Lossless sound at Huawei is no longer a Pro-only privilege. The NearLink E2.0 channel, on which the company claims up to 16 Mbps of throughput and 96 kHz / 24 bit audio without loss, has until now been available on only two pairs of earbuds: FreeBuds Pro 5 and the FreeClip 2 clips. Certification for that channel has now gone to the ordinary FreeBuds 7, a regular model in the TWS line.
- The registry of the International NearLink Alliance lists certificate iSLA012026003-0000008, applicant Huawei Device, access mode NearLink E2.0.
- The applied audio test set has been passed, so the earbuds are certified as an audio device and not merely as a transmitter.
- The registry holds only 8 entries so far; among earbuds it already lists Pro 5, FreeClip 2 and the EDIFIER Comfo Clip Q2, so the protocol is used by other companies too.
- There are no specifications, no price and no sales date: the certificate checks the protocol, not the finished product.
What the channel is. This is not Bluetooth and not an add-on above it, but a separate protocol with its own switch in the phone settings. For Pro 5 Huawei claims up to 16 Mbps of physical channel speed with the Kirin A3 chip and audio of 96 kHz / 24 bit without loss with the L2HC 5.0 codec, and the link runs in two bands, 2.4 and 5.8 GHz. It is important not to confuse the figures: 16 Mbps is the throughput of the channel, not the bitrate of the music. For the FreeBuds 7 themselves Huawei has not yet claimed a single number.
China only. Huawei states it plainly on its support page: the feature works only on earbuds, phones and tablets sold in mainland China, and there are no plans for other regions. A phone from the list is required (nova 16, nova 15 Pro and Ultra, the Pura X Max, Pura 90, Pura 80, Mate 80 and Mate X7 series, or the MatePad Pro Max tablet) plus HarmonyOS 6.0.0.130. Any other device will not pair over NearLink at all and falls back to ordinary Bluetooth. On the same page Huawei admits this is not an absolute absence of audio dropouts.
HUAWEI FreeBuds Pro 5
- The channel works and the figures are claimed.
- Up to 16 Mbps, audio of 96 kHz / 24 bit.
- They are on sale right now.
HUAWEI FreeBuds 7
- The channel is certified but no figures exist.
- Speed and codecs have not been claimed.
- The model has not been presented officially.
Here is the difference from the predecessor: the FreeBuds 6 do not appear in the official list of earbuds with NearLink audio at all, and they connect over ordinary Bluetooth. The FreeBuds 7 have no price yet, because Huawei has not announced a price, and there is nowhere to buy them since the model has not been presented; the other models with their prices are gathered in our rating of the best wireless earbuds, and which place the newcomer takes there will be shown by our test. Would a review of the HUAWEI FreeBuds 7 be interesting once they arrive? Drop a comment.
Source: certificate registry of the International NearLink Alliance
