The OnePlus Nord Buds 2r are the company's entry-level earbuds and a cutdown variant of the Nord Buds 2 that we looked at a few months ago. The new model primarily loses the ANC and transparency modes along with a few other minor things while retaining the core audio performance and feature set.

Design

The Nord Buds 2r are similar looking to the Nord Buds 2; the earbuds have the same basic shape but the stalks have been rounded off and the earbuds in general are a bit smaller. This does make them a bit more finicky while handling compared to the Nord Buds 2.

The case for the two models looks similar but the Nord Buds 2r case is ever so slightly smaller and has redesigned interior. It also lacks the pairing button found on the Nord Buds 2 case; now you have to press and hold the touch-sensitive area on both earbuds simultaneously to enter pairing mode. This is much less convenient than the pairing button on the case but not something you'd have to do often.

The Thunder Gray and Lightning White colors of the Nord Buds 2 with the speckled finish have been replaced with Deep Gray and Triple Blue for the Nord Buds 2r minus the speckles. The overall build quality and finish are otherwise the same, which is to say decent for the price and you also get an IP55 rating for dust and water resistance.

Software

The Nord Buds 2r are natively supported on OnePlus devices and through the HeyMelody app on non-OnePlus Android devices. The iOS version of the app does not detect these earbuds, which remains the case for the Nord Buds 2 as well.

The software experience is barebones; you get a choice of three EQ presets, which is down by one from the Nord Buds 2. I'm not sure why the cheaper model also has to have fewer EQ presets as if they cost money to implement, but I digress. You also get a custom EQ with six bands and you can create multiple profiles.

Apart from that you can also adjust the gesture controls for individual taps. This I found useful as the touch area on the earbuds is very sensitive and very easy to tap while inserting or removing the earbuds. I had to disable the gesture for a single tap to prevent inadvertent play/pauses. On that note, the Nord Buds 2r, much like the Nord Buds 2, don't have wear detection so you will have to manually play and pause when you insert or remove them.