1More Aero in the test: Best sound & ANC for less than 80 euros

For 1More, the Aero is something special: it is the US company’s first headphone with spatial audio. The technology uses a gyroscope to detect head movements and adjust the sound accordingly. If you watch a film on the smartphone and look to the left, the sound shifts to the right ear accordingly. The small cinema experience for on the go is spreading, especially in the luxury class, and is popular there as the Holy Audiogral praised. An example of this is the JBL Tour Pro 2 (test report). In everyday life, however, it is more of a nice gimmick when watching films or videos. Same here.

It looks chic, the 1More Aero. It comes in two color variants: black and white. In the black model, a reddish ring on the silicone attachments sets a small but subtle accent. The white model dispenses with this detail and thus has a pleasantly clean look. The in-ears and the charging case are adorned with a lot of plastic, which, however, feels valuable and pleasantly velvety thanks to a matt finish. You just can’t get enough of the flat and almost futuristic charging box in particular.

Inserting the earbuds into the case is also an addictive gimmick: Magnets make them jump back into the case almost by themselves and align themselves perfectly. A concept to fall in love with! Otherwise, the in-ears catch the eye with their pointed pin. We already know the design from the 1More headphones Comfobuds 2 and Comfobuds Pro.

At only 4.9 grams each, the earbuds are pleasantly light in the ears and are very comfortable to wear. With a view to sporting activities, the support offered could become problematic – depending on the nature of the ear. Thanks to the IPX5 certification, the 1More Aero is also able to do this. However, the fit in our test ears is definitely sufficient for everyday use.

The accessories included with the 1More Aero are a short USB-C charging cable and a total of four pairs of earplugs in different sizes to find the right fit for the respective user. The first pairing and the setup via app work without any problems. The app explains the touch operation when you first start it and is also easy to use in everyday life. If desired, this can be adjusted a little.

Basically, the functions of the app are manageable. The highlights include an equalizer with many presets, a spatial audio mode for 3D sound and intelligent adjustment of bass, middle and treble to the selected playback volume. The ANC modes can be switched through either via the touch control or – in a little more detail – via the app.

Here we show the most popular Bluetooth earbuds under 100 euros in a price comparison:

With the 1More Aero, the dynamic 10 millimeter drivers set the tone, transmission is via Bluetooth 5.2. Multipoint connections are also possible. However, the feature is still in the beta stage and must first be activated via the app. The function has already worked well for us. Only SBC and AAC are used as codecs. On the other hand, there is no better codec specifically for Android users, such as aptX or LDAC.

The battery lasts around five hours with ANC switched on. There are seven if noise cancellation is not used. The charging case has a total of up to 28 hours. Thanks to the Fast Charge function, the 1More Aero can also be charged in 15 minutes for three hours of playtime. Optionally via cable or Qi charging.

The sound is surprisingly well mixed for earbuds in the 100-euro segment, but, as expected, cannot meet audiophile demands. The 1More Aero deliberately leaves this field to much more expensive headphones. It is primarily designed for broad everyday use. The highs could use a little more attention, but this shortcoming can be largely mitigated with the 10-band equalizer. However, we want to do without the twelve sound presets. Most of these sound strange or emphasize the already quite dominant bass, making the highs seem even more depressed. Best of all we chose the Studio-Preference fallen. Ultimately, however, we prefer to choose a preset that we have created ourselves, of which a total of three can be created.

With activated spatial audio including head-tracking technology, the three-dimensional sound experience is implemented quite well. A clear delay in the effect of head movements is noticeable. As mentioned at the beginning, this feature is just a nice gimmick that we might activate on the train while watching a movie. Nothing more.

The voice quality when making calls is okay thanks to the total of six microphones. In windy weather, the ANC mode for reducing wind noise proves useful.

In general, the 1More Aero benefits from good basic shielding, provided the silicone attachments are chosen appropriately. If the optional adaptive noise canceling of up to 42 dB in a frequency range between 40 and 4000 Hertz is switched on, a surprisingly efficient ANC performance is revealed. Even at medium music volume, you can no longer hear the street noise. As expected, there are weaknesses in the high-frequency range, but this is where all ANC headphones meet their final opponent. Much more expensive ANC top models, such as the Sony WF-100XM4 (test report) or the Bose Quietcomfort Earbuds (test report), filter out much better.

The suggested retail price for the 1More Aero is 110 euros. At the time of the test, it was regularly on the market for just under 80 Euro to find. Here at the latest, the price-performance ratio is really good.

In fact, the 1More Aero is less convincing in the test due to the advertised upper class feature called Spatial Audio, but rather due to its rock-solid performance, which is above average in many areas in view of the price segment. Design, comfort and above all ANC are remarkably well done. There is also a great equipment package with AAC codec, Bluetooth multipoint and dynamic EQ adjustment to the selected volume. A lot is offered here for the money, even if we would – a bit meekly – wish for a higher quality audio codec for Android devices.