The Xiaomi Redmi Buds 3 Lite are rock-solid little headphones that you can currently get from Amazon for €17.89. Shipping is by Amazon. Highlights of the Redmi Buds 3 Lite:
- Good value for money
- Solid processing
- Stable Bluetooth connection
In the course of the Redmi Note 11 series event, the Redmi Buds 3 Lite were also presented. Small, cheap and with a simple range of functions, these seem to take the old place of the Redmi AirDots.
Xiaomi Redmi Buds 3 Lite Review, Specs & Price
- Redmi Buds 3 Lite
- Redmi Buds 3 Lite = Redmi Buds 3 Youth Edition
As is so often the case, the naming by Xiaomi or Redmi is a bit opaque here too. However, it is less “bad” than the Redmi AirDots, which came onto the market in Europe as the Xiaomi Mi true wireless Earbuds Basic.
In the case of the Redmi Buds 3 series, consisting of three headphone models, it is only the name suffix in the cheapest version that changes compared to the Chinese version. “Youth Edition” in Chinese simply becomes the “Lite” version in the global version. In addition, the headphones themselves are largely identical.
Packaging And Scope Of Delivery
The headphones come in a black, oblong box which contains the headphones, three pairs of ear pads, two pairs of ear hooks and a user manual.
The headphones are so “lite” that Xiaomi has even rationalized the standard USB-C charging cable from the accessories. However, most of you will probably have enough of these cables at home anyway.
Design & Processing
One might think that the Xiaomi Redmi Buds 3 Lite have something in common visually with their namesakes Redmi Buds 3 or 3 Pro, but that is not the case. The three Redmi headphones only share the name, but not a design or anything else.
While the Redmi Buds 3 Pro are a bit reminiscent of Google Pixel Buds , the normal Redmi Buds 3 are (chunky) semi-in-ear headphones. The Redmi Buds 3 Lite, on the other hand, are ordinary bud-in-ear headphones with very small and compact earpieces.
These weigh just 4.2 g each, which makes them attractive for sports in the test. Thanks to IP54, the in-ears are also water and dust resistant. They are available in black and white color. While the backs of the headphones are shiny instead of the touch sensors, they are otherwise matte. Ear hooks should also ensure an even better hold in the ear.
The charging cradle is also compact and quite flat, so that the Redmi Buds 3 Lite can easily be slipped into your pocket. In terms of workmanship, they are good as usual, there are no material defects.
Sound of the Redmi Buds 3 Lite
The Redmi Buds 3 Lite are equipped with a dynamic driver with a membrane diameter of 6mm, so far nothing unusual.
In the test, the headphones delivered a good sound for their price range. It convinces with solid bass, which, however, does not quite keep up with the Earfun Free 2 in the sub-bass range. These headphones are also available for around €30. Compared to the Earfun Free Mini, which is often available from Amazon for around €15, the bass of the Redmi Buds 3 Pro is about the same.
In the midrange, however, the Earfun Free 2 deliver better in my opinion, depending on the playback device used, this may also be due to the fact that the Free 2 are equipped with aptX. However, the Earfun headphone offers a bigger stage even under the AAC codec with the iPhone.
In the treble, the Redmi Buds 3 Lite with the iPhone under the AAC codec are surprisingly high-resolution. Overall on par with the Earfun Free 2 and better than the cheap Earfun Free Mini. On Android with the aptX codec, the Earfun Free 2 sound a bit more detailed in my opinion.
Sound conclusion
For their price, the Redmi Buds 3 Lite are not bad headphones in terms of sound. For a budget of around €30, I would personally prefer the Earfun Free 2. However, these are bulkier, while the Redmi Buds 3 Lite are more the size of the Earfun Free Mini, which in turn sound a bit worse. So the Redmi Buds 3 Lite for the price range of around €30 are definitely not headphones that you can’t go wrong with, on the contrary!
Headset
The Redmi Buds 3 Lite are surprisingly quite suitable for making calls in the test. This is often not possible at all in this price range.
Even longer calls are no problem during the test calls in closed rooms. Depending on the level of ambient noise, the noise suppression cannot cancel everything outdoors, which means that phone calls outside are only possible to a limited extent.
Comfort – good for sports
How well the headphones hold in the ear varies from ear to ear. At least for me, the listeners stay in the ear pretty well. Due to their compact design, they don’t have much leverage and stay where they are.
In my opinion, the Xiaomi Redmi Buds 3 Lite are well suited for sports, as they stay where they are even with jerky movements. In addition, there is a stable Bluetooth connection and of course the IP54 certification also contributes to this suitability.
Saved on the controls
In contrast to the Redmi AirDots 2, the Redmi Buds 3 Lite are equipped with touch sensors. However, the range of functions is very limited here, unfortunately. Here one has probably saved costs for the implementation.
| Gesture: | 2x tap | 3x tap | Touch for 2 seconds | Touch/hold at the same time |
| Function: | next title; accept a call | start voice assistant; Reject/end call | play/pause | Low latency mode |
There is no distinction between making a gesture on the left or right earpiece, which further limits the range of functions. In the test, the touch sensors work reliably for the functions they are supposed to be able to, both under iOS and under Android.
Bluetooth 5.2 & MIUI integration
The Xiaomi Redmi Buds 3 Lite are equipped with a current Bluetooth 5.2 module. In the test, the headphones provide a stable connection between the mobile phone and the headphones over a distance of around 10 meters. Depending on how new or old your cell phone is, the range can even remain stable a few meters further.
Xiaomi cell phones also support a quick connection via pop-up on the cell phone. What was initially only provided by Apple is now actually a standard for all headphones from cell phone manufacturers. However, as I said, it only works with phones from the respective manufacturer.
In addition, the Bluetooth chip implements a low-latency mode. This reduces the audio quality in favor of faster transmission of audio information from the cell phone to the headphones. Redmi advertises this function as “gaming mode”, but it can also be useful, for example, in the case of asynchrony between image and sound during video playback.
Music enjoyment for over 5 hours
In the test, you can listen to music for up to 5 hours with one battery charge at medium volume. If you listen to music that is a bit louder, the batteries last for about 4 – 4.5 hours in the test. For headphones without active noise cancellation, not even such a good runtime in comparison.
With a runtime of up to 5 hours, the runtime is probably still enough for many. After that, you can recharge for up to 13 hours of runtime. You can then charge the charging case via a USB-C connection, wireless Qi charging is not used with this budget model.
Conclusion – not the best, but a solid one
The Redmi Buds 3 Lite are solid budget in-ears overall. Good workmanship, solid material and a sound that I believe at least 80% of people can live with.
The headphones with a Bluetooth 5.2 mode and pop-up connection offer a technical and a software component that is actually only known from higher-priced models. Unfortunately, no high-resolution audio codec is supported here.
I would have liked a little more in terms of usability. Here some other budget in-ears show that it can’t actually be that difficult with the full range of usability.
Pros
- Price-performance
- processing
- Stable Bluetooth connection
- MIUI integration
- Low Latency Mode
Cons
- Limited scope of operation
- no high-resolution codec
- no charging cable in accessories
The Redmi Buds 3 Lite with compact/light design and IP54 are also a good option for sports. Possibly also a good pair of second headphones, for those who don’t want to mess up their expensive acquisition. Xiaomi Redmi Buds 3 Lite review video below:
