Realme Buds Air 3 Neo Review: Best Budget Earbuds?

Today, I’m reviewing Realme Buds Air 3 Neo, which are popular earphones. The Realme Buds Air series are all the rage, but these more affordable product lines also have great products. I wanted to test them out and see if these earbuds were worth the price.

Realme Buds Air 3 Neo has 10 mm sound drivers and features like App Support, Sound Equalizers, and Customizable Functions. They also have a great battery life with up to 30 hours of playback. The earbuds have a game mode that supports low latency.

The features sound great on paper, but how well do these earbuds perform? This is exactly what I’m going to be testing them on. As usual, I’ve divided my review into different categories and will go into detail with every category.

Should you get Realme Buds Air 3 Neo? Keep reading to find out.

About The Brand

Realme is an electronics manufacturer based in Guangdong, China. Realme originally started as an Oppo sub-brand and was founded by Oppo’s former vice president in 2018. Now Realme stands as its own brand.

The brand is known for manufacturing products such as Smartphones and earphones and has even ventured into laptops and Smart TVs.

What do You Get in The Box?

• Paperwork
• Warranty Card
• Type C Cable
• Extra Ear Tips
• Earbuds Case

Who is Realme Buds Air 3 Neo For?

Realme Buds Air 3 Neo are for everyone looking for affordable earphones under 2000. These earphones are backed with features and do not compromise in areas like sound or build quality.

The sound quality for multimedia was also excellent. The only people I would not recommend these earbuds to are gamers. Despite the low latency mode, the latency is quite high, so it is not ideal for gaming.

Important Factors We Tested Realme Buds Air 3 Neo on

Here are all the essential factors we tested Realme Buds Air 3 Neo on.

1. Design

The design, look, and feel of Realme Buds Air 3 Neo is premium. I have the blue variant, which looks slightly purple and has a great look.

The Realme Buds 3 Neo comes in 2 colour variants – Starry Blue and Galaxy White.

The earbuds are stem shaped and come with a dual finish. On the control and stem area, you’ll find a glossy finish while the rest of the earbuds are matte.

You’ll also find clear markings of right and left on the buds. They come with extra ear tips in the box. The default ear tips were slightly small for my ears, so I switched them out with the additional ear tips. If you use the right size of ear tips for your ear, then they offer excellent sound isolation.

When you put these on, almost 70% of the background noise will be cancelled out. They also won’t fall out of your ears, and the silicone tips provide a secure fit.

The case also feels of great quality, and Realme has used strong plastic for its build. The lid of the case has a translucent material.

The magnets on the case are also strong. The lid closes securely, and you don’t have to worry about your earbuds falling out. The magnet inside the case for the earbuds is also pretty good.

In this case, you’ll find Realme branding on the front and an LED indicator at the bottom. There’s a Type-C charging port at the bottom, and they charge relatively fast.

The case is relatively compact, and you can easily carry it around in your pocket. Overall, these earbuds’ design and build quality are quite good.

2. Durability

Realme Buds Air 3 Neo earbuds have great build quality. The plastic used on the case feels sturdy. The case feels strong enough even to take a few falls, and you won’t have to worry about them breaking.

Air Buds Neo 2 also comes with an IPX5 water and sweat resistance.

These earbuds are great for taking to the gym; they fit securely inside your ears without worrying about falling off. If you like going to the gym, these earbuds are a great match.

3. Sound Quality

Realme Buds Air 3 Neo comes with 10 mm bass-boosted drivers. You’ll get adequate loudness with these earbuds. You can also utilise the volume enhancer option in the Realme link app to increase the volume.

I liked the sound quality of these earbuds. Many budget headphones have bass missing, but these headphones don’t compromise on them.

These earbuds have a balanced sound output with adequate mids, lows, and highs. You’ll enjoy listening to music and have a great experience.

Testing the sound quality while gaming and using multimedia is essential to know how well they’ll perform in all situations.

I tested out gaming on them by playing a few different games. The brand claims you get a latency of up to 80 ms. However, the latency was still high when I tested them out.

If you play many competitive games; these earbuds aren’t the best option for you because of the latency. So in my experience, these are not suited for gaming.

As for multimedia, you’ll enjoy using these headphones. After my hands-on analysis, I found that the sound quality was excellent. You’ll get great detailing in the sound and a balanced output.

