EarFun Air: wireless in-ear headphones in the test and in comparison with the AirPods Pro

The manufacturer EarFun gave me the Ear Fun Air sent for an extensive test. The EarFun Air are true wireless in-ear headphones that not only look chic, but also have a lot of features and properties that sometimes not even the AirPods Pro from Apple have. Only the active noise-canceling in the music listening mode they don't have built in - on the other hand they do for phone calls. But more on that later ...

Technical data of the EarFun Air

Let's start with the technical details, which I simply work through in the form of a small list:

• Manufacturer: EarFun
• Model: EarFun Air
• Headphone Type: True Wireless In-Ear Headphones
• Bluetooth version: 5.0
• Bluetooth profiles: A2DP, AVRCP, HFP, HSP
• Audio codecs: AAC, SBC
• Earbud battery: 2 x 55m Ah
• Runtime of the earbuds: up to 7 hours
• Charging time in the case: approx. 1,5 hours
• Battery of the charging case: 500 mAh (approx. 4x charge for earbuds)
• Charging options: USB-C port or wireless Qi charging
• Charging time of the battery case: 2 hours via USB-C, 3,5 hours via Qi charging
• Total weight: approx. 60 grams including charging case
• Weight of the headphones: 5,35 grams each
• Dimensions: 53 x 52 x 34 mm

Delivery:

• charging Case
• Headphones
• USB-C charging cable
• Instructions

Design of the true wireless headphones

I would describe the appearance of the EarFun Air as simple and elegant. I think a reserved appearance is a good thing, especially when it comes to headphones. I don't need flashing, multi-colored glitter plugs in my ears. As with the iPhone, I like something more elegant. And it's not for nothing that EarFun Air won both the CES 2020 innovation award and the iF Design Award 2020.

If you prefer something in AirPods white instead of black headphones, you will also find this color option with the EarFun Air - only currently not on Amazon, the model is probably out of stock. But you can via this link always check whether the white model is available again.

The charging case is also kept simple and has, in addition to an LED for the charging status, only one button, which is located inside between the two places for the earphones. What I think is positive: In contrast to the AirPods boxes, you can also put the EarFun case down.

By the way, removing and inserting the earbuds is easy. The construction is well done and I like it.

Great features and missing features

The in-ear headphones from EarFun cost around 60 euros, which is well below the price of the AirPods Pro. I would like to briefly list which features you get for the price and which you don't.

Top features

• IPX7 protection class: sweat and waterproof
• In-ear detection: if you take out an earphone, playback stops; if you put it back in, playback continues (as with the AirPods)
• wireless charging option with Qi charging
• Fast charging of the earbuds: 10 minutes in the case are enough for 2 hours of use
• TWS + technology: you can use each earbud individually
• Volume control via earphones possible
• There is noise canceling for calls (with 4 microphones per earbud!)
• All-in-one volume control: you change the volume that is displayed on the iPhone

Missing features

I realize that at a price of 60 euros you get a lot of features. If I could still wish for some, it would be the following:

• ANC (active noice canceling) also outside of calls
• a transparency mode, like the AirPods Pro
• an app as they anchor with the Soundcore Liberty 2 offers to reassign the buttons or set an equalizer in the EarFun Air
• a real button instead of a touch field (more on this below)
• a battery level indicator at the top of the iPhone bar

Operation of the EarFun Air

Like the AirPods (not the AirPods Pro), the EarFun Air use a touch control panel on the side. You can use it to perform various functions by tapping with your fingers. I have briefly summarized the most important ones for you here:

• Tap left or right twice: pause and play
• Tap right 3 times: next song
• Tap left 3 times: Siri
• tap and hold left: decrease volume
• tap and hold right: increase volume

You can find the full list of possible commands here in the instruction manualwhich also has a German department.

What I particularly like is the ability to adjust the volume via the earphones without having to take the iPhone out of your pocket. Not even the AirPods Pro offer that, which I think is a shame. If you have an Apple Watch, you can at least regulate the volume of the AirPods with the Crown and thus also do without unlocking the iPhone.

