Huawei Freebuds 5i vs. Huawei Freebuds 4i – The Differences

The Huawei Freebuds 5i in Practice

The grippy and high-quality-feeling charging case of our black/grey test unit reminds us of a pebble – fortunately, it only appears that way, as it weighs only around 34 grams, making it significantly lighter than its real-life counterpart. The back is flat, so the case can be placed flat on a surface. On the side of the charging case is the pairing button, and a status LED on the front provides information about the charging level.

The in-ear buds snap securely and firmly into the charging bays and, despite their miniature construction, can be safely removed from the case even with thicker fingers. What is noticeable, however: When you take the in-ear buds out of the case to put them in your ears, you first have to twist them – the same applies when putting them back into the case. It's not quite as easy and quick as Apple's AirPods Pro (Test) or Bose's QuietComfort Earbuds II (Test).

The in-ear buds themselves have the familiar "stick" design and look quite stylish with their smooth, glossy surface. They weigh only 4.9 grams each and protrude only slightly, so hat wearers should have little to no problems. Thanks to IP54, they are also protected against splash water from all directions.

When the Huawei Freebuds 5i are paired, they communicate using the current Bluetooth standard 5.2 and optionally use SBC, AAC, or the Hi-Res Audio Codec LDAC, which can offer up to 990 kBit/s and 24 Bit/96kHz resolution. The Sony-licensed codec also extends the frequency range to 40 kHz. Unfortunately, Bluetooth LE Audio is missing, even though the in-ear buds could theoretically support it – so it remains with the (worse) SBC instead of the (higher-quality) LC3 codec. However, the Huawei Freebuds 5i support Multipoint, allowing two devices, such as an Android tablet and an iPhone, to be connected simultaneously. This way, the Android tablet can be used for binge-watching while the iPhone receives calls.

How Long Do the Huawei Freebuds 5i Last?

The manufacturer states a battery life of six hours with ANC and 7.5 hours without noise cancellation for the Freebuds 5i. We did not quite reach these theoretical values in our practical test: At approximately 60 percent volume and with varied audio material, we achieved about 5 hours and 45 minutes, while without ANC, we ran out of power after 7 hours and 20 minutes. Including the case, the headphones offer around 28 hours of total playback time (without ANC), or 18.5 hours with ANC.

Thanks to the fast charging option, you can enjoy them again for four hours after just 15 minutes of charging, while the case itself takes about two hours to fully charge via USB-C (wireless charging is not supported).

How Easy Are the Huawei Freebuds 5i to Operate?

The two stems of the Huawei Freebuds 5i rely exclusively on touch controls. In the delivery state, both sides are assigned the same functions and offer the following control options:

• Play/Pause; Answer/End Call (2x Tap)
• ANC, Off, and Transparency Mode (Press and Hold)
• Adjust Volume (Swipe Up/Down)

Nothing more is offered out-of-the-box. Simple taps are not supported to avoid accidental inputs. Via the AI Life App for Android and iOS, the default assignment can be split between left and right (albeit only limited), allowing for title navigation or activating the voice assistant.

A voice prompt informs us which mode is activated by pressing and holding.

Naturally, the Huawei Freebuds 5i also support auto-pause and single-mode. Both work very reliably, although with single-mode, it should be noted that when switching from two to one earbud, playback must be manually resumed, while switching the other way around (from mono to stereo) continues seamlessly.

Huawei AI Life App – for Android and iOS

As mentioned above, Huawei's AI Life App allows for customization of the controls. It also includes a fit test for the earbuds, the option to disable the auto-pause feature (wear detection), a find-my-earbuds function, or firmware updates. Here you can also access the multi-level noise cancellation, which can be switched between "Low", "Balanced", and "Ultra". The Gaming Mode, which compensates for the delay between image and sound, is also found here.

Unfortunately, the current software version of the app does not reflect which codec is being used, as under "Sound Quality" it always states "SQ" for "Standard Quality". If you are using LDAC, you have to check this in your Android's developer settings; Apple users unfortunately cannot influence this, and LDAC would only be available here with an additional DAC.

Finally, Huawei provides an equalizer in the app. However, it is severely limited and disappointing across the board: Only two presets are available – if you exclude the neutral setting "Standard". What remains is bass or height enhancement. This is too little for us, so it's better to leave it on the neutral setting and, if possible, use the multi-band EQs of your streaming apps.

Image Description: Screenshots of the Huawei AI Life app showing device connection, noise cancellation modes, and sound quality settings including EQ effects like Standard, Bass Boost, and Treble Boost.

Even More Functions with Huawei Devices

While more and more tech companies are merging their headphones with their own devices, creating isolated solutions, Huawei shows itself to be refreshingly open: Multipoint works cross-platform, as does the Gaming Mode, which previously required compatible hardware from Huawei itself for the Huawei FreeBuds 4 (Test). There is also no account obligation to use the app and thus the in-ear buds.

Nevertheless, there are a few (few) features reserved for Huawei smartphone owners: The "Identify Title" gesture, activated by pressing and holding the touch surface, or the ability to take a photo with your phone by double-tapping.

How Good Do the Huawei Freebuds 5i Sound?

We were almost a little surprised when we heard the Huawei Freebuds 5i for the first time, as the manufacturer avoids a bass-heavy tuning. The bass range therefore sounds quite defined and subordinate in places. We had no problems at all capturing the tonality of basslines or kick drums. However, the bass fades when listening to quiet music.

The mids continue the understatement of the low frequencies: Voices and lead instruments never sound sharp or strained, and electric guitars do not cut into the ears – even at higher volumes. And even the treble range sounds unspectacular – nothing stands out here, and treble-heavy material can be listened to for longer periods without fatigue.

While we could only detect minor differences between AAC and LDAC (LDAC sounded a bit more open, lively, and agile to our ears), there are significant differences when switching ANC: Only with active noise cancellation does it sound balanced, while in transparency and neutral modes, the lows almost disappear, and it becomes muffled, narrower, and unbalanced.

How Good Are the Noise Cancelling and Transparency Mode?

The active noise cancellation of the Huawei Freebuds 5i works in three stages, and it lacks adaptive (automatic) adjustment like that found in Apple's AirPods Pro. Thus, the ANC of the Freebuds works broadly, but it cancels noise to varying degrees. Our tests with white noise show that deep frequencies are predominantly suppressed. Even at its strongest setting, "Ultra", conversations are still audible but significantly reduced. The "Balanced" and "Comfortable" modes are less aggressive, suppressing a wider frequency band. The noise remains pleasantly subdued, and even in the Ultra mode, it is no longer noticeable at the latest when music is playing.