OnePlus Bullets Z3 review: Practical operation, solid performance
There was a time when neckband-style wireless earphones were all the rage in India. But as TWS (True Wireless Stereo) earbuds took over, offering convenience in all shapes and sizes, neckbands seemed to take a backseat. The trend gradually faded but
OnePlus
's Bullets range held the ground, providing top-notch quality in a relatively low price point. The company recently launched Bullets Wireless Z3 (priced at Rs 1,699) as a successor to the Bullets Z2.
Fundamentally, the Bullets Z3 looks and feels quite similar to its predecessor but it does pack some notable upgrades. If you're one of those who still prefer the comfort and reliability of a neckband over TWS earbuds, read on this full review to know what has changed in the latest generation of the OnePlus Bullets Z series.
OnePlus Bullets Z3 design
If we are to summarise the design of the OnePlus Bullets Z3, it is nothing but familiarity with a fresh hue. There isn't much groundbreaking news here as the latest neckband largely retains the familiar aesthetic of the Bullets Z2. It carries forward the signature magnetic on-and-off function, which is handy for pausing music when you're not listening, the skin-friendly silicone material build, and its ergonomically curved shape that ensures a snug fit.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
When Knee Pain Hits, Start Eating These Foods, and Feel Your Pain Go Away (It's Genius)
12facts.com
Read More
Undo
So, whether you're heading to the office or hitting the gym, you can comfortably wear these around your neck without worrying about them falling off, thanks to that magnetic lock. The OnePlus Bulltes Z3 is available in two colour options: Mambo Midnight and Samba Sunset. All the physical controls – volume rockers and buttons – are located on the left side of the neckband, are tactile and provide satisfying feedback. There's a USB Type-C charging port and an LED indicator that lights up in red and white.
OnePlus has also added an IP55 water and sweat resistance rating, making the Bullets Wireless Z3 suitable for outdoor use and capable of withstanding splashes of rain.
OnePlus Bullets Z3 performance
OnePlus Bullets Wireless Z3 neckband earphones can be used with both Android phones and iPhones. If you are using a OnePlus phone, you can access some basic functions directly through their Bluetooth settings to personalise the audio output.
The OnePlus Bullets Wireless Z3 features 12.4mm dynamic bass drivers, which are the same as those found in the Bullets Z2 model from 2022. Out of the box, the Z3 offers a decent sound profile with a balanced approach. Vocals come through clear and natural to a good extent. The treble is clear and extended but don't expect it to deliver a top-notch, high-quality audio with nuanced musical details.
Coming to the bass, the earphones provide a punchy thump, which sometimes may prove overwhelming to some users. If you love bass, then you'll appreciate the punch and complemented clarity. Lows are a bit tight and controlled, allowing other instruments to flourish. Mids and highs are well pronounced, which means guitar solos like
Lynyrd Skynyrd - Free Bird
and
Jimi Hendrix's Purple Haze
sounded great.
While there may be some music tracks that sound 'unclear' due to lack of separation in musical instruments but vocals are clearly pronounced. For example, when listening to tracks like
Eminem's "Animals"
and
Kendrick Lamar's "Not Like Us,"
we found the vocals were exceptionally clear, making it easy to recognise every word.
The neckband handles volume changes smoothly, from quiet passages to loud music, without any harshness and they are loud. Pop Rap songs like
On To The Next One by Jay-Z and Swizz Beatz
were a treat for the ears.
You also get the OnePlus 3D Audio function, which aims to create an immersive sound environment. The earphones have a wide soundstage that's decent at best. All in all, we found the OnePlus Bullets Wireless Z3 resonate more with House Music, Dance Music and EDM and perform well for various other genres.
OnePlus has included AI-powered Environmental Noise Cancellation (ENC) that essentially enhances call clarity by reducing background noise during conversations. Like the Bullets Z2, these earphones lack Active Noise Cancellation (ANC), however, we may see an ANC version like the Bullets Z2 ANC model.
Battery and features
Battery life is also robust. The neckband packs a 220mAh battery and is claimed to deliver 36 hours of audio playback. During our review, we got a week's battery on one charge, often using the earphones for up to 5 hours a day. The fast-charging feature is a bonus as OnePlus claims that just 10 minutes of charging can provide up to 27 hours of playback.
The Bullets Wireless Z3 earphones support Google Fast Pair and Bluetooth v5.4. In terms of audio codecs, the neckband supports AAC and SBC, which is expected given its price point.
Verdict
At Rs 1,699, the OnePlus Bullets Wireless Z3 is a pretty good deal, especially for those who still prefer the comfort and convenience of neckbands over TWS earbuds. The audio output is balanced and its fantastic call clarity is appreciable. The robust battery backup and fast-charging support are the added benefits. The OnePlus Bullets Wireless Z3 offers a compelling value proposition, combining balanced performance credentials with a solid battery life.
