Oppo Enco W51 TWS Headphones Review

Competition in the TWS headphone market is now relatively high, and if the task is to choose a useful accessory, not for all the money in the world, then a wide range can only add a headache. Today we are looking at fully wireless headphones from the mid-price segment from Oppo, which has a lot of audio device development experience. This is the Enco W51, which offers exciting sound and active noise cancellation.

Oppo Enco W51 Delivery Set

In the white box of the Oppo Enco W51, you will find the headphones themselves, the charging case, replacement ear pads, a USB-C to USB-A cable, and various documentation. Everything looks pretty elegant and presentable.

Design and Usability

Oppo Enco W51 looks very neat and pretty. They conditionally consist of two parts – the main one in the form of a barrel, which is hidden in the auricle, and a leg equipped with a microphone and connectors for charging. The headphones are offered in two colors: white and black and gold.

The Enco W51 fits perfectly in the ears, thanks in large part to its lightweight. Simultaneously, the headphones are fixed and do not strive to fall out during sharp turns of the head or running. You can safely work with them for several hours. You don’t feel much fatigue. Water protection, according to the IP54 standard, is declared, which is undoubtedly a plus.

And if the design of the headphones themselves can be called original, they did not come up with anything interesting with the charging case. It is made of glossy plastic, rather slippery in the hands. However, it will still not work to open the case with one hand due to the not very convenient engineering solution. Of course, you can get used to it, but it’s better not to risk it on the go or in transport. And getting the headphones out of the case is also not very comfortable – they are slippery, so it may not be possible to remove them immediately.

But still, the case has its advantages – it is equipped with two LEDs, a button for pairing headphones, a USB-C port for charging, and supports wireless charging.

Connection and Control of Oppo Enco W51

Headphones connect to a sound source via Bluetooth 5.0, just like any similar accessory. Thanks to an IR sensor’s presence on the inside, an auto-pause function is implemented when you take the headphones out of your ears. Play continues when you put them back on. This system works very correctly and conveniently.

Simultaneously, for the Enco W51, there is no separate application in which it would be possible to access settings, equalizer, etc. Additional features appear only if you connect the Enco W51 to an Oppo smartphone. In this case, users can reconfigure the actions for tapping and see each of the headphones’ charge level.

And since I have already touched on the topic of control, I note that the Enco W51 does not have the usual touch panels outside of the headphones. Instead, a system is provided that reacts to user taps. Double tapping on the left earphone activates the active noise cancellation system. On the right one – switch the track, triple tapping on any earphone calls Google Assistant. During a call, double-tapping can answer the call and hang up in the same way. Honestly, I have vague impressions from such a control implementation: on the one hand, there are fewer false presses when, for example, you adjust the earpiece in your ear, and on the other hand, the tapping was not always recognized the first time, and on the other hand, knocking had to be stronger than when you do the usual tapes on the touch panel.

As for connecting the Enco W51 to smartphones from other brands, the HeyMelody app has recently appeared on Google Play, allowing you to update the firmware of some Oppo and OnePlus headphones. Also, you can see the charge level of the headphones and case. Unfortunately, actions on tapping cannot be reassigned.

Sound and Noise Reduction Oppo Enco W51

Enco W51 is equipped with 7mm dynamic drivers, SBC and AAC codecs are supported. The headphones give out a very decent sound, especially for their price segment. The sound picture is relatively smooth and balanced, although there is a slight bias in high frequencies. There is good detail. At the same time, I lacked the depth of the low frequencies a little. Some of the nuances could probably be adjusted to your taste, but I repeat, there is no built-in equalizer in the Enco W51, as well as a proprietary application. Overall, the Enco W51 did an excellent job with a variety of music genres and when watching movies. I did not notice any delay when watching the video.

The Active Noise Cancellation system perfectly complements the headphones. Naturally, it does not completely cut off the metro’s noise, but it shows itself very well, even in such conditions. If you are now working from home, and your neighbor decided to take up the renovation, Enco W51 will be right out of the situation. Three microphones in each earpiece are responsible for ANC operation at once. Oppo says the system can reduce ambient noise by about 35dB. True, there is no Transparent Mode, which, when ANC is active, can pass the voices of others.

I would also like to note good communication quality when using Enco W51 as a headset. Both you and your interlocutor are heard correctly. The noise cancellation system helps to remove external sounds during voice transmission.

Charging case and Autonomy

The autonomy of the Oppo Enco W51 is quite common for this class of devices. Each earbud is equipped with a 25 mAh battery, and the charging case received a 480 mAh battery. You can count on about 4 hours of listening to music on a single charge, and with noise cancellation on – about 3-3.5 hours. The case adds about 20 more hours of charge. Of the advantages – the support above for wireless Qi charging by the case and support for fast wired charging (15 minutes is enough for 9 hours of operation).

Conclusion: Should you buy Oppo Enco W51 TWS headphones?

Oppo Enco W51 is a worthy representative of the mid-budget segment of TWS headphones, which does not mind competing with more expensive models. The device offers quality sound and acceptable active noise cancellation. There were some drawbacks in the form of an inconvenient case and controversial management, but in general, this is a good option in the price range up to $ 100.