The OPPO Enco X4 marks the OEM’s entry into the high-end TWS earphone segment, and you can tell from its features and, more so, its pricing. Priced at Rs 19,999 in India, the Enco X4 is a significant step up from OPPO’s previous premium TWS offering, the Enco Air 5 Pro, which is currently available for Rs 4,499.
Key highlights of the OPPO Enco X4 include a Dynaudio-tuned audio setup, support for 2.3Mbps LHDC lossless audio, up to 53 hours of battery life with the charging case, AI-backed ANC, and Spatial Audio, among other features. But are these enough to make it a compelling alternative to the Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 Pro, Sony LinkBuds series, and Sennheiser Momentum X4? We find out in this OPPO Enco X4 review.
Table of Contents
Design and fit
The OPPO Enco X4 features a design similar to that of the more affordable Enco earbuds. The buds sit inside a pebble-shaped case, held in place by magnets but still easy to remove. They feature short stems and foam ear tips that provide a snug fit and an effective seal for ANC. Despite the familiar design, the in-hand feel is as premium as it gets.
The case features a polycarbonate build with two colours and finishes: a silver matte finish around the edges and a grey rubberised surface on the front and back. The front bears etched OPPO branding, while the hinge at the back features the text ‘Co-created with Dynaudio’ on a glossy finish that’s easy to feel.
The bottom edge houses a USB Type-C port for charging and a small LED indicator for charging status. Surprisingly, OPPO has retained the pairing button on the right edge, even as many TWS manufacturers ditch it in favour of long-press controls on the earbuds.
Lifting the lid reveals the earbuds, which feature a few intricate details, including a black grille on the outer shell and another on the inner surface facing the ear canal. The microphone sits at the bottom of the stem, while one side features a textured finish for touch controls. A chrome strip bearing the Dynaudio branding adds to the earbuds’ premium appeal.
The earbuds feature redesigned silicone foam tips, available in four sizes (XS, S, M, and L), designed to improve passive noise cancellation without creating the vacuum-like sensation that can be nauseating for some users. The fit feels fairly secure, but I wouldn’t call it workout-ready. The buds easily came loose during gym sessions and outdoor runs, likely because sweat made the tips slippery and reduced their grip.
The Enco X4 earbuds, not the case, are IP55-rated, protecting them against minor dust exposure and water splashes. Each earbud weighs 5.6 grams. They aren’t the lightest earbuds out there, but they are comfortable enough for extended wear.
Controls, connectivity, & customisations
Squeeze, gesture-trigger touch actions
The OPPO Enco X4 supports a variety of touch controls located on the stem of each earbud. OPPO has added a grooved finish to help users easily identify the touch-sensitive area. To be honest, it works rather well, registering actions swiftly with a gentle press. It also has nice haptic feedback, so you aren’t left wondering whether the touch registered.
The OPPO Enco X4 offers an extensive range of touch controls, covering all the basics, including playing or pausing music, switching between ANC and Transparency modes, answering calls, adjusting volume, skipping tracks, summoning the voice assistant, and more. The controls are fully customisable, allowing users to assign different actions to a quick squeeze, double squeeze, triple squeeze, slide, or squeeze-and-hold gesture on either earbud.
HeyMelody app
You will need the HeyMelody app to customise the touch controls. It comes pre-installed on OPPO, OnePlus, and Realme smartphones and is also available for download on other Android and iOS devices. I installed version 117.6.6 on my Vivo X Fold 6, and it worked perfectly fine. However, for some reason, the app wouldn’t let me customise the touch controls directly from the cover display.
Aside from this minor niggle, the app worked seamlessly on the device, offering a clean UI with rounded-corner tiles and several additional features. These include:
- EQ settings: Choose between five presets or customise the sound per your preference.
- Head Gestures: Answer or decline calls with a nod or a shake of the head, respectively.
- Conversation Awareness: a feature that OPPO may have taken inspiration from Sony’s implementation of a similar technology. It detects when the wearer is engaged in a conversation and adjusts the ANC intensity accordingly. Users can also manually control the ANC intensity through the app.
