Boult Audio is one of those brands in the country which have been steadily on the rise. The company has moved a good chunk of its resources on the TWS segment, which happens to be one of the hottest right now. So while their tws look and feel a bit like the AirPods, we couldn’t pass on the opportunity to review their newest product.
Boult Audio AirBass Xpods TWS is the company’s newest pair of earbuds in the market. The name is a mouthful, so for the sake of simplicity, we will refer to them as the AirBass Xpods. They are being offered on leading e-commerce points at INR 4,999, but you could get them right now for INR 899 on the company’s website.
So should you pick these over other the competition? Let us find out in our review.
Boult Audio AirBass Xpods TWS Features
Here are some essential specifications and features of the device.
- Bluetooth Version – 5
- Drivers – 13mm Dynamic Drivers
- Controls – Touch Controls
- Earbud Weight – 4g
- Claimed Battery Life – Up to 5 Hours/ Up to 20 hours with the case
- Number of Microphones – 1 (each side)
- Rating – IPX5
Package Contents
- Boult Audio AirBass Xpods TWS
- Quick Start Guide
- Charging Case
- USB Type C charging cable
Design
Starting with the design, the AirBass Xpods look like a generic Apple AirPods-inspired product from the buds to the case. The case has a matte finish only on the white model, and the Xpods come in three shades, Blue, Black & White. At the same time, construction is done in high-quality plastic. The lid offers a satisfying click when opening or closing the case.
The buds pack a significant 13mm driver on each side and, despite that, feel quite lightweight. They have an in-ear design minus the silicone ear tips. These styles of buds are not meant for everyone and can cause fatigue over prolonged usage. There is an ample amount of Boult Audio branding slapped over the product which tends to be annoying at times.
You get a Type-C charging port on the case, along with a status LED.
Performance
Pairing these is a piece of cake. The earphones power on as soon as they are taken out of the case and enter into pairing mode for the very first boot. The buds pair as a different unit and can be used in an individual setting. There is no mention of the type of driver the company is using on these. But it is safe to assume that these 13mm units are dynamic drivers.
You get all the basic codecs here including SBC and AAC. Kicking into the meat of it, we found the buds quite bass-heavy. This is pretty much the story with most TWS in this price category. The sound stage is balanced, with a slight emphasis on lows. The mid and the highs are not that clear and lose the lackluster. We didn’t really notice any static noise present, which is quite common on TWS units. The touch-sensitive areas are sized well, and the touch commands work as intended.
If we go by the regular offering price for these buds, the commission of ANC is a sore eye. On top of that there is no ENC either on these. Talking about the battery life, the company claimed figure is 5 Hours on a single charge which is somewhat true. During our runs, with the volume capped at 50% we got a little 4 hours with just the buds and 17 hours in total with the case. Both the buds and the case took about 2 hours for a full top-up.
