Anker Soundcore Space 2 Pro review: Big bang for less bucks

Anker Soundcore Space 2 Pro offers big performance at lower price point. The sleek, lightweight design of these headphones, priced at $200, puts them in direct competition with industry giants like Apple, Bose and Sony. The inclusion of Anker's new Thus audio chip in these headphones is a major selling point, promising enhanced voice clarity. At just $200, the Space 2 Pro is not only affordable, but also a worthy contender on its own.

The headphones boast premium design elements, including metal sliders for fit adjustments, soft leather wrapped headband and ear pads, and subtle metallic accents. The 35mm drivers, made with two different materials, deliver more bass and overall clarity than typically found in the $200 range. The headphones excel in acoustic-driven genres, such as Zach Bryan's Young Manhood and Other Donatable Organs, where the piano, acoustic guitar, and string section float behind the interwoven vocals.

One of the standout features of the Space 2 Pro is its ability to hold the Guinness World Record for the clearest over-ear headphones for calls. Thanks to the Thus chip and a six-microphone array, the headphones offer extremely clear voice performance while effectively blocking background noise. The battery life is also impressive, providing up to 30 hours with active noise cancellation on, and up to 60 hours with it off. During extensive testing, the headphones consistently provided 31 hours of playtime with ANC enabled.

However, the Space 2 Pro has some shortcomings, particularly in audio features. Anker's Hear ID 5.0, which uses a hearing test to customize the sound to the user's preferences, did not offer significant improvement over the stock tuning. Similarly, spatial audio settings and curated presets did not provide meaningful differences in sound quality.

The adaptive ANC 3.0, while effective at lowering the volume of human voices and blocking keyboard clicks, struggles with constant noise sources like white noise machines and raucous fans. The absence of a charging case and the potential cost of Anker's transcription service could also be seen as drawbacks. Despite these limitations, Anker's Space 2 Pro proves that it can compete with top brands, offering comparable performance at a significantly lower price point.