I, preface: listen to true lossless music also rely on top audio decoding technology
In the 2024 Lei Jun annual speech, Xiaomi's new products were also unveiled, from straight screen phones, large and small folding phones, to watches and bracelets, to AIOT devices and Xiaomi SU7 Ultra, which further enriches Xiaomi's “human car and machine” lineup, which also includes the Xiaomi Buds 5 half-ear headphones, which returned after a year and a half. The Xiaomi Buds 5 semi-in-ear headphones are back after a year and a half.
Today, we're focusing on the flagship headphones of the year, the Xiaomi Buds 5, after a year and a half absence.
It's the first headphone from Xiaomi to support aptX Lossless audio encoding under LE Audio, and it's also the first headphone from Xiaomi to support Aptx adaptive low latency.
And, to differentiate itself, Xiaomi has integrated audio recording into the headset, a new feature that has not been seen in the mobile brand's headset lineup so far.
aptX Lossless is Qualcomm's latest Bluetooth audio codec, which is a new feature of aptX Adaptive technology, as well as Snapdragon Sound technology, which supports up to 2.1Mbps high-bandwidth transmission for high-level (48k/24bit) lossless transmission.
High bandwidth transmission ensures the integrity and accuracy of audio data during transmission, allowing users to enjoy truly lossless sound quality.
Simply put, only wireless headphones equipped with the aptX Lossless audio codec can output true lossless-grade sound quality, and the Xiaomi Buds 5 headphones are a great example of the application of this innovative technology.
In addition to making sound quality even better, aptX Lossless also incorporates the Aptx adaptive low-latency feature, which also provides the Xiaomi Buds 5 with the ability to deliver ultra-low latency of 50ms, a full 2.4 times more efficient in terms of latency compared to the 120ms of the previous-generation Xiaomi Buds 4.
This also means that whether you're watching a video, playing a game, or participating in an online meeting, the Xiaomi Buds 5 delivers a virtually imperceptible synchronized experience.
Last but not least, the new recording function feature of the Xiaomi Buds 5 allows users to record directly from the headphones by triple-tapping the headphone handle, eliminating the need to carry an additional recording device during meetings, lectures, or any situation where sound needs to be recorded.
This not only enhances the convenience of recording important meetings, but also ensures the covertness and audio quality of the recording.
II. Appearance: Gilded edge design + frosted process, full of sense of technology
The box of Xiaomi Buds 5 adopts a simple design language, with a pure white color scheme and a rendering of the real headset printed on the front.
The battery compartment of the headphones has an NCL gilt glossy edge design on the upper part, and the lower part is frosted, which increases the friction when gripping the headphones for a more stable grip, and also brings a delicate and soft touch.
The frosted material also effectively resists fingerprints and scratches from daily use, keeping the battery compartment a lasting novelty.
The battery compartment features a Type-C charging port at the bottom and a reset button on the right side.
The front of the battery compartment on the Xiaomi Buds 5 features a breathing light, while the inside of the charging compartment utilizes a magnetic contact charging design scheme.
Taking out the body of the headset, you can see that the headset adopts a semi in-ear shape that better fits the human ear, and the ergonomic, natural fit design ensures the comfort and stability of wearing the headset.
Weighing only 4.2g in a single ear, it realizes a sensation-free wearing experience. Compared to the previous generation (4.4g), the weight reduction has dropped by 4.5%, making it uncomfortable to wear for a long time.
Xiaomi Buds 5 comes with a Type-C cable randomly included inside the package.
III, sound quality and noise reduction: powerful bass noise reduction to meet the needs of office, reading needs
Xiaomi Buds 5 adopts Xiaomi's customized internal and external dual-magnetic unit speakers, with a large 11mm design and black polymer coating technology, providing excellent sound quality output capability at the bottom of the hardware.
Secondly, this dual magnetic unit speaker, with an ultra-wide frequency response range of 16Hz to 40kHz, ensures accurate reproduction from deep bass to clear treble, and its oversized 0.5mm amplitude design allows for a more powerful bass effect, while maintaining the mellowness and clarity of vocals.
In this regard, we also used the Xiaomi Buds 5 to audition different styles of music.
-Sound quality
We first auditioned the rhythmic music of “The Sixth Sense”, and Xiaomi Buds 5 paid special attention to capturing the unique rhythmic sense of each instrument, so that the whole piece was presented in a clearer and more organized way.
