The Huawei FreeBuds 3 may look like AirPods, but they deliver a novel take on active noise cancelation that will appeal to those who want a wipe-clean pair, or anyone who isn't keen on jamming buds right into their ears.

Compact design; Great open-ear fit; Novel noise-canceling

No iOS app support; No sound seal; AirPod like design

The Huawei Freebuds 3 may not be the best ANC headphones, but it is the best ANC open-fit earbuds. If you do not like in-canal earbuds and needed ANC, the Freebuds 3 is your saviour, and it helps that they don’t cost as much as other ANC earphones.

ANC works sufficiently for open-fit design; On-ear design alleviates in-ear canal pressure

Limited shortcut taps on the earbuds; Relatively short battery life; ANC is less effective in places with mid- to high-frequency noises; like restaurants

The FreeBuds 3 are a great choice for users who want an AirPods-like pair of earphones that are more compatible with Android devices. They are an instant recommendation for Huawei smartphone users.

Great sound quality Lightweight and comfortable Great battery life with the case Appealing design

No touch volume controls Poor noise isolation Some features are exclusive to Huawei EMUI 10 devices

At the moment it seems that every smartphone manufacturer is offering matching headphones for their phones. This assumes that you will want your gadgets to be made by the development department of the same company that made your phone.

By most estimates, Apple’s AirPods business alone is worth about $8 billion . Let that sink in for a minute. No wonder everyone’s getting into the true wireless earbuds game — from Samsung to Google to Microsoft to Amazon . And of course, Huawei joined the party a while ago .

The Huawei Freebuds 3 has one of the best audio experience we had from a TWS device. Apart from that, pairing is very easy and quick. Battery life is outstanding too. It does not come cheap – Php 8,990 is quite a large amount but significantly cheaper than Airpods.

Priced at PhP 8,990, others will undoubtedly dub the Huawei FreeBuds 3 as an AirPods clone, calling it that will do it a big injustice as it offers more than what it appears. Though the decision to make the whole ear bud a single unit instead of having a removable silicone tip remove most of the...

The term of the day in the portable audio world is True Wireless Stereo, or TWS, and it is a feature typically present in higher end Bluetooth headsets. We have in hand (or rather ear) the newest Huawei Freebuds 3 earphones and many seem to have tied the term TWS to this product.

More than imitation AirPods, Huawei's lookalike buds offer impressive noise-cancelling in an affordable wireless package

ANC is impressive; Seamless pairing and auto-pause; Light enough to wear all day

Sound quality isn't superlative; Average battery life; Fit doesn’t always feel secure

At £169, the FreeBuds aren’t cheap, but they undercut the AirPod Pros (£249) and the Sony WF-1000XM3s (£219), the two most popular ANC bud options around. The FreeBuds also offer more for Android users than the similarly priced AirPod 2s (£159), which lack ANC. Snugger in-ears sound better when it comes to sound quality, isolation and noise-cancelling. Due to their open fit, though, the FreeBuds are less intrusive while still delivering clear sound, very good microphones and a great fit that stayed put whether we were walking or working out. If you don’t fancy jamming squishy buds into your ears but still want a bit of help drowning out the drone of your morning commute, provided you have an Android phone, the FreeBud 3s are the only way to go.

Stable connection; Stays put even when exercising; Fast charging;

Sound doesn’t best in-ear buds; Middling bass; No iOS app;