass, thanks to the 6mm magnetic balanced membrane driver handles high frequencies, while the triple-layer 11mm composite dynamic driver handles middle and low frequencies. In AAC the audio quality is not immersive, but it is good. There are only few smartphones that support LHDC, so if you want the best audio from the headset, make sure your smartphone supports it.
The earbuds offer a good amount of noise isolation, and triple microphones help when it comes to voice clarity during calls. The earphones also reduce the background noise to a certain extent that helps in a crowded or noisy environment and wind when you are travelling.
Regarding the Noise cancellation, the Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) blocks the ambient sound that helps in most cases. You can feel the difference when you are listening outdoors. For the price it does a good job, even better than the LG Tone Free FN-7 that are priced more than the Enco X. However, the Samsung Buds Pro at a slightly higher price offers better noise cancellation.
This also has a Transparency mode that allows you to listen to ambient sound so that you can recognize the surrounding situation and any potential risks. This is a useful feature that every headset should have. Since it has LHDC codec, it offers low-latency as low as 47ms that is useful when gaming.
Battery Life
The earphones pack 44mAh battery that promises about 5.5 hours of standalone battery life and 4 hours with max noise cancellation enabled in 50% volume. During my run with LHDC and noise cancellation enabled, I got about 4 and half hours with mixed use of with and without noise cancellation in about 60% volume, so it is decent. Without LHDC and noise cancellation fully off, it lasts for close to 6 hours. It doesn’t have fast charging support, so it takes about 80 minutes to charge the headset.
With the 535mAh charging case, it promises up to 25 hours of total battery life without ANC and 20 hours of total battery life with max noise cancellation enabled. I got about 17 hours with mixed use which is decent. The green light in the case indicates that the battery is full, the yellow light represents it medium, and when it turns red, it is low. You can also see the charge left in the case in the HeyMelody app when the earbuds are placed in the case. Charging the case fully with the earbuds take about 2 hours. The charging case also offers wireless charging, so you can simply drop your earbuds onto a charging pad.
Conclusion
Overall, the OPPO Enco X offers good audio quality with brilliant noise cancellation for the price. It also has a compact design, offers a good calling experience and a good battery life. Even though it has wireless charging, it lacks fast charging. Priced at Rs. 9,990, it is available for purchase from Flipkart online as well as offline retailers.
Pros
- Good audio quality with LHDC support
- Good call quality
- Low-latency audio experience
- Brilliant ANC for the price
- Good battery life
Cons
- Less customizations for touch controls
- No fast charging
- No iOS app yet