Solid ANC Earbuds at a Shockingly Good Price

It can be surprising just how much you can get for your money when it comes to wireless earbuds these days. While less than 10 years ago, you’d spend hundreds for a set of earbuds that had significant problems, there are now plenty of sub-$100 earbuds that perform great. The EarFun Free Pro 3 earbuds are a great example, and while they’re not perfect, they’re a great option for many people.

EarFun Free Pro 3

The EarFun Free Pro 3 aren’t just a good set of earbuds for the price, they’re a good set of earbuds period. If you can deal with slightly finicky controls and no in-ear sensors, you can’t do much better for the price.

Battery Life

33 hours max

Charging Case Included?

Yes

Brand

EarFun

Supported codecs

AAC, SBC, aptX Adaptive

Bluetooth

5.3

Price

$79.99

IP Rating

IPX5

Solo bud mode?

No

Driver Size

7mm

Charging type

USB-C, Wireless

Colors

Brown Black, Navy Blue, Silver White

Charging Port

USB-C

Noise Cancellation

Yes

Pros

• Great sound for the price
• Multipoint Bluetooth support is handy
• Good battery life
• Controls are customizable via the EarFun app

Cons

• Touch controls are finicky
• Fit options aren’t perfect for everyone

Compact Design and a Resilient Build

I’m typically fortunate when it comes to earbuds, as the medium tips that companies tend to fit by as the default usually work well for me. If that doesn’t describe you, you’ll be glad to know that EarFun includes four other sets of silicone tips in the box. Even better, they also include in-ear “wings” to act as stabilizers. Not everyone will find a perfect fit, but you can’t say EarFun isn’t trying.

While they’re not the world’s toughest earbuds, the Free Pro 3 do feature an IPX5 water resistance rating. This means that, while you don’t want to simply dunk them in a glass of water, wearing them on a bike ride in the rain isn’t going to ruin them.

One of the handiest features that some people may overlook is the small size of the charging case. Even compared to some flagship models, this is a thin and compact case that will fit into many more pockets than other comparable earbuds.

Fun Sound Signature

The EarFun Free Pro 3 feature relatively small 7mm drivers, but you wouldn’t guess it from the sound, especially how big the bass can feel at times. The company always seems to want to pack something unexpected into its earbuds, and in this case, it’s the aptX Adaptive codec, which offers better sound quality for some Android users.

The sound signature here is definitely fun, but it’s not particularly accurate. If you’re looking to crank your favorite songs, these are perfect, and honestly, not many people are looking for perfect, reference-quality sound from any earbuds, let alone a set at this price.

Listening to Stephen Stills’ “Colorado,” the music sounds surprisingly crisp and full for a set of earbuds at this price. The vocals are somewhat forward, but that is how the song is mixed, and I can easily hear all of the instrumentation and vocal harmonies. Changing from the default EQ to the Rock EQ preset pushes the percussion toward the front and boosts the lows, but still sounds great.

Queuing up “Chicken Bone Circuit” by RJD2, I was somewhat surprised that the low end wasn’t as impressive as the previous song, but everything sounded nice and snappy. The bass organ line was present without being overwhelming, and the drums sounded surprisingly wide and pleasantly distorted without any annoying overtones.

Surprising Noise Canceling and Clear Calls

One thing I wasn’t expecting when I began reviewing the EarFun Free Pro 3 was how impressed I’d be by the active noise cancellation (ANC). To be completely fair, it won’t blow away the technology you’ll find in flagship earbuds, but it’s still surprisingly good. For less than $100, it’s seriously impressive.

Unfortunately, the built-in passthrough or Transparency mode isn’t quite as effective. This is something that only a few companies like Apple and Sony have managed to really nail down, so I’m not that surprised.

When it comes to voice, the microphone array does a good job of picking up your voice. It also seems to do a decent job of blocking out noise. You’re not going to make calls from the top of a windy mountain, but a breezy day won’t give you any trouble.

Temperamental Touch Controls

While EarFun has been making great-sounding affordable earbuds for years, the company hasn’t yet nailed everything, and the controls are one issue. On multiple products from EarFun, I’ve noticed the controls are either overly sensitive, too sensitive, or both, somehow. That remains the case for the Free Pro 3.

The good news is that you can customize nearly any aspect of the controls using the EarFun app, available for iPhone and Android. The downside is that no matter what, the earbuds don’t have a sensor to detect whether you’re actually wearing them or not. This means that, unlike many other earbuds, pulling them out of your ears doesn’t pause playback.

On the other hand, the app includes some handy features, like EQ presets and a custom EQ curve you can dial in yourself. If you frequently watch TV or play games with the earbuds, the app includes a game mode you can toggle on to reduce latency.

Good Battery Life and Wireless Charging

EarFun claims a maximum battery life of 7.5 hours for the Free Pro 3, but that’s assuming you’re not using ANC. With ANC enabled, you can expect a maximum of up to six hours, but this will drop if you crank the volume. Including the charging case, you can expect a maximum playback time of 33 hours.

Fortunately, even if you run down the earbuds and need a few more hours to keep you entertained on the way home, the EarFun Free Pro 3 feature support for fast charging. Just a 10-minute charge will get you up to two hours of listening time.

If you’re not in a rush, you can easily top up the earbuds in the case with wireless charging. This isn’t exactly a surprise for EarFun, considering the company makes even more affordable earbuds with wireless charging support, but it’s still nice to see considering many earbuds at this price eschew wireless charging entirely.

Pricing and Availability

The EarFun Free Pro 3 earbuds are available in Brown Black, Navy Blue, and Silver White color varieties. Regardless of the color you choose, they retail for $79.99. That said, they’re already available with discounts of up to 20% or more.

In terms of direct competition, one of the closest competitors at the moment are the SoundPEATS Air4 Pro. These also feature ANC, but compared to the EarFuns, they only feature IPX4 water resistance, and they don’t feature wireless charging.

Should You Buy the EarFun Free Pro?

Regardless of price, the EarFun Free Pro 3 are a fun-sounding set of earbuds, just as the brand name implies. Are they reference-quality? No, but between the exciting sound profile, the battery life, and the multipoint Bluetooth support, they have plenty to offer for anyone looking for a solid set of earbuds, regardless of the price.

Yes, the controls have some issues, but this is something I’ve seen on earbuds that cost double the price of the EarFuns. It’s possible that, despite the plentiful fit options, you may not be able to find a comfortable fit, but again, this is an issue with earbuds in general, not just more affordable models. At least in this case, they’re affordable enough that if they don’t work out for you, you haven’t thrown a bunch of money away.

Even with the minor downsides, this would be a solid set of earbuds if they cost $50 more. For the price you pay, you get quite a bit in terms of sound quality and practicality, not to mention the easy portability.

EarFun Free Pro 3

The EarFun Free Pro 3 aren’t just a good set of earbuds for the price, they’re a good set of earbuds period. If you can deal with slightly finicky controls and no in-ear sensors, you can’t do much better for the price.