Pairing: this is how you pair the EarFun Air

Pairing the headphones is very easy. If you take the earplugs out of the case for the first time, they are already in pairing mode. So you just go to Settings> Bluetooth in the iPhone and find the EarFun Air at the bottom, which is waiting for the connection. Multi-point pairing (i.e. connecting to multiple sources) is not supported as far as I know.

If you want to connect the EarFun Air to another device at some point, you open the case and press the button between the two earphones for about 2 seconds. The two LEDs on the earbuds should briefly flash purple several times, indicating that the connection has been deleted. Once you have connected it in the iPhone, you still have to delete the entry in the Bluetooth list using the info symbol (ignore device). If this happens, they appear as a new device at the bottom of the list.

Reset to factory settings

Resetting or doing a full reset seems like a decent way to fix connection problems. To do this, you open the charging case and hold the button in the middle for a good 8 seconds.

Water and touch control - never works!

I don't know why, but headphone manufacturers seem to love these operating touch panels. While the EarFun Air can still be operated reliably and without problems with dry or slightly damp fingers, operation fails completely with really wet fingers.

I think it's a shame that waterproof headphones are built with this touch stuff. A simple button works even with wet gloves or a wooden finger, while the touch control tends to fail in high humidity. That doesn't have to be the case ... therefore: add more buttons!

The sound - very close to the AirPods Pro

Sure, the advertising messages always sound great:

Thanks to the dual 6mm composite drivers and the dynamic high-fidelity drivers made of PEEK + PU with wider and stereo sound, wireless headphones offer a balanced sound, rich bass and sub-bass, strong mids and solid highs, everything defined, clean, powerful and good balanced.

After that, almost all headphones have great bass, crystal clear highs and a balanced frequency spectrum. I'm not a hi-fi specialist and I certainly don't have great hearing either, that's why I like to compare different headphones with each other in order to be able to classify the sound halfway.

Since the EarFun Air are in-ear headphones, the comparison with the much more expensive AirPods Pro is still legitimate for me. If you listen to the two models one after the other with the same pieces of music, you notice that the sound is very close to the in-ear model from Apple. Only in the bass can you see - only in direct comparison - that the AirPods Pro reproduce bass even more strongly.

The bottom line is that I would give the EarFun Air a grade of 2+ for sound without hesitation. In the price range, I can't often give such a good rating.

My conclusion on the EarFun Air

If you don't have absolutely wireless in-ear headphones yet, you should go for it take a closer look at the EarFun Air. The features such as in-ear recognition, wireless charging and volume control via the earphones are very convincing. Only for athletes who travel a lot in the rain or sweat a lot, a model with real buttons instead of a touch control panel might be the better choice.

In my opinion, the bottom line is that the EarFun Air are a clear recommendation. You get really great features and a decent sound for little money.

Wireless Earbuds, EarFun Air 4 Mics Noise Canceling, Wireless Charging, Bluetooth 5.0 Earbuds,...

• [What Hi-Fi Awards Winner & BEST WIRELESS IN-EARS UNDER £75] As the only wireless earbuds that received "What Hi-Fi?",...
• CRYSTAL CLEAR CALLS: EarFun wireless earbuds are equipped with 4 enhanced mics to passively cancel 80% background noise...
• UP TO 35 HOURS BATTERY LIFE: The wireless earbuds deliver an impressively long battery life of 35 hours. And listen for...

Buy it at Amazon Price includes VAT, plus shipping costs (updated: 3.12.2023 at 21: 35 clock)

Jen Kleinholz( Founder & Sir Apfelot )

Jens has been running the blog since 2012. He acts as Sir Apfelot for his readers and helps them with technical problems. In his spare time he rides electric unicycles, takes photos (preferably with the iPhone, of course), climbs around in the Hessian mountains or hikes with the family. His articles deal with Apple products, news from the world of drones or solutions to current bugs.

The page contains affiliate links / images: Amazon.de