1More is more commonly known for its budget headphones. However, the brand also makes higher-end earbuds for audio fans looking for more features and premium-quality sound. The 1More EVO are the latest from the brand for discerning audiophiles that don’t want to break the bank and 1More was kind enough to send them out for review.
Design
The 1More Evo are housed in a compact capsule-styled case made from soft-touch plastic with some heft that gives it a premium feel in the hand. The case has a rubberized bottom to help keep it in place on your desk and also allows for wireless charging along with a USB Type-C port on the back for wired charging as well.
The case for the 1More Evo ticks all the boxes for high-end earbuds, however, my one complaint is that the earbuds are difficult to remove from the case. Between the slick body of the earbuds and the curiously strong magnet used, it can be a frustrating endeavor to pull the buds out. On more than one occasion I had to fight with the case to get the buds removed and dropped them.
Comfort
Over the years, I’ve reviewed a handful of 1More’s premium earbud offerings, and the decision to use oblong ear tips for this lineup has always irked me. Nearly every brand on the market uses the traditional oval round-shaped ear tips, and for good reason. It’s a more natural shape for the ear canal, provides a comfortable secure fit, and allows for the use of third-party ear tips.
It’s for this reason that I’ve struggled in the past to wear some of 1More’s higher-end earbuds, and thankfully, that wasn’t the case with the Evo buds. Included in the box was a set of ear tips small enough to provide a good secure fit that I was able to wear comfortably for hours.
That’s a big accomplishment because I’ve never experienced that with any of 1More’s previous oblong-shaped ear tips. At times, it can even be a challenge for traditional round ear tips to fit my ears properly. In the past, I’ve had to resort to buying third-party ear tips for some of my previous earbuds in order to get a comfortable fit.
I’d still love to see 1More switch over to the standard round ear tips for its premium lineup of earbuds. Not only would it be more comfortable, but it would also make it possible to use third-party ear tips.
Features
The 1More Evo are packed with premium features, with the standouts being, adaptive ANC, wireless charging, fast charging, long battery life, and the LDAC codec. That’s a lot on offer for the $170 price tag, and 1More also includes an easy-to-use app to manage everything.
There was a time that 1More’s app did little more than serve as a firmware update tool, but these days, it has gained a myriad of features that make it essential to the overall experience.
By using the app, you’ll have access to the ANC settings, including the transparency and wind reduction modes. Additionally, there is an extensive equalizer built-in, along with options to customize the touch-sensitive controls.
While 1More was smart by implementing touch-sensitive controls that require a double tap to activate, it does limit the number of actions the controls can perform. Other earbuds on the market make use of single, double, and triple tap controls to provide additional commands, but this also leads to a lot of accidental activations of these controls. At least, with 1More’s limited double-tap controls there’s less of an opportunity for errors to occur.
Audio quality
If you’re an audiophile on a budget, then the 1More Evo are where it’s at. They sound crisp, clean, and provide incredible separation paired with deep impactful bass. The soundstage is also wide and open giving instruments room to breathe. Furthermore, LDAC support and the comprehensive equalizer ensure you’ll have the highest quality audio with ways to tweak it to your preference.
Honestly, the 1More Evo have no right sounding this good at this price, and they make all other premium earbuds look overpriced in comparison.
ANC
The Evo earbuds from 1More provide several options when it comes to active noise cancellation, including strong, mild, wind reduction, and adaptive. After using them for the past few weeks, I can say that the noise reduction works well at blocking out repetitive background sounds. Plus, there’s a transparency mode with two different options if you need to be aware of your surroundings.
Microphone
There’s an array of three AI-powered microphones housed in the 1More Evo earbuds tasked with delivering your voice clearly while blocking background sounds when you’re on calls. During my testing, I never had any complaints from callers on the other end and people tended to agree that I sounded clear.
Battery life
1More rates the Evo buds for eight hours of consecutive playback with ANC disabled and up to 28 hours total with the charging case. When ANC is enabled, that drops to five and a half hours of consecutive listening time and a total of 20 hours overall.
In my experience, the 1More Evo lived up to these claims and gave me plenty of listening time in between charges. When it comes time to charge up, you can also choose between Qi wireless charging or fast charging with the USB Type-C port that can provide you with four hours of listening time with only a 15-minute charge.
Final thoughts
With premium wireless earbuds going for $300 or more these days, there’s plenty of room in the market for an affordable option. 1More delivers that with the Evo earbuds by providing good battery life, adaptive noise cancelling, and phenomenal sound quality at an affordable price.
Not many high-end wireless earbuds include LDAC and 1More went out of its way to provide more value for almost half the cost in comparison to other premium earbuds. If it weren’t for my personal nitpick about the oblong-shaped ear tips and the curiously strong magnets used, I’d say the 1More Evo are perfect.
The 1More Evo Noise Cancelling Earbuds can be purchased in black or white from Amazon for $170 with 30% off using the currently available coupon, or directly from the 1More website for $130.
