Anker Soundcore Life P3 Review (2024)

With high-end active noise cancellation (ANC) easily reaching over $300, "affordable" has meant the $150 to $200 range—until now. The $79.99 Anker Soundcore Life P3 earphones lower the floor dramatically, with an attractive price for pair of true wireless earphones whether they have noise cancellation or not. Of course, the ANC can't compete with the likes of the $280 Bose QuietComfort Earbuds, but it's shockingly good for the price. The sound quality is also fantastic, and those two attributes earn the Life P3 our Editors' Choice award for affordable noise-cancelling earphones.

Simple, Colorful Stems

The P3's stem-style earpieces are available in black, dark blue, light blue, red, or white. The in-ear fit is fairly secure, though there’s plenty of room for the stems to hang at different angles, which can create variable audio performance; for me, the ideal sound came from the stems pointing forward slightly. Five pairs of silicone eartips in various sizes are included to help achieve an ideal fit.

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Internally, 11mm dynamic drivers deliver a frequency range of 20Hz to 20kHz. The earphones are compatible with Bluetooth 5.0, and support AAC and SBC codecs, but not AptX.

The clamshell charging case has three LEDs below the lid on the front, and can charge wirelessly on Qi-compatible chargers, a rare feature in this price range. The back end of the case houses a USB-C port for the included USB-C-to-USB-A charging cable. A Bluetooth pairing button sits on the inside of the case.

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The Soundcore app for Android and iOS works with Anker’s various wireless audio products, and it’s quite useful. It offers adjustable eight-band EQ with several presets, along with toggles for a low-latency Gaming Mode. You can also adjust various settings for Ambient mode (which lets you hear your surroundings when the earphones are still in your ears) and ANC (including Indoor, Outdoor, and Transport modes that target different frequencies of surrounding noise). Beyond that, the app also delivers firmware updates.

Anker estimates the Soundcore Life P3’s battery life to be roughly seven hours with ANC off, or six hours with it on, while the case carries an extra 35 hours (ANC off) or 30 hours (ANC on). Your results will also vary with your volume levels.

Anker Soundcore Life P3 Review (12)

Soundcore Life P3 Noise Cancellation and Sound Quality

Back when the $249 AirPods Pro were released in late 2019, they were a huge leap forward for true wireless noise cancellation, but things have progressed steadily since then, and Anker's $80 earphones definitely compete in terms of ANC prowess. The P3's ANC is actually more effective at dialing back low-frequency rumble than the AirPods, and similarly effective at dialing back higher frequencies. When it comes to the absolute best ANC, the $280 Bose QuietComfort Earbuds and Sony WF-1000XM4 outperform them all, but the fact is, Anker's performance is shockingly good for the price.

Transport seems to be the most effective ANC mode overall, dialing back deep low-frequency rumble like you’d hear on aplane or train quite effectively. However, it seems to almost exaggerate highs in scenarios with less deep low frequencies and more mids and highs, like a loud restaurant. Your favorite ANC mode will likely end up a matter of taste.

See How We Test Noise-Cancelling Headphones

For audio performance, on tracks with intense sub-bass content, like The Knife’s “Silent Shout,” the earphones deliver powerful low-frequency depth. They don't distort at top, unwise volume levels, and still deliver some serious thump at moderate volumes. The lows are nicely matched by the highs, which are also sculpted.

Bill Callahan’s “Drover,” a track with far less deep bass in the mix, gives us a better sense of the Soundcore Life P3’s general sound signature. The drums on this track have a full, round depth to them, and Callahan’s baritone vocals get some added richness. The high-mids and highs are also boosted and sculpted to a notable degree, creating a not-at-all accurate sound signature that is nonetheless balanced and appealing. The app’s EQ allows for plenty of adjustment, so the booming bass can be dialed back to far more reasonable levels.

On Jay-Z and Kanye West’s “No Church in the Wild,” the kick drum loop receives plenty of high-mid presence for its attack to retain its punchiness, but we noticed more of the added bass depth applied to the loop. The vinyl crackle and hiss in the background takes a step forward in the mix, while the vocals are delivered cleanly and clearly, but with some added sibilance. The star of the show is the sub-bass, with rumble you can almost feel.

Unsurprisingly, orchestral tracks like the opening scene from John Adams’ The Gospel According to the Other Mary, sound a little bass-heavy here. But not terribly so, as the higher-register instrumentation is still bright and crisp enough to hold its own.

The mic offers solid intelligibility. Using the Voice Memos app on an iPhone, we could understand every word we recorded, despite the typical Bluetooth distortion. The mic signal is relatively strong, and callers shouldn’t have issues understanding you when there's decent reception.

Unbeatable Performance for the Price

Earlier this year, we were impressed by another pair of Anker earphones, the $130 Soundcore Liberty Air 2 Pro. We still give that pair a slight edge over this one in terms of noise cancellation performance, but we're surprised at just how effective the Soundcore Life P3 earphones are at blocking out deep low-frequency rumble for $50 less. Of course, the $280 Bose QuietComfort Earbuds and Sony WH-1000MX4 are still the best noise-cancelling true wireless models on the market, but Anker proves that you can get good ANC and powerful bass depth for $200 less, and that's enough to earn our Editors' Choice award.