- Other features: Gaming Mode, which reduces latency and amplifies sound effects in shooting games, and Spotify Tap, which launches the music streaming app with a simple tap. The earbuds can also automatically pause playback when the wearer falls asleep, while the Neck Vertebrae Health feature is designed to help users maintain better posture.
While all these features are useful, the one I found particularly useful was Golden Sound. It personalises the audio output based on the user’s ear canal structure and hearing characteristics. The feature requires users to take a short, basic hearing test that evaluates their listening across different frequencies before adjusting the sound profile. And it actually makes a difference. Following the test, the earbuds sounded noticeably fuller, with a more expansive soundstage than what I experienced with the out-of-the-box settings.
Dual-device connectivity and intelligence
The OPPO Enco X4 earbuds feature Bluetooth 6.0 connectivity, along with support for Google Fast Pair and Windows Swift Pair. For iOS and macOS devices, OPPO has included a dedicated pairing button. The earbuds also support dual-device connectivity, letting them stay paired to two devices at once. In my experience, they offered a stable, uninterrupted connection even when the connected device was some distance away.
The Enco X4 also features wear detection, automatically pausing audio when the earbuds are removed and resuming playback when they are put back in. The earbuds can also intelligently switch between connected devices, automatically routing audio from the device currently playing music, in line with what other high-end earbuds offer.
ANC, transparency, & call quality
While the redesigned ear tips help block out some ambient noise, the Enco X4’s 6nm NPU, custom AI algorithms, and microphones do most of the heavy lifting for noise cancellation. While its ANC performance may not quite match Sony’s flagship WF-1000XM series, it is still remarkably impressive. Whether it was the party speaker at the gym or traffic noise on the road, the earbuds did a commendable job drowning out the surroundings, letting me focus on nothing but my music.
Users can manually adjust the Enco X4’s ANC intensity through the companion app, but to save them the hassle, OPPO has included an ‘Adaptive’ mode. It works exactly as its name suggests, analysing the surroundings and adjusting the noise cancellation accordingly. And this is no gimmick. The earbuds genuinely adapt to ambient noise, increasing ANC intensity in louder environments, such as when navigating traffic, while still letting in enough sound to remain aware of your surroundings (and the motorcade passing by). In quieter settings, such as at home or in the office, they dial down the intensity to match the relatively undisturbed environment.
The Ambient mode also delivers near-complete transparency in quieter environments, such as a library. Having used the AirPods Pro, I can say that the OPPO Enco X4 comes remarkably close to offering a similar experience. In transparency mode, ambient sounds come through naturally, almost as if you weren’t wearing earbuds at all. You can also activate transparency mode by long-pressing the buds’ stems or through the app.
The call quality on the Enco X4 is also worth highlighting. OPPO has done a commendable job of making the earbuds’ microphones sound almost as natural as a phone’s microphone. I had no trouble getting my voice across clearly, whether I was taking calls in quiet or noisy environments. The Enco X4 also does a good job of suppressing background noise while keeping the speaker’s voice in focus, ensuring conversations sound clear and free of any muffledness.
Sound quality
Now, comes the moment of truth: how well does the OPPO Enco X4 sound? Before we get to that, let’s find out what’s driving the audio inside the buds:
- Dual Dynamic Drivers
- 11mm woofer + 6mm tweeter
- AAC, SBC, LHDC, and LC3 audio codecs
- Up to 2.3Mbps lossless transmission, exclusive to OPPO Find X10 series
- Spatial Audio support
- Dynaudio-tuned audio
For that, OPPO offers five different sound profiles with the Enco X4, each catering to specific listening preferences, including vocals, highs, and bass. Additionally, users can enable bass enhancement and adjust its intensity with each profile. You can also customise the EQ settings. However, I was happy to stick with the default sound profile with Golden Sound personalisation enabled, as it delivered the kind of audio experience I personally enjoy.
