Moto Buds+ Review
The Moto Buds+, co-developed with Bose, offer a feature-rich experience with customisable sound and controls via a robust companion app, excellent call quality, and fast charging. However, the design is uninspired and the build quality lacks a premium feel, particularly for its ₹9,999 price tag. Despite Bose’s expertise, the ANC is underwhelming, especially in noisy environments, and the default sound profile suffers from an overly bloated bass, though this can be adjusted.
After a successful year in the smartphone industry, Motorola has ventured into the highly competitive TWS earphones market to bolster its ecosystem of products. The company has launched two new wireless earphones – the premium Moto Buds+ priced at ₹9,999 and the more affordable Moto Buds at ₹4,999. The Moto Buds+ are developed in collaboration with the legendary audio company Bose and proudly display the “Sound by Bose” tag. This move continues Motorola’s trend of strategic partnerships, having previously collaborated with Pantone on various phones, and now teaming up with Bose to stay ahead in the audio space. At this price point, the Moto Buds+ competes with top-tier TWS earbuds such as the OPPO Enco X2 (review) and OnePlus Buds Pro 2 (review). While this is not Motorola’s first foray into the audio market, it is undoubtedly their most deliberated effort. Can Motorola carve out a niche for itself in this fiercely competitive market? Let’s find out in my detailed Moto Buds Plus review.
Sporting a cobble-shaped charging case, the Moto Buds+’s design language is quite minimalist to the point of being uninspired. It lacks the distinctive “it-factor” needed to stand out in the competitive TWS market. However, the prominent “Sound by Bose” branding on the front of the case highlights Bose’s collaboration in creating the Moto Buds+, which adds a touch of prestige.
The earbuds are available in two simple colours – Forest Grey and Beach Sand. While neither is particularly eye-catching, the Beach Sand variant appears slightly more polished. The case is compact enough to fit easily in small purses or pockets, and its matte texture feels good to the touch, though it is prone to scratching.
The earbuds themselves have a matte finish and are quite lightweight, weighing just 4 grams each. This makes them ideal for gym workouts or running, as they stay securely in place. They are also extremely comfortable, offering a snug fit that allows for hours of music listening with minimal discomfort.
In terms of durability, the case lacks a metal hinge, giving it a slightly flimsy feel for its ₹10K price point. However, the magnets inside are strong enough to keep the buds securely nestled even if the case is dropped. The earbuds have an IP54 rating, while the charging case has an IPX4 rating, meaning both are protected against splashes, but only the buds are resistant to dust damage.
In my opinion, the OnePlus Buds Pro 2 has a much more distinctive and premium design, so, if looks are important to you, consider buying the OnePlus Buds Pro 2 since they also have a fantastic fit.
The Moto Buds+ is brimming with premium features. The earbuds come with Adaptive Active Noise Cancellation, wireless charging, a highly customisable Moto Buds app, Dolby Atmos and Dolby Head Tracking, multipoint connectivity, Voice Assistant support, and so much more. The Moto Buds+ is one of the most feature-laden pairs of truly wireless earbuds you can get your hands on under ₹10,000. Let’s go through the standout features one at a time.
Bose hasn’t just assisted Motorola in the sound tuning of the Moto Buds+, but also ANC. Leveraging Bose’s expertise in manufacturing ANC earphones, it’s a tad surprising that the ANC on the Moto Buds+ does not quite meet expectations. Of course, it doesn’t compete with ultra-flagships such as the Sony WF-1000XM5 and the QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds, but it offers inadequate noise suppression, even for its price, particularly in the mids and the highs. So sadly, if you’re in traffic or amidst a lot of human chatter, the noise cancellation is quite weak.
The earbuds also come with Adaptive ANC that intelligently identifies ambient noise and automatically switches between ANC levels to the most appropriate one. The Transparency Mode, while decent, does sound slightly unnatural though.
One of the best features of the Moto Buds+ is its excellent companion app. The Moto Buds app has an array of customisation options ranging from a robust 10-band EQ to gesture customisation. The level of customisation you can get over the sound and controls is quite impressive. Additionally, the also allows users to check battery percentage, switch between noise cancellation modes, toggle dual connection and low latency mode, and perform firmware updates.
Motorola has worked in close cooperation with Bose to tune the sound of the Moto Buds+. The buds are equipped with a 11mm bass driver and a 6mm micro planar tweeter, both of which handle different parts of the frequency range, allowing for better separation. The earphones are Hi-Res certified and support Dolby Atmos with Dolby Head Tracking on supported devices. The earbuds support the LHDC5.0, AAC, SBC, and LC3 audio codecs but I’d prefer aptX support over LHDC as its support is more widespread.
The sound is rich in character and depth with excellent soundstage but there are some issues. The bass response is excessively bloated causing severe auditory masking issues. The entire bass frequency range from 20-250 Hz is overemphasised which masks the intricacies of mid and high frequencies. In songs such as Training Season by Dua Lipa, the thumping bass line distorts the vocals and other instruments.
The mids, by themselves, are pristine. They are very close to neutral and vocals sound crisp and clear when the bass isn’t too overbearing. For example, these earphones are great when listening to podcasts. The highs also sound decent with good amounts of sparkle and low sibilance. However, the bloated bass isn’t too much of an issue given the 10-band EQ customisation you get through the Moto Buds app. I modified the sub-bass region and the sound completely transformed into something much more cohesive.
The OPPO Enco X2 is still the undisputed champion of sound at this price range. In fact, even the OnePlus Buds Pro 2 has a better default bass response. But, through customisation, you can make the Moto Buds+ sound pretty stellar.
As for call quality, the Moto Buds+ employs a triple microphone system with ENC support. Call quality is fantastic indoors; the speaker’s voice is clear and legible even with background noise. When there’s wind interference, the quality dips slightly but it’s still one of the better mic systems on TWS earphones at this price.
The Moto Buds+’s battery life is pretty mediocre. It boasts up to 8 hours of playback on the earbuds alone without ANC, and a total of 38 hours of playback with the charging case included. However, with ANC turned on and AAC codec active, I got a playtime of merely 3.5 hours on the earbuds, which is on the lower side.
The charging case topped the earphones up another four times, which brings the total playtime to 17.5 hours with ANC active. The earbuds do come with fast charging though, so a quick 10-minute charge will get you about 1 hour of playtime with ANC active.
The Moto Buds+, co-developed with Bose, offer a feature-rich experience with customisable sound and controls via a robust companion app, excellent call quality, and fast charging. However, the design is uninspired and the build quality lacks a premium feel, particularly for its ₹9,999 price tag. Despite Bose’s expertise, the ANC is underwhelming, especially in noisy environments, and the default sound profile suffers from an overly bloated bass, though this can be adjusted. The earbuds are lightweight and comfortable, ideal for long use and workouts, but the battery life is mediocre, providing only 3.5 hours of playtime with ANC active. Those who prefer a more balanced sound profile would be better off choosing the OPPO Enco X2, but for the casual user, the Moto Buds+ can prove to be a great option despite its shortcomings given its customisability and feature array.
