Tecno’s new TWS is designed to do more than just play music. The POVA AI Buds Pro can record and transcribe your calls and meetings. The charging case has a dedicated button that starts recording your meeting right away. Once the session is over, it transcribes and summarises the audio, and also creates a ‘Mind Map’ based on the content. We don’t usually get to see these features on a TWS – the Rs 15,000 price tag is nothing to scoff at either. We’ve been using these wireless earbuds for the last week; mostly for calls, but also some media streaming and gaming. Here is our review of the Tecno POVA AI Buds Pro.
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In This Article
Tecno POVA AI Buds Pro Review: Design
Box Contents
- Charging case
- Earbuds
- Extra eartips
- USB-C to USB-C cable
- User guide
- Warranty card
The charging case has a plastic build, but the quality of the material used does not inspire a lot of confidence. The sleek lid swipes back to reveal the earbuds, but it feels easily snappable. Having said that, the case has a nice design. The silver trim right below the lid houses the LED notification light. The pairing button and USB-C port are positioned at the back. The matte finish lends it a nice in-hand feel. Inside, the ‘L’ and ‘R’ indicators for the earbuds are illuminated. The red record button is placed right between the two cutouts.
The earbuds follow the standard in-ear design. They come pre-installed with medium-sized ear tips. We had to swap them for a smaller size to obtain a better fit. After wearing them for multiple hours, we did not feel any significant fatigue. The fit remained snug and airtight. Each earbud is equipped with 4 microphones – In-call mic, VPU, Feedforward mic, and Feedback mic. The stems support pinch gestures for call and media controls.
During the review period, we wore the Tecno POVA AI Buds Pro while hiking and working out. The earbuds remained unaffected by excessive sweat. This is consistent with their IP55 rating for dust and water resistance. The fit required the odd adjustment, but did a good job of holding up for the most part.
Tecno POVA AI Buds Pro Review: Performance
Pairing the POVA AI Buds Pro with your smartphone and PC is a seamless process. The TWS supports Bluetooth 5.2. You can pair the earbuds with up to 2 devices at once. There are 3 audio codecs on offer – SBC, AAC, and LHDC. The Hi-Res LHDC codec can be accessed from the POVA AI companion app. The audio output is delivered through 11 dynamic drivers.
The soundstage on offer here is neutral-leaning, which we like quite a lot. It makes sense for a TWS that is designed primarily for calls and meetings to sound this way. You won’t get a blanket of bass shrouding over the mix. Instead, the lower frequencies are pushed to the background for a more vocal-centric output. We were happy with the overall listening experience after streaming music across genres like grunge, pop, rock, and metal. This TWS can easily hang with their peers in the sub-Rs 15,000 price bracket.
Tecno has marketed this TWS heavily around its transcription, summarisation, and recording skills (AI is right there in the name). You can start recording any conversation or meeting by simply pressing the red button in the charging case. The recording process starts immediately; you don’t need to reach for your phone and dive into the app.
The TWS has a recording range of 7 metres. It can recognise up to 4 speakers in a meeting. The speakers are reflected in the transcription. There’s support for 78 languages on board (access to multiple languages requires a Pro subscription priced at Rs 1,100 per month). The earbuds can record for 4 hours straight. Once the session is over, you can go to the POVA AI app to view its transcript.
The quality of the transcripts is pretty good, but still a notch below the industry standard. It is common for the TWS to misrecognise certain words. However, the transcript summaries are largely on point. The companion app also generates a ‘Mind Map’, which is essentially a chart depicting the key points of the meeting. We found this feature to be a bit gimmicky. It felt like the AI model was reaching for some insights just to shoehorn them into the chart.
The call quality offered by the POVA AI Buds Pro is pretty good. The voice of the speaker remains lucid and clear even in noisy conditions. You can record your calls (the listener gets a notification), then transcribe and summarise them in the companion app. There’s an option for live-translating real-life conversations as well, but it feels a bit staggered.
The ANC chops of this TWS leave more to be desired. The earbuds can nullify background noise up to 48dB, but we found that ambient sounds from the ceiling fan, air conditioner, and other appliances crept in easily. On the bright side, the low latency mode works pretty well while gaming. There is no delay between the gaming audio and visuals.
Each earbud is equipped with a 60mAh battery. With ANC disabled, they can last up to 9 hours on a full charge. The charging case, with its 500mAh capacity, adds 40 more hours to the playtime. A USB-C cable takes up to 2 hours to fully charge the TWS. There’s support for wireless charging as well.
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Verdict
The Tecno POVA AI Buds Pro serve a specific niche of professionals who are always scrambling for their meeting notes. For them, this is the ideal TWS. The Quick Note tool does a good job of transcribing and summarising meetings and calls. The audio output of the TWS is quite underrated, as it does not overpower the soundstage with a thumping low-end. Instead, the sounds are balanced and lively. Noise cancellation could use some work, especially in an indoor work setting. For Rs 15,000, this TWS is worth a shot if it fits into your use case.
Pros
- Good for transcribing and summarising calls/meetings
- Balanced audio output
- Nice design
Cons
- ANC needs to be more powerful
- Requires a Pro subscription to transcribe multiple languages
- Bit pricey