It added a noticeable boost to the low frequencies while keeping the mids and highs well-balanced, giving songs such as ‘Chaiya Chaiya’, ‘Dhurandhar’, ‘Clash’, and other pop tracks a fuller, more engaging sound. The bass had enough presence to add depth and impact to the music without overpowering the other elements. I also tried a few country songs, including ‘Alfaaz’ and ‘Bairaan’, which place greater emphasis on vocals than instrumentation. Even with these tracks, the Enco X4 maintained good clarity, allowing the vocals and accompanying instruments to come through distinctly.
At no point did I feel the vocals were drowned out by the beats or that the instrumental elements overpowered them. This consistency across different musical styles made for an enjoyable listening experience.
The OPPO Enco X4 earbuds are also engaging for watching movies and TV shows, as well as playing games. A dedicated Game Mode reduces latency to an ultra-low level, although I didn’t notice it even without it. Gamers can also boost sound effects in shooting games such as BGMI, COD: Mobile, and more, making footsteps and gunshots more noticeable and potentially giving them an edge.
Battery life
The Enco X4 promises up to 53 hours of playback with the case, ANC off, the standard AAC codec, and the volume set at 50 per cent. This drops to 26 hours with ANC enabled, with six hours of listening time before the buds need to be placed back in the case. The backup is attributed to the 65mAh battery in each earbud and the 576mAh battery in the case. That’s quite promising, and there isn’t the slightest doubt that the Enco X4 can deliver close to its claimed figures.
I used the earbuds across a mix of scenarios, testing them with my MacBook and Vivo X Fold 6 to listen to music and other audio content without ANC at varying volume levels, answer calls, switch to Transparency Mode when needed, and occasionally use the touch controls. With an average daily usage of around two hours, the earbuds and charging case lasted about 10 days before needing a recharge.
For most of this period, the volume remained between 70 and 80 per cent. However, while watching movies and TV shows, I pushed the volume to 100 per cent with ANC enabled. Even under these conditions, battery consumption remained relatively modest, with the earbuds losing just 10 per cent charge after an hour and a half of playback.
When it comes to charging, the OPPO Enco X4 features a USB Type-C port and supports flash charging, which promises up to 14 hours of listening time with just 10 minutes of charging. Fortunately, I never found myself in a situation where I needed a quick top-up, although I did notice the buds and case gaining 60 per cent charge within 14 minutes. A full charge took around 50 minutes when starting with a completely drained battery.
The OPPO Enco X4 also supports wireless charging for added convenience, but it is on the slower side, with a claimed charging time of more than two hours for a full charge.
Verdict
The OPPO Enco X4 comes at a premium, but it does enough to justify its price. Its Dynaudio-tuned audio, particularly with Golden Sound personalisation enabled, delivers an engaging listening experience across different music genres. Adding to its appeal are effective adaptive ANC, a near-natural transparency mode, excellent call quality, extensive customisation options, and impressive battery life.
If I had to point out one area where it could have done better, it would be the workout-friendly fit. The buds can come loose during physical activity, although this is understandable given that working out isn’t their forte. The Enco X4 is better suited to those seeking a premium everyday listening experience, and in that regard, its comfort level is spot on.
I can also let it slide that the Enco X4’s headline 2.3Mbps LHDC lossless transmission feature is restricted to the Find X10 series. It isn’t supported on any other OPPO phones, including those from its sister brands OnePlus and Realme, or third-party devices. That said, there aren’t any major compromises when using the earbuds with other devices, and the overall listening experience remains impressive despite this limitation.
OPPO’s biggest challenge will be convincing buyers to choose the Enco X4 over offerings from more established brands, which could be especially difficult in the premium segment. While I’m impressed by the experience the earbuds offer, more aggressive pricing could have made them an easier recommendation over Apple, Sony, Samsung, and Sennheiser TWS.
Editor’s rating: 9/10
Pros
- Excellent sound quality with personalisation option
- Effective ANC and transparency mode
- Impressive call quality
- Outstanding battery life
Cons
- Not ideal for workouts
- Premium pricing puts it up against established competitors
