The SoundCore Spirit Pro Bluetooth earbuds are exactly that; Soundcore Spirit’s with pro features. For the $10 additional cost, I believe the benefits are definitely there; let me explain why.
When I first reviewed the SoundCore Spirit’s; I said that the fit was one that I preferred to the “winged” design behind the ear. The Spirit Pro’s continue with this design while also bringing both some external and internal upgrades. Some of these are informed to use on the packaging.
The Spirit Pro’s have an additional 2 hours of battery life over the Spirit’s; 10 hours total for the Pro’s. The Pro’s have an EQ option by holding down the play and volume up key that switches between an enhanced sound profile and the regular soundstage profile. The Pro’s have HD audio with Qualcomm aptX, but I’ll say that unless this is somehow connected with the EQ; I don’t hear much of a difference between the Spirit’s and the Pro’s, they both sound good! The Spirit’s do have Bluetooth 5.0 and the Pro’s have 4.2, which is somewhat of a disappointment when you consider one is a “pro” version of the other; but in my everyday use, I cannot say it’s affected me negatively.
Externally, there are some differences visually. The Spirit’s housing looks to be slightly bigger on the outside compared to the Pro’s due to some tapering of the body that the Pro’s have compared to the Spirit’s. The Spirit’s have the typical wire mesh/weave that most Anker earbuds seem to have; however on the Pro’s it looks to be made out of a metal plate with perforated holes. It definitely seems to be higher quality with the Pro’s, and I would imagine they would be easier to wipe off and clean than the wire mesh/weave.
Both the Spirit’s and Pro’s also share the same magnetism which maintains convenience of keeping them from sliding off one’s neck when not in use.
The inline controls are the same in configuration, but differ in presentation. The Spirit’s have a flap to cover the charging port, and the Pro’s has an open access port. The buttons are also slightly different, with the Spirit’s being made more individual and separated from each other, and the Pro’s being more of a continuous (possibly more water/sweat resistant/proof) section of buttons. To be honest, I find it nice not to have to deal with the flap over the charging port. It’s really not a big deal either way, but so long as the water resistance/proofing isn’t degraded; the open port is more convenient for me.
In real world use, they work as well as what we have come to expect from Anker/SoundCore earbuds; and this is a good thing! I like the EQ, but I can’t say that it has a place for use all the time. There are some songs where the I prefer the non-enhanced soundstage, and others where the EQ boost makes a real positive difference. This is more than likely highly subjective; but I tend to believe having choice often lends itself to subjectivity better than not.
So the real question is, are the Pro’s worth the additional $10 over the Spirit’s? In my opinion they are. You gain the same great fit, with an additional 2 hours of battery life, and some design changes that appear to be of higher quality design choices. You will lose the Bluetooth 5.0 option that the Spirit’s have, so you’ll have to consider whether this is an issue. For me, it is not, and I would gladly choose the Pro’s if given a choice between the two.
Here are some comparison pictures between the SoundCore Spirit’s and the SoundCore Spirit Pro’s:
