Closer Examination

In the absence of any cables for their actual operation, the storage and carry case included with TWS earphones is important since it is also responsible for charging the earphones themselves. 1MORE has gone with a simpler, all-plastic design for the ColorBuds 2 case, and it's on the smaller side of things to where this is easily pocketable. It is also black to match the black earphones, and the other two color options have similarly matching cases, which is a nice detail. Note the pill-shaped nature of the case with its rounded corners, so much so that is is nearly an oval throughout except for the flat bottom for it to rest upright on a surface or Qi charger since the case supports wireless charging, too. For branding, the 1MORE logo has been put on top, with the front housing a simple notch to open the case and an indicator LED below. Wired charging happens via the Type-C port on the back, which is below a flush hinge used to keep the case clean without anything jutting out to potentially snag on objects.


On the bottom are the technical specifications and certification information for the case. This is where we find out that the case has a 410 mAh/1.56 Wh battery inside, which is below average for TWS earphones. The individual earphones have a 55 mAh battery inside, so the case can provide slightly under four charge cycles, closer to three accounting for efficiency losses, which is in line with 1MORE's marketing citing a rated battery life of 6–8 hours per cycle and another 18–24 from the case. The best-case scenario of 32 hours is plenty enough for most people thus, but let's discuss actual battery life later in this review.

Charging the case is best done wired, with fast charging allowing for two hours worth of playback from the case. Going from 0–100% otherwise takes ~85 min on the standard 5 V, 1 A USB cable, and the indicator LED on the case goes from red (<10%) to orange (10-90%) to green (>90%) for a visual indicator of the battery level when charging, while also turning red to show that the charge is low in use. Opening the case reveals the earphones inside, fully charged and ready to be used. Notice the matching compartments with magnetic pins inside to securely hold and charge the earphones while in the case, as well as the dedicated indicator LED at the top of each individual earphone. The case takes ~70 min to fully charge the earphones, so these rated numbers are decent for the form factor and size of the case, as well as the fast wired and Qi wireless charging options.


Be sure to peel off the plastic tags on the magnetic pins of the earphones or they won't charge in the case, and then marvel at the bulbous nature of the 1MORE ColorBuds 2, which has it look silly at first glance, though it will make sense soon after. 1MORE is adopting an IEM design with the ear tips going into the ear canal instead of staying out, such as with earbuds. The shells are also shaped ergonomically to fit into the ear concha, with the thicker nature of the shells accommodating the various components inside without going the way of the Apple Airpods with a dedicated extension of the shells towards your mouth—these components are the PCB, Bluetooth chipset, dynamic driver system, battery, and acoustic chamber. We have a predominantly plastic construction to keep things light, with a rubberized texture on those surfaces touching your ear.

The face plate, if you will, houses the capacitive touch sensor for the touch controls, and it is convex, whereby the 1MORE logo indicates where the sensor is generally placed. A look at the sides also shows multiple vents that not only work for airflow to the drivers but also access to the various microphones for both the hybrid ANC feature and voice communication. The inner side also confirms an IR sensor that allows for on-ear detection—blocking the sensor tells the chipset the earphones are installed in your ears and to continue playing the music, and to pause the playback when you remove them for whatever reason. Depending on your preference, this can either be very handy or a nuisance. An L or R marking indicates the left or right channel respectively, and the earphones do come with size-M tips pre-installed. Be sure to try out the various included ear-tip sizes to get as good a seal as possible. Removing them reveals an extremely small nozzle with an integrated notch securing the ear tips, as well as a metal mesh filter on the end to prevent contaminants from entering the acoustic chamber.