Infinix iRocker TWS earbuds review: Great price, decent sound

Hong-Kong-based smartphone maker Infinix recently announced its first-ever audio product — the Infinix iRocker TWS earbuds in India under the brand name of SNOKOR. Ever since Infinix has entered the Indian market, it has only launched budget and entry-level smartphones but now with iRocker, Infinix aims to move to a new space with a budget TWS earbuds in the country.

Priced at Rs 1499, it would be safe to say that the Infinix iRocker is one of the cheapest True Wireless (TWS) earbuds currently available in the market. While the music aficionados might not consider something that is this basic, people looking to make a successful crossover to truly wireless earbuds from wired earphones would surely want to consider something that fits their ears and pockets well. They might want to look out for something that provides decent sound quality but without spending a lot of money. This is where the Infinix iRocker TWS earbuds come in.

There are quite a few good options in the market under Rs 2,000 but the Infinix iRocker TWS earbuds with a price point of Rs 1499 tries to sweeten the deal. So let us find out in the review whether the Infinix iRocker TWS ticks all the right boxes or not.

Infinix iRocker design and build

The Infinix iRocker comes in a handy capsule-shaped charging case that has a glossy finish and a SNOKOR branding on the lid. At first glance, it appears like any other earbuds charging case that is available in the market. It doesn’t feel premium nor does it feature anything extra that could grab anyone’s attention. It appears simple and compact, just like budget-TWS earbuds is supposed to be. When I first picked it up, I found it was lighter than most earbuds cases I have come across. There is a tiny LED indicator that tells users when the case is charged or needs a charge.

Inside the case, there are two eggs-shaped earbuds with a round button. The company says that buds look like goose eggs and they do. Along with a button, each bud also has a LED indicator, which blinks red when the buds are charging and blue when they are paired with a phone. The earbuds are available in white and black.

The earbuds come with silicone ear-tips in three sizes. Use the one that fits you. The earbuds have an IPX4 rating which means you can wear them during workouts or sweaty jogging sessions. Charging case, of course, is not water-proof.

The design of the charging case is fine enough but I have concerns about the lightweight plastic. It surely feels a bit flimsy. The lid with magnetic hinges too is wobblier compared to what you will get with more expensive buds of this kind. A week into using the Infinix iRocker TWS earbuds and I am already careful with the lid because it just doesn’t feel that durable.

I found the earbuds to be slightly big for my ears. I have to push them hard into ears, even when I am using the small-sized ear tips that are fixed by default. But the good thing is once they are in, they do not feel uncomfortable. Though they are also not very secure: I could feel the buds coming out when I made wide jaw movements, such as when laughing hysterically.

As far as the controls are concerned, the Infinix iRocker TWS earbuds have tactile buttons for controls, which is more convenient than the touch-sensitive ones found in many other buds. In order to change music or pause, I had to press the button.

Infinix iRocker performance

Like they say, you get what you pay for and so I had kept my expectations low when I picked up the Infinix iRocker TWS. Affordability is the key here. Although the audio quality is one of the prime factors of an earphone, it majorly depends on the music genre that you prefer listening to. Some songs may sound right, some may not and the interpretation is entirely subjective.

The Infinix iRocker TWS earbuds are powered by 6mm drivers that produce fairly decent sound. You might think that since the driver size is just 6mm tiny -- it cannot produce a good sound output but that is not what I found while using the iRocker.

I found that the Infinix iRocker TWS earbuds sound as good as any other mid-range TWS earbuds, if not better. The sound quality is crisp, the trebles are decently managed and the highs are acceptable too. The Indian instruments, particularly the sitar or the tanpura and even the tabla sound perfectly well

It has a balanced approach towards all types of music. For instance, when I was listening to “Taare Ginn” from Dil Bechara, the piano strokes sounded very clear and I could feel like it is being played right in front of me. Keeping aside the instruments part, the vocals too were clear and rich. In songs like “Mi Gente” and “Sky full of stars”, the sound output was pretty balanced. Considering these two are party songs, there wasn’t any unnecessary chaos in my ears. However, I felt that when the volume was increased, the music turned a little squeaky and the sound got uncomfortable. For best results, I kept the volume low.

Overall, I feel that for the price tag attached to the iRocker, the Infinix TWS earbuds don't disappoint at all.

The Infinix iRocker TWS earbuds don’t come with active noise cancellation but it provides good passive noise isolation. When I plugged the earbuds on, I couldn’t hear anyone talking or the TV being played in the next room. However, when I stood in my balcony I could hear mild sounds of the car passing and other outdoor sounds.

I watched a couple of shows and movies on my mobile with the Infinix earbuds on and it performed well. The audio was crisp and clear without any unnecessary disruptions. However, I didn’t have a pleasant experience while making calls as I had to literally scream to make myself heard. After a point I got rather flustered with the connectivity issues and removed them. So I wouldn’t recommend using the earbuds while calling as it doesn’t perform great in that area.

Now last and the most important point is connectivity. It took a while to pair with my iPhone and every time after disconnecting, I had a hard time connecting it back. The pairing is not swift, it takes time and sometimes it just fails. I fiddled with the settings, pressed the buttons repeatedly to pair it with my phone. However, the pairing was rather easy with my Android phone. It didn’t take as much time as it did with my iPhone nor did it demand as many actions. Reconnecting it with my Android device too was fast.

In terms of the battery, iRocker houses 300mAh (in the case) and 40mAh batteries (in the buds) that offer up to 20 hours of playtime, as per the company. It lasted me more than 5 days on a single charge so here I agree with the company's claims about its decent battery life.

Infinix iRocker review summary

The Infinix iRocker TWS earbuds manage to tick some of the right boxes if not all. The iRocker provides decent audio quality and comes with a handy charging case. If you are looking to buy your first TWS earbuds but don’t want to cough up a lot of money, you can surely give the Infinix iRocker TWS earbuds a try. However, if you can spend some more, there are better options available.