CMF’s Buds Pro 2 and Watch Pro 2 are fine, but they’re not for me

When CMF announced their new hardware – including a new phone, new smartwatch, and new earbuds – I was pretty excited to finally give the brand a try. At the prices they come in at, CMF’s hardware looks great and comes packed with tons of features for the money. While I knew all of it would come with trade-offs, I was still very eager to see just how good some of this hardware could be on such a shoestring budget.

And, overall, I wasn’t completely let down. I imagined one of two scenarios when I ordered the new CMF Watch Pro 2 and Buds Pro 2: either I’d be elated with these dirt-cheap devices or the cut corners would really show through and I’d hate them. In actuality, neither of those scenarios represent what actually happened, and I want to lay out the case for both devices and why they could be a good fit for some: just not for me.

Not bad in a vacuum

Had I received the Buds Pro 2 and Watch Pro 2 without any knowledge of other earbuds or smartwatches, I think it is fair to say I’d be relatively happy with both. Again, for the money, the features on offer are pretty wild.

The earbuds are absolutely packed with the latest stuff you want in earbuds (ANC, transparency, latest codecs, great battery life, solid drivers, etc.), they look good, and the case has a really awesome trick up its sleeve. With the wheel on the top corner, you can remotely control the earbuds without touching them, and I did enjoy this quite a bit.

And the Watch Pro 2 looks good, has an OLED screen, is light, and moves through the entire OS smoothly and without a ton of friction. Without other options, I’d say a lot of people would look at this smartwatch/fitness tracker and find a lot to like about it. Nevermind the fact that it does look good on your wrist.

The comparison problem

But we don’t live in a vacuum, do we? While both of these new CMF gadgets are perfectly functional and useable, there were a few things between them that I simply could not get past. And it’s all the fault of other accessories I’ve tried, enjoyed, and now measure other devices by.

With the Buds Pro 2, I was pretty sorely disappointed in the transparency mode. ANC was pretty good with a few odd frequencies getting through here and there; but the transparency mode still felt like I was talking with my hands over my ears. Once you’ve experienced transparency like you get with the Pixel Buds Pro or AirPods Pro, it’s very hard to go back.

With the Watch Pro 2, my main gripe came down to notification handling. I don’t ask much of smartwatches, but notifications are a very big part of the experience for me. And the Watch Pro 2 is flat out awful at this task. On this watch, you see the notifications come in, but there’s no real action to be taken; and you can’t dismiss them one-by-one. Even when you do get rid of all of your notifications en-masse, they are still present on your phone and have to be dealt with there as well. Absolute deal breaker for me.

Still great for the price

Again, there are many of you who may have never had a decent set of wireless earbuds or have never messed with a smartwatch or something like a Fitbit. If that is you, there’s a good chance you’d be elated with the CMF Buds Pro 2 and Watch Pro 2.

I suppose what I’m saying is both of these devices aren’t bad: they just miss out on a few key features I look for because I’ve tested a lot of stuff. I can’t undo my experiences and forget about what I like; but you might be able to approach CMF’s new hardware with a bit more of a clean slate than me. And in that sort of scenario, you might find that you really like them – maybe even love them – based on the ridiculous price point alone.