There’s something quite appealing about the TOZO NC20. They’re not trying to pretend they’re a premium pair of earbuds costing several hundred pounds; instead, they offer a surprisingly long list of features at a price that makes them a very tempting budget buy. We get active noise cancellation, LDAC support, an accompanying app and, most importantly, a very useful digital display built into the charging case.
The case is probably our favourite part. That little screen shows the battery status of the earbuds and the case, so we can see exactly how much juice we have left without having to open an app or guess from a tiny indicator light. It’s a simple idea, but one that makes a difference when we’re using the NC20s throughout the day. The case is reasonably compact too, and with the earbuds offering around 10 hours of playback with ANC enabled in real-world testing, battery life is one of their strongest points.
Sound quality is good for the money, although we wouldn’t put the NC20 in the same league as genuinely high-end wireless earbuds. There’s plenty of bass and enough detail to make music, podcasts and video enjoyable, but the overall presentation can lack some of the refinement and separation we get from more expensive alternatives. That said, this is exactly where expectations matter. At the NC20’s budget price, we’re getting a perfectly enjoyable listening experience rather than an audiophile one.
The active noise cancellation is another welcome addition. It does a respectable job of taking the edge off background noise, making the TOZO NC20 useful on public transport, in the office or simply when we want to concentrate. It isn’t going to compete with the very best ANC systems, but we’d happily take this level of noise reduction at this price. There’s also a transparency mode when we need to hear what’s happening around us.
Comfort is generally good, with the lightweight earbuds sitting securely enough for everyday use. We found the design fairly conventional, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The controls and app add plenty of flexibility, although some of the extra features can feel like things we’ll play with once before settling on our preferred settings.
Ultimately, the TOZO NC20 makes a strong case for itself because it gets the basics right while throwing in a few features we wouldn’t necessarily expect at this price. The sound isn’t class-leading, the ANC could be stronger and some of the software extras feel unnecessary, but the combination of decent audio, effective-enough noise cancellation, excellent battery life and that genuinely handy battery display makes these a very good budget buy. If we want a capable pair of wireless earbuds without spending a fortune, the NC20s are easy to recommend.
£46
Visit tozostore.com