Review: ENACFIRE E20 Wireless Bluetooth Earbuds

Not long ago I reviewed the Enacfire E18 true wireless earbuds. Since my initial review, the Enacfire team has launched the Enacfire E19, Enacfire E20 and Enacfire Future earbuds. Enacfire has been in the lead to offer affordable true wireless earbuds since the company’s first launch of the E18. In this article, I break down the Enacfire E20’s design, comfort, sound quality, packaging and accessories and also feature a quick comparison to other Bluetooth earbuds in the market. You can also check out our list of the best Bluetooth headphones under $100.

Enacfire E20 Specs

Driver type: Dynamic
Driver size: 10mm
Headphone type: Closed-back/ In-Ear
Impedance: Unknown
Sensitivity: Unknown
Frequency response: 20Hz – 20000Hz
Headphone Connector: True wireless
Color options: Black
Headphone weight: 99.79g (without the charging case)
Battery Life: 3.5-4 hours for the earbuds and 88 hours charging case
Bluetooth version: 5.0

Design

Looks and build quality

The design of the Enacfire E20 is very simple, and earbuds look and feel very high quality. Unlike the E18 or the E19, the Enacfire E20 is a little larger, but the design still makes the earbud a comfortable fit into the ear. However, compared to the E18, the E20’s build quality is still lacking and could use some improvements.

The look of the earbuds is great, a curvy matte black housing and a silver end cap that also acts as a button. As I pointed out earlier, the design is pretty simple and features no logo or any graphics from Enacfire. For a person who loves a minimalistic design, this is a right earbud.

When you consider Enacfire’s earbuds, most come with a simple design and also great build quality. Frankly, I can say the same for the build quality of the Enacfire E20s. Despite the low price, this earbud does not feel cheap or flimsy in hand. Although we did not perform crash tests as we did with the E18, we are pretty confident the earbud can survive a nasty fall.

Controls

The controls of the Enacfire E20 are a disappointment much like their predecessor the Enacfire E18. The pause, rewind, and forwarding options are all controlled from the earbuds but, they lack a volume control/ adjustment on the earbud. While this might not be a huge problem, it would have been nice to have a volume adjustment mechanism on the earbud. Having to go to your media player/ phone now and then to adjust the volume is just annoying. However, if you don’t mind controlling the volume of the earbuds from your device, I would highly recommend this earbud.

Apart from lacking a volume adjustment mechanism, in our tests, the single control button on each earbud works pretty well. A single click on either earbud pauses or resumes a track or song. When both earbuds are in use, a double click action on the right earbud skips to the next track while a double click on the left earbud skips to the previous track or the beginning of the current track.

Battery Life

True wireless earbuds all come with a charging case that features a built-in battery. The charging case provides additional charge to the earbud if the need arises. The Enacfire E20 is no exception and features a charging case with an in-built battery of 2600mAh. While the charging case packs enough power to recharge the earbuds several times, the earbuds to pack enough power to last you over 3hrs of continued listening experience.

The charging is bigger, unlike the compact case that comes with the Enacfire E18. However, the charging case looks stylish and works just as Enacfire claims. The only thing that would come out as a disappointment would be the short charging cable that makes it very inconvenient to plug the case in most places for charging.

Bluetooth Connectivity

The Enacfire E20 comes with the latest Bluetooth 5.0. Connectivity to a media playback device like a phone is very simple and seamless. Instructions on pairing and setting up the earbuds are clear and easy to understand.

The earbud is the master bud. Bluetooth 5.0 allows for a stable connection and longer connection distance than any previous Bluetooth versions.

Comfort and Fit

Because they are a little larger than the Enacfire E18, you might conclude that the E20 is less comfortable. While the Enacfire E18 was comfortable, the E20 with a slightly bigger size had a good fit and felt more balanced while wearing them. The bigger size provides a snug fit when you are exercising, and the different sized ear tips (3 pairs of ear tips) that come with the headphone make it easily customizable to your ear.

Running Use and Gym Use

Apart from providing a snug fit that makes it possible to use this earbud at the gym or while running, the E20 also offers a considerable amount of passive noise isolation to use in a noisy gym or outdoors. The earbuds are not waterproof but like their predecessors the E18 or E19, they are water-resistant to sweat and rain but don’t try swimming or submerging them completely in water. But if you really want to listen to your favorite playlist while swimming, make sure to use waterproof headphones for swimming.

Sound Quality

The sound quality of headphones is always an important feature to look into when purchasing one. Of what use are earbuds or headphones if they sound awful? The good thing is that the Enacfire E20 does not disappoint when it comes to sound quality. So let’s break down the sound of this earbud.

