- Motorola unveiled Moto Buds 2 and Moto Buds 2 Plus at MWC.
- The Plus model features Sound by Bose tuning and hybrid drivers.
- The cheaper Buds 2 offer better battery life and planar magnetic drivers.
- Prices start at £69.99, targeting serious value in the budget space.
Motorola is clearly in the mood to shake up the affordable audio market. Fresh from the show floor at MWC, the company has unveiled two new pairs of true wireless earbuds that look far more ambitious than their price tags suggest.
The headline act is the Moto Buds 2 Plus with Sound by Bose tuning. But the real surprise might be the cheaper sibling, the Moto Buds 2.
When a brand known for affordable phones starts promising spatial audio, active noise cancellation and Hi Res support for under seventy pounds, it is worth paying attention.
Flagship promises at midrange money
Let’s start with the Plus model, because that Bose badge will inevitably steal the spotlight. This is not the first time Bose has lent its tuning expertise to another company. We have seen it collaborate with Skullcandy on the Skullcandy Method 360 and the Skullcandy Method 540, with impressive sonic results. Still, those efforts were not exactly budget buys.
Motorola is undercutting that approach dramatically.
The Moto Buds 2 Plus come with dynamic ANC, spatial audio and support for LHDC. There is also a Hi Res Audio badge, which will appeal to spec sheet readers, though you will need a compatible Motorola handset and the right content source to unlock everything. Spatial audio requires Dolby Atmos content, and yes, that means proper integration with Dolby Atmos.
Inside each earbud sits an 11 mm dynamic driver paired with balanced armatures supplied by Knowles. On paper, that hybrid setup suggests a more refined, layered sound than you might expect at this level.
Motorola is also pushing call clarity hard. The Plus model packs six microphones in total and leans on its CrystalTalk AI system to reduce background noise and sharpen your voice.
Add multipoint connectivity, wear detection, customizable touch controls and a claimed nine hours of playback per charge, stretching to 40 hours with the case, and the value proposition starts to look serious.
The cheaper pair might be the smarter buy
Oddly enough, the standard Moto Buds 2 may be the more intriguing of the two.
They drop the Bose tuning but keep many of the premium features. You still get dynamic ANC, transparency mode and six microphones. Battery life actually improves, with claims of up to 11 hours on a single charge and as much as 48 hours with the case.
A quick 10 minute top up should deliver around three hours of listening time, which is exactly the kind of real world convenience busy users appreciate.
Driver configuration is different here. Alongside an 11 mm dynamic driver, Motorola includes a 6 mm micro planar magnetic driver. That is not something we commonly see at this price point. If implemented well, it could help deliver tighter detail and faster transient response than a single dynamic driver alone.
You also get Bluetooth connectivity built around Bluetooth 6.0, gaming mode for lower latency and access to Motorola’s AI driven features when paired with compatible phones. Translation tools and notification summaries feel very ecosystem focused, but they add a layer of functionality that goes beyond music playback.
A strong ecosystem play
It is clear Motorola wants these earbuds to do more than play audio. Press and hold gestures can activate Moto AI features such as notification catch ups and meeting summaries, provided you are using the right handset. Audio Share allows two sets of compatible buds to connect to one device so you can listen together without passing a single earbud back and forth.
That tight integration makes the buds more appealing to existing Motorola users. For everyone else, the real question will be sound quality. Specs can look dazzling on a launch slide, but tuning, comfort and real world ANC performance are what ultimately decide whether a pair of earbuds earns a place in any best cheap earbuds list.
Price and availability
The Moto Buds 2 Plus land at £129.99 in the UK, while the Moto Buds 2 come in at just £69.99. Both are initially slated for the UK and Ireland, with no confirmed global rollout at the time of writing.
For under seventy pounds, the standard model in particular feels almost disruptive. If the performance lives up to even half of the promise on paper, Motorola may have delivered one of the year’s most compelling budget audio options.
For now, we reserve final judgment until we can put them through a proper review. But it has been a while since a Hello Moto moment felt this convincing.
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