OnePlus Bullets Wireless Z3: Why This Neckband Still ROCKS in a TWS World!
AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Maharashtra labour & industry dept goes AI: Rs4.95cr approved to build ‘super portal' by September
Nagpur: The state govt has cleared a Rs4.95 crore proposal to build a comprehensive digital platform for its Industry, Energy, Labour and Mining (IELM) Department, integrating everything from public services and internal portals to real-time dashboards and multilingual AI chatbots. A govt resolution issued recently grants administrative and financial approval for the ambitious e-governance project, which is to be implemented through the National Informatics Centre Services Inc (NICSI). The project has a strict deadline and must go live by September 30, 2025. The unified platform will consolidate multiple portals and services under one roof, including the Labour Commissionerate, Mathadi and Security Guard Boards, and internal systems such as LMS, DISH, BMMS, IWBMS, Cess, RPL, and others. New Delhi-based UNEECOPS Technologies Ltd has been empanelled for design, development, and maintenance of the proposed portal. Among the highlights is a full-fledged AI-powered chatbot, built using natural language processing (NLP), that will operate on the website as well as WhatsApp. The bot will be voice-enabled and offer services in both Marathi and English. It will be capable of answering citizen queries, assisting with applications, providing scheme information, helping with document submission, and even tracking service status. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 22 Illustrations of a Husband and Wife in Everyday Life Watch More Undo The same chatbot will also offer personalised assistance based on Aadhar number or mobile-based identification. A WhatsApp Business API chatbot will also be deployed for grievance redressal, scheme promotion, and document-based services. Users will be able to lodge complaints, track tickets, and even receive multimedia communication like scheme brochures and alerts via WhatsApp. The department will also develop an interactive GIS-based platform, where key labour facilities such as worker facilitation centres will be geo-tagged and searchable by district or location. A real-time integrated dashboard will be built to monitor scheme KPIs, data across sectors, and the status of departmental services. The dashboard will support role-based access and draw data from various internal systems via APIs. The platform will be cloud-hosted, secured with extended-validation SSL/TLS certificates, and will undergo mandatory security audits as per GoI norms. All pages will be mobile responsive and accessible to visually impaired users. In addition, a new mobile app will be developed with all the website's features, real-time content sync, interactive UI, and feedback mechanisms. The app will be freely downloadable on Android and iOS platforms at no cost to users. The GR notes that all expenses will be booked under the 2025–26 budget head for the e-governance project. A dedicated manpower resource will be stationed on-site at Mantralaya for the next three years to oversee maintenance and content operations.
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
'Let's go fly a kite': Capturing wind for clean energy in Ireland
AI image BANGOR: On Ireland's blustery western seaboard, researchers are gleefully flying giant kites, not for fun but in the hope of generating renewable electricity and sparking a "revolution" in wind energy. "We use a kite to capture the wind and a generator at the bottom of it that captures the power," Padraic Doherty of Kitepower , the Dutch firm behind the venture, told AFP. At its test site in operation since September 2023 near the small town of Bangor Erris, the team transports the vast 60-square-metre (645,000-square-feet) kite from a hangar across the lunar-like bogland to a generator. The kite is then attached by a cable tether to the machine and acts like a "yo-yo or fishing reel", Doherty said. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Stylish New Mobility Scooters Available for Seniors (Prices May Surprise You) Mobility Scooter | Search Ads Search Now Undo "It gets cast out and flies up, the tether pulls it back in, over and over again, creating energy," he said, testing the kite's ropes and pulleys before a flight. The sparsely populated spot near the stormy Atlantic coast is the world's first designated airborne renewable energy test site. And although the idea is still small in scale, it could yet prove to be a mighty plan as Ireland seeks to cut its reliance on fossil fuels such as oil and gas. "We are witnessing a revolution in wind energy," said Andrei Luca, operations head at Kitepower, a zero-emissions energy solutions spin-off from the Delft University of Technology. "It took nearly 25 years for wind turbines to evolve from 30-kilowatt prototypes to megawatt scale, and decades to offshore wind farms we see today," he added. The system flies autonomously, driven by software developed at the university in the Netherlands, but Doherty acts as the kite's "pilot" on the ground, monitoring its flight path for efficiency. The kite flies up around 400 metres (1,300 feet) and reels in to about 190 metres, generating around 30 kilowatts for storage. The force spins "like a dynamo on a bike", Doherty said, adding that "it generates up to two and a half tonnes of force through each turn". The electricity is stored in batteries, similar to solar photovoltaic systems, with the kite currently able to fully charge a 336-kilowatt-hour (kWh) battery. "That's a meaningful amount of energy, sufficient for powering a remote outpost, a small island, polar station, or even a construction site," Luca said. "Add additional kites and we can power a bigger island." 