Low-End (Bass)

Cheap and inexpensive headphones often have very muddy bass that makes it very hard to bring out the sound quality clearly. The E20 has a good bass response. The bass response might not be the best in the industry, but it certainly is ok to listen to.

High-End (Treble) and Mids

The high-end and midrange sound output of this earbud is best classified as clear. However, clarity is lost when listening to music that has heavy guitars and drums. The sound quality of the Enacfire E20 seems to benefit while watching movies, or for phone calls. When listening to music, the sound quality seems to degrade, but this will also depend on the music genre you are listening to.

Microphone and Call Quality

For calls, the microphone of this earbud works well enough with very few cases of distortion and audio cut outs. Though call sound is good, the problem is you get sound from only the right earbud instead of both. However, this default feature can be changed to stereo mode to get the call sound out of both earbuds.

Accessories & Packaging

The most prominent accessory included in the Enacfire E20’s packaging would be the charging case. Despite the case is big, it feels solid and well built. The case holds the earbuds securely inside with magnets. The case comes with two ports, one for charging and a USB out to charge a mobile phone if the need arises. The case has a set of 4 led indicators on the front that indicate the charge level.

In the package, also included are several ear tips, the Enacfire E20 earbuds, a very short USB cable, a warranty card and an instructions/manual booklet. Apart from the accessories included, the overall packaging is also elegant and features a bold yellow box with the picture of the earbuds.

What we like:

• Nice fit and design
• Easy pairing with a phone
• Snug fit in-ear design

What we don’t:

• No volume adjustment mechanism
• A smaller and compact charging case would have been better

Comparison Table

Batt.* = Battery Life with Case Charges
Canc.* = Noise-Cancellation

The Competition:

1. Enacfire E20 vs. Enacfire E19

When the Enacfire E19 launched in the market, it grew into popularity and became the next affordable earbud after the E18. Physical and sound differences between the Enacfire E19 and the Enacfire E20 are clearly visible. The E19 comes in a compact/ pocket size charging case while the E20’s charging case is bigger and probably an inconvenience to some users. However, a large charging case comes with its advantages making the E20 hold a charge that could last up to 88 hours compared to the E19 that goes up to 15 hours. The range of the E20 has also significantly improved. The E19 Bluetooth 5.0 support audio transmission up to 33ft while the E20 goes up to 66ft. In terms of the audio quality, I find the E19 a better choice with better and clear instrument separation and a decent soundstage at its current price.

2. Enacfire E20 vs. Enacfire Future

The Enacfire Future Bluetooth earbuds are what I would term as one of the Enacfire earbuds designed for working out. The Future is waterproof and possesses other qualities that make it a good headphone to take to the gym or while running. However, the Enacfire future comes with its fair share of challenges that might make it not the best option. The main setback of this earbud was the low volume. Though the sound quality was good, the volume did not come out loud enough as compared to the E20, E19 or the E18. However, if you do not listen to music at a high volume, these would be a good match. Another significant difference between the E20 and Future earbuds is the battery size. While the Enacfire future surpasses both the E18 and E19 by offering 18 hours playtime, it is no match to the Enacfire E20 that amounts up to 88 hours playtime.

3. Enacfire E20 vs. Enacfire E18

The Enacfire E18 was the genesis of what has become an affordable line of Enacfire true wireless earbuds. The Enacfire E18 are small and compact compared to the E20. The materials and design of both earbuds are great with minor differences between the two earbuds. The significant and observable difference between these two earbuds would be the size of the earbuds and the size of the charging cases. While the E20 beat the E18 handsdown on playtime, I found the sound quality of the E18 a tad more refined than the sound of the E20.

4. Enacfire E20 vs. Tozo T10 TWS

When it comes down to the design, the Enacfire E20 holds it down. Though they are similarly priced, the E20 comes with all the awesome features and a great sound compared to the Tozo T10 TWS. Starting with the battery size, the E20 is clearly superior to the Tozo T10 TWS. Although the Tozo is waterproof, when it comes to outdoor or gym use, they just don’t hold up any better. The comfort is not the best and could use some improvements on the design. The Enacfire E20 to me is just a clear winner. For other Tozo earbuds, we have an article for that.

5. Enacfire E20 vs. iKanzi Wireless Earbuds

At the time of writing of this article, the iKanzi wireless earbuds were priced $5 more than the Enacfire E20. While the iKanzi have most features that I liked the E20 had by far the best audio. The two earbuds are well built and also hold enough charge to power the earbuds long enough. (The E20 at 88-hours, and the iKanzi at 70 hours).