Moreover, the headphones excelled in the layering of the music, with the gradient of volume handled appropriately, and the boundaries between the main theme and the background music were clearly discernible, maintaining the harmony and unity of the music.
In the high-frequency section, the Xiaomi Buds 5 performs very purely without particularly large acoustic imperfections. Whether it's the lilting of a violin or the crispness of a piano, it accurately captures and reproduces the subtleties of these high-frequency instruments.
Finally, when enjoying “The Ferry”, the first three drum hits were crisp and clear, and the vocal section headphones accurately captured the singer's distinctive voice and emotional expression, presenting the pronunciation of each word in a clear and recognizable manner.
The vocals are not only well balanced with the instrumental accompaniment, but also seem natural and unobtrusive, allowing the listener to feel the emotion and story conveyed in the song more deeply.
This precise presentation of vocal details is further proof of the high level of vocal reproduction in Xiaomi Buds 5.
The Qualcomm QCC3081 chip used in Xiaomi Buds 5 supports aptX Adaptive encoding, a technology that automatically adjusts to audio content for two different audio experiences, low latency and high fidelity.
Compared to the widely used AAC encoding, aptX Adaptive can deliver up to 420kbps in a good connection environment, enabling users to enjoy richer details when listening to lossless music.
And when playing games, this technology can achieve a very low latency of about 80ms, effectively avoiding the problem of audio and video desynchronization.
The spatial audio of Xiaomi Buds 5 supports Immersive Sound, a technology that simulates a three-dimensional sound field through precise sound processing, making you feel as if you are surrounded by music.
When Immersive Sound is turned on, it enhances the depth and breadth of the sound, giving you a sense of space, as if the sound is echoing through a tunnel, with a unique surround effect.
This effect is not just an increase in the size or loudness of the sound, but an all-around listening enjoyment that allows you to feel every detail of the music, and every note has its own place in space.
As a $109 high-end headphone, the Xiaomi Buds 5 unsurprisingly supports head-tracking, where the sound follows horizontally around our head in 360°.
Imagine putting on the Xiaomi Buds 5 headphones and immersing yourself in the intense atmosphere of a car chase, you'll feel like you're actually in that exciting race, with the sound seeming to come to you naturally from all directions, as if you're actually there.
This immersive sound experience makes you feel as if you're surrounded by an invisible sound, with every sound source clearly positioned around you, creating an immersive feeling and allowing you to fully immerse yourself in the game or movie.
--Noise Cancellation
The Xiaomi Buds 5 is equipped with 3Mic+ AI call noise cancellation technology, which supports active noise cancellation that automatically detects the surrounding environment and adjusts the level of noise reduction accordingly.
However, the noise-canceling mode still needs to be turned on manually, which we can do by long-pressing the touch bar at the bottom of the left or right ear, or we can turn it on in the Xiaomi headset app.
Combined with advanced wind noise suppression algorithms and specialized structural design, the headset effectively reduces background noise and wind interference, which means that users can enjoy a clear, interference-free call experience, whether they're on a busy street or outdoors in windy conditions.
In this regard, we also tested the headset's noise reduction.
In an indoor environment, we measured the ambient noise at 56.7dB, and the Xiaomi Buds 5 headset's Deep Noise Cancellation mode was able to significantly reduce high-frequency noises, including the sound of a mechanical keyboard being struck, the constant hum of a computer's mainframe, the sound of a fan spinning, or the vibration of an air-conditioning unit, to name a few.
Using the headset's Deep Noise Cancellation mode cuts noise by nearly 50 percent when confronted with this kind of low-frequency, persistent noise that is common in offices.
Moreover, the headset creates a quieter workspace while paying special attention to comfort, with an ergonomic design that avoids ear discomfort that may be caused by prolonged wear.
--Bluetooth connectivity
Xiaomi Buds 5 supports Bluetooth 5.4 transmission protocol, compared to the traditional Bluetooth 5.3, the transmission speed and the stability of the connection is more for the application scenarios that require high-speed data transmission, such as audio transmission, video transmission and so on.
In addition, Bluetooth 5.4 introduces a more advanced signal processing technology that effectively reduces signal interference and attenuation, further enhancing the stability of the connection, which enables Xiaomi Buds 5 to provide a more stable and reliable wireless connection experience while ensuring sound quality and video synchronization.