Anker Soundcore Life P3

4.0

Editors' Choice

See It$69.99 at Amazon

MSRP $79.99

Pros

  • Powerful bass depth match with crisp highs

  • Surprisingly strong noise cancellation for the price

  • Adjustable ANC and EQ levels

Cons

  • Sound signature isn't for those seeking accuracy

The Bottom Line

Anker's true wireless Soundcore Life P3 earphones deliver powerful sonic performance and surprisingly good active noise cancellation for well under $100.

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Anker Soundcore Life P3 Review (2024)

FAQs

Are Soundcore Life P3 worth it? ›

Battery life is excellent!! The only annoying issue is when using the buttons to increase or decrease the volume for example, quite a long pause and annoyingly loud beep to confirm which isn't prevelent in some of the other ear buds at this price point. Overall, for the price, they are excellent.

Which are better Soundcore p2 or P3? ›

The P3 are more comfortable, and they come with an ANC feature that offers better noise isolation. Unlike their predecessor, they also support the Anker Soundcore app, so you can customize their sound using the graphic EQ and presets as well as adjust their ANC.

Does Soundcore Life P3 have a mic? ›

Enhanced Call Performance: Life P3 noise cancelling earbuds have 6 microphones and an exclusive algorithm to tune out background noises. Your voice will be heard clearly on calls, video chats, livestreams, and more.

Is Anker Soundcore Life P3 waterproof? ›

The device is dustproof and water-resistant. Water-resistant devices can resist the penetration of water, such as powerful water jets, but not being submerged into water. Is dustproof and water-resistant: is this important to you? This page is currently only available in English.

Are JBL earbuds better than Soundcore? ›

While both headphones are comfortable and well-built, the Anker have a significantly better noise isolation performance, and their integrated mic has a better recording quality. However, the JBL have a significantly better battery performance.

Which is better Life P3 or Liberty Air 2 Pro? ›

Our Verdict. The Anker SoundCore Life P3 Truly Wireless are slightly better than the Anker Soundcore Liberty Air 2 Pro Truly Wireless. The Life P3 are more comfortable, and they have a longer continuous battery life.

Which is better Soundcore or Bose? ›

Anker offers twice as much battery life as Bose

Anker also has the more powerful quick-charging technology: A 10-minute charge supplies 5.5 hours of listening time.

Does Soundcore have good sound quality? ›

Dual high-performance drivers and a unique spiral bass port deliver great sound quality with the Anker SoundCore. For less than $25, the Anker SoundCore provides 24 hours of playback time.

Is Soundcore a good brand of earbuds? ›

These are definitely a contender for some of the best affordable noise canceling earbuds based on performance and value. With an IPX4 rating, long battery life, and good ANC, these are worth a go. You might not want to go for a run with them, but otherwise they're decent.

When was Soundcore Life P3 released? ›

Anker launched the Soundcore Life P3 in June 2021, and as one of the company's more popular pairs, they are easy to find in retail.

Is Soundcore owned by Anker? ›

soundcore is part of the Anker Innovations' family of consumer brands. For more information, please visit soundcore.com. Anker Innovations is a global leader in mobile charging and a developer of unique consumer products that support premium audio, mobile entertainment, and the emerging smart home space.

How long does Soundcore Life P3 take to charge? ›

How long does it take to fully charge the earbuds? About 2 hours. How long does it take to fully charge the charging case? About 2 hours.

Is soundcore P3 worth it? ›

The Soundcore Life P3 is the first I've found that can do it ALL. The active noise cancellation is superb, and you can control it via the app or just by touch of the earbuds. I've had other earbuds that say they cancel noise but they don't even come close to these. The range of connection while listening to music, etc.

Does Soundcore Life P3 support fast charging? ›

If Life P3 is running low on power, a quick... Long Playtime, Fast Charging: Get up to 10 hours of battery life on a single charge with a case that extends it to 50 hours. If Life P3 is running low on power, a quick 10-minute charge will give you 4 hours of playtime.

How to turn on noise cancelling on Soundcore Life P3? ›

Press the "NC" button to cycle between the modes. The order is Noise Cancelling (default) > Transparency > Normal. Manually switch between the three modes and customize the level of noise cancellation and transparency. Note: On the soundcore app, you can also customize the button functions by going to "Controls.”

Is Soundcore better than Airpods? ›

The Apple are more comfortable, have a better case, feel better built, and have ANC. On the other hand, the Anker have better controls, a more bass-heavy sound profile, and a better-dedicated app.

Is Soundcore worth it? ›

The sounds quality is very good, they are super comfortable and overall amazing value for money!

Is Soundcore 3 loud? ›

The Soundcore 3 can produce a more extended low bass than the Soundcore 2, and its companion app comes with a graphic EQ and presets you can use to customize the speaker's sound to your liking. Though the speakers can't get very loud, the Soundcore 3 has fewer compression artifacts at max volume.

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