'Mobile, flexible' According to Doherty, a chief advantage of the kite system is its flexibility and swift start-up capability. "We can set up in 24 hours and can bring it anywhere, it's super mobile, and doesn't need expensive, time- and energy-consuming turbine foundations to be built," he said. A kite system is "way less invasive on the landscape (than wind turbines), produces clean energy and doesn't need a supply chain of fuel to keep running", Luca added. During January's Storm Eowyn, which caused widespread and long-lasting power outages in Ireland, the system showed its value in Bangor Erris, according to Luca. "Paired with a battery, it provided uninterrupted electricity before, during and after the storm," he said. Ireland's wind energy sector has long been touted as full of potential. But progress on large-scale delivery of onshore and offshore turbines has been held up by planning delays and electricity grid capacity constraints. The Irish government has set ambitious targets for offshore wind energy to deliver 20 gigawatts of energy by 2040 and at least 37 gigawatts by 2050. In 2024, Irish wind farms provided around a third of the country's electricity according to Wind Energy Ireland (WEI), a lobby group for the sector. This compares to the UK, where, according to trade association RenewableUK, wind energy from the country's combined wind farms first reached 20 gigawatts in November 2022. The ability of airborne wind energy (AWE) systems to harness high-altitude winds with relatively low infrastructure requirements "makes them particularly suitable for remote, offshore or mobile applications," Mahdi Salari, an AWE researcher at University College Cork, told AFP. But he said Kitepower would face challenges on "regulation, safety, and system reliability". Such technology however could plug gaps in places where "land availability, costs or logistical constraints hinder the deployment of traditional wind turbines", Salari said. By the 2030s, he said: "I expect AWE to contribute meaningfully to diversified, flexible and distributed renewable energy networks". Discover stories of India's leading eco-innovators at Ecopreneur Honours 2025
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Elon Musk's Tesla ordered to pay over $240 million for Autopilot crash case; company says ‘This was never about…'
Representative Image A US court has found Elon Musk's electric vehicle (EV) company, Tesla, partially liable for a fatal 2019 Autopilot crash. The Miami jury has ordered the EV maker to pay a portion of the $329 million in damages awarded to the family of the deceased and an injured survivor. The jury held Tesla responsible for 33% of the crash's fault. The total damages include $129 million in compensatory damages and $200 million in punitive damages. Based on the jury's decision, Tesla will be responsible for paying nearly $42.5 million in compensatory damages. However, as punitive damages were exclusively assessed against Tesla, plaintiffs' attorneys expect the company to pay the full $200 million, potentially bringing its total payment to around $242.5 million. Tesla has stated its intention to appeal the decision. What Tesla said about the Autopilot crash order In a statement to CNBC, Tesla confirmed that it will appeal the decision. The company said: 'Today's verdict is wrong and only works to set back automotive safety and jeopardize Tesla's and the entire industry's efforts to develop and implement life-saving technology. We plan to appeal given the substantial errors of law and irregularities at trial. Even though this jury found that the driver was overwhelmingly responsible for this tragic accident in 2019, the evidence has always shown that this driver was solely at fault because he was speeding, with his foot on the accelerator – which overrode Autopilot – as he rummaged for his dropped phone without his eyes on the road. To be clear, no car in 2019, and none today, would have prevented this crash. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like The boy meets a dog on the street - no one expected what happened next. Women's Method Learn More Undo This was never about Autopilot; it was a fiction concocted by plaintiffs' lawyers blaming the car when the driver – from day one – admitted and accepted responsibility.' The trial, which began last month in Florida, focused on a fatal 2019 crash involving Tesla's Enhanced Autopilot system. George McGee, the Tesla driver, dropped his phone and assumed the Autopilot would brake if needed. Instead, the car accelerated through an intersection at over 60 mph, hitting a parked car and its owners. Naibel Benavides, 22, was killed, and her boyfriend, Dillon Angulo, was seriously injured. Plaintiffs' attorneys had sought $345 million in damages. In an emailed statement, Brett Schreiber, one of the plaintiffs' counsel, said: 'Tesla designed Autopilot only for controlled access highways yet deliberately chose not to restrict drivers from using it elsewhere, alongside Elon Musk telling the world Autopilot drove better than humans. Tesla's lies turned our roads into test tracks for their fundamentally flawed technology, putting everyday Americans like Naibel Benavides and Dillon Angulo in harm's way.'
