Baseus Bass BS1 NC

Flagship-level mics and LDAC sound for budget money, but the app is a privacy-hungry mess and the EQ is broken. Buy it for the sound, not the software.

The mic setup is the real surprise. Six mics with AI voice isolation put this thing in the 98th percentile for call quality in our database. That's flagship territory from a budget brand. Sound is also a standout at the 91st percentile, with the 13mm driver and LDAC doing real work. But here's the catch: the customizable EQ is a mess. Users say it's basically unusable, and Spatial Acoustics locks the EQ settings anyway. So you get great sound out of the box, but don't expect to fine-tune it. ANC is solid for a semi-in-ear design, which is genuinely impressive, but comfort sits at a rough 29th percentile. Some ears just won't love this fit.

Against the Sony WF-1000XM6 or Apple AirPods Pro 3, the BS1 NC loses on comfort and polish. Those are in-ear designs with better seals and more refined ANC. But they also cost three to four times more. The Nothing Ear (3) is a closer fight, with better app design and transparency mode, but the Baseus beats it on mic quality and battery. If you're comparing to the Soundcore P31i, the Baseus wins on sound and ANC, but the Soundcore has a more comfortable fit for most people.

For BRL 349, this is a steal if you can live with the quirks. You're getting flagship-level mic performance and LDAC audio for less than half what the big brands charge. The app is annoying and the EQ is broken, but the out-of-box sound is good enough that you might not care. If you want ANC without the ear-plug feeling, this is one of the only games in town.

The Baseus BS1 NC is a weird little contradiction, and honestly, that's what makes it interesting. You've got a semi-in-ear design that usually means zero noise isolation, but Baseus crammed adaptive hybrid ANC in there anyway. It works better than it has any right to, especially for the price. The big story here is value. You're getting LDAC, Bluetooth 6.0, a 13mm driver, and 40 hours of total battery in a 4g package. That's a lot of tech for not a lot of money.

If you want a secure, sealed fit for workouts or you love deep-customizing your EQ, this isn't it. The comfort is mediocre and the EQ is broken. Go get the Soundcore P31i for a better fit or the Nothing Ear (3) if you want a proper app experience.

The Baseus BS1 NC is a budget earbud that punches way above its weight in sound and call quality. The semi-in-ear ANC is a genuine differentiator, and the battery life is solid. But the broken EQ, missing transparency mode, and invasive app permissions are real annoyances. If you want great sound and calls without spending much, and you don't mind a semi-in-ear fit, this is an easy recommendation. If you need a perfect fit or love tweaking your EQ, look elsewhere.