4. Battery Backup

With Realme Buds Air 3 Neo, you’ll get a battery backup of 30 hours on the case. You’ll get a playtime of 6 to 7 hours on the earbuds. They also have a fast charging feature where you’ll get 2 hours of playback in just 10 minutes of charging.

You’ll easily be able to use these earbuds throughout the day on a single charge. If you’re a moderate user, they’ll last you even longer, and you can easily use them for 2 – 3 days.

5. Functions And Connectivity

These earbuds come with Bluetooth 5.2, which provides a stable connection up to a radius of 10 metres. You’ll get insta Wake n Pair technology with these earbuds if you’ve already connected them to the device before. The earbuds will connect when you open the case and disconnect when you close it.

Make sure to download the Realme link app when you get these earbuds. This will show you the battery percentage of the earbuds and the case. You’ll get access to different sound presets like Bass boost, balanced and bright. There is also an option to enhance volume.

You’ll find a dedicated gaming mode you can switch on and off through this application.

There’s also an option to customise your touch controls.

Realme Buds Air Neo comes with Dolby Atmos support, giving you a great experience while playing movies.

This will give you access to a lot of functions and features. Realme has given this app to let you fully customise these earbuds according to your preference.

The app also gives you the option to customise sound according to how you like it. I really liked this option to customise them.

5. Value For Money

You’ll get these earbuds at Rs 1999. You can get them at a cheaper price if you wait for sales. They are completely worth it at that price, in my opinion.

You’re getting some fantastic features, such as Dolby Atmos, 30 hours of battery backup. These are lightweight, and you get an excellent design. These are also great for going to the gym.

What Sets Realme Buds Air 3 Neo Apart From Competitors?

Realme Buds Air 3 Neo offers excellent value for the price. Earphones under Rs 2000 usually compromise on sound quality or build, but we found no such issues with these earbuds.

Their sound quality is excellent; they have a balanced output. Despite the balanced sound, their bass quality is also excellent. If you’re a fan of listening to music, then these will be a great option.

Previous Models – Realme Buds Air 3 Neo Vs Realme Buds Q2

Realme Buds Air 2 is known as Realme Buds Q2 in India. Their build quality is excellent. Their battery life is around 20 hours on the case and 3.5 to 4 hours on the case alone. With ANC turned on, their battery life will be even longer without it.

Their comfort is also great. These earbuds come with silicone ear tips that offer extra noise isolation and extra pairs in the box so you can adjust accordingly.

A big pro with the Realme Bus Q2 is that they come with Active Noise Cancellation. They also come with a transparency mode.

If you commute or work in a busy office, these earbuds will be handy. One feature it shares with Realme Buds Air 3 is google fast pair.

A significant difference you’ll find between these earphones is in the design. Realme Buds Q2 are circular shaped while Realme Buds Air 3 Neo has a stem-shaped design.

Their sound signature is similar, and so are their other features. Choosing between these two boils down to preference. Buds Q2 has the added benefit of Active Noise Cancellation, which is also a great option.

Should You Purchase Realme Buds Air 3 Neo?

Yes, I would recommend purchasing them. If you’re looking for a great pair of earphones under 2000, then Realme Buds Air 3 Neo is an excellent choice. They have app support, so you can customise app functions and sound through equalisers.

The sound quality is also excellent. Because of the silicone ear tips, the quality of the bass is incredible.

The only thing missing from them is Active Noise Cancellation which was included in the previous model. But overall, they are still a great pair of earbuds.

Pros And Cons

Here are all the pros and cons of Realme Buds Air 3 Neo.

Pros

• Sound: Balanced output and good bass
• Features: App support with equalisers and customization
• Battery: Playback time better than average

Cons

• Gaming: Game mode has high latency

Price

The price of Realme Buds Air 3 Neo is around Rs 1999. The price tends to fluctuate, but the best price to get them at is under 2000. You might get them at an even lower price during sales and with additional discounts. Check our links for the current price.

Conclusion

I did not have much expectations going into testing Realme Buds Air 3 Neo. But once I started trying them, I was blown away by them. These earbuds can easily give competition to high-end earphones.

Both their sound quality and bass are great for the price. If the sound is not according to your preference, you also get equalisers which lets you customise the sound. The Realme Link also gives you access to different functions and customise things like touch control.

The case is compact and has excellent build quality, so you can easily carry these around.

If you’re looking for a great pair of earbuds under Rs 2000, I would recommend these.

I’ll also be comparing Realme Buds Air 3 Neo with other earbuds, so stay tuned.