I’ve had a bit of a productivity pause of late, thanks to a combination of vacation and recovering from Covid. One was fun, the other decidedly less so. However, both gave me the opportunity to spend some quality time with the latest wireless earbud release from 1More: the 1MORE EVO. This is a true wireless earbud with active noise cancellation, a hybrid acoustic setup, and Hi-Res certification with LDAC support.

1More EVO wireless earbuds in black

These earbuds are a traditional form factor, with no stems. I found them to be quite compact and with the polished ceramic panels (with contrasting metallic trim) they looked pretty stylish. Each bud tips the scales at 5.7 grams, just a hair heavier than Apple’s AirPods Pro at 5.4 grams.

1More always delivers when it comes to premium packaging

The EVO earbuds come equipped with five sets of silicone ear tips, so there’s a pretty good chance you’ll find a combination that fits you well. I found them comfortable to wear, but in my ears they weren’t as secure as I would have liked (an issue I have always had with earbuds in general). A good shake or jump could result in one popping out. Sitting still or walking they were fine, but no gardening or hiking with these. 1More’s True Wireless ANC earbuds (reviewed in 2020) were significantly bulkier, but their combination of silicone ear tips and O-hooks offered a more secure fit.

If these buds fit you well enough to wear during exercise, they are protected by IPX4 water resistance.

The 1More EVO hybrid driver setup

Those ceramic panels support touch control, with a single touch and hold used to cycle through the ANC modes. Double and triple taps can be customized through the 1More Music app to control features like music pause, volume, and voice control. I found the touch feature was responsive although there was a slight pause before the action was invoked.

Touch controls can be customized

Sound quality that punches above its weight class has been a 1More given since I began testing headphones from the brand. The EVO wireless earbuds continue in that tradition. Instead of the typical setup of a standalone full-range driver, these are equipped with hybrid system comprise of a 10mm dynamic driver plus a balanced armature. Audio is tuned by Luca Bignardi, a Grammy award-winning sound engineer.

The sound is balanced and crisp. You can tweak it to your liking using the mobile app, which is equipped with EQ presets, a custom 10-band EQ, and an optional SoundID audio profile from Sonarworks. Turn on the ANC, and you’ll find the low and middle ends fill out and gain additional warmth.

1More's Music app offers comprehensive EQ and audio optimization options

Adding to the appeal for music lovers (at least those who own a compatible phone), the EVO earbuds support Sony’s high resolution LDAC audio codec. Even using my iPhone (with AAC), music sounded great.

Active noise cancellation — or ANC — has become an expected feature in earbuds, even though the feature seldom works anywhere near as well as it does with over-ear headphones. With earbuds, there is little passive noise isolation, so the deck is pretty stacked against them.

The 1More EVOs offer multiple levels of ANC, including a QuietMax adaptive mode that automatically adjusts the ANC level according to your environment. In practice, while working in my home office I found the “Strong” ANC setting did a decent job of blocking out traffic noise and the central AC. However, I could still hear the keys on my keyboard (even when using a chiclet keyboard) and it just slightly muffled music being played on a speaker in the background.

That kind of performance is not unusual with wireless earbuds, but it’s possible you may experience better results if you have a tighter seal while wearing the EVOs. ANC may not be a killer feature, but it does help and (as has been the case with many earbuds), I preferred listening to music with ANC on as it had the effect of boosting the low end and middle range.

ANC always complicates battery life estimates because you end up with two ratings: one with ANC on and one with ANC off. In this case, 1More rates the EVO earbuds for up to 8 hours on a charge with ANC off and up to 5.5 hours with ANC on.

I primarily tested with ANC on and set to the highest level, with music volume at about 50%. Checking the numbers, I averaged 6.5 hours on a charge. That’s not spectacular, but it is better than average.

The charge case is an attractive number made of an anodized aluminum alloy. There’s a USB-C charge port around back, and it also supports Qi wireless charging. The case can deliver a 15-minute fast charge that gives four hours of playback time. 1More says the maximum play time for the EVO buds with the case’s battery works out to about 28 hours.

The charge case supports Qi wireless charging

I still prefer 1More’s True Wireless ANC in-ear headphones in terms of fit, thanks to their silicone O-hooks.

1More EVO earbuds offer a solid set of features and capabilities for the price

However, there is a lot to like about the 1More EVO earbuds. Even without a phone able to output hi-res LDAC files, music sounds fantastic. And it can be tweaked using the 1More Music app. Battery life isn’t going to set any records — especially with ANC on — but it is good. Noise cancellation is not going to rival what you get from over-ear headphones, but it is decent enough, especially for transportation-related noise. Qi wireless charging is a nice option.

As is so often the case with earbuds and headphones from 1More, the company has an offering that undercuts most competitors in terms of price, while delivering a superior audio experience. The 1More EVO wireless earbuds at $169.99 are a solid pick in this price range, especially if your primary concern when choosing earbuds is sound quality.

Disclosure: 1More provided earbuds for evaluation purposes but had no input into this review.