Huawei introduced the Freebuds 6i next to the Watch Fit 3 It is the global launch of two Matebook laptops. The TWS earbuds promised longer battery life and improved noise cancellation, and now that we’ve spent a few weeks with them, we can share our impressions.
We had the Freebuds 6i in black, but they are also available in purple and white. The case is matte, while the buds are glossy, similar to their predecessor, the Freebuds 5i Headphones. The two generations have many visual similarities, and only a careful look can differentiate them.
Despite the glossy finish, the buds are fairly resistant to fingerprints and smudges. They have short stems, rubber tips (with two additional sets in different sizes included in the box), and the Huawei logo on the side. The package also includes a USB-A to USB-C cable and a Quick Start Guide.
The buds feature magnets, allowing them to fit snugly into the case. They also have a touch-sensitive side that supports gestures, including swiping to adjust volume and tapping to play/pause.
Huawei has improved the connectivity of the Freebuds 6i with Bluetooth 5.3, allowing simultaneous connection to two devices. The transition is seamless, so you don’t need to have separate pairs for your laptop and phone.
Pairing the earbuds with a phone is easy, but you’ll need to get the AI Life app from the Huawei AppGallery rather than the Google Play Store. Huawei provides a QR code on the back of the box that takes you straight to the app, so there’s no need to hunt for it.
The weight of the Freebuds 6i earbuds and case remains the same, but the case’s battery capacity has increased by 25% to 510mAh, while each earbud still has a 55mAh cell.
Huawei claims 8 hours of music playback with ANC off and 5 hours with ANC on. Our extensive testing showed that these results are optimistic – we got around 7 hours with ANC off and rarely exceeded 4 hours with ANC on.
Including charging the case with ANC off, we got around 32 hours compared to the advertised 35 hours, and almost 18 hours with ANC on compared to the claimed 20 hours.
The Freebuds 6i feature Hi-Res-certified 11mm quad-magnet dynamic drivers that are 50% more powerful than their predecessors. However, the sound lacks prominent bass, making them less suitable for genres like R&B, rap, or electronic music. On the plus side, vocals are perfectly defined, so they’re great for meetings and calls.
The headphones feature noise cancellation, called Dynamic ANC 3.0, with an improved noise-filtering chamber and a 3-microphone system to reduce background noise and focus on voices.
There are three manual modes—Noise Cancellation, Off, and Awareness—selectable via the earbuds themselves or via the AI Life app. Noise cancellation has four options: Cozy, General, Ultra, and Dynamic. We prefer Dynamic mode, which adapts to the environment for optimal noise cancellation.
Awareness mode has two options – Voice Mode on or off. We found that Voice Mode on is more comfortable as it only allows you to hold conversations without bringing all the ambient sounds into your ear canals.
Huawei positions the Freebuds 6i as affordable TWS earphones ideal for everyday tasks and workouts, with IP54 protection and comfortable rubber tips.
Priced at €99, the Freebuds 6i are a great deal, especially with Huawei’s frequent promotions. Currently, users in Europe can get additional wearables like the Watch Fit, Freeclip or Band 8 for a €50 discount, making the Freebuds 6i an excellent buy.