I know that you like Xiaomi products, so today we have a review of the wireless earbuds from the Chinese company. The earbuds are called QCY M18.
They look like Apple AirPods but cost only $30.
Among the main features of QCY M18 are a USB Type-C port, In-Ear Detection, 13mm dynamic driver, and 20 hours of battery life.
OK, let’s do the unboxing. Then we will talk about design and sound quality.
Unboxing
The box of the new earbuds looks like this. There is the image of the product as well as the model name on the front.
By the way, did you notice YouPin logo in the left top corner? YouPin is a commerce department under Xiaomi Group. So, if you see YouPin logo, it means that the product is made by Xiaomi.
On the back of the box, we can read the main specifications, such as battery capacity, charging time, etc.
Inside the box, there is a charging case with earbuds, USB Type-C cable, and user manual.
Design
QCY M18 earbuds only come in white color. As you can see, the charging case is also white.
There is one LED indicator and a physical button to check the battery level on the front.
USB Type-C port is at the bottom.
As I already said, QCY M18 earbuds look similar to Apple AirPods. Most reviewers on YouTube say that it is an alternative to Apple AirPods. I’m not going to argue with them.
Some people like this design, while others prefer earbuds with silicone ear tips.
As you can see, QCY M18 earbuds don’t have physical control buttons. However, there are touch panels somewhere here.
The charging contacts and the microphone are on the bottom. By the way, this design of earbuds is better for phone calls because the microphone is closer to the mouth.
Another feature of QCY M18 earbuds is the in-ear sensor. It is on the inside. It is a really useful feature that automatically pauses the music when you take the earbuds out of the ears. Also, the music automatically plays when you put the earbuds back in your ears.
Talking about the size of earbuds, they are 38 by 18 mm. The weight of one earbud is only 4 grams.
Also, the charging case is very lightweight. It is 42 grams with earbuds inside.
Finally, let’s connect the earbuds to the smartphone and listen to music.
Connection
As I already said, Xiaomi is a manufacturer of QCY M18 earbuds, so they are better connected to Xiaomi smartphones. Unfortunately, I don’t have a Xiaomi phone right now. However, if you connect QCY M18 to a Xiaomi device, you will have a pairing pop-up window with information about the battery level of the earbuds and charging case.
I have connected the earbuds to the iPhone, so I just took the earbuds out of the charging case, went to Bluetooth settings on iPhone, and chose QCY M18.
Control Functions
Just like other wireless earbuds, QCY M18 has control functions. In the user manual, you can find the full list of control functions, such as play/pause the music with double touch.
Skip the track forward with a long press on the left or right earbuds.
Enable gaming mode with the triple touch of the right panel.
You can also answer or reject phone calls using the touch panels of the earbuds.
There is no volume control function on QCY M18 earbuds by default, but you can add this function through the app. I will tell you about the application a little later.
Sound Quality
QCY M18 earbuds are equipped with a 13mm dynamic driver. This is a pretty big driver for compact earbuds.
They also support AAC and SBC audio codecs.
When I first listened to music, it sounded pretty flat to me. I missed the bass. However, you can download the QCY app on the smartphone, and use the equalizer to add bass, midrange, or treble.
In addition, you can change the control function in the app.
There is also an in-ear detection function in the app. You can disable this function if you don’t like it when the music pauses or play automatically.
Battery Life
Now, let’s talk about the battery. The manufacturer says that QCY M18 has 20 hours of battery life. However, this is with the charging case.
The battery life on a single charge is 4 hours. You can also use the charging case to charge the earbuds five times. So, in total, you get 20 hours of battery life.
The case has a battery capacity of 380mAh.
As I already said, there is a USB Type-C port on the case. That’s very good.
Conclusion
QCY M18 are very interesting earbuds. If you like the design, like Apple AirPods, then you will probably like them, because the earbuds have good sound quality, decent battery life, in-ear detection, and even application with equalizer.
For $30, QCY M18 are good earbuds.
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