If you're using a Xiaomi phone, tablet or laptop, the Xiaomi Buds 5 can automatically pop up a hover window after connecting your device to check the power level of the headphones as well as the battery compartment in real time.
Thanks to the Bluetooth 5.4 transmission protocol, Xiaomi Buds 5 has a low-latency feature enabled by default, the headset will reduce the delay effect of the sound from 75ms to 50ms, we can hardly feel any delay when we are playing a game of gun battle, or watching audio and video.
This low-latency experience is very important for game enthusiasts, where every tiny time difference in a fast-paced shooter can affect the outcome of victory or defeat.
The Xiaomi Buds 5, however, allows players to react more quickly by reducing the time delay in sound transmission, allowing them to hear in-game sound effects and feedback faster, which not only enhances the immersion of the game, but also allows players to have a better performance in competitive games.
--Independent Recording
Another highlight, the Xiaomi Buds 5 headset supports independent recording and can convert recorded audio to text to generate a content summary with one click.
When wearing the Xiaomi Buds 5 headphones, the standalone recording function can be easily activated with just three taps on the headphones. This convenient operation gives both headphones the ability to record audio, and each can independently record up to 90 minutes of audio, perfectly suited for recording daily meetings or important discussions.
This feature has been designed with the user in mind for business or study situations, ensuring that every important piece of information is captured at the critical moment.
Recorded audio is automatically stored in the headset's internal memory, and we can also import the audio content to our phone through the Xiaomi Headset App to prevent the headset from running out of storage space.
After recording, you can transcribe the audio content to text content.
The transcribed 3-minute text content is intelligently analyzed and deeply understood in just 30 to 40 seconds, and the originally disorganized information is cleverly split and reorganized into a series of clear headings and detailed text paragraphs.
This process not only makes the meeting records well-organized, but also makes the hierarchical structure of the information clear at a glance, greatly enhancing the readability and ease of use of the information.
IV, charging and battery life: 40 minutes full charge Music can be listened to smoothly for 6 hours
Xiaomi Buds 5's battery capacity for a single headset is at 35mAh, and with the 480mAh battery compartment, it can theoretically charge two headphones 6.8 times.
We tested the charging and battery life of the Xiaomi Buds 5 headphones.
--Charging test
At 15:30, with the left ear at 52% and the right ear at 47%, the two headphones were placed in the charging compartment and charged for 10 minutes to 80% for the left ear and 78% for the right ear.
From this, we can estimate that the headphones charge at an average of 3% per minute, and it takes about 40 minutes to go from no power to full power.
-Battery life test
Next we tested the battery life of the headphones by adjusting the volume of the headphones to about 30%, turning off the noise canceling feature, turning off the spatial audio feature, and wearing the headphones to listen to music for 1 hour.
At this time, the left ear of the power consumption of 15%, the right ear power consumption of 19%, an average of one hour headphones consumed 17% of the power, which can be deduced from the headset full power use length of about 6 hours.
V. Summary: The best sound quality Xiaomi semi in-ear headphones
In terms of sound quality, in our tests, both deep bass and clear treble were accurately reproduced, and every detail of vocals and instruments came to life, thanks to the advantages of aptX Lossless transmission.
In terms of noise reduction, the Xiaomi Buds 5's 3Mic+ AI Call Noise Reduction technology effectively reduces the interference of background noise and wind, providing a clear, distraction-free call experience even in noisy environments.
Although the depth of noise reduction is not as deep as those in-ear headphones with more than 50dB, in our experience, the Xiaomi Buds 5 can cancel out 40~50% of external noise in deep noise reduction mode, which is sufficient for daily use for semi-in-ear headphones, and it is believed that most people who choose this category of headphones do not value its noise reduction ability, but rather, they are more interested in the wearability and comfort it brings. Comfort.
It's worth saying that the recording function of Xiaomi Buds 5 is a bold attempt by Xiaomi to differentiate itself from the competition and a subversive innovation of traditional headphone functions.
Three clicks on the headphones to record, can automatically transcribe text, and accurately extract the summary, these three functions have not yet been seen in traditional headphones, and this feature not only greatly facilitates the user's need to record in a variety of occasions, but also provides a brand new way of recording for users with its invisibility and high sound quality.
In our tests, the headset's conversion efficiency is very fast, basically just after the voice, the text content has been completely converted, the extracted summary content is concise and concise, the key content is prominent, which greatly saves the time and energy needed to organize the summary.
