Yahama has launched a budget-friendly pair of true wireless earbuds that boast aptX Adaptive Hi-Res sound, and seem set to offer budget-watching audiophiles a way to get impressive performance without breaking the bank.
The third entry in its TW-E3 series of true wireless earbuds line, Yamaha’s TW-E3C earbuds seem to have a feature set to rival some of the best wireless earbuds out there – in a package that’ll only cost you $79.95 / £89 (around AU$110).
The TW-E3C earbuds will combine aptX Adaptive Hi-Res sound – a codec that allows them to stream at much higher quality than regular Bluetooth, but to also maintain a rock-solid connection even if there's interference – with what Yamaha is calling 'True Sound'. These are acoustic features that are designed to allow the earbuds to produce a realistic soundstage that’s rich with clear midrange and high frequencies, as well as bass notes with a solid oomph.
The earbuds will also pack a few smart extras, such as a low-latency gaming mode that reduces audio lag, multipoint connectivity so they can be connected to two devices simultaneously (making it easier to swap between them), and a pair of mics that should be able to isolate your voice for calls even in fairly noisy environments.
You might also want to consider picking a pair of these up if you’ve recently been scanning our pick of the best workout headphones. Thanks to their IPX5 water-resistant rating they should be able to stand up against sweat – just remember to take them out before you go for a swim.
The Yamaha TW-E3C earbuds have a battery life of nine hours from the buds, which is nearly up with the best of them (the Cambridge Audio Melomania 1 Plus can manage 10 hours, but what's one hour between friends), but can be extended a further 15 hours thanks to the charging case giving them a maximum of 24 hours of use before you need to plug them in again. 24 hours of use is definitely nothing to sniff at, especially not at this price.
Don't expect them to have everything, however. You won't find active noise-cancelling tech in these buds, even though some affordable buds do offer it. Given their design earbuds do block out a fair amount of external sound, but without this tech, you may find the Yamaha TW-E3Cs don't offer the level of isolation you crave. You might fare better with something from our best noise-cancelling earbuds buying guide.
We also haven't tested these earbuds ourselves – so we can’t speak for how they perform – but Yamaha’s other audio products (like its Yamaha YH-L700A headphones) have earned solid scores from our reviewers. What’s more, the TW-E3C earbuds’ predecessors, the TW-E3B, were reasonably well-liked; as expected they don’t offer the same build quality and features as pricier models, but their audio performance and bass clarity punched well above their weight.
If you're looking to pick a pair of these earbuds up they're available to order in the UK in a range of six different colors (gray, black, red, blue, beige, and green) and should be available to ship in the US soon.
If you can't wait for the new Yamaha buds, check out our picks for more of the best budget wireless earbuds you can buy today.
