Back in June, vivo unveiled the TWS 5 Pro buds in China alongside the X Fold6. Now, what looks like the very same pair of earbuds is making its way to Europe under a new name - vivo Buds Ultra. They use a hybrid driver setup, with an ultra-compact balanced armature co-developed with Knowles sitting in the center of the diaphragm of a dual-fold dynamic driver developed by vivo.
The company says this coaxial design aligns the acoustic centers of the bass and treble for a balanced sound, while a dedicated acoustic tube physically isolates high and low frequencies. There's a 16Hz-60kHz frequency response, an independent Hi-Fi DAC chip with a 113dB dynamic range, and LDAC support at up to 990kbps.
vivo Buds Ultra in Cosmic Black
Noise cancellation is handled by four microphones (two digital and two analog), and vivo calls the system Intelligent Noise Cancellation 2.0. It offers up to 60dB of noise reduction (28dB on average) across a 5,500Hz bandwidth, and there's a new Adaptive mode that automatically balances noise cancellation and transparency, plus modes tuned specifically for planes, subways, and buses. For calls, a bone conduction sensor works alongside three microphones, and vivo claims up to 99% wind noise reduction.
Each earbud lasts up to 11 hours on a charge with ANC turned off, and the case brings the total to 50 hours. Five minutes of charging gets you two hours of music, and the case supports wireless charging too. The buds are IP54 rated for dust and sweat resistance, but the case isn't.
vivo Buds Ultra in Glacier White
You can connect the Buds Ultra to up to three devices at once, and control them by pressing or swiping on their pressure-sensitive areas. Spatial audio with Theater, Concert Hall, Studio, and Concert modes is on board, as are a 10-band equalizer, personalized hearing profiles, remote camera control, and a way to find your earbuds if you lose them. Many of these features are built into compatible vivo phones, while on other Android devices you'll need the vEarphones app to control the earbuds.
The vivo Buds Ultra come in Glacier White and Cosmic Black, and they're priced at €199. That said, they're currently discounted to €169 in vivo's official online stores in Spain and Portugal.