Lypertek is a brand we have tested a few of their products most recently the Pureplay Z3 which you may know was also called the Tevi but a long story on the name change. In this review, we are putting our focus on the latest offering the PurePlay Z5.
The Lypertek PurePlay Z5 comes in at £99 (was £115) and now offer ANC something not available on previous models. First impressions they sound great and you would think they should be at a more expensive price point.
Design
The Lypertek PurePlay Z5 won’t win any design awards they look quite similar to a number of other earbuds on the market. The buds come in a small pocket-friendly case that inside houses two wire-free earbuds side by side. They are held in the case magnetically and also the case itself has a magnetic lock to keep everything in place. You will be pleased to know they even survived the shake test.
The case is made of plastic with a chrome-finished logo on the top. On the rear of the case, it has a USB-C port for wired charging and also provides the ability to fast charge you get two hours of playback from just 15 minutes of charge. Don’t have your USB-C cable no problem the case is also Qi-compatible On the case is a small LED which indicates when the case is charging. Also on the case just on the inside in a Bluetooth pairing button.
The buds have changed the design and have now gone for more stem-like earbuds compared to the pebble-like shape of the Z3 before them. I prefer the stem-like shape of the earbuds as they add to the comfort and feel less intrusive. In fact, you could wear them for hours on end without any ear fatigue. The buds also come with 3 types of ear tips:
- Purecomfort- High-density foam for superior comfort and smoother sound.
- Purespace- Thin silicone and wide bore offer a more spacious and open sound.
- PurePower- Thick silicone and narrow bore offer a more focused and powerful sound.
The Pureplay Z5 is also IPX5 rated meaning they handle being caught in the rain but can also handle a sweaty gym session. The controls are touch controls on the Z5 are responsive and the series of taps are not overly complicated. The controls are the following:
- Power on – Hold 3 seconds
- Power off- double tap left bud and hold for 3 seconds
- Play/Pause- Single tap either bud
- Previous track- Double-tap left bud
- Next track- Double-tap right bud
- Volume up- Triple tap right bud
- Volume down – Triple tap left bud
- Answer/finish calls – Single tap either bud
- Voice assistant- Single tap on left bud and hold for 1 second
- ANC/Ambient – Hold either bud 1 second
Battery Life
The PurePlay Z5 is a little bit of a letdown compared to Z3. When ANC is switched you will get a total of 20 hours including the battery life in the buds which is 4 hours on a single charge. Turn off that ANC and the battery life is much better you get 7 hours per single charge with the case charge this comes up to a total of 30 hours. However, why would you sacrifice ANC for longer battery life? If you are not bothered about the ANC the pureplay Z3 gives you a solid 80 hours of battery life.
Connectivity
The Pureplay Z5 uses Bluetooth 5.2 and that provides solid connectivity in testing. They also come with SBC, AAC, aptX codecs which is useful for that Hi-Res audio capability.
Features
The Lypertek Pureplay Z5 unfortunately do not do a good job when it comes to ANC. Yes, you get a good level of passive noise cancellation from the eartips which helps but it’s the ANC that just does not perform well. You would expect transport vehicles down the street or air conditioners at work to be drowned out when using the ANC. Unfortunately, the PurePlay Z5 just does not cut it when tasked with removing unwanted noise.
You will be please to know auto ambient mode works really considering the ANC is so poor. It is activated by simply pausing the music you listen to. It then filters in external sound via the built-in microphones. This feature is really useful when you need to speak to someone or you are on your commute to work and are trying to navigate over a busy road it gives you that full concentration when needed.
Other features include the ability to answer calls which is something more of a standard feature. In our testing, it performed very well and the call quality was excellent.
Pureplay PureControl ANC App
This app allows you to customise the listening experience such as accessing touch controls, adjusting the ANC and ambient mode and also allows you to find the last known connection location of the buds if you happen to misplace one. The star of the is the EQ setting it comes with a series of presets that are very effective.
Audio Quality
I have been using the Pureplay Z5 now for the last few weeks and I have to say I was impressed with the sound quality especially when you activate the LDX mode (Lypertek Definition Expander) via the app. The sound is rich, detailed and the soundstage is wide open. However, this is not the default setting on the Z5. The default setting is a narrow soundstage which makes the lows and mids fight to be heard.
So for the rest of this review, I kept that LDX mode on. So the Pureplay Z5 come with a pair of 10mm dynamic drivers. I have tested a real range of music on these buds from Eminem to Katherine Jenkins. I found you got dynamic mids and the vocals are well-articulated. The lows are impactful and agile you really do get a powerful bass coming from the Z5 that will impress. It did not feel artificial and provided a nice texture. If your track has multiple instruments the dynamic driver sounds quite good.
The mids are what sold me with these buds you get a clean and controlled mid-range. It does not feel overwhelming and provides a good detail retrieval and resolution. The upper midrange is also well run offering lots of detail while still providing sharpness.
Last but not least the highs reproduce the treble with good detail and extension without feeling harsh. The detail level was quite good considering the price. It provides a well-balanced, well-tuned and engaging sound.
Overall I was impressed that the 10mm dynamic driver manages to produce a full bass as well as provide a clean midrange and detailed treble. The instrument separation is fantastic and feels like you’re using a more expensive pair of buds.
The Purecontrol ANC app is especially important as it has that LDX mode that improves the whole sound signature of the Z5 by increasing the upper mid energy and treble extension. You also get an improvement in the sub-bass which makes the sound more dynamic compared to the default mode.
In addition to the LDX mode, you also have the following EQ presets:
- Bass Boost
- Movie
- Podcast
- Gaming
- Loudness
- Neutral
You can also use two slots for custom setups. Regardless of the EQ profile, you select the one thing they all share is they are all levelled out and hit the right notes depending on the EQ preset you select.
Verdict
The Lypertek Pureplay Z5 are a very comfortable pair of TWS that also comes with a simple design the charging case fits perfectly in my pocket and you also get the benefit of wireless charging. However, if you are looking for a pair with effective ANC the PurePlay Z5 fall short.
The sound quality does make up for the lack of noise cancellation. The LDX mode via the app is essential with the Z5’s. They offer a broad soundstage which will enhance every part of the music you are listening to. In addition to that I found the touch controls to be very effective and also that auto-ambient mode was useful at times so it’s a nice feature to have.
Unfortunately, it’s not just the ANC that provides an issue in my eyes. The battery life has been decreased from the Z3 offering over 80 hours of battery life compared to the Z5 that only offer 20 hours with ANC switched on or turn ANC off you get a slight increase to 35 hours but its mediocre compared to the battery life in the Z3 model before them.
Considering the cost if you can look past the poor ANC and low battery life they do provide excellent sound quality but with other areas like the battery life and ANC not performing as you might expect they just feel a little unimpressive to recommend. If your looking for a pair of TWS that offer quality ANC and better battery life check out the Edifier TWS NB2 Pro or even save some money and buy the PurePlay Z3.
Product Rating:
Design: 4.0 out of 5.0 stars
Features: 3.0 out of 5.0 stars
Battery Life: 2.0 out of 5.0 stars
Audio Quality: 5.0 out of 5.0 stars5.0
Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5.0 stars – 3.5 Stars
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