CMF Buds 2 review: Reliable budget TWS buds

Last month, Nothing Inc. subsidiary CMF released a new line of products including Phone 2 Pro and Buds 2 series earphones in India.

The CMF Buds 2 series comes in two variants-- Buds 2 and Buds 2 Plus (review). I have already reviewed the latter. Now, I am ready with Buds 2 version. I used it for one week and here are my thoughts on budget True Wireless Stereo earphones.

Design and build quality

Both the Buds 2 and 2 Plus come with the same visually pleasing design language and colour scheme. The charging case flaunts a squarish box structure with curved corners. And, it features the CMF's trademark rotating knob. But, unlike the Buds 2 Pro model, it has no functionality. It just rotates and has the option to dock a lanyard accessory.

It comes in three colours-- light green, orange and dark grey. Our review unit is the latter.

CMF Buds 2.

The earbuds come in minimalistic in-ear design language. The tips feature removable silicone buds that fit perfectly into the ears. The buds are made of plastic, but very sturdy. Also, it has IP55 water splash-resistant rating. It can sustain heavy sweating during jogging outdoors or while doing exercises in the gym.

similar to the Buds 2 Plus, the standard buds and case features a matte finish with no fancy dotted logo we saw in the previous version.

CMF Buds 2.

CMF Buds 2.

Now, it has been replaced with 'CMF by Nothing'. The caser also flaunts a light indicator on the front to show the pairing status and battery capacity. On the right side, it features a USB-C charging point.

CMF Buds 2.

Each earbud comes with a long pill-shaped stem. At the top, it houses the touch sensor to take tap gestures as input to change music tracks or answer calls or activate the digital assistant or hybrid Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) feature.

During the testing, the CMF Buds 2 worked smoothly. The sensor at the top did not show any lag-ness in recognising the tap gesture.

User Interface and Performance

Setting up the Buds 2 is a walk in the park. It can instantly connect with any mobile with Android 6.0 (or newer version) or an iPhone with iOS 13 (or newer version).

The user has to install the Nothing X app and turn on Bluetooth. For me, it took less than 10 minutes to complete the pairing process.

CMF Buds 2.

That said, Buds 2 is better optimised with Nothing Phones to deliver the best user experience.

The Buds 2 houses six HD mics, N52 magnets, high-purity copper wire and an 11mm custom PMI (Polymethacrylimide) driver and supports Dirac Opteo to deliver High-fidelity audio output. During the testing period, the CMF Buds 2 delivered a decent degree of accuracy and clarity.

CMF Buds 2.

Thanks to the equaliser option on Nothing X, users can customise audio delivery to match their listening taste. It supports six pre-set options-- Dirac Opteo, Enhance Vocals, Rock, Pop, Electrical, and Classical. There is also option to customise the frequency to match the user's requirements.

The user experience is pretty decent.

During phone calls, the earphones picks up the owner's voice indoors clearly, but not so much outdoors particularly with heavy traffic on the road.

CMF Buds 2.

In addition to Clear Voice Technology 3.0, and Wind Noise Reduction 3.0 for phone calls, it supports hybrid ANC. It can reduce up to 48db (decibels) noise outside. It does a fine job of cutting the chatter sound around the user indoors such as office space or at home.

It can even come in handy while answering phone calls too. But, on the road, while travelling in a bus with heavy traffic, it can't stop the sounds of vehicle engine sound and horn.

CMF Buds 2.

That said, the Buds 2 does a decent job given it costs less than Rs 2,700.

As far as the battery life is concerned, it can deliver 55 hours with the charging case under one full single charge.

I spend close to two and a half hours a day in traffic while commuting on the bus from the house to the office and vice versa. I did not have to charge even once during the week. Users can see the battery level on the app and accordingly charge the earbuds case.

It supports fast charging too. With just 10 minutes of charging, it can deliver around seven hours of music playback.

CMF Buds 2.

Final thoughts

For its asking price and ANC capabilities, CMF Buds 2 is a good pair of reliable TWS earphones, level ahead of its peers in the budget segment.

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